Teaching & Learning
The BPS Office of Teaching & Learning provides resources, support, and leadership to ensure that all students have equitable access to high quality, rigorous, and culturally responsive instruction. We are committed to providing a safe, respectful learning environment grounded in positive relationships. We honor and celebrate the many ways in which our students, families, and staff are diverse and see this diversity as a strength in our schools and community.
Revised Competency Determination Policy
For former students who earned a Certificate of Attainment but did not earn a high school diploma due to their not passing one or more MCAS assessments, you may now request to have your transcript reviewed to determine if you meet the criteria for a high school diploma under the district's new Competency Determination Policy.
To request a review, complete this form.
Please note that competency determinations for former students will not be completed until after graduations for the Class of 2025.
If you would like to learn more about teaching and learning in the Brockton Public Schools, or call 508-580-7000 and request to connect with one of us.
To find the district's Curriculum Accommodation Plan, click here.
Departments
Art Education
The Fine Arts Program in the Brockton Public Schools provides an aesthetic, intellectual and stimulating atmosphere for creative and technical proficiency. The sequential arts program is designed to awaken the child's awareness to beauty in life and nature and to develop a deep appreciation of social and cultural backgrounds.
In art, students learn to express their own ideas and emotions through various art forms and media, encouraging personal growth and a developed sense of self-esteem. Art offers opportunities for students to grow and make connections in life. It fosters development of problem solving skills through exploration and opens doors for growth and development which otherwise may never have been discovered.
As students progress they are given the opportunity to investigate and analyze past influences in the arts and society as well as present trends.
Student artists are encouraged to respond to this knowledge by using their advancing skills to create meaningful pieces of art.
The Brockton Public Schools Fine Arts Program, K-12, adopts the vision of the Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Framework, which states, "Learning in, about and through the arts develops each learner's capacity to make meaning from experience, respond to creativity and contribute to our society." The Fine Arts Program in the Brockton Public Schools embraces the Guiding Principles of the Arts Framework.
Bilingual/ESL Services
The Brockton Public School System has a diverse student population and currently services students from a variety of countries, including Albania, Angola, Brazil, Cambodia, Cape Verde, China, Haiti, India, Korea, Laos, Lithuania, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Turkey, Vietnam, and several Spanish-speaking countries.
BPS is proud to offer a robust Dual Language Program. To learn more about our French, Spanish and Portuguese immersion programs, click here.
BPS is committed to offering the highest quality of educational services to all students, including English language learners.
The Department of Bilingual/ESL Services administers programs for English language learners with the goal of developing English language proficiency and achieving state content-area standards, while simultaneously valuing their native languages and cultural backgrounds.
English Language Arts
English Language Arts
The English Program at Brockton High School is designed to develop and extend student mastery in the integrated literacy areas of reading and literature, language and composition, and reasoning.
The goals of fostering students' awareness of, appreciation for, and proficiency with language and the varieties of its aesthetic expression are implicit in our planning.
Curriculum:
The freshman and sophomore two-year sequence focuses on students' skill development in the literacy areas of reading, writing, speaking, listening and thinking. The junior and senior courses are designed to build on and emphasize those literacy skills. Additionally, in the junior year, students will gain proficiency in the use of rhetorical strategies and research.
Mathematics
Mathematics
The Brockton Public Schools believes that all students are mathematicians. By providing students with the opportunity to engage in rich meaningful tasks where students are required to represent their thinking, communicate their reasoning, and participate in mathematics discussions, students will develop a deeper conceptual understanding of mathematics.
BPS embraces the Standards of Mathematical Practices and these standards are evident in our classrooms. Our teachers strive to create an environment where students are encouraged to share their thinking, evaluate their own reasoning as well as the reasoning of their peers, and where different approaches and strategies to solving mathematics problems are valued. Students are expected to move beyond memorizing (algorithms, rules) and “doing” the math to understanding and explaining the math.
It is through this approach to teaching and learning mathematics that we are preparing the Brockton Public School students for success in the careers of the future.
Classical & Modern Languages
Classical and Modern Languages
Students in the Brockton Public Schools may choose to study Chinese, Latin or Spanish at the middle/K-8 schools, beginning in grades 6 or 7, as well as at Brockton High School in grades 9-11. Levels range from CP to Honors and years 1 through 5, International Baccalaureate (IB) and Advanced Placement (AP). Students with advanced foreign and/or native language skills, as well as English, may be eligible to enroll in the Medical Interpretation and Translation Program in French/Haitian Creole, Portuguese/Cape Verdean Creole or Spanish. In addition to a variety of course options available for study, there are language specific club activities offered at Brockton High School. Students should view their Student Handbooks and talk with their foreign language teacher in order to pursue these offerings. Students who meet the criteria, may be invited to join the Foreign Language Honor Societies.
The purpose of the societies is to recognize high achievement of high school students in their pursuit of acquiring a second language, and to promote a continuing interest in foreign language studies.
We expect students to access technology in order to be prepared for college and careers. Students may use the IRCs in their respective schools, a public library or their own personal computers at home. Personal devices may be accessed during class time at the discretion of the teacher.
"To have another language is to possess a second soul."
Charlemagne
The philosophy of the Foreign Language Department of the Brockton Public Schools reflects the Guiding Principles of the revised Massachusetts World Languages Curriculum Frameworks of 1999 and Common Core State Standards Frameworks, as well as the ACTFL World-Readiness Standards for Foreign Language Learning. We believe that:
- The primary goal of a modern Foreign Languages program is communicative proficiency. The primary goal of the classical foreign language program is to interact with the ancient minds through reading comprehension and translation.
- Foreign Language study integrates the study of languages with the study of the cultures in which the languages are used.
- Foreign Language study connects with all other disciplines.
- Foreign Language study is most effective when started at an early age, but all students benefit from reading, writing, and conversing in at least one language in addition to their first language.
The program goals are to:
- Promote excellence in the teaching and learning of foreign languages.
- Provide learning opportunities in a variety of foreign languages, both modern and classical.
- Encourage students to become lifelong learners of foreign languages and cultures.
- Encourage students to adopt a global view and understanding of the world
- Implement the Massachusetts Foreign Languages Curriculum Frameworks and align with the Common Core State Standards Frameworks.
By focusing on the five Foreign Languages content strands of Communication, Culture, Comparisons, Connections and Communities, students learn to communicate in a new language and use it to gain understanding of people and cultures. Students practice communication through interpersonal, interpretive and presentational modes. In addition, students learn to use the language to acquire knowledge in other disciplines, and to participate in local and international communities. The Massachusetts Foreign Languages Curriculum Frameworks define four stages of proficiency:
- Stage 1, in which students use single words and common phrases and expressions
- Stage 2, in which students use sentences and other recombination of words and phrases
- Stage 3, in which students use sentences and paragraph-length messages
- Stage 4, in which students use sentences, paragraph-length and essay-length messages
Music Education
Music Education
The Brockton Public Schools' Music Program, K-12 encompasses a sequential program of general classroom music instruction, instrumental and choral instruction and performance, and introduction to computer technology.
The program is based upon sound current research and provides students with multiple strategies for becoming critical and creative musicians, listeners, and composers.
The Brockton Public Schools adopts the vision of the Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Framework. Music should generate intellectual and emotional excitement that helps bring people and art together. Through an effective program, music will have a lasting positive influence throughout one's life.
Guiding Principles
- All students will have access to high quality music programs.
- Music instruction will encourage learners to make multicultural and interdisciplinary connections.
- Students will develop musical skills through interactive learning.
- Teachers will provide challenges and opportunities for students at all levels of musical ability.
- Material will be drawn from many genres, time periods and cultures.
- Music assessment will monitor students' performance, improve instruction, enhance learning, and encourage students' self-reflection.
Wellness Education
Wellness Education
The BPS Wellness curriculum provides students with the opportunity for optimum development of their physical, emotional, social, intellectual and spiritual well-being.
Click below for the Brockton Public Schools' Wellness Policy.
It is our goal that through interactive classroom instruction and project-based learning, students will gain the knowledge and skills needed to make lifestyle choices that result in a healthier and happier future.
National Health Education Standards are critical to the healthy development of children and youth. The Standards were developed to:
- Improve student learning across the nation by providing a foundation for curriculum development, instruction, and assessment of student performance.
- Set high and challenging expectations for all students
- Provide measurable knowledge and skill learning outcomes
- Ensure that Health Education is emphasized from kindergarten through twelfth grade
- Provide a guide for enhancing preparation and continuing education of health teachers
- Students will comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance health.
- Students will analyze the influence of family, peers, culture, media, technology, and other factors on health behaviors.
- Students will demonstrate the ability to access valid information and products and services to enhance health.
- Students will demonstrate the ability to use inter-personal communication skills to enhance health and avoid or reduce health risks.
- Students will demonstrate the ability to use decision-making skills to enhance health.
- Students will demonstrate the ability to use goal-setting skills to enhance health
- Students will demonstrate the ability to practice health-enhancing behaviors and avoid or reduce health risks.
- Students will demonstrate the ability to advocate for personal, family, and community health.
COMMUNITY COLLABORATIONS
Vocational & Career Education
Vocational and Career Education
Elvio Ferreira
Director of Vocational and Career Education, Grades 6-12
508-580-7665
[email protected]
The Vocational and Career Education department offers approximately 60 elective courses to students at Brockton High School.
These courses are available to all BHS students, opening new avenues and possible career opportunities.
For more on Brockton High's CTE offerings, click here.
Courses reflect up-to-date technological advances and skills necessary for employment in today's ever-changing job market.
Special Education
A Parent's Guide to Special Education (click here)
Parent IEP Checklist:
Child Find Notice (click here for translations)
It is the responsibility of the Brockton Public Schools to identify any child who is a resident of Brockton, who may have a disability, regardless of the severity of the disability. It is also the responsibility of the Brockton Public Schools to evaluate students who may have a disability to determine if they are eligible for special education or related services under IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) or 306 CMR 28 (Massachusetts Special Education Regulations).
The Brockton Public Schools is committed to identifying children before their third birthday to provide early intervention services for three and four-year-olds with disabilities.
If you have questions or concerns regarding your child's development and would like to have him/her screened, please contact the Special Education Office at 508-580-7525.
If you have other specific questions about your child, you can also contact the Principal at your child's school for information about the Instructional Support Team (IST) process, which the first step in the referral process is to determine eligibility. It is through this school-based process that strategies are developed, academic and/or behavioral interventions and data is collected to support your child to determine if a referral for special education evaluation is needed.
For more on the BPS Special Education Department, click here.
Guidance
The Guidance Department is comprised of school psychologists, school adjustment counselors, guidance counselors and bi-lingual counselors. A consulting psychiatrist also provides services to students.
The mission of the Brockton Public Schools Guidance Services Department is to provide a comprehensive and developmental guidance and counseling program that promotes resilience and excellence in education.
The program assists students to develop into confident, independent and productive members of our wider community.
Confidentiality is extremely important in the student-counselor relationship. It is vital that the student is informed that material shared in the counseling session remains confidential. It is the counselor's professional responsibility to limit access to personal information to those who have a "need and right to know". In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the confidentiality rights of a student under the age of eighteen reside with the parent or legal guardian.
The goals of our department are formulated to:
- help students develop the ability to make carefully considered decisions in personal, social, career and educational matters.
- support parents in developing the understanding and skills necessary to help their children with educational and career choices.
- assist students and parents to widen their range of choices in career and educational alternatives.
- help students, parents, teachers and administrators to deal with problems within the classroom and the wider school environment.
- assist students to strengthen their self-perception so they may better recognize their need for appropriate counseling services, while in school or later in life.
- provide sound clinical practices to serve the mental health needs of the school community.
Crisis situations are a frequent occurrence in any school setting. The Guidance Services and Health Departments are instrumental in dealing with these difficult situations. Procedures and strategies have been developed and implemented throughout the Brockton School Department and have been codified into a system-wide Crisis Management Policy.
Another paramount duty of guidance staff is to make sure that students are safe and that their physical and emotional needs are being met. This often entails the filing of a 51A report when child abuse or neglect is suspected. All school personnel are mandated reporters of suspected child abuse under Massachusetts General Laws, C 119, 51A-G. www.doe.mass.edu/educators/51A.html
Guidance Services Department personnel are mandated by the Brockton School Committee to deal with attendance issues. Long-term attendance concerns involving truancy are addressed through the Attendance Office of the Brockton School Department.
The Guidance Services Department is responsible for the interpretation and explanation to parents of both citywide and statewide testing programs. The psychologists within the Guidance Services department are responsible for the administration of individual tests of cognitive ability. Other assessment devices are utilized when necessary to meet the needs of bilingual students. Testing is also conducted for students for whom there are concerns about language impairments. In addition to tests of cognitive ability, school psychologists may also evaluate visual motor skills and emotional and personality factors.
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry has developed a website entitles "Facts for Families." This is a resource that provides information on various issues that affect children and their families.
http://www.aacap.org/page.ww?section=Facts+for+Fam...
Title I
What is Title I?
Title I is a federally funded program that provides supplemental instruction and material for students who qualify. Brockton is a School – Wide Title I program, meaning all students in the district are considered Title I. Services are provided to make sure that all students meet performance standards. Title I services provided with federal funds are based on the academic needs of students. Students who qualify for academic support may be served in all areas of education. Students are assessed throughout the school year using formative, summative, and performance assessments. These assessments inform teachers about instructional services that students need to increase performance and academic achievement. DESE- Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, distributes the money to local school districts based on the number of families who are below a specific income level.
What is Parents Right to Know?
En français
En espagnol
As a parent of a student in the Brockton Public Schools, you have the right to know the professional qualifications of the classroom teachers who instruct your child. Federal law allows you to ask for certain information about your child's classroom teachers and requires us to give you this information in a timely manner if you ask for it. Specifically, you have the right to ask for the following information about each of your child's classroom teachers:
- Whether the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has licensed or qualified the teacher for the grades and subjects he or she teaches.
- Whether the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has decided that the teacher can teach in a classroom without being licensed or qualified under state regulations because of special circumstances.
- The teacher's college major; whether the teacher has any advanced degrees and, if so, the subject of the degrees.
- Whether any teachers' aides or similar paraprofessionals provide services to your child and, if they do, their qualifications.
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Karen Spaulding Assistant Superintendent of Teaching & Learning (Grades Pre-K-5)