Adjustments made to HISD curriculum mid-school year at campuses under state reform program

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- More changes and adjustments are happening for Houston ISD teachers at the 57 schools that fall under superintendent Mike Miles' New Education System (NES). This time, it impacts classrooms that use certain curriculums for math and reading.

NES is a reform program that is new to HISD this school year under the state takeover. It was announced by Miles at the beginning of June. The 28 campuses that were originally selected, known as NES schools, were ones that fed into what he called three "struggling" high schools. Principals at an additional 57 campuses volunteered their schools for the program, known as NES-aligned schools.

The biggest differences at these campuses are libraries being turned into disciplinary centers, teachers getting standardized lesson plans, and teachers being required to keep their doors open at all times during classroom instruction.

READ MORE: Uncertainty and optimism for HISD parents on 1st day under takeover

On Friday, a number of teachers at NES and NES-aligned schools expressed feelings of confusion after they had their curriculum materials picked up by the district and were told that they would be given new lesson plans on Monday.

A spokesperson with HISD confirmed this information with ABC13.

"This did happen as part of the district's curriculum quality and control," HISD said in the statement. "HISD uses TEA-approved high-quality instructional materials as the source content for HISD curriculum and adapts them to meet the unique needs of the NES/NESA campuses. TEA underwent an intensive vetting process to ensure that all materials are aligned with the science of how students learn reading and math."

The spokesperson said the materials include Amplify Reading, Eureka Math, and Carnegie Math. The district will still use these curricula, but explained that the lesson plans are being strengthened to "align better to the standards being taught."

Jackie Anderson is the president of the Houston Federal of Teachers, the union representing teachers in Houston ISD. She said her concern lies with the timing of the curriculum adjustments.

"It's very chaotic to switch curriculum mid-year. It is like changing the direction of a boat in the middle of the river. Children have been taught an education that's scaffolded. So whatever you started with, it should have been carefully vetted in the beginning and used throughout the school year," Anderson said. "It seems like every single day, just when we think, 'Okay. This is it. It can't get any worse.' Something else happens."

READ MORE: Inappropriate reading assignment ends up in HISD 8th grade classrooms

An NES elementary school teacher spoke to ABC13 under the condition of anonymity, due to fear of losing her job for speaking out. Her understanding is that no materials from Eureka, Amplify, or Carnegie will be removed. Instead, it will now be used as additional resources to Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), which is the state standard for student learning in each subject.

The teacher believes the adjustments will allow the lesson plans to become less restrictive and give teachers more flexibility in their curriculum.

"I feel more empowered than I did the first couple of months of school when everything seemed like it was very strict. 'You have to do this, and you have to do that.' Everything seemed like, more or less, a blueprint. Now it seems like each of us will have a little bit more autonomy," she said.

The district said it hired a team of expert teachers to vet all of the lesson plans, who are on-site with curriculum writers daily to review teacher and student materials before publication.

"I think bringing in the curriculum vetters is good for teachers because we now have a seat at the table. I'm not saying the curriculum writers weren't doing a good job. It's just more hands on deck now. It's in the hands of people that are currently in the classroom, working with the students," the teacher said.

HISD stated all 28 NES and 57 NES-aligned schools will be part of these changes.

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