The curricula, instruction, and assessments must reflect and align with these standards, and, wherever possible, embody a 21st-century approach to education. Most states have adopted academic standards, and some have adopted a separate set of standards that relate to technology competencies. Most preferable is the approach taken by at least a dozen states in which technology skills are embedded in the curricular standards. The standards for technology proficiencies are part and parcel of the academic standards. Curricula Curricula should reflect learning activities that address digital-age proficiencies as students achieve academic content standards.
Educators can find a growing number of online resources designed to align curricula with standards.
For example, Media Seek's Curriculum Orchestrator provides curriculum information for science, social studies, language arts, and math. Their database matches more than 20 national and state curriculum guides with materials from more than 80 education software and textbook publishers. Successful schools take advantage of such tools to sift through the abundance of resources and zero in on those that match their own standards. Instructional Approaches Teachers ideally have an extensive instructional repertoire on which to draw. A class in English literature may feature a class Web page on which assignments, online resources, and selected readings are posted.