The Curriculum Fidelity Fad

What it is and how it will end

This post is specific to US public education, apologies to other readers.

I think we're in the middle of a curriculum fidelity fad. Districts love to buy a big shiny curriculum — these are referred to as "High Quality Instructional Materials" or HQIM — and tell teachers they have to use it with “fidelity.” Teachers get a pacing guide, and a scolding if they don't follow it. Admin say things like "highly effective teachers use curriculum with fidelity" as if that's all there is to teaching. Consultants come in and talk a lot about whatever, but the most important thing is that teachers are on the right lesson in the curriculum.

I'm not opposed to curriculum. Teachers deserve great curriculum. But when all anyone cares about is "fidelity," teachers end up going through the motions. They don't believe in what they're doing, they just don't want to get a hard time from admin. Teaching becomes soulless and robotic. Sometimes teachers say to students, "well we have to do this because they told me," or "because the curriculum says so." That's a pretty uninspiring thing for a student to hear. Even if the teacher isn't explicit about the mandate, kids can tell. The teacher doesn't care about learning anymore. All that matters is being on the right page in the curriculum, and plowing ahead regardless of whether students are learning.

There is a better way to use curriculum. A good curriculum sets a clear bar for what we expect students to do. When teachers are left to their own devices to figure out what the standards mean, the results are often all over the place. A good curriculum makes the end goal clear. Curriculum can be a great resource to save teachers time and energy. But no curriculum will be perfect for every student in every school. The curriculum sets the bar, and teachers use their professional judgment to supplement and adjust so that students can meet that bar.

Thing is, supporting teachers to use curriculum well is hard to do. It's much easier for leaders to march around saying "highly effective teachers use curriculum with fidelity." Curriculum fidelity becomes catnip for controlling administrators who don't understand what their teachers are teaching. It's an excuse for admin to bully or micromanage teachers they don't like. That's how teachers end up going through the motions, trying to keep their head down and avoid being noticed.

The curriculum fidelity fad won't die because principals come to their senses. It won't die because of teachers' unions, though they'll probably be blamed. It definitely won't die because district bureaucrats spend time in classrooms and see fidelity in action. The fad will die because of parents. Parents will hear their kids complain about another year of Amplify, or i-Ready, or StudySync. Their kids will tell them about how all the teacher does is tell them to open up the program and do assignment 4.6. Or they'll hear about how another teacher quit because they can't teach the way they think is best. Parents will pressure principals. Curriculum fidelity will die a slow, unceremonious death as principals take their foot off the gas. The experienced teachers will quietly start supplementing the curriculum with more and more of their own materials. The principal won’t say anything. Word will spread, and the rest of the teachers will follow. Some teachers will choose to keep following the curriculum closely, and that’s great! It’s there to be used. But it’s there to be used within the judgment of teachers, not as a top-down mandate.

Some people reading this will say, "hey I know a school where every teacher follows the curriculum and kids love it. It's totally possible to do this curriculum fidelity thing well." I believe you! I do. But here's the blunt truth: there are too many incompetent school leaders out there. Doing curriculum fidelity well requires clarity when you're hiring teachers, deep knowledge across content areas, clear communication, and lots of support. I'm sure talented leaders exist who can pull that off. But they are far outnumbered by mediocre administrators or worse. I've worked for several. I can't imagine a world where that changes any time soon. So you can have your curriculum fidelity fantasy. Where I work, in the real world, in a public school that is struggling with staffing cuts and absenteeism and apathy, has had four principals in the past five years, and has a revolving door of consultants telling us what we should do, leave me alone with your curriculum fidelity. We're better off doing our best without someone breathing down our necks.