San Marcos Middle School was the first stop in a national tour of schools with high-quality science curriculum.

The Title I school in the San Marcos Unified School District is one of four schools featured in Knowledge Matters Campaign’s tour that kicked off earlier this year.

San Marcos Middle School was selected for pioneering the adoption of high-quality science curricula designed to get students practicing like scientists while learning about natural phenomena and the natural world.

On Jan. 25, a team from the Knowledge Matters Campaign toured classrooms, interviewed school staff and students, and hosted a roundtable discussion with members of the community.

“As important as it is to ensure that what our students are reading and writing about in English language arts is content rich and of high quality, we must never forget that background knowledge built through rich instruction in science, social studies and the arts will also contribute mightily to literacy,” said Barbara Davidson, executive director of the Knowledge Matters Campaign.

Knowledge Matters Campaign is a project of the nonprofit advocacy organization StandardsWork, which highlights the benefits of high-quality curriculum adoption and implementation.

Nationwide, there is growing demand for science curricula and professional learning aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards. Districts selected for the 2023 Science Tour are pioneers in the adoption of high-quality science curricula and serve as models of implementation for school systems nationwide.