April 7 Board of Education Instructional Policy & Student Achievement Committee meeting
Covered by Documenter Wittman Sullivan (see his notes here)
Akron Public Schools administrators may implement a new Social Studies curriculum for K-3 students this fall. It has been 15 years since new materials were adopted.
Ongoing changes in state mandates that impact reading and math left no room for adaptations to the social studies curriculum until now, according to school officials.
After a year-long review process, the Board of Education plans to vote on adoption of the new curriculum at its next board meeting on April 28.
Learning Specialist Adam Motter presented Social Studies School Services/Nystrom: Young Citizens Program to the Akron Board of Education at the April 7 Instructional Policy & Student Achievement Committee meeting.
Social Studies curriculum starts with the individual
The new curriculum includes digital materials such as lessons and worksheets for teachers to use, Motter said. Plus there will be an online textbook for students with interactive activities and an “inquiry-forward look at social studies.”
Social studies teachers often teach from the inside out. This means that students start in kindergarten by looking at themselves and their lives, according to Motter. Then the curriculum moves to family and community by third grade.
“We want to teach social studies through multiple perspectives,” Motter said. “We want our students to see different kinds of people and different ways of thinking and be curious about their community.”
The proposed curriculum uses ready-to-go handouts for hands-on activities and to help students learn how to read maps.
A team that included APS faculty, administrators and parents unanimously chose the vendor from a group of five.
“This program will give our youngest learners a basic foundation and will build through the grades, empowering students to become active and informed citizens,” Tami Semelsberger, a kindergarten teacher at Resnik Community Learning Center, said during the presentation.
Why Social Studies School Services?
Before a print or digital curriculum can undergo the adoption process, it must meet certain criteria that ultimately affect student learning.
The steering group applied criteria in their reviews that looked for:
- A depth of understanding state standards.
- Support for all learners.
- Ease of use for students and teachers.
- The ability to monitor and assess progress.
- Inclusion of historically accurate information from vetted sources.
- Content that is age-level appropriate.
- Recognition and acknowledgment of different cultures in the community.
- Representation of history for all learners.
Curriculum reviewers favored this program because of its easy-to-read text layout and storytelling text. The content builds a sense of community with hands-on learning using maps and pre-built assessments. Elements can be edited based on student needs, Motter said.
Moving ahead with training and implementation
The curriculum is planned for a fall launch. Teachers will receive orientation in the program and support throughout the summer and fall with ongoing training beyond that.
Textbooks and materials will be on display outside the board office at the APS building, 10 N. Main St., until the board votes.
The next Board of Education meeting is Monday, April 28 at 5:30 p.m. It is open to the public and residents can attend in person at 10 N. Main St. or view online. Those wishing to speak at the meeting can learn more here about how to do so.
