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While states and districts have engaged in numerous strategies to address Covid-related learning losses, the strategy getting the most attention and investment is high-dose tutoring. According to a February 2023 report published by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), states have spent $700 million of ESSER reserve funds to expand tutoring opportunities, including $470 million on large-scale, high-dose tutoring programs. This blog endeavors to provide tips, based on lessons learned from tutoring programs across the country, to help districts implement successful high-dose tutoring programs. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) regularly surveys a national sample of public schools about the impact of Covid-19. The December 2022 NCES Pulse survey included questions about the types of tutoring schools are offering: Thirty-seven percent (37%) of the public schools reported providing high-dose tutoring Fifty-nine percent (59%) offer standard tutoring Twenty-two percent (22%) provide self-paced tutoring . High-dose tutoring is one-on-one or small-group tutoring that takes place at least three times a week for at least 30 minutes per session. Tutors are educators or well-trained tutors and the tutor follows an evidence-based, core curriculum program. Standard tutoring is less intensive tutoring that takes place one-on-one, or in small or large groups. Tutoring is offered less than three times per week and tutors are educators who may or may not have received training in specific tutoring practices. Self-paced tutoring is tutoring where students work at their own pace, typically online. They receive guided instruction and move on to new material after mastering the content. Are all three types of tutoring programs equally effective? J-PAL's Tutoring Evidence Review analyzed the evidence from 96 randomized evaluations of tutoring programs and provides the following insights into what type of tutoring programs work best and for whom: Tutoring programs led by teachers or paraprofessional tutors are generally more effective than programs that used nonprofessional (volunteer) or parent tutors. Paraprofessional tutors include, among others, school staff members, undergraduate students in education, and service fellows. The effects of tutoring programs tend to be strongest among students in earlier grades, though a smaller set of programs at the secondary level were also found to be effective at improving learning outcomes. While the overall effects for math and reading tutoring programs are similar, reading tutoring tends to be relatively more effective for students in preschool through first grade, while math tutoring tends to be more effective for students in second through fifth grade. Tutoring programs conducted during school tend to have larger impacts than those conducted after school. During EdWeek's recent Essentials on Tutoring forum , Susan Loeb, professor and director of the education policy initiative at Stanford's Graduate School of Education, and Scott Muri, superintendent of Ector County ISD provided further, similar guidance about the attributes of successful tutoring programs: They target students' individual needs They are "intensive" meaning that they occur over a long period of time, daily or every other day for an entire school year They happen as part of the school day, either before during, or immediately after school when it's easiest to reach and engage students They use professional, trained tutors Tutors have access to student data showing where the students' needs exist Tutors rely on the district's curriculum so that the tutoring is aligned with the material students are expected to learn Contracts for tutoring services were "outcomes-based"; their continuation hinged on students' progress. As mentioned, high-dose tutoring is effective when aligned with the district's curriculum. This blog provides tips about using the district's existing materials to deliver standards-aligned tutoring. Providing high-dose tutoring is challenging for many reasons, including cost, scheduling, and staffing. If your district is (considering) partnering with a vendor to deliver tutoring service, Bart Epstein , a former executive at Tutor.com, provides this advice, "No school district should be paying for tutoring if kids aren't showing up." Sources: Barshay, Jill. 2022. “PROOF POINTS: Early Data on ‘High-Dosage’ Tutoring Shows Schools Are Sometimes Finding It Tough to Deliver Even Low Doses.” The Hechinger Report. August 1, 2022. https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-early-data-on-high-dosage-tutoring-shows-schools-are-sometimes-finding-it-tough-to-deliver-even-low-doses/. ‌Heubeck, Elizabeth. 2023. “Talking High-Dosage Tutoring: A Researcher and Schools Chief Share Strategies.”  Education Week , February 21, 2023, sec. Student Achievement. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/talking-high-dosage-tutoring-a-researcher-and-schools-chief-share-strategies/2023/02. “2022 School Pulse Panel.” n.d. Ies.ed.gov. https://ies.ed.gov/schoolsurvey/spp/. “Road to Recovery: How States Are Using Federal Relief Funding to Scale High-Impact Tutoring |.” n.d. Accessed March 3, 2023. https://learning.ccsso.org/road-to-recovery-how-states-are-using-federal-relief-funding-to-scale-high-impact-tutoring. ‌‌“The Transformative Potential of Tutoring for Pre K-12 Learning Outcomes: Lessons from Randomized Evaluations.” n.d. Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL). Accessed March 3, 2023. https://www.povertyactionlab.org/publication/transformative-potential-tutoring-pre-k-12-learning-outcomes-lessons-randomized.

A recent  EdWeek  article titled,  Why Printed Books Are Better Than Screens for  Learning to Read addresses the debate over print vs digital materials for young learners in an interview with Maryann Wolf, the director of the Center for Dyslexia, Diverse Learners, and Social Justice at UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies. Wolf begins by saying that the answer is not binary. "There are advantages and disadvantages for each type of medium , depending on the purpose or intention." "For young children ,  physical books are best, audio is second best and tablet is a clear third."  While tablets are often more engaging, they promote "passive engagement."  Students learn to be distracted instead of learning to focus. "So between zero and five, the evidence has become quite clear that children's use of the screen is helping to develop the opposite of what we want in focusing attention."  Wolf points out that while print is more advantageous for learning, digital materials are useful tools for diagnostic screening and for skills practice, particularly for students with dyslexia or students who have limited background knowledge of a subject.  While students may perceive that they are better readers online because they can read faster, Wolf points out that students can read faster online because screens make it easy to scroll and skim. However, students need to learn deep reading skills using print first and then need to be taught to use those same skills when reading online.  Wolf concludes, "Books are really one of the greatest tools for the mind and should never be lost until we are assured that the same processes that were advantaged there are not being diminished by the other mediums."  An article in the Hechinger Report titled, “A Textbook Dilemma: Digital or Paper?” discusses Patricia Alexander’s review of research on this topic. Ms. Alexander is an educational psychologist and a literacy scholar at the University of Maryland. Despite numerous (878) potentially relevant studies on the topic, Ms. Alexander pointed out that “only 36 directly compared reading in digital and in print and measured learning in a reliable way.” Despite the need for further research on this topic, Ms. Alexander found that numerous studies affirm the finding that: “if you are reading something lengthy – more than 500 words or more than a page of the book or screen – your comprehension will likely take a hit if you’re using a digital device.” This pertained to college students as well as students in elementary, middle, and high school.     The research highlights several reasons why: Reading online is more physically and mentally demanding (e.g., “the nuisance of scrolling and the tiresome glare and flicker of the screen") than reading a textbook. Online readers may not concentrate as well, distracted by social media alerts, the temptation to browse the internet, etc. Reading a printed book leaves spatial impressions in your mind (i.e., where something was on a page) that may not occur with the same frequency online. Ms. Alexander also addressed whether “note taking on paper offers measurable advantages for learning?” For example, whether highlighting and underlining online versus on paper affected comprehension more positively. She concluded, “Those kinds of motor responses have never been of highest value in terms of text processing strategies.” Rather, “the studying strategy with ‘the greatest power,’ …. involves deeply questioning the text — asking yourself if you agree with the author, and why or why not.” The point of the research is not to identify a winner; print and digital materials are here to stay. As Ms. Alexander put it, “The core question when is a reader best served by a particular medium? And what kind of readers? What age? What kind of text are we talking about? All of those elements matter a great deal.” For more research on this topic, see " Don't throw away your printed books: A meta-analysis on the effects of reading media on reading comprehension ." This blog from 2019 discusses a review of the research on this same topic. That research pertained to the best medium for students from kindergarten through college. The research is not trying to discern a winner in the debate. Rather, the core question the research is trying to answer is when does a particular medium best serve a reader?

Are you looking for supplemental reading material for your students? Take a look at Learning List’s review of McGraw Hill’s Actively Learn . McGraw Hill’s Actively Learn is a fully digital, supplemental program for grades 3-12 that supports English Language Arts, Social Studies, and Science. Learning List recently reviewed the content for English Language Arts. The program is designed to help students improve reading comprehension by providing engaging reading materials, questions, and activities to support learning. The program intends to drive learning, engagement, and equity with interactive content that includes more than 20,000 texts in English, with translation support for additional languages. Students also have access to numerous accessibility tools to support students with specific learning needs. Actively Learn enables teachers to meet specific instructional goals by providing real-time progress monitoring, allowing teachers to add to or revise content, and supporting thematic instructional design with theme-based organization of texts. Read Learning List’s three reviews of this product to learn more. Read our Editorial Review to learn how the program supports writing instruction. Learning List has also completed a report of the material’s alignment to the TEKS, as well as a review of its technology compatibility and support for remote learning. These reviews not only inform selection decisions, they also facilitate instructional alignment. To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About McGraw Hill* McGraw Hill’s mission is “to unlock potential and accelerate learning for every student.” McGraw Hill values innovation, membership, passion, adaptability, credibility, and transparency. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from McGraw Hill .

If you care about instructional materials, you need to know about legislation that is sailing through the Texas legislature: House Bill 1605 (Buckley) and its identical companion Senate Bill 2565 (Creighton). The legislation would implement significant changes in how instructional materials are selected and used in Texas classrooms. Why should you care? California, Texas, New York, and Florida have long been bellwether states in the K-12 publishing market. Additionally, Texas is a member of the High-Quality Instructional Materials and Professional Development (HQIMPD) network , a 13-state network led by the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) in Washington, DC, which advocates for greater state control over the adoption and use of high-quality instructional materials (i.e., the Louisiana Believes model). For both of these reasons, these bills are likely to have national reverberations. The legislation would implement many of the state-control reforms advocated by CCSSO through the HQIMPD network, as summarized below. The State identifies high-quality instructional materials (HQIMs) for districts to adopt The legislation shifts authority over the state instructional materials review process from the elected State Board of Education (SBOE) to the governor-appointed commissioner of education. The commissioner would be required to design a new state instructional materials review process under his control, select the materials that will be reviewed each year, and maintain a public website to house those reviews. The legislation authorizes the SBOE to approve the commissioner's new review process and to approve or reject each reviewed material. Additionally, the legislation requires the commissioner to purchase Open Education Resources (OERs) for specified subjects and grade levels and authorizes him to purchase other instructional materials and technology for all districts to use. To provide public information about the quality of the materials districts are using, publishers of state-approved materials would be required to provide an instructional materials portal where parents could access those materials. Districts would be required to make all teaching materials available for parent review beginning one month before and extending one month after the school year. Parents would also be able to request an external review of the instructional resources their children's teachers are using. Districts would be required to annually report information about all of their instructional materials to the Texas Education Agency. The State incentivizes districts to adopt HQIMs The SBOE would maintain a list of state-approved and rejected materials. It is likely that a limited number of materials will be deemed high-quality and approved for each subject area and grade band, as has been the result in Louisiana. For example, for science, Louisiana has only two state-approved Tier 1 elementary and middle school materials and one additional state-approved material for sixth grade. Furthermore, although the legislation states that districts cannot be required to use commissioner-selected OERs, the bill's $843 M fiscal note would be paid for out of the state Instructional Materials and Technology fund, leaving little in that fund to disperse to districts for local purchases of instructional materials. The legislation allocates a one-time , $40 per student allotment in the Foundation School Program for purchases of state-approved materials across all subjects as well as an annual $20 per student allotment to cover OER printing costs. By depleting districts' funding for instructional materials, the legislation will, in fact, force districts to use the commissioner's OERs. The State incentivizes teachers to use high-quality instructional materials The legislation prohibits school districts from requiring teachers to develop unit/lesson plans, create resources or select instructional materials unless those duties are specified in the teacher's contract. It also extends liability protections to teachers who use SBOE-approved materials as designed . Thus, in order to take advantage of that immunity, teachers would have to follow the material's scope and sequence and lesson plans without supplementation. The State provides professional learning aligned to HQIMs The bills authorize the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to provide support for districts' adoption, selection, and use of instructional materials. TEA is also required to create an OER support program to assist districts and charter schools in using OERs and creating class schedules that allow sufficient time for teacher planning and preparation within the workday. The State engages educator preparation programs The legislation requires pre-service teachers to demonstrate a thorough understanding and competence in using the state-approved OERs in order to earn a teaching certificate. This summary reflects the committee substitutes of HB 1605 and SB 2565. As explained, the legislation would significantly expand the commissioner of education's control while restricting the SBOE's authority over the selection of instructional materials for Texas public schools. It would empower parents to review teachers' materials. It would diminish school districts' capacity to locally select instructional materials and limit teachers' autonomy to select resources for their lessons. It would also reshape the K-12 market for publishers. Similar bills are likely to appear in other HQIMPD states.

Does your district need practice material for mathematics? Take a look at Learning List’s review of DeltaMath INTEGRAL. DeltaMath INTEGRAL is a fully digital, supplemental mathematics program for grades 6-12. Learning List recently reviewed the content for grades 6-8 and Algebra I. The program intends to supplement core mathematics instruction by providing practice problems and opportunities for students to develop content and skills in mathematics. The program provides a bank of practice problems organized by topic and standard. Some question types are consistent with the STAAR redesign question types in Texas. The problems address general mathematics skills and concepts but do not typically address process standards or real-world contexts. Assessments are not included; however, the program enables teachers to create assessments based on specific skills or TEKS. Additionally, teachers can customize multiple assignment features to create assignments and assessments for students that correlate to the instruction they are providing. Progress monitoring is supported at the teacher, campus, and district levels. Read Learning List’s Alignment Report for a standard-by-standard review of this material’s alignment to the TEKS. Learning List has also completed an Editorial Review of the material’s instructional quality, as well as a review of its technology compatibility and support for remote learning. These reviews not only inform selection decisions, they facilitate instructional alignment and curriculum mapping, too. To learn more about this product and thousands more PreK-12 instructional materials, contact Learning List for subscription information. About DeltaMath DeltaMath is built by teachers. It began with one teacher’s goal to provide math practice problems for his students. Thirteen years later the program serves over 100,000 teachers and over 4 million students. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from DeltaMath .

The end of the school year and the impending ESSER cliff are two forces compelling districts to review their K-12 curriculum materials to determine which instructional resources to keep and which to discard. If you are involved in making those decisions in your district, the first question you are likely asking is, " Which materials are teachers using ?" Several companies, including Canvas , Day 180 , and Lightspeed Systems, can help you track the usage of digital materials. A staff survey and/or Input from instructional coaches can help gauge the usage of print materials. The next, and equally, if not more important question to answer is " Which materials should teachers be using? " Not all materials are created equally. Auditing your materials will help you separate the wheat from the chaff so that you can identify the high-quality materials to keep. This blog provides actionable, step-by-step guidance to help you audit your instructional materials. If you need help streamlining the process, Learning List's auditing tool can help. Contact us to learn more.

On May 22, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a proposed settlement order in a first-of-its-kind case against an education technology (ed tech) company for violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Rule. The settlement order contains valuable guidance for ed tech companies and school districts that work with them. Congress enacted COPPA in 1998 with the goal of protecting the safety and privacy of children online by prohibiting the unauthorized or unnecessary collection of children's personal information online by ed tech companies. The FTC is in charge of enforcing the law. To implement COPPA, the FTC passed the COPPA Rule which went into effect in April 2000 and was amended in July 2013. The rule requires online service providers and websites directed at children under 13 to notify parents about personally identifiable information the company intends to collect from their children and to obtain verifiable parental consent for the collection and use of that information. According to the complaint , until September 2022, EdModo operated an online platform and mobile app which allowed teachers to provide virtual classes for students. The company provided a free version of the service, called EdModo Platform, and a subscription version called EdModo Enterprise. Individual teachers could register for accounts independently on the free version. EdModo Enterprise required a school or district contract. Both EdModo Platform and EdModo Enterprise collected personal information from students without parental consent, including students' first and last names, email addresses, birthdates (between July-September 2020), and phone numbers (prior to July 2020). Students were permitted to provide additional information, including their school name and a profile picture. EdModo automatically collected personally identifiable usage and device information, such as cookies, IP address, device type, operating system, browser type and ID, and geographic location based on the IP address. EdModo's Terms of Service suggested that schools and teachers were responsible for obtaining verifiable parental consent, as required by the COPPA Rule. Furthermore, the company and its third-party advertising partners used the collected data to target ads to students, including students under 13, on the EdModo Platform. The FTC's complaint alleges that EdModo violated the COPPA Rule by: (1) failing to obtain verifiable parental consent prior to collecting, using, or disclosing personally identifiable information of children, (2) retaining personal information collected online from children for longer than reasonably necessary to fulfill the purpose for which the information was collected, and (3) unfairly requiring schools and teachers to comply with the COPPA Rule on the company's behalf without providing adequate information or support to meet the Rule's requirements. Those allegations in the complaint are consistent with the FTC's May 2022 policy statement which warned that the Commission would specifically focus on the following provisions of the COPPA Rule when investigating potential violations by ed tech providers: Prohibitions Against Mandatory Collection:  Companies cannot require children to provide more information than is reasonably needed for participation in the intended online activity. The guidance states, "Students must not be required to submit to unnecessary data collection in order to do their schoolwork."   Use Prohibitions:  Ed tech providers that collect personal information from a child with the school’s authorization may use that information only to provide the requested online education service. The guidance states, "In this context, ed tech companies are prohibited from using such information for any commercial purpose, including marketing, advertising, or other commercial purposes unrelated to the provision of the school-requested online service."  Retention Limitations : Ed tech providers are prohibited from retaining children’s personal information for longer than is necessary to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected. The guidance states, "It is unreasonable, for example, for an ed tech provider to retain children's data for speculative future potential uses."  Security Requirements : Ed tech providers must have procedures to maintain the confidentiality, security, and integrity of children’s personal information. The guidance states, " ven absent a breach, COPPA-covered ed tech providers violate COPPA if they lack reasonable security." The policy statement also makes clear that "The responsibility for COPPA compliance is on businesses, not schools or parents - and agreements must reflect that." Companies that fail to follow the COPPA Rule face potential civil penalties, new requirements, and limitations on their business practices to stop unlawful conduct.  The proposed settlement order in this case fines EdModo $6 million and prohibits the company from Conditioning a child's participation in an activity on the disclosure of more information than is reasonably necessary to participate in such activity Using children's information for non-educational purposes such as advertising or building profiles Using schools as intermediaries in the parental consent process. The proposed settlement order also requires EdModo to Complete several requirements before obtaining school authorization to collect information a child Implement and adhere to a retention schedule that details what information it collects, what the data is used for, and a time frame for deleting it Delete models or algorithms developed using personally identifiable information collected from children without verifiable parental consent or school authorization. EdModo ceased operations in the United States during the FTC's investigation, so the fine was suspended due to the company's inability to pay. But, if the proposed settlement order is approved by the court, EdModo will be bound by this order if it ever resumes. its U.S. operations. The significance of this case, however, is the guidance it provides for ed tech companies and educators about the FTC's enforcement of the COPPA Rule. More information about COPPA's application to ed tech companies can be found here.

McGraw Hill’s Texas Hole’s Essentials of Human Anatomy and Physiology (Hole’s Anatomy and Physiology) is a comprehensive science curriculum for high school Anatomy and Physiology. This review is based on the version of the material submitted for state adoption under Texas Proclamation 2024. While some content may specifically address the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, the format and features of the Texas version is likely the same as the national version. Therefore, the information in our reviews is relevant to districts in other states, too. The materials are available in print and digital format and are accessible to students and teachers from McGraw-Hill’s interactive digital platform. The program uses real-world applications to help students master the core themes of anatomy and physiology. Hole’s Anatomy and Physiology opens with a preview chapter, which introduces scientific methods and processes, data analysis, and science and engineering practices. This chapter also provides students with suggestions and strategies for studying and learning the material. The material organizes instruction into units and chapters focused on various components of human anatomy and physiology. Each chapter begins with an introduction that includes an image, background information, a theme, and a real-world case study. Connections to the case study are made throughout the chapter and provide students with an opportunity to understand the topic in greater depth. Lessons provide a variety of activities, including hands-on labs and virtual labs. Case studies, data analysis, and multiple applications of the concepts throughout the material support students’ abilities to make real-world connections, find relevance in the material, and think critically. Chapters conclude with a summative assessment. All of the resources for teachers and students, including the teacher and student editions, are housed on McGraw-Hill’s interactive digital platform. Digital resources for students include an interactive cadaver dissection tool, animations, and flashcards. The platform provides a variety of monitoring resources for teachers, an item bank, and tools to enable teachers to create and edit assessments. The material is available in English. Lessons include supports for Emerging Bilingual students that are specific to the student’s language proficiency level. Supports for other special populations are limited. Read more about the rigor of the material and supports for differentiating instruction in List’s editorial review. About Learning List Learning List provides a range of curriculum support services, including a low-cost, subscription instructional materials review service for schools and districts. Subscribers get access to reviews of more than 3,300 K-12 instructional materials and can submit additional materials for review at no additional charge. Contact Info@LearningList.com for information about our low-cost subscriptions.   About McGraw Hill  * McGraw Hill’s  mission is “to unlock potential and accelerate learning for every student.”  McGraw Hill  values innovation, membership, passion, adaptability, credibility, and transparency. Information in this section is provided by or adapted from McGraw Hill.

Looking for a science curriculum for Anatomy and Physiology ? Take a look at Savvas' Pearson’s Anatomy, Physiology, and Disease , a comprehensive curriculum for high school courses. The material comes in print and digital formats. The program focuses on helping students make a lasting connection to the content to help them succeed as healthcare professionals. Pearson Anatomy organizes content in consistently structured chapters focused on body systems and other content students need, such as biochemistry and cells. Ethical dilemmas, discussion questions, and case studies help students understand the relevance of the content they are learning and see connections to the real world, to healthcare professions, as well as to other sciences. The textbook also includes a variety of appendices to support students in understanding the content. This material requires students to read extensively. Tools to facilitate reading are embedded in the student platform. Learning is supported through a variety of resources, including figures, strategically placed real-world examples, and formative assessments at the end of each section. “Learning Hints” clarify challenging concepts in each chapter. Teachers access all resources through the MyLab platform. The teacher edition is the primary teacher resource, which includes multiple lesson supports for teachers. Pearson Anatomy  includes multiple supports for students with specific learning needs. Instructional suggestions are specific to the special population and to the activity. Supports for Emerging Bilingual students are embedded in each chapter. Read Learning List’s spec sheet and editorial review to learn more about how this science curriculum supports students in learning and teachers in teaching Anatomy and Physiology. Read about other Savvas science materials that Learning List has recently reviewed including Texas Experience Science, and Forensic Science. About Learning List Learning List's reviews are available through a subscription. Contact info@LearningList.com to learn about subscribing to Learning List's low-cost instructional materials review service which provides immediate access to independent, evidence-based reviews of more than 3,300 PreK-12 instructional materials. Additionally, subscribing districts can submit materials for review at no additional charge.  About Savvas Learning Company * Savvas Learning Company (formerly Pearson K12 Learning), is a next-generation learning company. Their goal is to combine new ideas, new ways of thinking, and new ways of interacting to create innovative learning solutions. Savvas is “driven by a shared purpose to prepare students to thrive in our rapidly changing world. We do that by combining the power of advanced technology and dynamic curriculum to create next-generation learning solutions — delivered in the physical classroom or in remote settings — that offer engaging, personalized, and real-world learning experiences”   Information in the section is provided by or adapted from Savvas .*

Is your district adopting new high school science materials? Savvas' Experience Biology, Chemistry, and Physics are comprehensive curricula for high school courses. Each focuses on providing immersive experiences to support students in doing science through inquiry, phenomena, labs, and real-world applications. Experience Chemistry provides immersive experiences to support students in doing science through inquiry, phenomena, labs, and real-world applications. The materials are available in print and digital format. The program design is based on the 5E model. Instruction is organized in "Investigations" (units) based on anchoring phenomena to demonstrate how scientific concepts exist in the real world. "Experiences" include virtual and hands-on labs, as well as demonstrations. In Chemistry and Physics , "Experiences" also provide math instruction and practice to guide students through the mathematics required to be successful in those subjects. The material seamlessly integrates phenomena, scientific and engineering practices, and recurring themes throughout each topic. Students consistently participate in activities such as planning and conducting investigations, using models to explore scientific concepts, analyzing data, communicating their findings, and defending their answers with evidence. Ongoing formative assessments use a variety of question types. The primary student material is the Experience Handbook which serves as the textbook. It includes reading material activities, and review and assessment questions. The Savvas Realize platform includes a variety of resources such as interactive activities for students, and video and audio materials. Teacher resources include a scope and sequence, a course pacing guide, and presentation materials. Each “Investigation” provides an “Overview” for the teacher that includes background and preparation videos, a preview of the topic, background information for the teacher, common misconceptions, vertical alignment of the standards, and ideas for home connections. The materials are only available in English but are formatted for translation using Google Translate. Learn more about how these materials support special populations, including Emerging Bilinguals by reading Learning List's editorial reviews. About  Learning List Learning List’s reviews are available through a low-cost subscription. Contact  info@LearningList.com  to learn about subscribing to our instructional materials review service which provides immediate access to our independent, evidence-based reviews of more than 3,300 PreK-12 instructional materials. Subscribing districts can also submit materials for review at no additional charge. About Savvas Learning Company * Savvas Learning Company (formerly Pearson K12 Learning), is a next-generation learning company. Their goal is to combine new ideas, new ways of thinking, and new ways of interacting to create innovative learning solutions. Savvas is “driven by a shared purpose to prepare students to thrive in our rapidly changing world. We do that by combining the power of advanced technology and dynamic curriculum to create next-generation learning solutions — delivered in the physical classroom or in remote settings — that offer engaging, personalized, and real-world learning experiences”   Information in the section is provided by or adapted from Savvas.*

Learning List recently reviewed the quality and technology compatibility of Teachers' Curriculum Institute's (TCI's) Social Studies Alive! elementary program. We were not asked to review the material's alignment to any state social studies standards. Subscribing districts may request a review of the material to their state's standards. Social Studies Alive! is a comprehensive, curriculum designed to support social studies instruction for students in grades K-5. Materials are available in print and digital formats. The program intends to provide an engaging learning experience through interactive, inquiry-based lessons that include cross-curricular connections. Social Studies Alive!  grounds student learning in inquiry. Every unit includes an inquiry-based project, which requires students to use the inquiry process, and uniformly formatted lessons. Lessons provide interactive, inquiry-based activities that require students to study primary source documents, read critically, and draw conclusions. Instruction consistently makes connections to students’ lives and their local communities, presenting a variety of perspectives and narratives or people from all walks of life. Throughout the material, cross-curricular activities develop students' literacy skills. The teacher and student materials are accessible from the digital platform. The platform's teacher dashboard provides step-by-step instructions to help teachers plan lessons and monitor student progress. The dashboard also contains a variety of teacher resources to support instruction and successful implementation. Read Learning List’s editorial reviews to learn about the rigor of the material and the supports provided to help teachers differentiate instruction for special student populations. About Learning List Learning List provides a range of curriculum support services, including a low-cost, subscription instructional materials review service for schools and districts. Subscribers get access to reviews of more than 3,300 K-12 instructional materials and can submit additional materials for review at no additional charge. Contact Info@LearningList.com for information about our low-cost subscriptions.   About Teachers' Curriculum Institute We at Teachers’ Curriculum Institute (TCI) are classroom teachers and curriculum specialists committed to providing the best learning experience to students. We understand the complexities of the classroom and the importance of supporting differentiated teaching and learning needs. We believe that TCI has the capacity to make a difference in the lives of teachers and, by extension, their students. Contact us to learn more.

Explore Kendall Hunt's BSCS Biology for High School Are you searching for a high-quality biology program? Kendall Hunt’s BSCS Biology: Understanding for Life is a comprehensive high school biology curriculum aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) . Learning List has reviewed the material's alignment to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. This program focuses on enhancing students' problem-solving , critical thinking , and inquiry-based learning skills through engaging, real-world scenarios. The curriculum features four units : Infectious Disease and Natural Selection Genetic and Environmental Risk for Disease Matter and Energy in Food Systems Biodiversity and Humans Each unit is grounded in anchoring phenomena that connect to real-world issues . The consistent integration of scientific and engineering practices , crosscutting concepts , and inquiry-based activities ensures students are actively engaged in doing science, not just learning about it. Key features of BSCS Biology Inquiry-based lessons designed to develop critical thinking Real-world phenomena that drive instruction Available in English and Spanish Print and digital formats for flexible learning environments Regular assessments integrated throughout the curriculum While the material includes assessments at key instructional points, it does not offer digital progress monitoring tools. Learning List has conducted a TEKS alignment review of Kendall Hunt’s BSCS Biology, as well as a review of the material's instructional quality and technology compatibility. To explore detailed reviews and more than 3,500 other PreK-12 instructional materials, visit Learning List for subscription details. About Kendall Hunt For over 75 years, Kendall Hunt has provided engaging K-12 science and mathematics curricula , including open educational resources like Illustrative Mathematics and OpenSciEd . About Learning List Learning List offers a range of curriculum support services , including a low-cost subscription service that provides access to evidence-based reviews of thousands of K-12 instructional materials. For more information, contact Info@LearningList.com .