core/docs/curriculum/FOUNDATION-CURRICULUM-ROADMAP.md

CORE Foundation Curriculum Roadmap

Status: proposed planning document
Scope: documentation only; no runtime, pack, eval, or admission changes
Purpose: define the lower-level subjects CORE should learn first so later domain studies are built on strong reusable foundations rather than brittle topic accumulation.

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1. Doctrine

CORE should not widen capability by collecting impressive subjects first. It should widen capability by building the reusable primitives that make later subjects lawful, auditable, transferable, and refusal-safe.

The curriculum order is therefore:

language -> relations -> quantity -> units -> logic -> evidence -> data -> algorithms -> systems -> domains

The desired result is not broad trivia. The desired result is a model that can read the world as:

typed, evidenced, unit-bearing, logically constrained state transitions

This keeps teaching aligned with CORE's core commitments:

• deterministic replay over fluent improvisation
• evidence spans over unsupported assertion
• typed refusal over hidden guessing
• ratified packs over loose memory
• cross-field transfer through shared primitives, not analogy theater
• small load-bearing PRs instead of large speculative rewrites

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2. Foundation-before-domain rule

Do not start with high-level applied subjects such as medicine, law, finance, engineering design, or advanced theology until their lower-level dependencies exist.

Applied domains require foundations:

Applied domain	Required foundations first
Medicine	language, quantity, units, biology, chemistry, statistics, evidence quality, ethics, scope/refusal
Law	language, definitions, conditionals, authority, jurisdiction, procedure, evidence, source hierarchy
Finance/trading	arithmetic, rates, time, probability, statistics, incentives, risk, uncertainty, causality vs correlation
Engineering	units, dimensional analysis, physical science, constraints, systems, algorithms, safety
Theology/hermeneutics	language, logic, history, source criticism, ethics, epistemology, Hebrew/Greek depth lanes
Research assistance	language, evidence, data, statistics, source evaluation, methodology, uncertainty handling

The rule is simple:

No domain pack should pretend to reason above the level of its substrate packs.

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3. Curriculum ladder

Stage 0 — Existing base and constraints

Current project direction already includes language packs, epistemic states, reviewed learning, refusal-first behavior, sealed eval discipline, and GSM8K-driven math/reasoning work.

This roadmap does not replace those efforts. It gives them a larger teaching order.

Stage 1 — Language relation substrate

Purpose: make every later subject parseable.

CORE must reliably identify:

• subject / predicate
• agent / action / object
• modifiers
• prepositional relations
• temporal sequence
• conditionals
• negation
• comparison
• coordination
• reference resolution
• claim boundaries

Canonical representation target:

CLAIM {
  subject
  relation
  object_or_value
  qualifiers
  evidence_span
  epistemic_state
}

Initial pack candidates:

packs/language/en_core_syntax_v1
packs/language/en_core_relations_v2

Initial eval candidates:

evals/language_claim_parsing
evals/language_relation_binding

Acceptance direction:

• Every parsed claim has an evidence span.
• Every relation has typed operands.
• Temporal, conditional, comparative, and negated forms are deterministic.
• Missing evidence produces a typed refusal or undetermined state.
• Existing GSM8K behavior does not regress.

Stage 2 — Arithmetic semantics and quantity state

Purpose: make story statements compile into deterministic quantity/state transitions.

CORE must treat arithmetic operations as semantic transformations, not just symbols.

Examples:

Operation	Semantic forms
Addition	combine, gain, receive, total, altogether
Subtraction	remove, lose, spend, left, difference
Multiplication	groups of, each, per, repeated addition
Division	share equally, groups of, inverse rate
Fractions	part-whole, ratio, scaling
Percent	per hundred, relative change
Ratios	comparison, mixture, scale
Rates	quantity per unit

Canonical representation target:

ENTITY_LEDGER {
  entity
  attribute
  initial_state
  mutations[]
  final_state
  evidence_spans[]
}

Initial pack candidates:

packs/math/arithmetic_semantics_v1
packs/math/quantity_ledger_v1
packs/math/ratio_rate_percent_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/math_quantity_language
evals/math_state_tracking

Acceptance direction:

• Quantity-bearing language becomes a replayable ledger.
• Operations preserve entity and attribute identity.
• Unknown initial/final values remain symbolic until solved or refused.
• Comparative phrases are directionally correct.
• Already-admitted GSM8K cases remain stable.

Stage 3 — Measurement, units, and dimensional reasoning

Purpose: attach numbers to reality and reject invalid operations.

CORE must understand:

• unit identity
• unit families
• unit conversion
• compound units
• dimensional compatibility
• rates
• scale
• precision
• exact vs measured quantities

Canonical operation rule:

operation(value_a: unit_x, value_b: unit_y) -> valid only if dimensions permit it

Initial pack candidates:

packs/math/measurement_units_v1
packs/math/dimensional_analysis_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/unit_conversion
evals/dimensional_validity
evals/rate_reasoning

Acceptance direction:

• Unit conversions are deterministic and evidence-backed.
• Incompatible operations refuse or mark invalid.
• Compound units preserve numerator/denominator structure.
• Answers include units when units are present in the prompt.

Stage 4 — Logic, classification, and conditionals

Purpose: preserve truth under inference.

CORE must understand:

• identity and difference
• class membership
• subclass relations
• part-whole structure
• necessary and sufficient conditions
• quantifiers
• negation
• conjunction/disjunction
• contradiction
• equivalence
• causal vs logical implication

Initial pack candidates:

packs/logic/classification_v1
packs/logic/conditionals_v1
packs/logic/quantifiers_v1
packs/logic/contradiction_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/basic_logic
evals/claim_entailment_refusal

Acceptance direction:

• Entailed claims are separated from merely plausible claims.
• Contradictions are explicit, not smoothed over.
• Quantifier scope is preserved.
• Unknown membership or insufficient premises produces refusal/undetermined state.

Stage 5 — Scientific method and evidence grammar

Purpose: separate observation, hypothesis, inference, verification, contradiction, and scope.

CORE must represent:

• observation
• measurement
• hypothesis
• prediction
• experiment
• control
• evidence
• model
• theory/law
• confounder
• replication
• scope limit

Initial pack candidates:

packs/science/scientific_method_v1
packs/science/evidence_relations_v1
packs/science/causal_reasoning_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/science_evidence_classification
evals/hypothesis_prediction_experiment

Acceptance direction:

• Observed claims are not promoted to verified causal claims without support.
• Missing controls, denominators, sample sizes, or methods are exposed.
• Causal language is distinguished from correlation/association.
• Scope limits are preserved.

Stage 6 — Data literacy, probability, and statistics

Purpose: reason under uncertainty without overclaiming.

CORE must understand:

• data point
• variable
• dataset
• table
• chart
• mean/median/mode
• range/spread
• outlier
• sample vs population
• probability
• conditional probability
• base rate
• false positive/negative
• absolute vs relative risk
• correlation vs causation

Initial pack candidates:

packs/math/data_literacy_v1
packs/math/probability_v1
packs/math/statistical_reasoning_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/table_reasoning
evals/probability_language
evals/base_rate_reasoning
evals/correlation_vs_causation

Acceptance direction:

• Tables are parsed into typed rows/columns.
• Claims unsupported by denominator/sample data are refused or qualified.
• Base-rate information is preserved.
• Relative and absolute changes are not confused.

Stage 7 — Computational thinking and algorithms

Purpose: make procedures, traces, and state machines first-class.

CORE must understand:

• sequence
• branching
• loops
• state
• function input/output
• decomposition
• abstraction
• invariant
• error handling
• trace/replay
• rough cost/complexity

Initial pack candidates:

packs/cs/computational_thinking_v1
packs/cs/algorithm_trace_v1
packs/cs/state_machine_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/procedure_following
evals/algorithm_trace
evals/branching_logic

Acceptance direction:

• Procedures produce deterministic traces.
• Branch conditions are evaluated from evidence.
• State mutations are explicit.
• Invalid or missing steps are not silently repaired.

Stage 8 — Systems and crosscutting structures

Purpose: enable cross-field transfer without collapsing domain boundaries.

CORE must understand:

• pattern
• cause/effect
• scale/proportion/quantity
• system and system model
• structure/function
• stability/change
• feedback
• equilibrium
• constraint
• conservation-like accounting

Initial pack candidates:

packs/crosscutting/patterns_v1
packs/crosscutting/cause_effect_v1
packs/crosscutting/systems_models_v1
packs/crosscutting/structure_function_v1
packs/crosscutting/stability_change_v1

Initial eval candidates:

evals/cross_domain_transfer
evals/systems_reasoning_basic

Acceptance direction:

• Shared structure is identified across domains.
• Domain-specific limits are preserved.
• Analogies are marked as analogies unless structurally proven.
• Transfer does not bypass evidence or scope.

Stage 9 — Domain foundations

Only after Stages 1-8 should domain foundations expand aggressively.

Recommended order:

1. physical science foundations
2. life science foundations
3. earth/space/environment systems
4. social studies foundations: history, geography, economics, civics
5. applied domains: medicine, law, finance, engineering, research assistance, theology/hermeneutics

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4. Cross-field transfer patterns

The curriculum should deliberately test reusable structure across fields.

Rate transfer

math:      60 miles / 2 hours       -> 30 miles/hour
finance:  $60 / 2 items             -> $30/item
medicine: 60 mg / 2 kg              -> 30 mg/kg
chemistry: 60 g / 2 L               -> 30 g/L
computing: 60 requests / 2 seconds  -> 30 requests/second

Expected behavior:

• same abstract rate structure
• distinct units
• distinct domain safety boundaries

Conservation transfer

arithmetic: total objects
physics: energy/momentum
chemistry: mass/atoms
accounting: money balance
inventory: stock
law: chain of custody

Expected behavior:

• identify accounting/conservation-like invariant
• preserve domain rules
• refuse unsupported conservation claims where the domain does not justify them

Structure/function transfer

biology: heart -> pump blood
engineering: pump -> move fluid
software: queue -> preserve order of work
civics: court -> adjudicate disputes

Expected behavior:

• identify structure/function relation
• avoid pretending equivalent mechanisms
• surface evidence and scope

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5. Standard eval shape

Every curriculum slice should include four eval types.

5.1 Recognition eval

Can CORE identify the structure?

Input: John has 4 fewer apples than Mary.
Expected: comparative_quantity_relation

5.2 Transformation eval

Can CORE produce the typed representation?

john.apples = mary.apples - 4

5.3 Execution eval

Can CORE solve, infer, classify, or validate deterministically?

mary.apples = 10
john.apples = 6

5.4 Refusal eval

Can CORE refuse when evidence is insufficient?

Input: John has fewer apples than Mary. How many apples does John have?
Expected: insufficient quantity evidence

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6. Minimum documentation required per slice

Each implemented curriculum slice should add or update:

docs/curriculum/<slice-name>.md
packs/<domain>/<pack-name>/manifest.json
evals/<eval-name>/README.md

The curriculum doc should include:

• purpose
• prerequisites
• non-goals
• typed primitives introduced
• expected representations
• eval surfaces
• refusal boundaries
• cross-field bridges
• admission criteria
• follow-on dependencies unlocked

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7. Recommended immediate implementation sequence

The next six load-bearing slices should be:

1. en_core_syntax_v1 and en_core_relations_v2
2. quantity_ledger_v1 and arithmetic_semantics_v1
3. measurement_units_v1 and dimensional_analysis_v1
4. classification_v1, conditionals_v1, quantifiers_v1, contradiction_v1
5. scientific_method_v1, evidence_relations_v1, causal_reasoning_v1
6. data_literacy_v1, probability_v1, statistical_reasoning_v1

Recommended first implementation branch after this planning PR:

feat/en-core-syntax-relations-v1

Recommended first runtime/eval scope:

packs/language/en_core_syntax_v1/
packs/language/en_core_relations_v2/
evals/language_claim_parsing/
evals/language_relation_binding/
tests/test_language_claim_parsing.py
tests/test_relation_binding_replay.py

Do not widen into domain foundations until these first six slices are either admitted or explicitly scoped as incomplete dependencies.

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8. Non-goals

This roadmap does not authorize:

• bulk domain ingestion without substrate dependencies
• open-ended web-corpus learning
• probabilistic guessing to fill missing relations
• hidden correction of invalid statements
• promotion from observed to verified without evidence
• manual manifest drift
• eval promotion without replay artifacts
• replacement of refusal with best-effort fluency

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9. Definition of done for this roadmap

This planning document is useful only if it remains trackable.

Use docs/curriculum/FOUNDATION-CURRICULUM-TRACKER.md as the living checklist. A curriculum slice should not be marked admitted until the relevant pack, eval, test, and documentation artifacts exist and pass their admission criteria.