Now more than ever, we should appreciate our principals. Although our principals share visionary leadership and motivate their students and staff to strive for success in every facet of stewardship, they cannot pursue success alone. The Beatles said it best with a lyric from their hit song, “I get by with a little help from my friends.” Here at Kuder®, we serve as an ally to our principals and educators by providing our top system resources for career exploration and future planning success.


Why do Principals Need Curriculum Support?

The role of a principal is no longer limited to hiring classroom teachers who provide textbook instruction and attend their classes every calendar school day. It is much more complex than that. Superintendents and local school boards expect more from their principals; schools and school leaders are being assessed on their progress in teaching students to excel in statewide standards.

The global pandemic has caused a lack of motivation in students and a decline in student performance in statewide assessments. Similar declines occurred in 2015 when only 16% of students from low-income families — and 27% of all students — met eighth-grade math standards. In 2016, progress was inconsistent at best. As of October 14th, 2020, detailed reports show that U.S. students’ academic performance still lags compared to their peers in many other countries. In addition, Teachers reported feeling overwhelmed by the challenges of implementing these standardized exams.

Studies persist in confirming that several teachers are teaching students below grade level, particularly in reading and math. Common Core is distracting some districts and schools from the challenging work of implementing curriculum and instruction that would support students in reaching a higher academic bar. American students going against some high stakes will cause them to compete with individuals across the globe for jobs and other resources. It is a daunting landscape that students will only navigate if given a robust set of tools that center upon the core knowledge and ability to draw upon and apply it from one domain to another.


Benefits of Kuder Systems:

Our students are benefitting from the college and career planning elements that MyCareerShines provides. Students make resumes and build portfolios and web pages that colleges and potential employers can access. Our counselors and teachers find this helpful during the planning processes and have seen many student successes. We are happy to have MyCareerShines and Kuder as partners of St. Lucie Public Schools.

Nikki Poole, M.Ed. Coordinator, Secondary School Guidance and Advisement


Lessening the Load on Teachers: Grades 6th-12th Resources

Kuder Navigator®’s featured Subject Area Lesson Plans are a teacher’s dream come true! This feature includes pre-made lesson plans teachers can hand-select according to the benchmarks and statewide standards they want to reach in student-centered, academic, college, and career readiness goals. Standards represent the goals for what students should learn. Many statewide standards require high academic expectations in college and career readiness. Principals are encouraged to share these lesson plans with their counselors and teachers. These lesson plans are tailored to statewide standards in core subjects like English, math, and social studies. In addition, Principals have premium access to ADMS (Administrative Database Management System®) tools, which can track student progress and performance throughout the module. This tool provides additional help in motivating students who are performing below grade level, particularly in math and reading.


College and Career Readiness Tools

The Find School’s Page in Navigator helps students in grades 7th -12th successfully search for a school of their choice without the hassle of setting several filters. They can search for their desired college or University by name, then viola! There it is. This access enables them to research undergraduate programs they might be interested in pursuing and scholarships they may qualify for. This is an essential college and career readiness tool that principals should share with their students and staff.

Kuder Navigator’s College Access Package comes fully equipped with a comprehensive curriculum, including detailed lesson plans, instructional handouts, and parent guides. Education experts have carefully designed the curriculum to accommodate various schedules and settings. Navigator’s career planning system uses step-by-step activities and walk-throughs to guide you in creating a lifelong portfolio. By introducing these tools to your faculty and staff, principals will engage students and parents in the career planning process. The Direct Your Future® feature guides students towards creating their portfolios and optimizing their career planning system usage through interactive activities and assignments. School leaders across the nation are happy with the results and enjoy the many features in Kuder Navigator and Kuder Galaxy®.


How Can Principals Effectively Lead to Higher Standards?

Principal leadership focuses on students, teachers, and staff needs — offering them practical, hands-on strategies for improving their schools in a constantly evolving educational environment. Although there is no single solution, a consistent set of critical practices has proven successful and effective.

College and career readiness (CCR) are at the forefront of importance. However, if the keys towards success mean superior college and career readiness, future school leaders must have in-depth knowledge of curriculum instruction and measuring student achievement.