We compared high school students' performance in a traditional comprehension assessment requiring them to identify key information and draw inferences from single texts, and a scenario-based assessment (SBA) requiring them to integrate, evaluate and apply information across multiple sources. Both assessments focused on a non-academic topic.…

In response to the dearth of research on K to 6 teacher preparation for teaching writing, we investigated writing methods course instructors' course assignments. Participants' courses met the following criteria: (a) Courses taken by undergraduate elementary teacher candidates; (b) Writing methods courses; (c) Use of exemplary writing instructional…

Over the past several decades, there has been increasing interest in program- and university-level assessment and aligning learning outcomes to program content. Curriculum mapping is a tool that creates a visual map of all courses in the curriculum and how they relate to curriculum learning outcomes. Assessment tools/activities are often included…

Knowing that the majority of dual enrollment courses are taught on high school campuses by high school instructors, it is critical that mechanisms are in place to ensure the quality of the curriculum and the many components surrounding the curriculum--including textbooks, learning outcomes, course syllabuses, assignments, grading practices,…

Some district schools in Southwestern Idaho, particularly the Treasure Valley, have witnessed an important growth in the immigration of people from many areas of the world, particularly sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, Central Asia, Central Europe, Mexico, and Latin America. The children of these immigrants and refugees, whose cultural backgrounds…

In addition to experiencing the generic quality and cost problems faced by all colleges and universities, community colleges face problems particular to their student populations. They need to design more flexible schedules for working adult students, create a greater sense of community or engagement for commuting students, address the special…

This framework has been designed to help Idaho elementary and secondary public schools develop their physical education curricula and programs and formulate realistic goals. The document represents a change from past approaches and one early section details some examples of how this guide is different from previous guides. Among these differences…

This 1974 guide is intended for use by Idaho administrators and music teachers as a ready source of information for a music program designed for student participation, education, and cultural development. This is a companion to the previous State Department of Education publication, "Music Program for Idaho Elementary Schools," and,…

This framework is designed to help Idaho schools develop a social studies curriculum and to formulate realistic goals for themselves and their students. The guide is correlated to Idaho's performance-based documents and the state-approved social studies textbooks. The framework is built around the 10 themes for social studies developed by the…

A better understanding of economics enables people to understand the forces that affect them every day and helps them identify and evaluate the consequences of private decisions and public policies. Learning how to reason about economic issues is important also because the analytic approach of economics differs in key respects from approaches…

Designed to present the content requirements needed to satisfy K-8 proficiency expectations in music for the state of Idaho, this course guide identifies four overall goals for students to strive to achieve. In goal 1, students will perceive and understand the elements of music, including rhythm, melody, harmony, tempo-dynamics, form, and timbre.…

Arranged into six parts, the report presents a program overview describing the allocation of seed money, resources, training, and technical assistance to 10 postsecondary campuses in Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming to assist in the integration of women's studies into the curriculum. Following the program description (part 1), part 2 focuses on…

World history guides students to an understanding of culture, geography, and diversity of expression using a historical chronology that illustrates humankind's connections throughout the world. The state of Idaho mandates a core requirement of two credits to be completed in the field of arts and humanities. To achieve success in this core…

Inquiring into families, communities, states, nations, and various peoples of the world through history engages students in the aspirations, struggles, accomplishments, and failures of real people in various aspects of their lives. The historical record is inextricably linked to the geographic setting in which it developed. The ultimate goal of…

This guide is intended for use by Idaho educators in implementing courses to meet that state's new composition requirements for high school students. Following a brief overview of the new requirements, the major section of the guide presents information about class size, teacher qualifications, and materials needed for the courses. The role of…