Overview
What It Is
The Surveys of Enacted Curriculum (SEC) are research-based tools that collect, report, and use data on what content is taught and how it is taught. The tools allow you to compare what is taught to standards and assessments. The data are represented in scales and maps that can then be used to analyze instruction relative to curriculum, standards, and assessments.
The SEC are a form of curriculum assessment (Adobe® Reader® PDF 268 KB). They offer a rich environment for dialogue among educators about teaching and learning, instructional goals and solutions, and understanding student performance. The SEC tools are currently available for English language arts (including reading), mathematics, and science for teachers of kindergarten through high school. An example (Adobe Reader PDF 1.2 MB) for science instruction appears in Blank & Hill, 2004. A growing variety of enabling tools to enrich the use of the SEC is available from SEC partners.
How It Works
Schools, districts, or teacher groups go online and create an SEC project. Individual teachers then complete survey forms (on paper or on the Web—view surveys) about what and how they teach. The SEC also can collect data about teacher and school characteristics and professional development experiences. A school's performance is a consequence of what teachers and students do together. The SEC can make these relationships visible. An example is Test Scores: What Can They Tell Us? (an Adobe® Reader® PDF 316 KB document prepared by TERC, one of the SEC project collaborators).
Reports of results are available interactively online or in print form. The SEC Web site includes a database of state content standards and other comparative data to be used in conjunction with school or district reports. Other comparisons, including state assessments, student-tested performance, and textbook contents may be available. In addition, detailed school-to-school, grade-to-grade, even teacher-to-teacher comparisons are supported. Teachers and administrators can create custom individual and group reports and comparisons. Sample reports and scenarios are available throughout the site.
To learn about what the SEC can do for different educational stakeholders, select one of the links below.
 |
