Over the years, I have been writing about misconceptions regarding the schooling process. The purpose of these posts is to explain why I disagree with various comments that I have heard people make about schooling. These are meant as personal thoughts rather than conclusive proof, and I will admit that I'm not always the best at explaining my thoughts. Regardless, I have decided that I should be willing to share these posts when I encounter someone online who makes an argument that I have already discussed.
You could argue that I have overlooked this specific topic. You could also argue that my views are already clear for anyone who knows me. Just in case, I have decided to explain my views regarding schools and districts trying to align curriculum between grades.
Students all have their own unique sets of strengths, needs, and passions. A great deal of variability exists even within a specific subject. There is no single set curriculum that will magically be best for every single student. Aligning curriculum shows prioritization of a set curriculum over addressing diverse needs.
I brought up something similar with attempts to align high school graduation requirements with college entry requirements. I have spent years criticizing the minimum standards approach. Aligning entry in one grade with exit in another, which is a big part of aligning curriculum, requires schools to aim for attainable, which is well below most students' potentials. You can push students to neglect areas of strength to ensure they meet the minimum requirements in areas of weakness. This is unnecessary for schools that are meeting diverse needs
This also taps into my arguments about linear learning. If students learn best in different orders, we don't care about their unique needs. Even if two students are on a path to learn identical amounts, the student learning out of a set order will likely be treated as behind. In some cases, we might even ask that student to repeat a grade.
Perhaps the worst part of this is something that should be viewed as common sense. Not all students learn best the same way. Set curriculum effectively prohibits teachers from teaching different students in different ways. Any school that fixates on the best way to align set curriculum is making it clear that they value curriculum more than the individual needs of their students.
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