Indiana Science Initiative Adoption FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

The Indiana Science Initiative is a partnership between the Indiana Department of Education, I-STEM, and Eli Lilly and Company to support K-8 schools in the implementation of research-developed hands on science materials. When K-8 schools choose to join the Initiative they will adopt a matrix of curricular materials that have been reviewed as strongly aligned with Indiana Academic Standards. As participants in the ISI teachers will be required to participate in professional development that supports the pedagogy and use of the modules. Materials will be managed through centralized centers and will not be the responsibility of the school or district.

On Wednesday, October 6 the Indiana State Board of Education voted to approve a list of instructional materials that were recommended by the Textbook Advisory Committee. On this list are materials that were reviewed using a process similar to the one that was used for selecting the kits for the Indiana Science Initiative. We would like to clarify the difference between these two processes and the mechanism by which districts that elect to participate in the Science Initiative will adopt materials. We have had a lot of questions that we felt we should summarize the answers to below.

• My district/school wants to adopt these pilot kits but some of the units are not on the adoption list. How does my district adopt the materials selected by the Indiana Science Initiative? Your district will exercise the blanket waiver that State Board has put in place and the ISI and Department of Education will provide you with all the information that you need to expedite this process.
• When will we know the complete kit matrix for all the standards? The full matrix and standards alignment will be available at the end of November.
• Why are materials that the Indiana Science Initiative selected not on the state textbook adoption list? Some publishers did not submit bids for the state textbook adoption process and therefore were not reviewed. In addition, kindergarten is not a category on the state textbook list. Textbook Advisory Committee made their recommendations on alignment to all standards at a grade level and in the ISI process the materials were reviewed for a narrower alignment to a discipline. We are currently examining those materials whose alignment was deemed as unsatisfactory.
• What if my school/district only wants to adopt some of the kits in the matrix? To participate in the Indiana Science Initiative you must adopt the matrix developed for the Initiative. The Initiative requires a uniform selection of materials which allows us to manage the refurbishment and distribution of those materials and provide support and professional development to all teachers.

We are working with the Department of Education to expedite this process. Watch for more to come about the adoption process of the Indiana Science Initiative.