Curriculum Implementation: Issues and Challenges
	Setting This example of professional development takes place at the Exploratiorium's Institute for Inquiry in San Francisco, California. Participants are attending a four-day institute focused on embedding inquiry in science teaching supported by facilitators Marilyn Austin, Doris Ash, Barry Kluger-Bell and Fred Stern. The participants are graduates of previous Inquiry Institutes conducted by the Exploratorium. They are teacher leaders and professional developers from around the U.S. They explore units from the FOSS curriculum on Land Forms and examine how to embed inquiry in science teaching.
Professional Development Strategy Curriculum Implementation Goals of this Example of Professional Development Use inquiry as a lens through which participants will enhance curriculum implementation Enhance leadership for improved science instruction through curriculum implementation	What You Can Gain from Using this Video See professional development aimed at increasing use of inquiry in the classroom Consider the challenges of adapting curriculum to better address national, state, and local standards Gain awareness of a process for mapping curriculum to standards

Curriculum Implementation

Curriculum is the way content is designed and delivered. It includes the structure, organization, balance, and presentation of the content in the classroom (National Research Council, 1996). As defined here, curriculum is a set of materials that includes both content and instructional guidelines. The set of materials may be from one publisher or developer or may have been selected from a variety of materials organized by the school or district.

Putting new curricula into practice in the classroom can serve as a powerful professional development opportunity for teachers. Through using a particular curriculum with their students, reporting on what happens, and reflecting with others on different ideas and activities, teachers learn about their own teaching and their students' learning (Cohen and Hill, 1998).
Note that this strategy focuses teachers on learning about the new curriculum and how to use it-- not on researching, designing, testing, and/or revising curriculum, as will be described in Strategy 5, Curriculum Development and Adaptation.

The Strategy in Action

This strategy relies on teachers having access to high quality curriculum materials, developed by people with expertise in content and pedagogy, as well as sufficient resources and time to design, test, and refine the materials for use in classrooms with diverse students.
Teachers and professional developers need to work together to decide how the curriculum will be used with students and the milestones that will be met at different points in the implementation process. Over time, teachers need to be given different kinds of support, tailored to their changing needs. Teachers share insights with one another as they implement the new curriculum. They also coach one another, conducting classroom visits to support the learning of both teachers and students.

It is crucial that school officials acknowledge that implementing curriculum takes time, resources, and a commitment to reform. In addition, the district must institutionalize the change by ensuring the continued use of the curriculum after the initial phases. Plans must be established for ongoing professional development for all teachers and support of new teachers or teachers who change grade levels.

Finally, mechanisms for evaluation must be developed. While data may include information about student learning outcomes, evaluation of the implementation strategies is essential, especially in the early stages. Teachers and professional developers can then use this information to adjust what they are doing.

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