Faculty members across all disciplines have received copies of the state standards for their particular field. Some departments have textbooks that include the State Standards as part of the curriculum development. Every department has been working to integrate department curriculum with district, state, and national standards. Progress has been reported in English, Math, Social Studies, World Languages, and Science.
Departments have been examining and adjusting their curriculum to meet state standards and to develop common assessments.
The mathematics department has been reviewing student data and identifying low performing students. Strategies regarding grading policies and instructional practices have been reviewed in an effort to improve student achievement. Teachers completed training in the use of Geometer’s Sketchpad for use in all geometry classes in the fall, 2003. An Algebra A series was offered in the fall to allow opportunities for students to master CAHSEE and Algebra topics.
The English department has worked on a standards-based scope and sequence plan for English 1-4; recently adopted by the district. Teachers have begun to use rubrics in evaluating student essays. In addition, the entire department has participated in the Urban Dreams program, which combines technology with human rights issues. High Point, a reading intervention program that offers standards-based reading instruction in reading and language arts, is being offered for struggling readers and English Language Learners to accelerate their growth in language and literacy. The district adopted the standards-aligned Holt series of Language Arts texts. Extensive staff development will take place during the summer of 2004 with the texts to arrive in August.
The World Language Department is in the process of adopting new textbooks (after 15 years), which will put us in alignment with the state standards for the first time.
The Graphics Arts department has re-written course descriptions to align with state standards. The courses have been articulated with the local community colleges. In addition, teachers have received training in project-based learning, which has been proven to improve student performance. Our computer teachers have been re-aligning lesson plans to comply with standards pertaining to technical literacy, communication ability, and research and reasoning skills. Efforts have begun to improve collaboration across disciplines as a means of connecting student’s work from subject to subject.
The Science department is developing common standards-based lessons and assessments in lab science classes. Department members have begun the process of looking at student work across classrooms. Additionally, the science department is adopting several shared practices: uniform grading policy, common note-taking format and note-taking strategies, common inquiry questioning categories, common reading questioning categories, and a common system for science inquiry.
In Social Studies teachers are working to develop common curriculum and grading policies. A new course in Life Skills is being offered to all 9th graders that focuses on adjusting to high school life, study skills, and state standards in health (providing information about STD’s, and cultural awareness).
Performing Arts class curriculum is aligned to state Visual and Performing Arts standards. Each student participates in at least two music, dance or drama products each year. The department produces eleven events each year.
Physical Education is a 2-year graduation requirement for all students in California. The state framework requires grade-specific instruction. At Skyline the physical education classes are co-ed, and all classes contain students of mixed grades. This blending of students across grade levels makes developing a sequenced curriculum, tracking student progress from year to year, and teaching to framework standards impossible. The problems are attributed to master scheduling difficulties that have resulted from budget cuts.
In the last two years, staff has been cut and class loads are maximized to over 50 students each.
In spite of these conditions, great efforts are made by the department to engage students in personalized fitness development. The first six weeks of instruction and two days per week thereafter are committed to fitness. All students experience five different sport activities, which include both team and individualized offerings.
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