Roane County Schools

Policy 220 - Curriculum Development

Adopted on June 22, 2023

Effective July 1, 2023

The Board of Education recognizes its responsibility for the quality of the educational program of the schools. To this end, the curriculum shall be developed, evaluated, and adopted on a continuing basis and in accordance with a plan for curriculum growth established by the Superintendent with the assistance of the school curriculum teams in the County.

For purposes of this policy and consistent communication throughout the County, curriculum shall be defined as the courses of study, subjects, classes, and organized activities provided by the school.

The Board directs that the curriculum of this County:

1. provide instruction in courses required by statute and State Department of Education regulations;
2. allow for the development of individual talents and interests as well as recognize that learning styles of students may differ.

As educational leader of the County, the Superintendent shall be responsible to guide the school curriculum teams in the County as they help develop programs and methods for implementation of the curriculum based on State-approved instructional goals and objectives based on the needs of the individual schools, focusing on reading, composition, mathematics, science and technology. The Superintendent shall be responsible for the preparation of courses of study.

The Superintendent shall make progress reports to the Board annually.

The Superintendent may conduct such innovative programs as are deemed to be necessary to the continuing growth of the instructional program and to better ensure accomplishment of the County's educational goals.

The Superintendent shall report each such innovative program as well as the findings and recommendations of the school curriculum teams to the Board along with the objectives of such program as are recommended, evaluative criteria, and costs before it is initiated.

Adoption of Programs of Study

The Board of Education shall provide a comprehensive instructional program to serve the educational needs of the students of this County. In furtherance of this goal and pursuant to law, the Board shall periodically adopt programs of study as well as determine the level of mastery which constitutes successful completion of a course.

No programs of study shall be taught in the schools of this County unless it has been approved by this Board. Elective offerings not based on West Virginia Board of Education content standards and objectives must have written content standards and objectives approved by the County Board of Education. Such optional elective courses may be made available by the Board based on student need and interest, but are not required to be made available.

The Superintendent shall recommend to the Board such programs of study as are deemed to be in the best interests of the students. The Superintendent's recommendation shall include the following information about each program of study:

1. its applicability to students and an enumeration of those groups of students to be affected by it; and
2. the intended content standards and objectives (CSOs), defined in terms of how the learning is applied.

Each program of study is intended to provide a basic framework for instruction and learning. Within this framework, each teacher shall use the program of study in a manner best designed to meet the needs of the students for whom s/he is responsible. Deviation from its content must be approved in accordance with the Superintendent's administrative guidelines.

Since one of the County's goals is to prepare students to enter the world of work, the Board directs that each program of study include as part of its learning accomplishments that students can demonstrate their willingness and ability to be punctual, to be present at the learning site each day unless absent for a legitimate reason, and to complete assignments on time and as directed. The Superintendent's guidelines should include recommendations to staff on how to instruct students in these important work ethics and how to include these learnings in the grades that students receive.

The Superintendent shall maintain a current list of all programs of study offered by this County.

The list shall include the data on each furnished with the recommendation for its adoption.

Controversial Issues

The Board of Education believes that the consideration of controversial issues has a legitimate place in the instructional program of the schools.

For purposes of this policy, a controversial issue is a topic on which opposing points of view have been promulgated by responsible opinion and/or likely to arouse both support and opposition in the community.

The Superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines for dealing with controversial issues and with parental concerns about program content or the use of particular materials.

Complaints by students or the public regarding any such course of study will be handled in accordance with Board Policy 730.

Publication of Curriculum

As stated in WV Code 18-5-27, each school shall ensure that the adopted, up-to-date, county adopted classroom curriculum is posted on the school’s Internet website at the beginning of each school year, or no later than 30 business days after new or revised curriculum is adopted. The State Board of Education may provide access, or authorize access, to the county-adopted classroom curriculum. Only students, parents, or guardians of the students shall be given the log in information provided to gain access to the online curriculum: Provided, That if the public school has no accessible website, the information shall be posted on the website of the appropriate county board of education. For purposes of this section, class curriculum shall include curriculum created pursuant to WV Code 18-5A-6.

For clarity, the Board adopts the following definitions for the purposes of this section:

• "School's Internet website" shall be the online learning management system used by the school to deliver content and instruction that can be directly accessed by students, with similar access provided to parents and guardians to view materials but not submit assignments or complete assessments.
• "Adopted, up-to-date, county adopted classroom curriculum," "county-adopted classroom curriculum," "online curriculum," and "class curriculum" shall mean the Board-adopted primary instructional materials for each subject area as adopted by Board action pursuant to WV Code 18-5A-6.
• "Beginning of each school year" shall mean the first day of each school year on which students are required to report to school.

Parental Right to Inspect Instructional Materials

Pursuant to WV Code 18-5-27, any parent, custodian, or guardian may request to inspect any primary instructional materials, supplemental instructional materials, or books made available for his/her student to read in any of his/her student's classroom(s). Only such an individual shall be permitted to make such a request, and shall do so on the form provided by the Superintendent directly to the classroom teacher responsible for his/her child's instruction using these materials. The classroom teacher may require the individual to schedule an appointment to inspect these materials, and the classroom teacher shall schedule such appointment within 10 business days of the receipt of the request.

Any material required to be read by students as part of a course shall be list on the course's syllabus at the beginning of the school year and such syllabus shall be made available to any parent, custodian, or guardian of a child enrolled in the course.

Any parent, custodian, or guardian may file a complaint with the Superintendent on a form provided by the Superintendent should any classroom teacher fail to comply with the provisions of this section of this policy. If such a complaint is not resolved within seven business days, the parent, custodian, or guardian may file a complaint with the state superintendent or designee on a form provided by the state superintendent or designee.

Nothing in this policy shall convey upon a parent, custodian, or guardian the right to remove from the classroom any instructional material(s) or otherwise be given a copy of the material(s) to be inspected.

Homework

The Board of Education acknowledges the educational validity of out-of-school assignments as adjuncts to and extensions of the instructional program of the schools.

"Homework" shall refer to those assignments to be prepared outside of the school instructional day by the student or independently while in attendance at school.

The Superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines for the assignment of homework with the following provisions:

1. Homework should be properly planned part of the curriculum, extending and reinforcing the learning experience of the school.
2. Homework should help students learn by providing practice in the mastery of skills, experience in data gathering, and integration of knowledge, and an opportunity to remediate learning problems.
3. Homework should help develop the student's sense of responsibility by providing an opportunity for the exercise of independent work and judgement.
4. The number, frequency, and degree of difficulty of homework assignments would be based on the ability and needs of the student and take into account other activities which make a legitimate claim on the student's time.
5. As a valid educational tool, homework should be assigned with clear direction and its product carefully evaluated.
6. The schools should recognize the role of parents by suggesting ways in which parents can assist the school in helping a student carry out assigned responsibilities.
7. Homework should always serve a valid learning purpose; it should never be used as a punitive measure.

AIDS Education Program

All public schools containing any grades six through twelve shall teach health education which includes instruction in the prevention, transmission and spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Materials used, including textbooks, shall be aligned with content standards as prescribed by the West Virginia Board of Education.

Training on the prevention, transmission and treatment of current communicable diseases shall include, but not limited to, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), shall be provided to all school personnel every two years.

Parents/guardians shall be permitted to attend staff development regarding AIDS and other STDs, examine course curriculum requirements and curricular materials and exempt their child from AIDS and other STD instruction, if they deem it advisable. The parent/guardian must give written notice to the principal exempting their child from AIDS other STD instruction.

Multicultural Education

Multicultural education is a required component of the program of study at all programmatic levels.

Driver Education

The Board of Education shall offer a program of driver education. A driver education course shall be made available to all high school students. The course may be offered in summer school in addition to the regular instructional term.

Summer School

The Board of Education may conduct a summer program of academic instruction and/or recreational activities for resident students of this County and such other students as the Board may admit subject to approval of the West Virginia Board of Education.

The Superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines for the operation of the summer school program.

Service Learning

The Board of Education believes that participating actively in community service will enhance students' interpersonal skills and self-esteem, enable them to connect their academic learning to the real world, and make them aware of the wide range of opportunities for service that exist in any community.

The Board further believes that devoting time during a student's school years to serve others or the community as a whole may engender a life-long commitment to service, and, thereby, make this community or, any community where our graduates make a life, a better place.

The Board therefore directs that opportunities for learning through service be offered as a part of the county curriculum.

Intervention

The Board of Education believes that students should be given every reasonable opportunity to learn the skills and acquire the knowledge necessary to demonstrate proficiency on State-mandated tests and locally-developed assessments.

The Superintendent shall develop administrative guidelines for intervention that include:

1. procedures for using diagnostic assessments;
2. the classroom-based intervention strategies as well as other intervention strategies that will be used;
3. procedures for the collection of student-performance data;
4. procedures for using student performance data to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention strategies and to evaluate the instructional program.

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