Understanding Standards-Based Education: A Practical Guide for Teachers and Administrators

"Just what the educational doctor ordered. Written in an easy-to-understand format, this guide contains excellent explanations and valuable models, guidelines, checklists, unit designs, and lesson designs to help teachers implement standards-based education in their classrooms."
--Vaughn G. Rhudy, Teacher
Shady Spring High School, WV

"Zagranski, Whigham, and Dardenne tame the beast of accountability for principals, teachers, and parents by articulately defining what is really expected. A real guide for demystifying the complex world of standards-based education."
--Erica Ann Faginski, Principal
Michael E. Smith Middle School, South Hadley, MA

Transforming your curriculum into a standards-based model: What every educator needs to know!

This comprehensive handbook offers a data-driven curriculum design process to help educators meet today′s standards of performance and assessment. Based on decades of hands-on experience, Richard Zagranski, William T. Whigham, and Patrice L. Dardenne provide a clear set of expectations and responsibilities for stakeholders at all three levels of the educational pyramid: teachers, teacher leaders/coordinators, and administrators. Their user-friendly approach, which both incorporates and looks beyond NCLB, shows readers how to take a standard, transform it into a performance objective, and design a corresponding assessment piece. The text includes:

• Standards-based guidelines and action plans
• Ready-to-use charts, rubrics, and templates
• Real-world examples and assessment methods
• Step-by-step instructions to ensure sustainability
• Chapter summaries and a glossary for easy reference

Understanding Standards-Based Education leads educators through a well-defined course of curriculum revision and presents all participants with specific, need-to-know information for accomplishing mandated goals.