At EdReports, we give educators the evidence and tools they need to choose quality curriculum with confidence. But even the best programs can’t drive student success on their own. Because when it comes to curriculum, it’s not just what you choose—it’s how you choose it that matters.
When it comes to curriculum, it’s not just what you choose—it’s how you choose it that matters.
To make a lasting impact, teachers need to be engaged during selection and meaningfully supported to use instructional materials well. That’s why a comprehensive, educator-led adoption process is essential—one rooted in local needs and multi-year planning from the start.
In addition to curriculum reviews, EdReports offers guidance, research, and case studies to support strong selection. This resource highlights six key insights from real-world examples. Together, they show how school systems can use EdReports to make informed, locally driven decisions that benefit both students and educators.
6 Ways to Use EdReports in Your Curriculum Strategy
1. Start With Strategic Planning Grounded in Local Context
Smart adoption efforts begin with a clear instructional vision and a deep understanding of local needs. Before reviewing materials, districts should gather data, set priorities, and plan thoroughly. EdReports’ free Adoption Steps guide includes a range of tools and templates to support this work.
Smart adoption efforts begin with a clear instructional vision and a deep understanding of local needs.
For example, in Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools, leaders developed their instructional vision alongside teachers—shaping priorities and building buy-in. In Fife, Washington, math facilitator Jennifer Burrus spent a year researching curricula, visiting schools, and talking with teachers before launching the selection process. “We’re not in an adoption cycle,” she said. “We’re in a materials review cycle.” And Rhode Island’s Department of Education encourages districts to go beyond picking a green-rated program by forming local teams, analyzing student data, and defining an instructional vision to guide their decisions.
2. Build Trust and Capacity
Adoption processes thrive when there’s trust and shared ownership. Baltimore City Public Schools modeled this through authentic engagement with educators and the broader school community, hosting both in-person and online feedback sessions to maximize stakeholder access.
The district also ensured that educators on the adoption committee were well-prepared for the selection work ahead. “We didn’t look at any actual materials until we had done deep learning, discussed the review rubric the district had developed, and had a full understanding of EdReports reviews,” said participating principal Mary Donnelly. “Having the opportunity to learn the research behind why materials matter and the standards and shifts gave us the tools to evaluate programs more deeply.”
In Wisconsin, a regional team brought together educators from multiple rural districts to collaborate on their adoption approach. They began with training on high-quality curriculum and continued with ongoing professional learning, building participants’ knowledge and confidence. As a result, the educators were able to engage publishers more strategically and ask sharper questions focused on academic content and local priorities.
3. Center Educators in the Process
A teacher-led curriculum selection centers classroom expertise and fosters long-term commitment—and EdReports offers many resources to support this approach. Forming a representative adoption committee—with teachers from across grade levels, seniority levels, and content areas—ensures the people closest to students are making the decisions and deepens educators’ own knowledge.
A teacher-led curriculum selection centers classroom expertise and fosters long-term commitment.
“This has made me a more intentional teacher,” said Baltimore educator Samantha Ashby of her experience on the district’s adoption committee. “What I’ve learned has given me a ‘why’ and a level of discernment in what I’m exposing students to.”
In Newport-Mesa, teachers played a key role in the final curriculum decision, becoming powerful advocates for implementing the selected program. “There was so much transparency and teamwork,” said Kurt Suhr, executive director of elementary education. “The teachers who participated influenced their colleagues in a very positive way to help everyone move forward with our implementation.”
4. Look Beyond the Ratings
EdReports’ green, yellow, and red ratings offer a helpful overview of our educator reviewers’ findings—but the real value lies in the detailed evidence behind them. Diving into this data helps committees move more efficiently while deepening their understanding of quality.
EdReports’ green, yellow, and red ratings offer a helpful overview—but the real value lies in the detailed evidence behind them.
“I was blown away,” shared Wisconsin educator and adoption committee member Erin Moreno. “I kept thinking, ‘Who could ever do this on their own?’ Then I realized: we don’t have to.” Curriculum director Carmen Lee agreed: “The beauty of EdReports was that I had an independent, trustworthy resource to guide me—created by educators who truly understand mathematics and the standards.”
5. Tailor Criteria to Meet Local Priorities
While EdReports reviews provide a strong foundation to assess quality, districts should ensure their selection criteria also reflect local needs. In Fife, Washington, educators created the “Fife Filter”—a rubric built on the voices of teachers across the district via survey data. As math teacher Lisa Matson explained, “There are needs unique to my district and my students that I want to be certain programs address. The Filter was an invaluable tool in helping us choose materials that would speak to Fife’s needs.”
Baltimore also developed a district-specific rubric that incorporated feedback from over 700 teachers, ensuring that materials prioritized standards alignment, usability, local relevance, and scaffolds for universal access. This tailored approach helped align curriculum choices with the district’s goals and community expectations.
6. Select Curriculum as Part of a Holistic Approach to Instruction
Curriculum selection works best as part of a broader effort that includes curriculum-based professional learning, assessment, and continuous support. The Kentucky Department of Education built a Model Curriculum Framework to guide this work, helping districts integrate materials with practices such as teacher collaboration groups, balanced assessments, and evidence-based instruction.
In Nebraska, the Department of Education piloted the use of EdReports data alongside local tools to build district capacity. This culminated in the Nebraska Instructional Materials Collaborative, a statewide hub supporting thoughtful adoption.
A Comprehensive Approach for Long-Term Success
Both EdReports reviews and quality curriculum are starting points, not self-contained solutions. The most effective adoption efforts are thoughtful, inclusive, and grounded in local context. When districts clearly define their needs and priorities, engage educators authentically, build trust and capacity, and draw fully on independent evidence, they create the conditions for successful implementation and student success.
EdReports reviews and quality curriculum are starting points, not self-contained solutions.
As more school systems take on the critical work of selecting high-quality instructional materials, EdReports will continue to support them with free, evidence-rich guidance that’s developed by educators, for educators.
