Academic Standards
Office of Academic Standards
The primary purpose of the Office of Academic Standards is to serve as the authoritative source for the review, revision, and support for the implementation of state content standards in the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. The Office of Academic Standards additionally supports multiple legislative and grant-related programs, initiatives, and reporting requirements. Please visit the webpages on the side-rail to access information, materials, and resources across areas and programs.
North Carolina Standard Course of Study (SCOS) Internal Procedures Manual
On February 3, 2022, the State Board of Education approved an internal procedures' manual for reviewing, revising, and implementing content standards.
The purpose of this manual is to provide explanation of and guidance on:
- the process to be followed when developing or revising a section of the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (NCSCOS),
- the topics, categories, and minimum supporting materials to be included in the contents of a standard course of study, and
- the considerations that must be made as standards are being reviewed/revised/implemented.
The manual is designed to assist with the task of revising or developing a content area of the NCSCOS. It is not intended to guide the development and/or revision of local curriculum guides or other curriculum support documents.
Download the manual at the bottom of the page.
Standards Review and Revision Updates
All-Stakeholder Survey
In August, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) Office of Academic Standards’ team kicked off the review phase for K-12 Arts Standards. These standards will follow the NC Standard Course of Study Manual in terms of process and timeline.
Per the Internal Procedures Manual, the review phase consists of data collection and analysis, as well as research. The NCDPI team is seeking input on the current K-12 Arts, K-12 Guidance, and K-12 World Language standards from educators, administrators, parents, students, institutions of higher education, business/industry representatives, national organizations, and other education agencies.
These surveys are being shared to gather thoughtful input and comments from stakeholders familiar with the Arts, Guidance, and/or World Language Standard Course of Study in order to inform revision decisions, which may include changes, clarifications, additions, deletions, or replacements to the current standards.
Any individual who wishes to provide input on the Standard Course of Study may complete this survey. This survey is estimated to take about 10 to 20 minutes to complete, depending on how many grades or courses you choose to review.
We thank you for your time and input. Your feedback is extremely valuable to the standards review and revision process.
All-Stakeholder Survey for K-12 Arts Standards
*This survey will close in the Spring of 2023. More information to come.
Data Review Committee (DRC) Application
The DRC will meet periodically throughout the revision process to review and discuss data, as well as draft recommendations for revision.
These applications have closed.
In August, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) Office of Academic Standards’ team kicked off the review phase for K-12 Guidance Standards. These standards will follow the NC Standard Course of Study Manual in terms of process and timeline.
All-Stakeholder Survey
Per the Internal Procedures Manual, the review phase consists of data collection and analysis, as well as research. The NCDPI team is seeking input on the current K-12 Arts, K-12 Guidance, and K-12 World Language standards from educators, administrators, parents, students, institutions of higher education, business/industry representatives, national organizations, and other education agencies.
These surveys are being shared to gather thoughtful input and comments from stakeholders familiar with the Arts, Guidance, and/or World Language Standard Course of Study in order to inform revision decisions, which may include changes, clarifications, additions, deletions, or replacements to the current standards.
Any individual who wishes to provide input on the Standard Course of Study may complete this survey. This survey is estimated to take about 10 to 20 minutes to complete, depending on how many grades or courses you choose to review.
We thank you for your time and input. Your feedback is extremely valuable to the standards review and revision process.
All-Stakeholder Survey for K-12 Guidance Standards
*This survey will close January 20, 2023, at 5:00 PM.
Data Review Committee (DRC) Applications
This application is for educators, educational leaders, and stakeholders who desire to become part of the K-12 Guidance Standards revision process. The DRC will meet periodically throughout the revision process to review and discuss data, as well as draft recommendations for revision. Applications will be available until November 18, 2022.
The Guidance DRC will consist of a range of external stakeholders including university professors, content professionals, and experts from partner organizations. Please review the Scope of Work.
These applications will close January 20, 2023, at 5:00 PM.
On May 5, 2022, the NC State Board of Education granted permission for NCDPI to move forward with the review and revision of the K-12 Healthful Living standards, per SCOS-012.
Data Review Report
The Data Review Committee (DRC) has completed the initial data review report which summarizes information gained through research, surveys, interviews, and focus groups. The report will be used by the Standards Writing Team (SWT) during their initial meeting February 7th and 8th to begin formulating an initial draft of both Health and Physical Education Standards. Once complete, the initial draft will be released to the field in the form of a survey to gather feedback. The survey, available in March 2023, will be open for 30 days.
On May 5, 2022, the NC State Board of Education granted permission for NCDPI to move forward with the review and revision of the K-12 Science standards, per SCOS-012.
Draft 2 of the Proposed 2023 K-12 Science Standards
The NCDPI K-12 Science team is excited to announce the release of the second draft of the proposed 2023 K-12 Science Standards. The NC State Board of Education Standard Course of Study Manual specifies that the NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) will formally collect feedback from educators, administrators, parents, students, institutions of higher education, business/industry representatives, national organizations, and other education agencies on each draft of the revised K-12 Science Standards.
The purpose of this survey is to obtain input from all stakeholders regarding the 2nd Draft of the proposed 2023 K-12 Science Standards and to inform any additional revisions, which may include changes, clarifications, additions, deletions, or replacements to the draft standards.
The survey will close at 11:59pm on Sunday, March 26, 2023.
Writing the second draft of the proposed 2023 K-12 Science Standards followed the same process of data analysis, review by the DRC, and submission of a report to the SWT with recommendations based on feedback received on the first draft. In the second draft, the SWT worked to address several themes directly related to the proposed standards that were noted in the most recent round of feedback. These include:
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Consistent use of language across strands and grade levels.
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Additional clarification of the content within objectives.
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Refinements to the placement of content within grades, grade bands, or courses.
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Modifying the Scientific and Engineering Practices based on specific content or concepts.
Thank you for participating in this survey. Your feedback is greatly appreciated and is an important part of the K-12 Science Standards revision process.
Participate in the survey: 2nd Draft of the Proposed 2023 K-12 Science Survey
In August, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) Office of Academic Standards’ team kicked off the review phase for K-12 World Language Standards. These standards will follow the NC Standard Course of Study Manual in terms of process and timeline.
All-Stakeholder and PSU Surveys
As of January 20th, the all-stakeholder and PSU surveys are closed. Data is has been compiled and cleaned for the Data Review Committee (DRC).
Data Review Committee (DRC) Applications
As of January 27th, the applications for the World Languages Data Review Committee (DRC) are closed. An internal DPI team reviewed applications and notified selected members in mid-February. The DRC will meet in late March to review data, research, legislation, policy, and other state standards and develop their recommendations for revision.