THE CLIRRTCL Lr \1 39

MAPPING
PROCESS: THE
Concluding Thoughts About Step 7 INITIAL CYCLE

Step 1 is often the most dif{icult and time intensive. It is extremely important
:- ;noride adequate curriculum mapping training and to allocate the necessary
-*e lor teachers to complete their maps. This is the time when administrative
ri,aport and knowledge about the curriculum mapping process is vital. Admin-
r:-Tators must have a good understanding of the process, be invested in the ini-
-':re. and provide the appropriate guidance for teachers to be invested in the
:r,.iess as well.

Step 2: Reviewing Groups of Maps

Reviewing the maps is the step in curriculum mapping where teachers
::;re\\- one another's maps independently, not in a group setting. This step often
:+:rns at the building level but will eventually take place across buildings. The
- :t meaningful review occurs when teachers read a variety of maps within
--i across content areas and at various grade levels. However, if your district is
- :all1' focusing on a particular content area or groups of courses, the review-
-r-: e-ofi occur within those areas.
For most teachers, this is the first time they have been privy to what actu-
n-T occurs in each other's classrooms, and it is the time when teachers first
;--;u to see the big picture of the curriculum. As teachers review a set of maps,
-::1 are instructed to looh for the following:

o A clear connection between content, skills, and assessments

r Clear and concise skills. Ara the skills listed as action verbs?
r A variety of assessments, Is there a balance of assessments and is there
re quired documentation of observation-type assessments?

r The possible gaps in content and skills within and across grade levels
o The meaningless redundancies across grade levels and content areas in
content and skills. Are there units or topics that are taught multiple times at
mtiltiple grade levels that are redundant (e.9., three years of dinosaur units)?
o Repetitions in the content and skills. Does the curriculum reflect a repetition
of content and skills that build or spiral?
o New understandings or the "aha" moments
r Overall questions, comments, or concerns about the curriculum

\\-hen planning the editing step, it is important to consider the following:

r Initially teachers will edit the maps within their building.

r Keep the number of maps for each teacher to initially edit to a manage-
able number. Start with 12-14 maps, as reviewing too many maps espe-
cially at the beginning tends to be overwhelming. Teachers will expand
the maps they review as subsequent mapping cycles are implemented.
The goal is that eventually all teachers will be reviewing all curriculum
maps in some fashion as curriculum mapping continues.
o Reviewing 12-74 maps will require approximately three to four hours.
Although every teacher will not edit every map, keep in mind that every
map will be read and reviewed by a variety of teachers.