CURATE reports are intended to be a resource for Massachusetts schools and districts' use as they engage in the process of making informed, localized decisions about curricula. CURATE is designed to inform and support, not constrain, local decision-making.
To generate CURATE reports, CURATE panelists review only core curricular materials, as well as other evidence, such as gateway evaluation ratings (e.g., EdReports), publisher responses, and survey data from Massachusetts teachers who are already using the curricular materials. (See our CURATE process.) CURATE reviews do not entail review of every lesson and text. Local education agencies (LEAs) should use CURATE reports as a starting place for engaging in a comprehensive evaluation and selection process, in collaboration with a diverse stakeholder group, to determine which of the available high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) will best meet their localized needs and equity priorities.
Adjustments and adaptations, aligned with effective educator practice, may be necessary during implementation to ensure the enacted curriculum supports and engages all students. LEAs should consider carefully whether adequate and appropriate adjustments and adaptation are taking place in their context, to ensure that texts, tasks, content, and instruction remain grade appropriate, and all students, particularly students from historically underserved groups and communities, are held to high expectations and provided targeted supports to excel at grade level (or beyond).
Core curricular materials are comprehensive print or digital materials that cover all the knowledge, skills, and practices outlined in the college- and career-ready standards for the content area. They are designed for use as the standalone primary instructional materials for core instruction through which all students access grade-level content standards during a year or semester of study, to support coherent sequence and progression of grade-appropriate knowledge, skills, and practices.
The reports linked in the tables below for each content area provide access to full CURATE reports. The tables feature criterion-level ratings that help with side-by-side comparisons. Note the following about reports included on this webpage.
Digital Literacy and Computer Science gateway evaluations were completed by STEM Learning Design, with results published in the 2022 Massachusetts Digital Literacy and Computer Science Curriculum Guide . Try the DLCS Curriculum Guide if you're researching a DLCS product you don't see listed here. It's possible that it has not yet been submitted to CURATE, or the product has been determined to not meet expectations for alignment to college- and career-ready standards.
K–5 Language Arts and Foundational SkillsHigh-quality instructional materials in grades K–5 language arts can be realized in these ways:
Considerations about compatibility, scope and sequence, and instructional hours to well implement both the comprehensive core and foundational skills resource—as intended—should be considered in local decision-making. The table below lists current reports for materials that have been CURATE-reviewed, including any materials submitted to CURATE but are ineligible for a panel review due to misalignment.
If you're researching an ELA/Literacy product you don't see listed here, try EdReports. It's possible that it has not yet been submitted to CURATE, or the product has been determined to not meet expectations for alignment to college- and career-ready standards.
ELA/Literacy products that do not yet have a published CURATE report but do have one from EdReports are considered to be "high quality" if they receive the following EdReports rating: "Green"/ "Meets expectations" in both Gateway 1 and Gateway 2 of Alignment. Note that while we might approve an EdReports rating for a grant prerequisite, we may hold a higher standard for materials that would be available for purchase using grant funds.
History and Social Science (HSS) gateway evaluations were completed by Rennie Center, with results published in the K-12 History Social Science Curricular Materials Guide (2024). If you're researching a HSS product you don't see listed here, it's possible that it has not yet been submitted to CURATE, or the product has been determined to not meet baseline expectations for alignment to college- and career-ready standards. Try the HSS Curricular Materials Guide for information on materials that met Massachusetts' baseline expectations of quality.
If you're researching a mathematics product you don't see listed here, try EdReports. It's possible that it has not yet been submitted to CURATE, or the product has been determined to not meet expectations for alignment to college- and career-ready standards.
Math products that do not yet have a published CURATE report but do have one from EdReports are considered to be "high quality" if they have the following EdReports rating: "Green"/ "Meets expectations" in both Gateway 1 and Gateway 2 of Alignment. Note that while we might approve an EdReports rating for a grant prerequisite, we may hold a higher standard for materials that would be available for purchase using grant funds.
If you're researching a science product you don't see listed here, try EdReports. It's possible that it has not yet been submitted to CURATE, or the product has been determined to not meet expectations for alignment to college- and career-ready standards.
Science products that do not yet have a published CURATE report but do have one from EdReports are considered to be "high quality" if they have the following EdReports rating: "Green" / "Meets expectations" in both Gateway 1 and Gateway 2 of Alignment. Note that while we might approve an EdReports rating for a grant prerequisite, we may hold a higher standard for materials that would be available for purchase using grant funds.
Meets Expectations — Most or all evidence indicates high quality; little to none indicates low quality. Materials may not be perfect, but Massachusetts teachers and students would be well served and strongly supported by them.
Partially Meets Expectations — Some evidence indicates high quality, while some indicates low quality. Teachers in Massachusetts would benefit from having these materials but need to supplement or adapt them substantively to serve their students well.
Does Not Meet Expectations — Little to no evidence indicates high quality; most or all evidence indicates low quality. Materials would not substantively help Massachusetts teachers and students meet the state's expectations for teaching and learning.
Not Applicable (N/A) — Materials were not designed to address the rubric criterion, and the publisher explicitly named the omission in legal submissions for a CURATE review. This rating applies only to the Foundational Skills criterion in the K–5 ELA/Literacy rubric and communicates that the core materials are without foundational skills. The materials must be paired with a strong foundational skills resource to address all components of the core literacy block.
No Rating — Evidence is insufficient to generate rating. This rating was most often provided for the Impact on Learning criterion in CURATE reports published before Spring 2025. The "insufficient evidence" referenced is specific to evidence in tiers 1, 2, or 3 as defined by ESSA on the specific product under review, not just the pedagogical strategies the program incorporates.
For questions about CURATE, please email DESE-CURATE@mass.gov
Last Updated: September 4, 2024
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