“A good plan is like a road map: it shows the final destination and usually the best way to get there.” – H. Stanley Judd

As teachers and administrators depart from the era of No Child Left Behind and begin to implement the Common Core State Standards, some may ask “Do we need curriculum mapping?” In 1997, Heidi Hayes Jacobs introduced the world to curriculum mapping in Mapping the Big Picture: Integrating Curriculum and Assessment K-12. Jacobs (1997) wrote, “We need two lenses: a zoom lens into this year’s curriculum for a particular grade and a wide-angle lens to see the K-12 perspective” (p. 3). Do the new standards provide educators with a curriculum?

Curriculum versus Standards
As I visit with educators across the United States, I often hear people say that the Common Core State Standards are the curriculum. Erickson (2007) reminds us that "Academic standards are not a curriculum; they are a framework for designing curriculum. A curriculum is a coherent, teacher-friendly document that reflects the intent of the academic standards" (p. 48). If educators believe Erickson’s definition of curriculum, then they will meet in teacher teams within and across schools to clarify the curriculum. K-12 curriculum development allows educators to identify key concepts and skills, identify important content, reflect on student understandings and misunderstandings, and create plans for ensuring student success at the next grade level or level of learning. Wiggins and McTighe (2005), wrote, “In the absence of a learning plan with clear goals, how likely is it that students will develop shared understandings on which future lessons might build” (p. 21)? If educators accept the new standards as the ‘official curriculum’ they will miss out on valuable professional conversations, the opportunity to differentiate instruction, and the chance to consider new ways to assess student understanding.

Vertical Alignment
How will we know when each student has mastered the essential learning outcomes? In the absence of curriculum maps it is difficult to know what is essential. If a professional learning team develops common formative assessments, but they lack curriculum maps then how will the educators know ‘what’ to assess? Some researchers have indicated that teachers should identify the curriculum using the following descriptions: Introductory, Review, and Mastery or Understanding. Until teachers develop a curriculum map, some teachers may teach the Common Core State Standards for Introductory and other teachers may teach the same standards until students develop Mastery.

If we can clarify what we want every student to know and be able to do, then we will be able to support students when they struggle with the essential learning(s). ‘How’ a teacher chooses to lead students to understand essential skills and concepts is not dictated by a curriculum map. The best educators understand that student learning styles and readiness levels vary from one class to the next. One teacher may teach a concept differently in first period than she does in second period. A curriculum map will help educators organize the district’s common curriculum. Marzano (2003) calls this the ‘guaranteed and viable curriculum’ and his research led him to believe that this is the number one factor which impacts student achievement.

Curriculum maps provide teachers with a starting point. Vertical alignment helps teachers see what learning looks like at the next level. If a concept is taught for Introduction in the third grade, but two students are ready to move to the next level then teachers can create learning experiences which challenge those students and teach the introductory level of knowledge to the rest of the class.

Curriculum Development
Several school districts across the United States have paid a small group of classroom teachers to write their math curriculum. Other school districts have purchased curriculum from vendors. It is important to note that a clear focus on aligning the curriculum and communicating decisions across buildings will create a more intentional delivery in each classroom. When educators work together to unpack state and national standards, they develop a commitment to each other and to continuous improvement.

Curriculum mapping is a process which asks teachers to develop curriculum goals, identify essential content, skills and concepts, and reflect on the taught curriculum. Curriculum development is "an ongoing process that asks teachers and administrators to think, act, and meet differently to improve their students' learning" (Hale, 2008, p. 8). In the absence of curriculum mapping, students will receive a disjointed curriculum.

Conclusion
Curriculum mapping may not be a new practice in education, but it provides educators with a starting point. The adoption of new standards does not mean each school has a guaranteed curriculum. Implementing the Common Core State Standards will require teacher teams to have professional conversations about what is required at each grade level. Curriculum mapping is not a silver bullet, but it provides an opportunity for educators to develop essential learning outcomes, essential questions, key concepts, key skills, and enduring understandings. Curriculum mapping supports the work of teachers and administrators. Veteran teachers have multiple experiences to offer, but all educators still need to look at the curriculum through a zoom lens and a wide-angle lens (Jacobs, 1997). It will be a struggle to implement new standards in the absence of a curriculum map. When teachers collaborate to develop the curriculum, they will work hard to implement it and make revisions which support teaching and learning throughout the school year.