Curriculum as a Lever for District Reform: An Implementation Study of EL Education K5 Language Arts Curriculum in Jefferson County Public Schools

Abstract

School districts invest in high-quality curriculum materials to ensure all students have access to rigorous units of study. When successfully implemented, a rigorous curriculum can help prepare all students to achieve academic growth in an equitable capacity. In this report, we conduct an early implementation study of Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville, Kentucky, emphasizing their professional development training plan for the EL Education K-5 Language Arts Curriculum during the 2022 - 2023 school year. Designed to identify promising areas of practice and spotlight professional learning implementation opportunities, the study employs a mixed-methods approach. We qualitatively examine the district's professional support plan and explore the implementation challenges across four school sites in West Louisville. District leaders were curious to understand the level of support K-5 teachers, academic instructional coaches, and building leaders perceived during the first implementation year. This evaluation illuminates the challenges of working in historically marginalized schools and communities while simultaneously expecting to deliver a high-quality curriculum with limited resources. Based upon our findings, we offer recommendations to Jefferson County Public Schools on ways they can improve their professional support and implementation rollout for all future participating district schools to ensure that all students are provided access to a high-quality curriculum and educators are professionally supported to deliver academically rigorous units of study.