My Thoughts: What is the Mission of Schooling (Chapt. 1)

As I read the first chapter in Schooling by Design, I began to wonder how many teachers actually read their district's mission statement. It does make sense to know what the expectations are and what we as teachers need to do in the classroom and school community to help all students achieve their full potential. I revisited my own school district's mission statement and beliefs and I feel that both express in clear and concise language what the district's expectations are. Some of the examples cited in this chapter did not compare favorably as, in my opinion, they were too vague or general. For example, West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional District--too vague; LaVace Stewart Elementary School--good but maybe too general. The most important point that I learned about a mission statement is that it should "summarize what an education is meant to help the learner achieve" (Wiggens & McTigue, 2007, p. 12) throughout his or her schooling. I think this will help as we form our own mission statements!

Another important point that I learned from this chapter is that when one is planning a unit or designing curriculum, it is helpful to begin with an essential question(s). Wiggins and McTigue also suggest that a unit should be disigned around "a culminating assessment task requiring transfer (Wiggens & McTigue, 2007, p. 16). That makes sense in that it necessitates that students apply what they have learned to situations which can help them make sense of what they have learned as well as see the information or content as meaningful. It also makes sense that from this point we should then design our lessons to ensure that students get what they need to master the task at hand. I can see the value in this approach.

Starting this fall, I will be involved in the re-writing of the health curriculum according to the new state (New Jersey) standards. This committee, which I am part of, has already met once to view and discuss the new standards and to begin to plan what has to be done during the 2008-09 school year regarding this re-write. I am excited about applying some of the things I have already learned about curriculum planning. I also look forward to sharing this information with my collegues. I find that I now have a different view of this process. Wiggens and McTigue state that "making content the focus of all teaching, learning, and assessing gets the matter backward" (Wiggens & McTigue, 2007, p. 20). I will keep this in mind during the next school year as I help design the new health curriculum for the Northern Valley.