In Nebraska, effective teaching and learning requires five key components that are integral to the Nebraska Instructional Materials Collaborative.

Content Area Standards

Content area standards describe what students are expected to know and be able to do. Content area standards outline the content and process skills students will learn in grades K-12. Nebraska content area standards include two components: standards and indicators.

Curriculum

A curriculum is determined locally and reflects “how” teachers help students learn the content within content area standards. A curriculum outlines the intended outcomes, content, experiences, assessments, and resources for measuring student learning, and it also includes the scope and sequence of what is taught in grades K-12.

Instructional Materials

Instructional materials are the tools and resources that are used as part of a locally-determined curriculum.

Assessment

Assessments are the multiple measures (formative, interim, and summative) used to gather evidence of student learning relative to content area standards.

Classroom Instruction

During classroom instruction, a teacher implements the locally-determined curriculum, including instructional materials, and uses evidence-based teaching methods and strategies to engage students to support student learning of content area standards.