Technology
Each student in the district is assigned 1:1 technology. IPads for grades K-5 and grades 6-12 are given Laptops. This was done during COVID-19 when all learning was virtual, due to the decrease in student performance is decided by the School Board, Superintendent and Curriculum Director to keep this in place so that student could work an extra 20-30 minutes during the day in elementary school on I-Ready MATH and Reading to remediate those skills that were lost. Middle and High School have hybrid assignments to enhance their skills. There was a big fall in academic performance both during and returning from COVID-19. Various testing in now done these computers as well.
Common Core Standards
At the direction of Governor Ron DeSantis, the Department of Education released the proposed Florida B.E.S.T. (Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking) Standards for English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics, and announced that Common Core has been officially eradicated from Florida classrooms. The Commissioner is recommending that the State Board of Education formally adopt these standards
“Florida has officially eliminated Common Core. I truly think this is a great next step for students, teachers, and parents,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “We’ve developed clear and concise expectations for students at every grade level and allow teachers the opportunity to do what they love most – inspire young Floridians to achieve their greatest potential. These standards create pathways for students that lead to great college and professional outcomes and parents will now be able to reinforce what their children are learning in the classroom every day. Florida’s B.E.S.T. Standards were made by Florida teachers for Florida students, and I know they will be a model for the rest of the nation.”
“Governor DeSantis made it very clear that we had to reimagine the pathway to young Floridians becoming great citizens, and we’ve done exactly that with the B.E.S.T. Standards,” said Commissioner of Education Richard Corcoran. “Florida will be the first state in the nation with an ELA booklist that spans grades K-12, the first state in the nation with a civics booklist embedded in its ELA standards, and a state that has dropped the crazy math. Florida has completely removed ourselves from the confines of Common Core.”
Why is Florida against Common Core standards?
The Florida Department of Education defended the state’s move away from Common Core, with a spokeswoman saying those standards had produced “stagnant results” on national tests and state leaders were right to “raise expectations” with new “bold” standards.
Why is Common Core so controversial?
Common Core has been controversial since the beginning. While some people hailed it as a much-needed educational reform that would correct equity issues and improve education in a global society, others saw it as an infringement on state’s rights issues, especially in light of way it was tied to federal funding.
What standards does Florida use in Education?
CPALMS is the State of Florida’s official source for standards. All standards for every subject area and grade level can be found here.
LBGT
Volusia County Schools is dedicated to our students achieving lifelong academic, behavioral, social and emotional success. LGBTQ health and well-being policies, programming, and practices in VCS will enhance ongoing efforts to make each of our schools a safer place for all students with an emphasis on the often-targeted community of LGBTQ students and staff. LGBTQ efforts are intended to improve the way administrators implement existing federal, state, and local laws and policies concerning harassment and discrimination.
Rose Roland, assistant superintendent for student services outlined the measures the district is taking to support LGTBQ students, including the creation of a support guide, attendance at a virtual conference sponsored by Equity Florida (an LGBTQ civil rights organization), and the training principals receive every year to be able to support students’ diverse needs.
“Our goal is that every action and speech of our students, teachers and administrations, should and would be inclusive and model non-discriminatory efforts,” Roland said.
At the board’s meeting on, a resolution to bring awareness to LGBTQ health in Volusia County Schools died for lack of support, inciting backlash from the community when board members expressed they felt the topic of sexual orientation was best discussed at home.
At the next board meeting, board members had a change of heart. School Board Member Ruben Colon said the context provided by Roland is what was missing in the March 9 resolution. He said the resolution was a missed opportunity to highlight statistics on LGBTQ suicide, depression and discrimination. We as School Counselors have been trained by State Mental Health Counselors as to how to better deal with these issues, but following the new law implemented by Gov. Ron DeSantis. There was a short video provided to teachers at the beginning of the school year.
The Relationship between Society and Curriculum
Student’s Name
Institution
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Instructor’s Name
Date
The Relationship between Society and Curriculum
Curriculum includes subjects that make up a course of study in schools, colleges, and universities. Curriculum development can be defined as a step-by-step process of creating a positive According to Vreuls et al. (2022), curriculum development is one of the most complex tasks that educators have. Various steps involved in curriculum development include analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. Several socio-political and technical issues, as well as, professional processes affect curriculum development (Vreuls et al., 2022). Due to the accumulation of these social, political, economic, and professional changes, the complexity of curriculum development has only been seen to have increased in recent years. This paper presents the first assignment: the relationship between society and curriculum.
The Organization
The organization is Volusia County School Board. Volusia County is found in the heart of the beautiful east coast of Florida. It is a rapidly growing and progressive area in the State of Florida. The county is made up of 16 municipalities (the School District of Volusia County, 2022). The country’s public school system has approximately 63,000 students and about 7,800 employees. The school system is the 16th largest school district in the state and the largest employer in the county. The School Board of Volusia County is a governing board of the school district. This board has the authority to supervise the public schools in the school district. The local school board has a critical role to play in curriculum development (the School District of Volusia County, 2022). The board makes critical decisions and approves the curriculum. The adoption committee engages the school district board throughout the process.
Three Factors Influencing Curriculum Development
The three forces that led to curriculum changes in the United States include since 2000 include diversity education, Common Core State Standards, and Technology and 21st-Century Learning. These issues influenced the curriculum developed across almost all school districts in the United States (Glatthorn et al., 2018). Diversity groups such as the LGBTQ and other ethnic groups have become common and the need to learn about them is becoming necessary. Diversity in education is associated with gender, race, social class, exceptionality, and the interaction of these variables. Students are engaged when the curriculum is relevant which is why these changes are effected (Glatthorn et al., 2018). Common Core State Standards (CCSS) imposed various academic quality standards among states (Gordon et al., 2019). Technological advances lead to new information and learning strategies.
Curium Changes
The School Board of Volusia County constitutes the rulemaking body of the district school system. In that regard, the School Board of Volusia County authorized the changes. According to the School District of Volusia County (2022), the board decides once a quorum is achieved. The school board meeting is presided over by the board chairperson. People involved in the decision-making include the chairperson of the school board, the vice chairperson, the superintendent, and board members. The superintendent is the chief executive officer of the school board and serves as the secretary (the School District of Volusia County, 2022). The leader is responsible for the administration and management of the schools.
The changes made due to the three forces names in the previous paragraphs occurred between 200 and 2009. The changes made during this time due to the identified forces include the introduction of diversity education into the curriculum, the incorporation of technology education, and the introduction of various academic quality standards in the curriculum (Gordon et al., 2019). Students began learning about different cultures, gender, sexual orientation, and social class. The reason was to make learning relevant to learners and allow them to learn about the cultural background of the state.
The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and the National Governors Association (NGA) led the development of CCSS. It was meant to create K–12 English language arts and mathematics standards that are higher and clear, research-based, internationally benchmarked, and aligned with college- and career-readiness expectations (Glatthorn et al., 2018). Regarding technology and recent learning, the curriculum developers integrated technology learning. The intention was to make the needs of the new 21st-century learner a priority, promote innovation, and enhance learning flexibility through online education. Stakeholders had positive responses regarding these major curriculum developmental changes.
Personal Observations
Based on the analysis provided above and the understanding as to why the changes were made, I agree with them. These priorities are still relevant to date and have led to improved quality of education. For example, diversity education has enhanced cultural understanding. Furthermore, it has made learning relevant to many minority students such as Native Americans and African Americans (Glatthorn et al., 2018). Learning about special groups such as LGBTQ has helped people to have a positive perception of them, hence reducing stereotypes. Technology knowledge has led to more creativity and flexibility in learning. In addition, the CCSS has improved the quality of education. Something to add is to expand diversity education to ensure all groups are incorporated. This will improve the learning experience of all students originating from any minority group (Gordon et al., 2019). A better perception of LGBTQ should be established because this population is still facing many social challenges.
Conclusion
Curriculum development is a process of developing a method of learning. School district boards play a significant role in curriculum development. The three forces that have influenced curriculum development in the US since 2000 include diversity education, Common Core State Standards, and Technology and 21st-Century Learning. These issues have had a positive impact on American education.
References
Glatthorn, A. A., Boschee, F., Whitehead, B. M., & Boschee, B. F. (2018). Curriculum leadership: Strategies for development and implementation. SAGE publications.
Gordon II, William R., Taylor, R.T. & Oliva, P.F. (2019). Developing the curriculum (9th Ed). Pearson
The School District of Volusia County. (2022). Volusia County Schools. https://www.vcsedu.org/school-board
Vreuls, J., Koeslag‐Kreunen, M., van der Klink, M., Nieuwenhuis, L., & Boshuizen, H. (2022). Responsive curriculum development for professional education: Different teams, different tales. The Curriculum Journal, 33(4). https://doi.org/10.1002/curj.155