The curriculum planned to be taught in the classroom is made up of the three components: support curriculum, recommended curriculum and assessed curriculum. Curriculum guides for each content area give specific direction for teachers to follow throughout the school year.
The support curriculum provides the philosophical base needed to place the entire curriculum upon a strong foundation. A Biblical worldview represents the underlying philosophy of Cornerstone Christian School. Truth begins with God in the form of His Son Jesus. People, alienated from God because of sin, come to know Truth through interaction with God’s Word, His creation and faith in Christ for salvation. Because we desire to grow in faith and knowledge of Truth, every goal, objective, method, assessment, resource and textbook we use must be filtered through the book of all Truth, the Bible. All truth is God’s Truth, but all approaches to truth are not God’s approach. A strong Biblical philosophical base ensures a strong curriculum foundation.
- Recommended Curriculum
The State of Virginia has a list of goals and objectives that each grade level in the public school system is required to cover for each content area within a given year. These standards of learning have been researched and put together by leading professionals. While Cornerstone Christian School is not required to teach the state standards of learning, we have decided that these standards do provide a good starting place.
- Assessed Curriculum
CCS has adopted the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT) as a way to keep the academic program accountable to national standards. The SAT measures students’ school achievement in reading, language arts, spelling, mathematics, science, social studies and Biblical knowledge. Most goals and objectives tested are taught within our program as outlined in our curriculum guides. Teaching the assessed curriculum provides us accountability through a reputable outside organization that has been proven to maintain a standard of reliability and excellence over the past 35 years.
These three components of curriculum combine to make what is termed the planned curriculum. As the Biblical worldview is combined with the state standards and achievement test goals and objectives, the content to be covered in each grade level naturally emerges. This content is now ready to be used by the living curriculum through the written curriculum.
The teaching professionals at CCS are the living curriculum who work with God to nurture and water the young tender plants within their care. The role of the teacher is to provide developmentally appropriate learning opportunities for each child within the classroom. A professional knowledge of learning styles, multiple intelligences, difficulties for learning, brain based learning and multiple assessment strategies allow the teachers to understand the wide range of instructional needs within the classroom. Along with the skills needed to teach, the most important attribute for a teacher to have is defined in Colossians 3:12-14:
And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things {put on} love, which is the perfect bond of unity. (NAS)
The effective teacher is motivated by agape love and provides experiences, promotes discovery and presents truth. As the teacher faithfully serves, God trains the heart, engages the mind and releases the spirit. Some plant, some water and good things happen when we all work together.
The written curriculum is the tool that teachers use to teach from in their classrooms. This tool produces developmentally appropriate thematic units and daily lesson plans that originate from the objective based curriculum guides. Teachers use careful planning along with their professional knowledge to meet the curriculum goals and developmental needs of their students. Homework, student activities, parent training and professional development are also used within the written curriculum to meet the educational goals set by the curriculum standards of learning with an emphasis upon the three main program distinctives: character, academics and ministry. As the written curriculum reaches the tender plants, growth begins to happen and the development of fruit begins to emerge.
Each strategy used within the program must also have a way to assess effective learning. The learned curriculum reveals the quantity and quality of learning that has taken place within the students. The objective of our curriculum is to give the gift of learning to the students we serve. Teachers are encouraged to assess student learning using a variety of methods that include, but are not limited to: paper and pencil testing, narratives, formal and informal observations, projects, drama, creative writing, oral response, cooperative learning, role play, essays, memory, art, poetry, technology, etc., etc. Just as students learn differently, teachers must keep in mind that students test differently. The goal is to assess the actual learning that is taking place within each student and make any necessary adjustments needed to meet the needs of each child within the constraints of our program.
Paul states in 1 Corinthians: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” Education is a grace act of the Lord. Although we may have a part to play, when a student learns, God’s hand is revealed.
While the five components of our curriculum philosophy work together to fulfill our curriculum vision, steps within the process are subject to various conditions. The barrel that holds the planned curriculum may leak. The flower pot that holds the learned curriculum may have a crack in it causing a dry root system. One of the nozzles of the written curriculum may be clogged up with dirt causing an uneven spray of water that hinders even watering. The judgment of the living curriculum may be skewed at times, causing the application of water to be too heavy or too light. As each scenario is listed, it becomes very apparent that effective teaching is only possible through the help of the implicit curriculum. In light of this, the approach to curriculum must be one of humility and dependency on God. The primary task of the curriculum is to plant seeds and water the plants so God can cause growth and produce eternal fruit. When this happens, students will embrace a Biblical worldview and impact their community, nation and world for Christ.
