Partnership of Lincoln-Way 210 and its feeder districts to shape future science curriculum

Some fifty representatives from all grade school districts that send students to Lincoln-Way High School District 210 are meeting regularly to learn about science and to determine how to best align curricular expectations to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS.) The standards were adopted by the State of Illinois in February and must be implemented by fall of 2016.

The NGSS partnership came together when District 157-C Director of Curriculum & Instruction, Janet Goggins, asked District 210 if they would consider leading informational sessions to provide input and guidance to the feeder school representatives about the new standards that would help them create goals and a vision for kindergarten through eighth grade science. District 210 Assistant Superintendent Tim Reilly agreed that Lincoln-Way would coordinate the informational sessions. Ms. Goggins then invited representatives from her own district and Summit Hill 161, New Lenox 122, Manhattan 114 and Mokena 159 districts to participate. Enthusiasm about the partnership is evident, with participation by one teacher representative per grade level from each district. Lincoln-Way West High School science teacher, Karla Horn, is facilitating the sessions.

“At the end of the day, we want to spark an interest and love for science,” said Ms. Goggins. “We want to see hands-on science, with students inquiring and wondering about science.” The high school/grade school partnership will be ongoing. Ms. Goggins continued, “Once the new standards are implemented in the grade schools, we look forward to Lincoln-Way’s expert science teachers coming into K-8 classrooms at the feeder schools to conduct science experiments that get the kids excited.”

According to Achieve, an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit education reform organization dedicated to working with states to raise academic standards and graduation requirements, improve assessments, and strengthen accountability, the NGSS are K-12 science standards created through a collaborative, state-led process. Twenty-six lead partner states provided leadership to the standards writing teams. These lead state partners continue to provide guidance to states as they consider adoption of the NGSS. The new standards are based on the Framework for K-12 Science Education, which was developed by the National Research Council, the staffing arm of the National Academy of Sciences, and released in July 2011. The vision laid out in the Framework identifies what students need to know and be able to do to be a functional citizen, which includes being scientifically literate and an effective member of the U.S. workforce. More information about the standards can be found at http://www.nextgenscience.org.

The NGSS do not define a curriculum. States and local districts have the responsibility for providing more detailed guidance to classroom teachers, and provide the specific content to help students learn the key ideas in the standards. NGSS is meant to clarify the learning goals that schools have for their students. The path to those goals, the curriculum, is also up to the school and the teacher, with each year of learning being a foundation for the following year. The NGSS are aligned with the Common Core State Standards by grade and level of difficulty.

The NGSS study is well underway for the Lincoln-Way area schools, with staff currently learning the standards and seeing how they impact each grade level. As the year progresses, staff members at each district will determine how to implement the standards at each of their schools. Ms. Goggins continued, “With implementation in the fall of 2016, we are starting now to have this year to get a good foundation across the board. While each district is not being told how to implement the standards, we will all have the same foundation and the same target. We want to assure Lincoln-Way that when we send kids to them from any district they will come prepared every year. It is very exciting that we are functioning like a K-12 district and we’re doing whatever we can to make that happen.”

Shown: District 157-C science teacher (center) Diane Bunnell works with teachers from all Lincoln-Way feeder districts during a Next Generation Science Standards meeting recently.