CURRICULUM
The word “curriculum” is often thought of as the curricular resources that instructors use, such as textbooks. However, the curriculum is actually our state standards. The State Board of Education regularly examines and revises content area standards to ensure that they remain relevant and rigorous. Most recently, the K-12 math standards were revised in the spring of 2024. All content area standards can be viewed on the Iowa Department of Education’s website.
Just as standards are updated, so are our curricular resources. Every content area’s curricular resources are updated roughly every six years. Of course, this depends on several factors including state guidelines, budgetary considerations, and unpredictable factors like the pandemic. The K-5 and 6-12 math curricular resources were updated in 2021 and the literacy curricular resources were updated in 2023. Your child’s instructor is the best person to contact regarding the particular resources that are used in each class.
INSTRUCTION
In 2021, our district adopted Marzano’s Art and Science of Teaching as our guide for our instructional framework. The framework is designed to bring alignment to our PK-12 teaching practices and to help instructors understand the components of effective teaching. Effective teaching in every classroom is the second level in becoming a High Reliability School
In subsequent years, teachers have shared effective strategies during their collaborative meetings. Teachers have recorded their teaching for self and peer reflection. Instructional “snapshots” and routines have been created so that every teacher and every teacher evaluator has a clear understanding of the instructional elements that should be practiced throughout our school system.
ASSESSMENT
Colfax-Mingo Schools strive to maintain a balanced assessment system. This means that we administer appropriate screening, diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments in a manner that is timely but does not overwhelm students with constant testing.
Educational screening tests are like screening tests that a health provider may administer, such as blood pressure checks and blood samples. Educational screening tests are given several times a year to determine whether students are proficient in literacy, math, and science. For example, the FAST assessment is a literacy screener that is typically given in the fall, winter, and spring to students in grades K-6. Students in grades 7-11 are given the literacy, math, and science MAP tests in the fall and winter. These tests help instructors determine whether students are progressing appropriately throughout the school year.
Just as a health provider may want to dig a little deeper into results from a screener by administering specific tests, so do educators. When a screening test indicates results outside of expectations, educators may administer diagnostic tests to target specific student learning needs.
Teachers administer their own formative assessments within their classes to determine whether students have achieved the learning targets associated with particular lessons and units. Formative assessments can be anything from a quick thumbs up/thumbs down check, a written response on an exit ticket, or a quiz. Additionally, teachers can use formative assessments to determine whether their instruction was effective in helping students understand the material and whether students are ready to move on to the next concept.
Summative assessments are more high-stakes tests that occur less frequently. They are more representative of a final product or performance. Summative assessments can include end-of-unit tests or projects or end-of-semester finals. State assessments and college entrance exams can be considered a form of summative assessments as the culmination of a year or years of learning. All students in the state of Iowa take the ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) in the spring of every year, and some students may take culminating assessments such as the ACT (American College Testing).
Every public school in Iowa’s scores on the ISASP are posted on Iowa School Performance Profiles. This is a public website where people can also access school demographic information, Conditions for Learning data, and other school information. Schools use this information to gauge their progress as a district and to set annual improvement goals.
Primary Contacts
