The Mississippi Department of Education has created universal definitions for words commonly used when evaluating and adopting high-quality instructional materials. These words are listed and defined below.
In Fall 2017, the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) adopted the following definition for High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM). This definition provides a frame of reference all Mississippi public schools and districts should use when selecting resources for classroom use.
Mississippi defines High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) as materials that
- are aligned with the Mississippi College- and Career- Readiness Standards,
- are externally validated,
- are comprehensive, and
- include knowledge-building complex texts, problems, and assessments.
HQIM can be used to identify students’ areas of strength and opportunities for growth, which are sequentially mapped and designed to prepare students to graduate ready for college and the workforce, educative for teachers, and accessible to students with differentiated needs.
The Mississippi Department of Education defines research-based professional learning as having the following attributes:
- is focused on content
- incorporates active learning
- is collaborative and generally job-embedded
- includes coaching and mentoring
- offers opportunities for feedback and reflection
- is generally ongoing and of sustained duration
Competencies (required learning standards for all students) and objectives (learning outcomes indicating how the competencies can be fulfilled) approved by the State Board of Education.
Statements of what a student will know, feel, or do when a course is completed.
Standards for individual schools and districts based on student achievement data using established proficiency levels and a reasonable expectation for annual growth in student achievement. Output or product standards that address selected components of the statewide testing program and other outcome measures related to the performance of a school or district.
An established criterion level based on the demonstrated range of performance in relation to content as reflected in the Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards.
Criteria by which school districts and schools are assessed. The two (2) types of standards used in the performance-based accreditation system are performance and process.
Any person employed by the school district who is required by law to obtain a teacher’s license from the State Board of Education and who is assigned an instructional area of work as defined by the Mississippi Department of Education (e.g., employment in an official capacity for the purpose of imparting knowledge, skills, information, and ideas to students in an instructional setting). (See Miss. Code Ann. § 37-19-1.)