MARYSVILLE – With state standards such a high priority in education, curriculum development has taken on added importance in schools.
Melissa VanZanten, curriculum director for the Marysville School District, presented a draft adoption cycle to the school board at Monday’s work session.
The presentation included looking ahead to 2024-25 and beyond.
“It’s a little scary looking that far out,” VanZanten said.
As an example, a chart shows that the district spent $1.5 million for English/Language Arts curriculum for kindergarten through fifth grade in 2016-2017. It spent $100,000 for professional development for teachers to learn to instruct that curriculum. The chart also shows that in 2022-23 another $180,000 needs to be spent on upgrade it.
Other examples show: spending $1.6 million in 2019-20 for ninth-12th math; that same amount in 2020-21 for K-5 math; that same amount again in 2022-23 for sixth-to-eighth-grade math; and $1.6 million again in 2023-24 for 9-12 ELA. Also, $1.6 million would be needed in 2021-22 for K-5 science. The total spent over all those years would be more than $12.5 million.
Board president Tom Albright asked if the schedule of updated curriculum gives the students “what they need” to be successful with the state standards. Lori Knudson, executive director of K-12 learning and teaching, said there is a need for more at the high school level.
So then it comes down to cost. Finance director Mike Sullivan said he believes the state legislature eventually will provide districts with more funding.
School board member Chris Nation, who is in Olympia representing the district, asked by phone if the district really can afford to wait seven years before changing ELA curriculum in high school. “We’ll fall further behind,” Nation said.
VanZanten responded that the math scores are worse, but added the guide can be flexible according to needs. “It’s not set in stone,” she said of the guide.
Scott Beebe added that teachers can only handle so much at a time when it comes to new curriculum.
Nation agreed. “It can take a while to get that down,” he said of new material.
Board Member Pete Lundberg said he wants to make sure money isn’t spent on curriculum without money also being spent on professional development for teachers.
“We don’t want to go four years down the road and nobody’s doing it,” because they never got the training, Lundberg said.
In other school board news:
•VanZanten said education monitors had some recommendations for the MSD, including teachers not instructing out of their area of expertise; increasing family engagement; finding ways to better help homeless and foster kid students; and hiring highly qualified teachers for ELA.
•Ginger Merkel, executive director of Special Education, talked about the restraint and isolation of students. While she said, “No amount is good,” sometimes it needs to be done to “keep our students with us.” She said teachers and aides are taught to use restraint only if there is an “imminent danger to self or others.” She added most incidents seem to happen at the middle school level.
•Acting superintendent Jason Thompson then talked about the district’s equity policy development. Lundberg said there are still “islands of segregation” in the district. Albright added a key to the process is getting all stakeholders involved.
