🎯

curriculum-review-pedagogy

🎯Skill

from pauljbernard/content

What it does

curriculum-review-pedagogy skill from pauljbernard/content

curriculum-review-pedagogy

Installation

Install skill:

npx skills add https://github.com/pauljbernard/content --skill curriculum-review-pedagogy

AddedJan 29, 2026

View on GitHub Back to Skills

Skill Details

SKILL.md

Verify constructive alignment between objectives, activities, and assessments; validate instructional design quality and learning science principles. Use when reviewing curriculum quality, checking alignment, or validating pedagogical soundness. Activates on "review alignment", "check pedagogy", "validate curriculum", or "quality review".

Overview

# Pedagogical Review & Alignment Verification

Conduct expert review of curriculum to ensure pedagogical soundness, constructive alignment, and evidence-based practices.

When to Use

Review completed curriculum materials
Verify objective-activity-assessment alignment
Validate Bloom's taxonomy application
Check backwards design principles
Ensure learning science integration

Required Inputs

Curriculum Artifacts: Design, lessons, assessments to review
Review Focus: Full review or specific aspects
Standards (optional): Framework to validate against

Workflow

1. Gather All Artifacts

Load and analyze:

Learning objectives (from design)
Lesson plans (from develop-content)
Assessment items (from develop-items)
Assessment blueprint (from assess-design)

2. Verify Constructive Alignment

Check Objective ↔ Activity Alignment:

For each objective, verify:

✅ Learning activities directly support the objective
✅ Cognitive level of activities matches objective's Bloom's level
✅ Students practice the exact skill they'll be assessed on
❌ No activities that don't map to objectives
❌ No objectives without supporting activities

Check Objective ↔ Assessment Alignment:

For each objective, verify:

✅ Assessment directly measures the objective
✅ Assessment Bloom's level matches objective
✅ Assessment format appropriate for skill type
❌ No objectives without aligned assessments
❌ No assessments that don't map to objectives

3. Review Bloom's Taxonomy Application

Analyze each objective:

✅ Uses appropriate action verb for intended level
✅ Level appropriate for educational grade
✅ Distribution across levels matches expectations
❌ Avoid "understand" without observable indicator
❌ Avoid using high-level verbs for low-level tasks

4. Validate Backwards Design

Check that curriculum follows:

✅ Objectives written first
✅ Assessments designed to measure objectives
✅ Instruction designed to prepare for assessments
✅ Clear path from start to end of unit

5. Assess Learning Science Integration

Review for evidence-based practices:

Retrieval Practice: ✅/❌ Frequent low-stakes quizzing

Spaced Repetition: ✅/❌ Concepts revisited over time

Interleaving: ✅/❌ Mixed practice, not blocked

Elaboration: ✅/❌ Students explain concepts

Concrete Examples: ✅/❌ Abstract ideas grounded

Dual Coding: ✅/❌ Visual + verbal representations

6. Check Cognitive Load Management

Verify appropriate difficulty progression:

✅ Prerequisites addressed before new content
✅ Complexity builds gradually
✅ Adequate practice before assessment
✅ Scaffolding provided where needed
❌ Not too much new information at once
❌ Not skipping foundational steps

7. Generate Review Report

```markdown

# Pedagogical Review Report: [TOPIC]

Review Date: [Date]

Reviewed By: Curriculum Review System

Artifacts Reviewed: [List]

Executive Summary

Overall Rating: [Excellent | Good | Needs Revision | Poor]

Key Strengths: [2-3 items]

Critical Issues: [Priority improvements needed]

Recommendation: [Ready for implementation | Minor revisions | Major revisions]

Constructive Alignment Analysis

Objective-Activity Alignment

|-----------|-----------|-----------------|--------|

Alignment Summary: [X/Y objectives fully aligned]

Gaps Identified:

[Objective without adequate activity support]
[Activity that doesn't map to objective]

Recommendations:

[Specific fixes needed]

Objective-Assessment Alignment

|-----------|------------|-----------------|--------|

Assessment Validity: [Comments on whether assessments measure what they claim]

Recommendations:

[Specific assessment revisions]

Bloom's Taxonomy Review

Distribution Analysis:

Remember: X% (target: Y% for this level)
Understand: X% (target: Y%)
Apply: X% (target: Y%)
Analyze: X% (target: Y%)
Evaluate: X% (target: Y%)
Create: X% (target: Y%)

Issues:

⚠️ Too many Remember-level objectives for grade 10
✅ Good balance of Apply and Analyze
❌ LO-2.3 uses "understand" without observable indicator

Recommendations:

Revise LO-2.3 to: "Students will demonstrate understanding by..."
Add 2 more Analyze-level objectives
Reduce Remember objectives from 5 to 3

Backwards Design Validation

✅ Objectives First: Clear learning goals established

✅ Assessments Aligned: Assessments measure objectives

⚠️ Instruction Gaps: Unit 2, Lesson 3 doesn't prepare for assessment

❌ Summative Focus: Heavy on final exam, lacking formative checks

Recommendations:

Add formative assessments in Weeks 2, 4, 6
Revise Unit 2, Lesson 3 to include practice with analysis tasks

Learning Science Principles

|-----------|---------|---------|----------|

Recommendations:

Add weekly retrieval practice quizzes
Interleave practice problems (mix topics)
Include more diagrams and visual representations

Cognitive Load Assessment

Lesson-by-Lesson Analysis:

Lesson 1.1: ✅ Appropriate load

Single new concept
Builds on known prerequisites
Adequate practice time

Lesson 1.2: ⚠️ High load

Three new concepts introduced
May overwhelm students
Recommendation: Split into 2 lessons

Lesson 2.1: ❌ Excessive load

Five new vocabulary terms
Two new procedures
No scaffolding provided
Recommendation: Pre-teach vocabulary, add worked examples, reduce content

Differentiation Quality

✅ Advanced Learners: Extensions provided

⚠️ Struggling Learners: Some scaffolding but needs more

❌ ELL Support: Minimal language supports

⚠️ Accessibility: Basic accommodations but missing UDL principles

Recommendations:

Add graphic organizers for struggling learners
Include vocabulary pre-teaching for ELLs
Implement UDL principles (multiple means of representation/engagement/expression)