Biology, fourth edition (A.C.E.)

The curriculum provides direct instruction through self-contained text lessons with clear explanations and extensive practice questions. The mastery-based approach ensures concepts are learned before progression.

Each lesson consists of 'two or three pages of text with colorful illustrations' followed by 'extensive set of questions.' The mastery approach requires students to demonstrate understanding before advancing to new material.

The curriculum incorporates systematic retrieval practice through multiple assessment layers including lesson questions, checkups, self-tests, and final tests. The mastery approach prevents advancement without demonstrated retention.

Each group of lessons includes 'a Checkup with two pages of questions,' followed by 'a self-test covering all of that PACE's lessons' and a final test. Students must score satisfactorily on self-tests before taking final tests.

The curriculum places heavy emphasis on scientific vocabulary with explicit instruction and repeated practice. Each subtopic begins with vocabulary lists, pronunciations, definitions, and vocabulary exercises.

The review notes 'the course's strong emphasis on the mastery of vocabulary' and describes how 'each of these subtopic sections begins with a list of vocabulary words, a pronunciation key, and definitions' followed by vocabulary exercises.

The curriculum is designed for complete independence with minimal teacher involvement, providing answer keys but limited pedagogical guidance or science background for instructors. This design assumes teachers need no subject matter knowledge.

The review states 'the teacher or supervisor does not need to know the subject matter' and mentions 'four Score Key booklets for the course' but no indication of teacher guides or professional development materials.

The curriculum completely replaces hands-on lab work with online videos, which provide exposure to lab procedures but eliminate direct experiential learning. While the videos show varied lab activities, students have no physical manipulation experience.

Students 'do no actual lab work' but watch 'two excellent online lab videos for each PACE.' Examples include microscope use, blood typing, and fetal pig dissection videos, but students only answer brief questions rather than conducting experiments.

The curriculum builds substantial content knowledge through vocabulary-heavy instruction and comprehensive coverage of biology topics. However, it emphasizes recall and comprehension over deeper conceptual understanding and critical thinking skills.

Each lesson begins with vocabulary words and definitions followed by extensive questions. The mastery approach ensures students learn material before advancing, though the reviewer notes it relies on 'lower levels of thinking—comprehension and recall—rather than deeper critical thinking skills.'

No information is provided about NGSS alignment, and the curriculum's focus on memorization and recall suggests it may not fully address the three-dimensional learning approach emphasized in NGSS.

The reviews do not mention NGSS standards, and the noted emphasis on 'lower levels of thinking—comprehension and recall—rather than deeper critical thinking skills' suggests potential gaps in science practices integration.