Curriculum & Instruction

For Region 15 Schools, the purpose of the Kindergarten through grade twelve science program is to develop scientific literacy in students. The National Science Education Standards define scientific literacy as “the knowledge and understandings of scientific concepts and processes required for scientific decision-making, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity.” As society continues to become increasingly complex and technologically based, the study of science will help students discover, understand, and respect our world.

In order to develop students' scientific literacy, the district curriculum is designed to foster an exciting learning environment that nurtures curiosity, investigation and collaboration. The curriculum provides students with opportunities to conduct investigations that are aligned with national and state standards which promote the understanding of the major science concepts and methods. Through these investigations, students develop the habits of being scientific and an understanding that science is a process. The curriculum ensures learning spirals through the grade levels and balances depth vs. breadth with exposure to the vital aspects of content within all branches of science. Integration with other subjects through concepts often occurs.

From grades K-12, students use scientific reasoning, mathematics, appropriate tools, research, resources, and technology to engage in real-life, hands-on, minds-on inquiry in order to:

Acquire an understanding of fundamental science concepts in life, earth, and physical sciences through a variety of motivating, developmentally appropriate learning experiences that are relevant to students' present and future lives.
Hypothesize explanations to self-initiated and/or posed questions using evidence derived from research experimentation, and scientific knowledge.
Value multiple perspectives on issues and decisions.
Demonstrate what they know through varied and balanced assessments.

Students, faculty, and administrators share with the family and community organizations the responsibility for providing the opportunities to develop physical, mental, and emotional health, civic responsibility, global awareness, and ethical and moral judgment. The Comprehensive School Counseling program is responsible for helping students develop skills and abilities in the areas of academic, career, and personal/social. This is carried out through curriculum, individual planning, responsive services and system support. Consequently, the District will provide to all students the components which satisfy both state and national standards.

The Comprehensive School Counseling Program is an integral part of the total educational program which will encourage students to reach their maximum intellectual, social, emotional, and cultural potential.

Region 15 is a Community of Learners where all are actively engaged in learning. Through their interaction with each other, each individual – both student and educator – develops thinking and reasoning skills and an understanding of mathematics. Every learner engages in challenging learning experiences in order to understand and shape the world.

Mathematics provides unique opportunities to acquire knowledge and skills. Learners are expected to question, investigate, analyze and enhance intellectual ability through the study of mathematics. The community of learners foster a positive attitude and appreciation for mathematics that continues beyond the classroom.

Region 15 offers a comprehensive program of mathematics instruction based on validated educational research, data and meaningful classroom experiences. On this foundation stands a cohesive mathematics program that is developmentally appropriate for all learners and aligned with current state and national standards for mathematics content and skills. Mathematics is an inquiry-based subject that demands active learning to be proficient. Learners in Region 15 experience, create, and recreate ideas that are connected to real world situations. Learners develop a quantitative literacy to confidently describe and explain authentic problems and solutions. 

The goal of Region 15's English/Language Arts Curriculum is to foster self-directed learning, effective communication and active participation in a diverse literacy community. To achieve this goal, we begin by recognizing that students have a range of experiences which influence their learning, and that they live in a world demanding high levels of literacy in a variety of formats. Students must be able to think critically, process efficiently, and integrate appropriately the vast amount of information that they are exposed to daily.

The K-12 curriculum supports a process-oriented approach toward student learning of the concepts and skills needed to comprehend and communicate through reading, writing, speaking, presenting, listening, and viewing. The curriculum is best taught through instruction that provides a variety of authentic experiences and student choice. As the dimensions of literacy expand, students have more opportunities to discover themselves as readers and writers.

Students need many opportunities to select, interact with, reflect on, and critique a diverse range of high quality texts that support and challenge their individual development. Similarly, students need to create and reflect on written text and oral presentations across a variety of genre, audiences and purposes. These experiences are designed to achieve our curriculum goal and ignite a life-long passion for literacy.

We live in an age of tremendous change brought about by new technologies. Almost every aspect of our lives has been dramatically affected by the age of the microprocessor. The ways that we work, play, and communicate have been altered by technologies barely conceived of forty years ago. The world our children will enter when they graduate from Region 15 schools will be different, even from the one in which they now function. Technology continues to shrink our world. One can now collaborate globally on a project almost as easily as with someone down the hallway.

Our children, to be successful, will need to be prepared for this Information Age. They must be prepared for jobs that do not even exist at this time. They need to become adaptable, flexible, critical thinkers. And most of all, they need to be information literate. The computer/technology program in Region 15 is based upon the National Educational Technology Standards, which have also been adopted by the State Department of Education in Connecticut. Our program is designed to prepare students for a world that is constantly changing as technology becomes more prevalent, faster, and easier to use.

The computer/technology program is designed with the following beliefs in mind: 

Technology must be embedded into every subject.
The computer/technology program must be flexible and dynamic to take advantages of constant change in the field.
New technologies raise new ethical questions. An integral part of any technology program must be the development of responsible use of technology.
Technology changes the very nature of literacy. Information is available in a variety of formats and students must be competent in accessing and using all information.
Technology opens the classroom to the global community.
Technology offers tools to individualize instruction, meeting the creative and critical thinking needs of all students.

Complex issues, ever-expanding quantities of information, and rapidly changing technologies will define the world in which Region 15 students spend their adult lives. To learn and flourish in environments that honor their individuality and commonality as global citizens, students will need to be responsible and informed consumers of information.  To this end, we will cultivate an environment that fosters perseverance during the research process, evaluation of resources, and thoughtful decision making. Proficient with the inquiry process and 21st Century tools, students will be empowered to generate ideas and support arguments.  Students will graduate from Region 15 equipped to be lifelong readers, learners, and innovative problem solvers.

The Region 15 library media program will do this by providing direct instruction on information competencies and a wide variety of reading opportunities.

These critical competencies are best taught to students in their current school subject content. The responsibility for realizing this integration resides with the collaborative efforts of the library media staff and technology staff, teachers, support staff, administrators, students, the Board of Education, and the community at large. This shared support insures that all Region 15 students have equal opportunity to learn and master critical information literacy competencies.