Evaluation of a statewide curriculum implementation using a content coverage index

This study was designed to develop a content coverage index to evaluate the implementation of a statewide physical education curriculum - the Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum - at the kindergarten through 2nd-grade level. This study was conducted in multiple phases, including the development of a content coverage index, a validation study for the index, and an investigation of the implementation of the statewide curriculum by teachers. Participants were 92 elementary physical education teachers who attended an inservice program for the statewide curriculum and completed the content coverage index. The inter-item agreement for the grade levels studied provided evidence that the index was reliable in this sample of teachers. Point-biserial correlations between the teachers' level of usage of the curriculum and ratings of whether an objective from the curriculum was taught demonstrated that the produced valid information on the curriculum implementation. Further validity evidence was provided by correlating the level of usage of the curriculum by teachers and the total number of lessons taught from the curriculum. This study may serve as a model for developing similar indexes for curriculum evaluation.