DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Office of the Secretary

Statutory Authority: 14 Delaware Code, Section 122(b)(6) (14 Del.C. §122(b)(6))

14 DE Admin. Code 502

FINAL

REGULATORY IMPLEMENTING ORDER

502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards

I. SUMMARY OF THE EVIDENCE AND INFORMATION SUBMITTED

Pursuant to 14 Del.C. §122(b)(6), the Secretary of Education intends to amend 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards. This regulation needs to be amended to align with modifications in State Content Standards and Department of Education reporting expectations of school districts and to clarify the title of the regulation.

Notice of the proposed regulation was published in the Delaware Register of Regulations on November 1, 2023. The Department of Education did not receive any written comments concerning the proposed amendments.

II. FINDINGS OF FACTS

The Secretary finds that it is appropriate to amend 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards to align the regulation with modifications in State Content Standards and Department of Education reporting expectations of school districts and to clarify the title of the regulation.

III. DECISION TO AMEND THE REGULATION

For the foregoing reasons, the Secretary concludes that it is appropriate to amend 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards. Therefore, pursuant to 14 Del.C. §122, 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards attached hereto as Exhibit "A" is hereby amended. Pursuant to the provision of 14 Del.C. §122(e), 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards hereby amended shall be in effect for a period of five years from the effective date of this order as set forth in Section V. below.

IV. TEXT AND CITATION

The text of 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards amended hereby shall be in the form attached hereto as Exhibit "A," and said regulation shall be cited as 14 DE Admin. Code 502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards in the Administrative Code of Regulations for the Department of Education.

V. EFFECTIVE DATE OF ORDER

The actions hereinabove referred to were taken by the Secretary pursuant to 14 Del.C. §122 on December 12, 2023. The effective date of this Order shall be ten (10) days from the date this Order is published in the Delaware Register of Regulations.

IT IS SO ORDERED the 12th day of December 2023.

Department of Education

Mark A. Holodick, Ed.D., Secretary of Education

Approved this 12th day of December 2023.

502 Alignment of Local School District Curricula to the State Content Standards

1.0 Purpose

The purpose of this regulation is to provide a process through which all Delaware school districts demonstrate the alignment of their local curricula with the State Content Standards in the content areas specified in the 14 DE Admin. Code 501 as required by 14 Del.C. §122(b)(6).

17 DE Reg. 916 (03/01/14)

2.0 Definitions

“Adoption” means to accept a set of standards as the basis for curriculum and assessment alignment across the state according to a timeline established and disseminated by the Department of Education.

"Alignment" means meeting the expectations or outcomes outlined in each of the content area standards in 14 DE Admin. Code 501.

"Curricula" means a coherent set of high-quality instructional materials, academic lessons, and content implemented for a particular subject and designed for teachers to facilitate learning that leads to students' mastery of standards.

“Department” means the Delaware Department of Education.

"Equitable access" means every student has the opportunity to engage with grade-level and course-level materials regardless of any subgroup designation.

“Evidence” means certification the documents maintained by the district that its curriculum is aligned to the state content standards, which is supported by documentation maintained by the district State Content Standards.

“Grade Level Expectations” means the documents created and officially released by the Delaware Department of Education which detail student learning objectives in each content area for kindergarten through grade twelve.

“Recommended Statewide Uniform Curricula” means one or more of the following documents: Academic Content Standards, Clarifications, and Grade Level Expectations posted to the Delaware Department of Education website. The Department may update the document(s) based on changes to the State Content Standards in 14 DE Admin. Code 501.

"High quality instructional materials" means comprehensive materials that are aligned with the adopted Delaware content standards. The materials are written with clear purpose, effective lesson structure, and pacing to provide equitable access to the grade-level or course-level content, when used in accordance with their intended design and align to the Department's definition of high quality.

"Implemented" means using aligned materials according to their intended design and with processes in place for continuous improvement, including initial and sustained professional learning to support the educators who are using or leading the use of the instructional materials.

"Supports" means professional learning and feedback required to successfully implement high quality instructional materials and curricula.

17 DE Reg. 916 (03/01/14)

3.0 Alignment Requirement

All Each school districts district shall provide evidence to the Department that their school district curricula are aligned with the State Content Standards. State Content Standards exist in English Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science, World Languages, Visual and Performing Arts, Health, Physical Education, Agriscience, Business Finance and Marketing Education, Technology Education, Skilled and Technical Sciences, and Family and Consumer Sciences Computer Science, Career and Technical Education Programs of Study, Financial Literacy, Media Literacy, and Driver's Education. Content standards adopted by the Department in the future shall also be included under this section section.

12 DE Reg. 216 (08/01/08)

17 DE Reg. 916 (03/01/14)

4.0 Documentation of Curriculum Alignment

4.1 Alignment of school district curricula to the State Content Standards shall be certified annually by the district through an assurance in the consolidated grant application.

4.2 Documentation of Upon the request of the Department, documentation demonstrating alignment of school district curricula shall be given to the Department and include: curriculum maps or scope and sequence of instructional topics, unit plans, lesson plans, and assessments and may be subject to Department review. Included in the documentation shall also be the names of the implemented instructional resources including high quality instructional materials when applicable, a description of the method alignment process, and level of involvement in the alignment process by building administrators, teachers teachers, and specialists.

4.3 Documentation for Agriscience, Business Finance and Marketing Education, Technology Education, Skilled and Technical Sciences, and Family and Consumer Sciences Career and Technical Education programs of study shall follow requirements in 14 DE Admin. Code 525 Requirements for Career and Technical Education Programs of Study.

17 DE Reg. 916 (03/01/14)

5.0 Documentation for Specific Student Populations

As part of its documentation, the district shall explain modifications or enhancements to curricula for specific subgroups such as students with disabilities, gifted students, English learners or any other special population of students and certify alignment to the State Content Standards. Each school district shall also certify annually through an assurance in the consolidated grant application that alignment and equitable access to the grade-level or course-level State Content Standards is provided to subgroups such as students with disabilities, gifted students, and Multilingual Learners. Upon the request of the Department, the school district shall explain the supports provided in its curricula for these subgroups.

17 DE Reg. 916 (03/01/14)

6.0 Subsequent Review of Alignment

Each district shall be required to certify curriculum maintain alignment if there are major any changes to a content area in the approved curricula in curriculum occur. The district shall only be required to submit documentation of curriculum alignment in the affected any content area upon the request by of the Department. Further, districts may be required to submit documentation of aligned curriculum in the assessed content area or areas which form the basis for any school rating.