Instructional coherence.

According to Newmann, Smith, Allensworth, and Bryk, (2002) strong instructional coherence derives from:

• A common instructional framework that guides curriculum, teaching, assessment, and learning climate (providing specific expectations for student learning, with specific strategies and materials to guide teaching and assessment).
• Staff working conditions that support implementation of the framework.
• Allocation of resources such as funding, materials, time, and staff assignments to advance the school’s common instructional framework and to avoid diffuse, scattered improvement efforts.

They suggest that instructional coherence benefits students by promoting the integration of learning experiences and connecting those experiences over time. These connections can make learning experiences clearer, more meaningful, and more motivating.