EDU734: Teaching and Learning Environment

Week 5: Curriculum Development

Topic goals

 To gain an understanding of the concept of curriculum development and its importance

  To gain an understanding of how curriculum

is implemented in different cultural contexts

Task – Forum

 Do you think that the current school curriculum needs

to be adapted more to the modern culture? If so, in

what ways do you think it can be done? 

 What do you consider to be the implications for the nature of valid knowledge in the future school curriculum?

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

5.1 Introduction

Curriculum lies at the heart of educational policies and practices.

They are are highly political documents which convey ideological positions about

the type of education that should be given in different cultural contexts and the

citizenship values that can be shared by the citizen of a state (Apple, 2004).

Each society has its own values and beliefs which they want to be translated into educational objectives via the curriculum.

“Curriculum is a comprehensive plan for an educational programme/institute/

course to offer new or improved manpower to accomplish the rising needs of a

dynamic society” (Pillai, 2015).

5.1.1 Orientations to curriculum

 Child-centred 

 Society-centred 

 Knowledge-centred 

 Eclectic

5.1.2 Determinants of the curriculum

 Basic needs 

 Social aspects 

 Cultural factors 

 Individual talents 

 Ideals: intellectual, moral, aesthetic, religious 

 Tradition

(Pillai, 2015)

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

5.2 Definition of Curriculum Development

Curriculum development is defined as the process which is planned, purposeful,

progressive, and systematic in order to create positive improvements in the

educational system.

 The curriculum is affected by any changes or developments that affect society (Alvior, 2014).

  It needs to correspond to those changes but at the same time to respect all

people despite of gender, ethnicity, disability, religion etc. (Symeonidou and

Mavrou, 2014).

2. How can

1. What learning 3. How can 4. How can the

educational experiences learning effectiveness of

purposes that are likely to experiences be learning

should the be useful in organised for experiences be

school seek to attaining these effective evaluated?

attain? objectives be instruction? selected?

Diagram 5.1: Four questions for the organization and development of the curriculum (Tyler, 1949, cited in Howard, 2007)

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

5.2.1 Four principles for the development of any curriculum:

 Defining goals 

 Establishing corresponding learning experiences 

 Organising learning experiences to have cumulative effect 

 Evaluating outcomes

(Howard, 2007)

5.3 Levels of the curriculum

a) Formal, overt or written curriculum

b) Applied

c) Pragmatic or experiential

. Diagram 5.2: The three levels of the curriculum

a) Formal, overt or written curriculum

 It is the written documents that form part of the formal instruction of the school experience in a country

  It includes:

o The purpose of education

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

o Teacher’s role and responsibilities o The main pedagogical principles

o The Philosophy of the National Curriculum o Instructional approaches

o Classroom organization

 It refers to curriculum documents, texts and other supportive teaching materials that are overly chosen to support the intentional instructional agenda of the school as this is guided by the state in most of the cases.

For example: the national curriculum of primary education of each country

«the instruction which is planned and guided by the school, and it is carried out in it, in groups or in an individual level, whether inside or outside the school” (John Kerr)

b) Applied Curriculum

 The curriculum as this is implemented and applied by the school teacher in the learning environment of the classroom

c) Pragmatic or experiential

 The way the curriculum objectives and its content is experienced by the students in the context of the school and the classroom

Why is there a gap among the three levels?

The gap among the three levels can be based on:

 Transformation of the goals and objectives  The teaching materials (books, documents, texts) and the teaching methods

  The transformation of activities

  The perceived role of the teacher

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

5.4 The hidden or covert curriculum

 The term “hidden curriculum” or “covert” was first established by Philip Jackson in 1968.

  It refers to those aspects of the learning process which are not formal and

often not conscious. 

 The “hidden” or “covert” curriculum is implied by the very structure and nature of schools which involves the organisation and operation of the schools, the rules, the daily and established routines as well as behaviours and attitudes of teachers, pupils, their parents and administrators (Longstreet and Shane, 1993) and the beliefs and norms of each cultural context.

  The way the ‘hidden curriculum’ is designed cannot be easily changed. The

dynamic of hidden curriculum is evident and it makes its influence even stronger on the daily aspects of the school life and later on the everyday life.

  The hidden curriculum has the power to influence or reverse the ‘overt’ or

‘formal’ curriculum.

Examples of how the “hidden” curriculum can be immersed into school routine and rules:

 The ideas need to be accepted as they are rather than to be challenged and criticized

  Knowledge is not to be discovered but rather to be ‘absorbed’ and assimilated.

  The purpose of education is directed towards developing important mental skills

and ability such as memorizing 

 Authority in any form is power and it needs to be respected rather than to be challenged based on personal assessment and/or judgment

  Competition is an important aspect of the today competitive industrialized market

rather than the collaboration and cooperation. 

 Individual personal progress is considered as far more important rather than helping other people.

  A capable person is the one who has developed their literacy (reading and writing)

and mathematic skills rather than their critical thinking skills. 

 Men are important figures in mathematics and science more important than women.

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

5.5 Curriculum books and documents

Examples of ‘hidden’ curriculum in curriculum books

 Gender: In some disciplines gender takes a stereotypical to particular cultural contexts roles

 o E.g. Stereotypes around gender (men as knowledgeable figures of the

discipline compared to woman who may take a traditional role of house care

person and care of the children)  o Male dominance over quantitative and qualitative subjects

  Disability and diversity: In some curriculum books there is complete absence of

notions of disability, human and democratic notions of inclusion of all learners

into all subject areas 

o E.g. Lack of images/ pictures that represent diversity and disability into school books. 

o Representation of the people with disability as the oppressed ones, the 

‘others’. 

 Societal values and beliefs:

o Lack of images in books around societal values and beliefs of each context o Images that do not correspond to the up to date social reality of each

country.

5.6 Task – Forum

 Based on your own context, do you think that the current school curriculum

needs to be adapted more to the modern culture? If so, in what ways can you

think it can be done?  

 What do you consider to be the implications for the nature of valid

knowledge in the future school curriculum? (1 post and 1 reply to another

post of a student)

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

Further reading:

Alvior, M. G. (2014) The meaning and importance of Curriculum Development. In SimplyEducate.Me Retrieved on October 18, 2016

from http://simplyeducate.me/2014/12/13/the-meaning-and-importance-of- curriculum-development/

Giroux, H. A., & Penna, A. N. (1979). Social education in the classroom: The

dynamics of the hidden curriculum. Theory & Research in Social Education,7(1),

21-42.

Harden, R. M., Sowden, S., & Dunn, W. R. (1984). Educational strategies in curriculum development: the SPICES model. Medical education, 18(4), 284-297

Howard, J. (2007). Curriculum development. Center for the Advancement of

Teaching and Learning, Elon University

Moore, R., & Young, M. (2001). Knowledge and the curriculum in the sociology of

education: towards a reconceptualisation. British Journal of Sociology of

Education, 22(4), 445-461.

References:

Alvior, Mary G. (2014) The meaning and importance of Curriculum Development.

In SimplyEducate.Me Retrieved on October 18, 2016

from http://simplyeducate.me/2014/12/13/the-meaning-and-importance-of- curriculum-development/

Apple, M. W. (2004). Ideology and Curriculum. 3rd ed. New York: Routledge.

Howard, J. (2007). Curriculum development. Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, Elon University

Longstreet, W. S., & Shane, H. G. (1993). Curriculum for a new millennium.

Pearson College Division.

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EDU734: Teaching and

Learning Environment

Symeonidou, S., & Mavrou, K. (2014). Deconstructing the Greek-Cypriot new

national curriculum: to what extent are disabled children considered in the

‘humane and democratic school’of Cyprus?. Disability & Society, 29(2), 303-316.

Tyler, R. W. (2004). Basic principles of curriculum and instruction. The curriculum studies reader, 51-59.

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