Curriculum & Instruction

Welcome to the department of Curriculum and Instruction! We support evidence-based instructional practices and strategies for differentiated, innovative, and effective teaching and learning based on the State-adopted standards in support of a balanced curriculum for the whole child​.

Georgia Standards of Excellence
Georgia K-12 teachers in collaboration with post-secondary educators, business and industry representatives, parents, and educational agencies and organizations work to develop challenging and relevant standards. Georgia standards are reviewed by state appointed curriculum teams on a regular cycle to stay current with our ever-changing, fast-paced, and technological society.  More information about Georgia’s standards and other instructional resources can be found on the Georgia DOE Learning page.

Content Areas
We strive to provide courses and pathways that meet the needs of every student!

Monitoring Student Learning Progress
Assessment is an important part of the teaching and learning process. Teachers administer a variety of classroom assessments in order to monitor student learning. Additionally, Jackson County administers all State-required assessments. For more details about assessments in Jackson County Schools,  visit our Assessment page. 

Below are some general definitions of several types of assessments.

• Informal & Formative assessments: Informal assessments are not “graded” and typically consist of teacher observations, questioning, monitoring participation levels, “ticket-out-the-door,” etc. Formative means that the assessment is during the process of learning, rather than at the end.
• Formal & Summative assessments: Formal means that the assessment is generally graded and “counts.” Summative means that the assessment measures the outcome of the learning, usually at the end of a lesson or unit.
• Authentic assessments: meant to measure when authentic instruction is happening and growth can be noted (such as baking a cake, running track, painting a picture). Performance assessments, portfolio assessments, rubrics, and student work samples are different types of authentic assessments.
• Norm-Referenced assessments: Typically refers to standardized tests where students are compared to the group score and measured on accuracy. Usually viewed as “competitive exams.”
• Criterion-Referenced assessments: These assessments compare students to a set standard, like the proficiency with an objective and are usually based on subject-content and often are teacher-made.