Organizing and monitoring curriculum has lengthy been a headache for educators. Overstuffed binders, clunky software program – the instruments meant to streamline the method typically create extra work than they save. The Diocese of Lansing, Michigan, was no exception. Fed up with their overly difficult curriculum mapping software program, they sought an easier, extra intuitive resolution. May Google Sheets be the reply?
Curriculum mapping is difficult 😥
The Diocese confronted a number of acquainted issues:
- Overly advanced software program: The prevailing system was cumbersome, tough to navigate, and required in depth coaching. Academics have been reluctant to take a position time in utilizing the system as a result of it didn’t profit them within the classroom.
- Lack of flexibility: The software program supplied restricted choices for personalisation, making it tough to adapt to the Diocese’s distinctive wants.
- Excessive price: The costly software program strained the funds with out delivering the specified outcomes.
Enter Google Sheets: The Surprising Hero
Google Sheets, a well-known and acquainted device, emerged as a stunning resolution.
- Simplicity and ease of use: Many academics are already acquainted and cozy utilizing Google Sheets which suggests it’s straightforward to stand up to hurry rapidly, with out the necessity for in depth coaching. Any coaching that’s supplied returns worth in lots of areas, not simply curriculum mapping.
- Flexibility: As a result of almost all Diocese faculties are utilizing Google Workspace for Training, the flexibility to hyperlink to present assets saved to Google Drive supplied the flexibleness the Diocese wanted to gather and arrange educating assets with minimal further effort.
- Collaboration: Google Sheets’ collaborative options allowed academics and directors to work collectively seamlessly, sharing updates and accessing info in real-time.
- Value-effective: The truth that Google Sheets is free eliminates the monetary burden of high-priced software program. Robust to beat that!
Customized Curriculum Mapping Database
The diocese obtained a state grant to overtake their curriculum mapping system and employed me to assist them handle the venture. My activity was to develop a Google Sheet template that academics may use every year to trace protection of curriculum requirements developed by the Diocese. Our preliminary focus was on theology requirements distinctive to the diocese with plans to increase to different curriculum areas sooner or later.
There have been three key components to this venture:
- Requirements doc: The diocese supplied me with an inventory of elementary theology requirements organized into domains with an outline of every normal. This doc is the muse of the whole venture.
- Lesson submissions: My activity was to create a easy approach for academics to report and tag classes to the requirements doc, making be aware of pupil mastery ranges with the choice of together with lesson assets and private notes.
- Dashboard view: The ultimate piece of this venture was the event of a dashboard that academics can evaluation to rapidly see which requirements have been met and the place they should focus their efforts. This dashboard will also be reviewed by directors to evaluation educational progress throughout the varsity.
Is Google Sheets as much as the duty?
It took some time for us to map out precisely what knowledge we would have liked to gather, tips on how to report that knowledge and tips on how to make all of it look good whereas being straightforward to make use of. I met with the curriculum workforce a number of instances in the course of the faculty yr as we developed and revised our system till we felt comfy sharing it with a spotlight group within the spring of 2024.
The top design is an easy database that solely requires academics to fill in three columns:
- Lesson date
- Commonplace (chosen from an inventory)
- Mastery standing (introduce, growing, mastery)
Although the usage of numerous formulation, the next fields are auto-populated:
- Commonplace description
- Marking interval
- Mastery stage (up to date if a regular is re-taught)
Google Kinds & Sheets for Educators: enhance your use of instructional knowledge and sharpen your spreadsheet abilities!
We additionally included non-obligatory fields which may be required sooner or later:
- Textbook – particular textbook assets or hyperlinks used for the lesson
- Trainer made – hyperlinks to teacher-created assets (takes benefit of the flexibility to rapidly hyperlink recordsdata by way of Drive).
- Evaluation – hyperlinks to assessments
- Trainer Notes – customized notes from the instructor
Mastery Dashboard
As academics start coming into their classes, the mastery dashboard updates robotically, exhibiting protection of every area by mastery stage. Our hope is that this straightforward device will enable academics to extra successfully focus instruction on vital areas.
Every faculty will save these spreadsheets in a shared drive which is accessible to the varsity principal and curriculum workforce. Future updates may embody linking all the spreadsheets right into a grasp dashboard created in Looker Studio.
Do extra with the instruments you already know!
This venture demonstrates the facility of straightforward, accessible instruments like Google Sheets to remodel advanced challenges. Most colleges perceive tips on how to use Google’s instruments for educational wants, however haven’t harnessed the facility of instruments like Docs, Slides, Websites, Sheets, and Kinds to reinforce inside techniques. We have been in a position to create a personalized resolution that met the distinctive wants of the diocese with out the necessity to implement a brand new, costly, and unfamiliar device. Finally, this venture empowers educators to give attention to what issues most: pupil studying.
When you’re in search of an economical, versatile, and collaborative resolution for curriculum mapping, the Google Workspace household is perhaps the device you want!
