Southern Utah University

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Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2025

Principles of Curriculum and Instruction (Online)

EDUC 2100-30I

Course: EDUC 2100-30I
Credits: 3
Term: Fall Semester 2025
Department: TED
CRN: 30434

Course Description

Students will be introduced to the principles of curriculum, teaching, and assessment. This writing-intensive course includes exercises in instructional planning and curriculum development. Students will produce a partial unit plan based on a content area and grade level of their choosing. This course is intended for elementary education majors and those students pursuing secondary education teacher certification.  As part of this course, students are required to submit to a background check; the fee for this can be waived. More information about seeking a waiver of the fee can be found in the syllabus or from the department. (Fall, Spring, Summer) [Graded (Standard Letter)] Prerequisite(s): EDUC 2200 and EDUC 2400 and SPED 2030 - Prerequisite Min. Grade: C

Required Texts

There is no required textbook for this class. All readings will be posted on Canvas. Students will not be required to purchase or locate any materials.

Learning Outcomes

OVERVIEW
Principles of Curriculum and Instruction is the first step in the elementary education coursework sequence. The course is designed to provide an introduction to the fundamental principles of teaching work. In particular, we examine in this course curriculum and instructional planning, effective teaching approaches, the development and use of assessments, and the role of context in teaching young people.

During this semester, students will be introduced to instructional planning, including several components of a major assessment we use. All lesson planning will be done with a simpler and hopefully more “real world” lesson plan template that we call the SUU Daily Lesson Plan. Lesson plans, and other assessments throughout the course, are intended to teach the elements of instructional planning. Important though these principles and assessments are, the paramount goal of the course is to cultivate capacities to think pedagogically—to begin to develop an awareness and ability to transform your curriculum and your commitments into learning activities.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
1.     Students will learn how to build content knowledge to plan relevant learning opportunities that respond to student needs.
2.   Students will learn effective instructional strategies to engage students and promote learning.
3.   Students will learn to use assessments and interpret data for the purpose of making decisions that will advance teaching and learning.
4.   Students will learn how reflective practice enables them to advance student learning and grow professionally.
5.   Students will develop multiple lesson plans aligned to their content of interest.
6.   Students will develop a partial unit plan aligned to their content of interest.
7.    Students will create learning intentions and success criteria that are aligned to Utah Core Standards. 
8.   Students will design a variety of instructional strategies to engage students and promote active learning. 

Course Requirements

The grading breakdown in this course is as follows:
~25% In-class attendance and participation (just participation for online sections)
~25% Reflections on readings, videos, and other resources (to prepare you for in-class or online discussions)
~50% Major course assignments (outlined below)
 
Course Preparation Reflections (CPRs). To prepare for each class you will be assigned one or more short readings (typically just 1-2 pages) and possibly a video or other digital resource.  To be fully prepared you will read (or watch) these resources prior to class and complete the “Course Preparation Reflection” for those resources posted in the weekly module on Canvas.  Both F2F and online students will need to complete these reflections by 11:59 the evening prior to the scheduled class session.   Grading: ~25% of final grade
 
Attendance Quizzes (F2F students only). Participation for class is recorded via an “attendance quiz” given either that the end of class (time permitting) or by the end-of-day on days we hold class.  You will submit a short quiz that details your attendance, what you learned, and what suggestions you have for future sections of the course.  Grading: ~25% of final grade
 
Lecture Reflections (online students only). Online students will watch a weekly video lecture.  These lectures are typically be posted on Thursday or Friday after the course preparation reflections have been read and considered by the instructor.  Once students have watched the lecture they will complete a weekly “Lecture Reflection” that details what they learned from the lecture and how the new information might impact their future practice.  The reflections are due by midnight on Sunday. Grading: ~25% of final grade 
 
Major Course Assignments (MCAs). There are several larger assignments (mostly around unit and lesson planning), with one due about every other week throughout the semester.  These assignments will help you explore weekly topics in greater depth and get some hands-on experience in education.  A summary of each is listed below and more complete, step-by-step instructions can be found in the “assignments” tab in Canvas. Grading: ~50% of final grade 
 
As you develop curriculum in this course, I want you to consider the curriculum OF the course (the assignments and lectures that Mr. C. has created).  To help you better understand the curriculum writing process you will include a short reflection for each Major Course Assignment, posted in the comments section of Canvas where you submit your assignment.  The reflection will share 1) What you learned by completing the assignment, 2) What you enjoyed about completing the assignment, and 3) recommendations for how to improve the assignment so students might gain even more by completing it.

MCA 1: Student Profile Flashcards. Your first assignment is an opportunity to share who you are, your interests and goals, and other information that might help Mr. C. instruct you better. You will download a Student Flashcard template, fill out the information, and include a picture.  You will then save the document with your name, class, and section and upload it to MCA 1 in Canvas. 

MCA 2: Show and Tell. Our first classroom assignment is an opportunity to share who you are with the entire class.  For Face-to-Face (F2F) students this will be done over the second week of class.  Each student will bring in an artifact that helps us get to know you better and has three minutes to present the artifact to the class.  Online students will do the same thing by creating a three-minute video and uploading it to a Discussion Board on Canvas. 

MCA 3: Utah School Mini-Study. Students will choose a particular school in Utah, ideally from the district they studied in EDUC 1010 (if taken). Drawing from a range of sources, such as school/district web sites, school report cards, and census/economic data, students will produce a contextual factors narrative about the community and school. This narrative, or a form of it, will be included in the Unit Planner assignment.

MCA 4: Unit Planner first draft. The first Unit Planner assignment will require you to draft two components of the template: the “Basic Info” box on the first page, as well as several items in the “Big Picture Ideas for Unit” table (specifically, the Learning Theory/Method; Connection Between Standards; Evidence of Learning, Skills to Provide Evidence of Learning; and Content to Provide Evidence of Learning). In other words, you’re being asked to begin brainstorming the basics of a unit of instruction, specifically the activities students might do to show they learned (assessments) and the content knowledge and/or skills this demonstration of learning might require. After you complete the Utah School Mini-Study, you will use its contents to complete the remainder of the Unit Planner. This means you will complete the Contextual Factors Summary, Community Factor, and School/District Factor tables, along with the Essential Questions and the Daily Lesson Brainstorm. The goal here is to begin drafting an outline of the five days of instruction, which you will be able to use to draft your individual lesson plans, assessments, and rubrics.

MCA 5: Day 1 Lesson Plan (action steps). You will submit the first lesson plan for your five-unit sequence. All students will do the first day, and everyone will be required to use the SUU Daily Lesson Plan template. To do your first day’s lesson plan, you’ll draw on the initial work you have in your Unit Planner, which should have at least the beginning of an idea for your lesson. The Day 1 Lesson Plan assignment will include the SUU Daily Lesson Plan (limited to 2 pages only) but will leave the “Evidence of Learning” and “Meet Learner Differences” columns blank.  No assessment or rubric is needed, just the “action steps.” 

MCA 6: Day 2 Lesson Plan (+formative assessment). You will submit the second lesson plan for your five-unit sequence. The Day 2 Lesson Plan will include the SUU Daily Lesson Plan (limited to 2 pages), a Middle phase assessment (formative assessment), and a rubric for your assessment (included on the third page).  The “Meet Learner Difference” column will be left blank.

MCA 7: Day 3 Lesson Plan (+summative assessment). You will submit the third lesson plan for your five-unit sequence. The Day 3 Lesson Plan will include the SUU Daily Lesson Plan (limited to 2 pages), a end phase assessment (summative assessment), and a rubric for your assessment (included on the third page).  The “Meet Learner Difference” column will be left blank.

MCA 8: Day 4 Lesson Plan (+learner differences). You will submit the fourth lesson plan for your five-unit sequence. The Day 4 Lesson Plan will include the SUU Daily Lesson Plan (limited to 2 pages), some kind of assessment (summative or formative, in the middle or end phase), a rubric for your assessment (included on the third page), and a completed “Meet Learner Difference” column.

MCA 9: Day 5 Lesson Plan (complete, review day). You will submit the fifth lesson plan for your five-unit sequence. The Day 5 Lesson Plan will include the SUU Daily Lesson Plan (limited to 2 pages), at least one assessment (formative or summative), a rubric for your assessments (embedded or included as third page or separate document), and a completed “Meet Learner Difference” column. This lesson will focus on reviewing things covered in the first four lessons. 

Course Outline

Week 1: Course Overview
Week 2: Classroom Community
Week 3: Can learning be measured? 
Week 4: What is curriculum? 
Week 5: Curriculum in context
Week 6: Assessment, Mastery, & Criteria
Week 7: Instructional Strategies
Week 8: Creating a Lesson Plan
Week 9: Teaching Interactions
Week 10: Developing Assessments
Week 11: Analyzing Assessment Data
Week 12: Meeting Learner Needs
Week 13: The Future of K-12 curriculum
Week 14: Thanksgiving Break
Week 15: Creating Curriculum
Week 16: Final Exam week (no final exam is given for this course)

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Assignments are due on the assigned day, and possibly at a particular time if specified. Generally, the default due date and time in Canvas will be utilized. Canvas will be used to determine if assignments are on-time or late. If assignments are not submitted, Canvas will automatically place a “0” grade in the gradebook. All late assignments will be penalized: 10% for one minute to 48 hours late; 20% for 48 hours to 2 weeks; and 50% for anything later than two weeks.  No late work will be accepted the last two weeks of the semester without permission (so get it turned in before then).

Attendance Policy

Class Attendance is Required. If you are registered for a Face-to-Face, Synchronous Remote, Hybrid, or Remote Hybrid course, attendance is required. If you are ill or instructed to isolate or quarantine, you may request a faculty member record the class and share it with you or you may request other reasonable accommodations. Your instructor will work with you to develop a plan for completing coursework while you are isolated/quarantined. In order for you to receive academic accommodations and ensure that your request is communicated to faculty, you must submit this self report form.
Attendance will be taken each synchronous class meeting using an attendance quiz on Canvas (the quizzes also assess student preparation for class). No attendance is taken for asynchronous (online) classes since there is no fixed meeting for these sections. However, online sections will also have two weekly “attendance” quizzes (called “lecture reflection”) that assess understanding of each weekly course module.  

Course Fees

There are no additional course fees associated with this course. 

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.