Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Curriculum Instruction topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
District updates: PSAT testing, National Merit recognitions, AP biology textbook review and library recognition
Summary
District curriculum staff reported on upcoming PSAT testing, National Merit recognitions, plans to pilot a new AP biology text and a third-grade social studies pilot; the district also reported that library services received exemplary status and that major technology migration work is mostly complete.
Curriculum and instructional leaders at Lowell Area Schools reported several academic and support updates at the Oct. 13 board meeting, including PSAT administration for juniors, National Merit recognitions for recent seniors, a planned AP biology textbook review, a third-grade social studies pilot and an exemplary rating for the district library program.
The district said all juniors will take the PSAT/NMSQT this week; the administrator noted that the test serves both as SAT practice and as the qualifying assessment for the National Merit Scholarship program. The board heard that six current seniors who tested last year earned commended-student recognition and that two seniors achieved National Merit semifinalist status.
Curriculum staff said they expect an AP biology textbook proposal to come to the board late in the first trimester or early in the second trimester. The presenter noted the district’s AP biology text is about 11 years old and that the College Board recommends instructional materials no older than 10 years for AP coursework; a teacher who is new to the AP biology program will pilot an electronic version of a proposed text this month.
Elementary curriculum work includes a pilot of a third-grade social studies program called Social Studies Alive — the program is already used in grades four and five — and the K–12 math vertical team began work to align standards and interventions across grades.
The technology update said the bulk of the district’s recent migration (referred to as a “Nobel migration” in the report) is complete, including servers that support district printing, and that the IT team will now focus on tuning and stabilization.
Separately, the administration announced that the district’s library program received “exemplary” status from the Library of Michigan’s School Libraries in the 21st Century program — a recognition the superintendent noted as a reflection of library staff work to support learning.
The curriculum presenter encouraged families with program questions to contact their students’ buildings directly.
