Curriculum Mapping & Alignment Needs The need for incorporation of technological innovations of a Curriculum Mapping Virtual Learning Community to improve student motivation and achievement.

VISION & COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT The vision would be to create a VLC to assist in incorporating innovative technological learning opportunities for students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Break down the barriers and meet students where they are in the social media age. The stakeholders of the geographical communities could join the virtual learning communities and become involved and vested on the ground floor Adjusting curriculum to meet the cultures’ perceptions of the future learning communities and its opportunities.

OVERVIEW Vertical Alignment Horizontal Alignment Best interest of student-socially connecting in an additionally non-traditional format Purpose to raise student motivation & achievement in State Test scores, ACT scores, and prevent college remediation No gaps and overlaps in learning vertically in same subject area and across the grade level

SETTING VLC work great for any geographical location Learning anytime any place Across the socioeconomic range Both asynchronous and synchronous learning opportunities

IMPLEMENTATION VLC format- a combination of task-based and knowledge-based learning communities where community teams would focus to accomplish a goal. Administrators and department heads would be expected to be official leaders, who rally the others to maintain and complete their curriculum mapping throughout the year. All members share research with the group to maximize their contribution Optimal environment for budding leaders in training.

Figure 2-3. (Ally, 2002: p.46). Educational interactions.

TECHNOLOGY Teachers would be assigned virtual related assignments like guided blogging, online examples, open discussion forums, live chatter for tutoring purposes, and additional notes for classroom preparation. In pursuing education in the best interest of each student we need meet them on their level, and their level is technology embracing forms of social media.

QUALITATIVE/QUANTITATIVE NEEDS ASSESSMENT Curriculum Mapping: Technology Issues and Resources The Indiana Department of Education has developed two of the best print resources available for evaluating where we are now, where we want to be, and how we will get there. Tools for Designing Curriculum Through Mapping and Aligning (March 2009)Indiana Department of EducationTools for Designing Curriculum Through Mapping and Aligning (March 2009) Tools for Curriculum Development and Implementation (October 2007) Tools for Curriculum Development and Implementation (October 2007) FAIRVIEW-ALCA using something similar with a few other schools -SDE-State Test Scores-District to State -ACT Scores-District to State

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT The set-up of VLC--the apprenticeship learning strategy. Learning through the ease and availability of experts in the field. Connect secondary math and science teachers, department heads, curriculum directors, and administration to the elementary teachers for assistance in a non-confrontational setting. Nurturing capacity with rules and appropriate etiquette. Monitoring & evaluating weekly by administration to ensure the knowledge-based learning and task-based communities are contributing to a positive working environment for all members involved.

Curriculum 21 I. Laying the FoundationPrologue for Planners, Establishing Reasons to Map, Creating a Vision for Your School II. Launching the ProcessEnsuring Long-Term Support, Creating Individual Maps, Initiating the Review Process, Developing Consensus Maps, Master Mapping Strategies III. Maintaining, Sustaining and IntegratingMerging Assessment Data into Maps, Integrating Literacy, Developing an Implementation Plan/Map, Making the HUB work: Integrating Other Initiatives IV. Advanced Mapping TasksInto the Future: Updating Maps for the 21st Century

RESOURCES Commercial Vendors: Collaborative Learning Inc. (Curriculum Mapper) Performance Pathways (TechPaths) School Software Group (BuildYourOwnCurriculum) Non-Profit Developers: David Douglas School District (David Douglas Mapping) Greater Southern Tier NY BOCES (Mapster) Other Resources: Digital Portfolios Newsletter Archive

EVALUATION This transformation from traditional to non- traditional learning atmospheres The positive influence that VLC could impact on educator motivation and achievement, student motivation and achievement, community involvement, and school personnel’s attitudes be affected in positive manner.

SUMMARY When I visualized my VLC in its existence, I imagined a multilayer existence with many different rooms and meeting places. Renninger and Shumar discuss one aspect of the multilayered portion communication that could exist in my CMVLC’s. They state that “The communicative space is multilayered and allows for the mingling of different conversations that have an infinitely renewable life” (2002: pg.12).