Boise School District puts its curriculum online-Parents can see what teachers focus on in class

Boise parents can now use a computer at home to track what their
children are learning in the classroom.

While kids are in school, parents can follow what their child should
be learning and when through an online curriculum site recently
launched by the Boise School District.

The Idaho Statesman

“Parents often ask, ´What can I do at home?´ This gives them a tool
that can help reinforce what (their children) are learning,” said Jana
Estes, an Amity Elementary School teacher and PTA president.

A 2000 curriculum audit recommended Boise schools communicate
the elements of the curriculum across the district, said Don Coberly, Boise School District
director of curriculum.

After a year of development, the site now offers curriculum outlines, resource references
and learning objectives for core subjects in kindergarten through 12th grade.

“If you have a child in the second grade, you can see what they´re supposed to be
learning,” Estes said. Parents can use the information to tailor home study to lessons in the
classroom, she said.

A $1.9 million grant from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation funded the
development of the Web site. More than 250 educators and a dozen editors contributed to
its creation.

“It was a long, laborious, expensive process,” said Dean Jones, administrator of instruction
for Boise schools.

The site details state achievement standards and instructional objectives. That kind of
information tells parents the district is in compliance with state curriculum standards, Jones
said.

“Shame on us if we develop a curriculum that is independent of and not linked to state
standards,” he said. “This shows the stakeholders we have carefully written our curriculum
and use state standards as a fence post.”

The online curriculum could also open the lines of communication between parents and
teachers, said Norma Jeanne Wellman, vice president of membership for the state PTA
executive board.

“It just gives parents a step up on where the teacher is coming from,” Wellman said.

But Wellman said access to the curriculum is still limited. She said the educational jargon
sprinkled throughout the curriculum could prevent some parents from using it as a resource.

“Once they know (the terminology), then they can navigate quite easily. Otherwise, (some
parents) may not have the faintest idea what it all means.”

Despite the jargon, Wellman and PTA leaders across the district said they´ll pitch the site to
parents who want to get more involved in their child´s education.

“Good parents need every bit of information available to help with their child´s education,”
Wellman said. “This is just another piece of the pie parents need to help their children in the
classroom.”

http://www.idahostatesman.com/story.asp?ID=18035