1. What Makes a
Good Curriculum?
(Criteria or Marks
of an Effective
Curriculum)
2. Curriculum has the potential to have a
dramatic effect on student achievement
and teacher quality. When teachers
thoroughly learn to use a highly
effective curriculum, they learn about
how to teach a particular subject and
have ready-made lessons and materials
organized in a developmental sequence
that promotes student learning.
3. How can you tell what makes a good
curriculum? It’s not simple. People
looking for simple answers will base
decisions on the most superficial
things: cover design, greater number
of pages, special features, or that
they like the sales person. But people
looking to implement a quality
curriculum have work to do.
4. First of all if it is going to improve
student achievement, a quality
curriculum will require changes,
changes that faculty and administrators
may find uncomfortable. But unless
changes are made, how can anyone
expect any changes in student
achievement?
So, what kinds of
changes
5. Content
Content in a quality
curriculum is more
thorough and deeper.
Instead of mentioning
topics, concepts in history,
math, or science are
developed and explored.
7. Lessons are not overly
complicated or too simple. They
build on previous lessons and
lay the foundation for
subsequent lessons. They don’t
introduce new skills or concepts
out of the blue or drop them
without sufficient development
and practice.
Lesson Plans
8. The teaching methods in an
effective curriculum are based in
educational research or a history of
effective practice. There is no reason
teachers have to discover these methods
through trial and error and implement
them on their own. A quality curriculum
would incorporate research based
practices into the daily lessons.
Research Based
Teaching Methods
9. An effective curriculum meets the needs of a given
student population. If you have a population of
struggling learners, the curriculum concentrates on
developing foundational skills and concepts. If you have a
high achieving population, the curriculum challenges
students with advanced concepts and extended learning
opportunities. No one curriculum will be appropriate for
all learners at all levels.
Student Population
10. An effective curriculum meets
the state or national
standards in a comprehensive
way. A standard, such as the
grade 4 Common Core reading
standard (“Determine the
main idea of a text and
explain how it is supported by
key details; summarize the
text.” ) is not just addressed in
one lesson. It is
comprehensively developed
throughout a grade level
Standards
