New partnership with Curriculum Associates offers Lees-McRae education majors more advantages when entering the workforce

A new collaboration between the Lees-McRae Teacher Education program and curriculum development company Curriculum Associates will help prospective teachers be more prepared and confident when they enter their first classroom.  

Currently, teacher training at the college level focuses on pedagogy, or the theory and practice of learning. Teacher candidates learn how to develop lesson plans, manage a classroom, and help students master concepts. However, when new teachers start work, they must figure out how to apply their skills to the curriculum required by the school district.  

“What happens is you get hired as a first-year teacher, they open the door to your classroom, you walk in and on a bookshelf or a table there are massive stacks of what they call ‘Teacher’s Editions,’ and they say ‘this is your math curriculum, this is your reading curriculum. Teach it,’” Director for Teacher Education Kimberley Simmons explained. “A lot of teacher prep programs do not expose students, really until their student-teaching, to what a Teacher’s Edition looks like. It is very overwhelming.”  

When Simmons started working at Lees-McRae, one of her goals was to make the transition to the classroom less daunting for new teachers. She connected with Julia McCombs ’75, a Lees-McRae trustee and alumna, who put Simmons in touch with Curriculum Associates, one of the curriculum developers used by many North Carolina school districts. Simmons explained that she wanted her students to be familiar with standard curricula before entering the workforce, and Curriculum Associates readily agreed to the partnership. 

In what is likely a first for teacher education programs in North Carolina, Lees-McRae teacher candidates will now have access to demo accounts for Curriculum Associates’ math (iReady) and reading (Magnetic Reading) curricula. This will give them an additional resource when completing their Lees-McRae coursework and familiarize them with what a standard North Carolina public school curriculum requires.  

“Students are comparing elements of iReady math with what they’ve been doing with their own lessons plans,” Simmons said. “When they’re creating their own activities or lessons for our assignments, they can utilize this wealth of information from iReady.”  

Simmons also hopes that in addition to giving her students more confidence when taking on a classroom of their own, this early introduction to standard curricula will give teacher candidates an advantage when applying for jobs, as they can inform potential employers that they are already familiar with the curriculum. Simmons pointed out that most Teacher’s Editions used by public schools in North Carolina have similar elements, so even if a particular district doesn’t use iReady or Magnetic Reading, new teachers who have used these curricula before will be generally better prepared.  

“I was 18 years in the classroom. I did a lot of mentoring where I had student-teachers in my classroom, and it amazed me how many of them had never seen a Teacher’s Edition,” Simmons said. “I think with higher education teacher prep programs, we focus on the pedagogy, on the methods. Our hope is that we’re giving them such a strong base that we can say 'Okay, you’re ready, you can be a teacher.’”  

While pedagogical teaching provides an essential foundation, Simmons wanted to go beyond it and ensure that her students are as prepared as possible when they begin teaching. By introducing them to iReady and Magnetic Reading during their undergraduate education, Lees-McRae students will experience applying pedagogy to a required curriculum before ever stepping foot in a classroom of their own.  

Simmons is hopeful that this partnership between the Lees-McRae Teacher Education program and Curriculum Associates will prove valuable for both parties and serve as a model for improved teacher education throughout higher education.