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More Goals of Curriculum Frameworks

Organized by content strands and learning standards,* each framework gives ABE teachers across the state a common starting point for what students should learn about the subject covered. The frameworks are not curricula themselves. Rather, the frameworks offer a basic structure for how and what we teach in adult basic education programs. They describe the components with which each program and teacher can design a curriculum that is relevant to the needs of their particular group of learners.

The frameworks were developed by teams of experienced ABE educators, and encompass both statewide learning standards and educational practices developed at the classroom level. Each framework provides examples of learning activities and instructional strategies that have proven successful for other teachers. Each of the frameworks has been field-tested by adult basic education teachers and students. By making the standards the same across the state, the frameworks establish a basis for making learning outcomes for all Massachusetts students more objective and consistent.

*Content strands are the organizing themes that run through a framework; they define and organize the critical skills and content knowledge of a particular subject.

*Learning standards are indicators of performance within each strand that help teachers:
· determine a students' level of proficiency, target areas for improvement, and
· design instruction and assessment that will meet student needs.

If Strands tell us what skills and content are most important, Standards tell us how we'll know when a student has learned the skills and content identified in each framework.