Curriculum Mapping

Curriculum Criteria

The National Middle School Association encourages educators to expand their use of integrated curriculum formats. Implementation of interdisciplinary methods includes making sure the curriculum is relevant to student needs Academically challenging Aligned to state standards and assessments Developmentally appropriate Structured to foster relationships between and among learners, teachers, and the content itself

Making Integration Work Ideally, common planning periods for interdisciplinary teams and administrative support provide the greatest degree of curriculum integration. However, all schools can initiate integrated curricula simply by taking a few easy steps:

Enlist the support of principals and other administrators and ask them to encourage interdisciplinary experimentation.

Discuss curriculum with teachers of different disciplines to identify common content areas, themes, or stands. Talk about ways two or more subject areas can implement an integrated unit.

Make use of sources beyond the textbook for your integrated lessons.

Develop alternative assessments, such as projects, that reflect the goals of the unit.

Share the results of your integrated unit with your local community. Add new integrated strategies at regular intervals throughout the school year.

Supporters of curriculum integration view education as a process by which students examine concepts and themes to see how they "fit" together. The more ways teachers use to connect curriculum, the more relevant the content is for the students.