Investigating Inquiry and Curriculum Mapping in Catholic Schools With a 200-Day Academic Calendar

• In Event: Roundtable Session 26
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Issues in Catholic Education

Abstract

In 2011, all 210 elementary schools in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles were encouraged to extend the school calendar to 200-days. While this innovative policy was met with controversy over the issue being a mandate or a recommendation, the decision to extend the calendar was ultimately left to the schools’ individual discretion. The current project qualitatively investigated nine randomly selected elementary schools who adopted the calendar initiative. This paper describes the process, or lack thereof, undertaken by individual schools to go about answering the question of “are all students learning and how do we know?” Data from three out of the nine schools demonstrate an inclination to using an inquiry process and curriculum mapping. These schools’ best practices are discussed.

Authors

• Franca Dell'Olio, Loyola Marymount University

• Karie Huchting, Loyola Marymount University

• Ursula S. Aldana, University of San Francisco

• Catherine Cichocki Muzzy, St. Edward the Confessor Parish School