The Journey from Adoption to Implementation of a Middle School ELA Curriculum: An Instrumental Case Study

Abstract

In 2015, Every Child Succeeds Act (ESSA) was introduced as a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) and the end of the No Child Left Behind Act (Every Student Succeeds Act, n.d.). ESSA continued the requirements that all states adopt or create academic standards that prepared students for post-secondary requirements as measured by high-stakes tests. (Every Student Succeeds Act, n.d.). To address the accountability measures set forth by ESSA within these high-stakes tests, many states and districts turned to curriculum companies to provide materials that were already created, vetted, and aligned to rigorous academic standards like those found in the Common Core standards. For states, it was far easier to purchase and utilize already created materials rather than cultivate their own. While having the curriculum already created alleviated some issues, it created tensions between those who select it and those who implement it in classrooms. It was within these tensions that this study focused. This instrumental case study followed the journey of a literacy curriculum from adoption to implementation in one school district, one middle school, and one ELA classroom. The study explored the perceptions and experiences of educators as they moved through the processes of adoption and implementation of a new ELA literacy curriculum. By looking at the issue of the implementation as the case through the lens of technical and adaptive change approaches, helps other schools adjust their approaches to ensure a smooth implementation.