Though curriculum is an aspect of school that arguably has the largest impact on a student’s life,  many students do not understand how it is created. As a Common Core state, Illinois has mandated that all of its public K-12 schools instill specific skills within their students. For example, all eighth-grade math students in states following common core are expected to be able to “analyze and solve pairs of simultaneous linear equations,” according to a set standard.

Core subjects such as English, math, science, and social studies typically have the most detailed requirements, while exploratory classes are a little more flexible. When curriculum writers for core subjects begin to design a class, their first consideration is the objectives created by Common Core guidelines. Curriculum writing for core subjects is a collaborative process, with writing teams being comprised of teachers from all three high schools in the district.  Karen Lawson, Neuqua English department chair, explains that when writing curriculum, teams “start with objectives and then from the objectives, [they] look at the end goals for the whole entire semester.” From there, Lawson says, they create units that they believe will “get students there.”

Though all textbooks and novels included in the curriculum must be approved by the district, teachers are allowed to use non-sanctioned texts such as supplemental articles in classrooms. According to Lawson, there is a “trust factor that it is going to align with skills that we have put into that unit.” The process of updating a curriculum is expensive as costs are incurred with the purchase of new textbooks and even paying the teachers who comprise the writing team. Allowing teachers the agency to incorporate supplementary sources ensures that within the gap years, content within classes, such as Genetics where information is rapidly being updated, remains modern.