SRC narrows assessment language, keeps flexibility for advanced creative-writing electives

The SRC reviewed and clarified standards for Advanced Creative Writing during the October 2025 virtual meeting, making incremental changes to support longer-term projects and to reduce overly prescriptive tasks.

Committee members kept the course description for advanced creative writing, which emphasizes extended projects and craft development, and approved language changes intended to simplify and broaden classroom application. Members revised several standards to remove wording that implied every assignment required identical outputs — for example, they changed singular words that would have required a student to write a soliloquy or a biographical sketch for every character to plural or more general forms such as “develop soliloquies and inner monologues” and “write letters from a character to other characters to practice character development.” The intent is to allow teachers to assign meaningful practice without imposing an exact, exhaustive set of tasks.

The committee also confirmed that elective-level expectations should avoid exact prescriptions for assessments. Members reiterated that electives are implemented by local education agencies (LEAs) and that freedom in assessment design supports teacher creativity and student interest. On technology, committee members chose the same phrasing used elsewhere in the elective portfolio: “use available digital tools in the creative process.”

The committee added or clarified a final advanced standard asking students to identify relevant entry-level media work experiences and to research educational and career pathways in media industries; the committee specifically suggested student journalism contests and similar opportunities as examples. That language was intended to strengthen career-readiness elements of the advanced elective without imposing a single required external activity.

No separate roll-call votes on advanced creative-writing wording were recorded; the committee accepted language by consensus and tasked staff with consolidating supporting documents and glossary items for the next review.