How does one define Curriculum?
Abstract
What
is curriculum? How does one develop culture and nurture it? The six elements
presented, are just one way the concept of curriculum is utilized. The
relationship that the teacher has with the curriculum and the materials
utilized is important. Learning how to adapt to different versions of
curriculum is essential to ones growth as an educator. The new age definition
of curriculum. The New York State Standardized test and how it affects curriculum.
The Mind Shift article, and links that pertain to education how it is evolving.
A different perspective to curriculum development, project-based learning why
it is a much more effective tool for students to learn with.
Introduction
How does one define curriculum? Webster’s
definition states it as: courses offered by an educational institution (https://www.merriam-webster.com). From
the perspective of yours truly curriculum represents the blueprint or the root
of education. It’s categories and subcategories help to guide instruction and
plays an important part for teachers and students alike. In the following, an
attempt will be made to try and examine the different meanings of the word
curriculum. In addition, the opinion of yours truly on the resources of this
week as it pertains to the present topic. Followed by what methods are utilized
and ones perspective on the methods used, and why it best suites the needs of
yours truly. Concluding with the overall thoughts from ones perspective on the
topic of curriculum.
Definitions of Curriculum
As aforementioned, Webster’s dictionary
defines curriculum as courses offered by an institution. However, lets examine
the literal definition of the word and concept is dependent upon the
educational institution’s personal and daily operation itself. In addition,
also determined by the state, local school district, and the federal education
department. In an article published in the International Journal of Multicultural Education. Curriculum is broken
down into six elements; Self Love and Knowledge, Respect for Others, Issues for
Social Justice, Social Movements, Social Change, Awareness Raising, and Social
Action (Picower, B.2012 pg 1).
The purpose of
breaking it down in this manner is as follows; By addressing these six
elements of social justice education in the elementary classroom, teachers lead
students to value themselves, respect the diversity of the world around them,
understand how diverse people have been treated differently and often unjustly,
recognize that ordinary people have worked to address such injustice, and take
action themselves (Picower, B.2012 pg 2). Therefore, the six elements make up
an essential part of classroom instruction. To reiterate the I. J. M. E. is an
example of how the concept of curriculum is created and utilized to help
students learn efficiently. Is it
version of education that one would use? Yes because as an educator one has to
learn how to adapt to different versions of curriculum and use it to maximize
learning.
Another great
definition of curriculum of what curriculum is as follows; “curriculum
materials have long been viewed as an effective means through which to reform
K-12 teaching and learning. Contemporary perspectives on the teacher-
curriculum relationship emphasize the active role teachers play” (Forbes,T.C.
pg180). The teachers
are what drive what curriculum is there is no definition of it and certainly it
will not teach itself. Furthermore, the article also states; features of the
curriculum materials themselves—design, organization, educative supports for
teachers, etc.—can influence how teachers work with them. Finally, the teacher-
curriculum relationship is embedded in particular professional contexts that
can afford or constrain teachers’ mobilization, evaluation, and adaptation of
curriculum materials (Forbes,T.C. pg181).
The next idea
and example presented is a new age definition of curriculum yours truly also
endorses and will be a mainstay for years to come. “Roughly five years ago, we
got the idea for this from a really well-known treatise by someone named Eric Raymond. He was part
of the original open source software movement. He wrote eleven precepts about
how and why open source projects should be built and why it’s better to use a
“bazaar,” or free exchange of ideas, versus using a “cathedral,” or top-down,
regimented approach. When I read it as an educator, I was really interested in
its application to school curriculum” (Bernard, S 2010). The definition of
curriculum is no longer rigid; the definition is becoming more of a fluid
concept. This is something one has advocated for and said for years. In short,
one saw it happening because technology kept evolving.
Mind Shift/
How will we learn
The last paragraph
mentions Mind Shift/How will we learn. Some of the ideas discussed in the reading
assigned are ideas that one has been advocating to be a part of school
curriculum since 2008. It hasn’t necessarily changed my thinking per say, but
it is something that has been carefully thought about. The question at hand is
how can corporate America aid in the education and development of its children?
“These intangibles have found their way into the fiber of the curriculum in
schools like Napa New
Tech and its network of schools growing schools. And tech
companies are looking for ways to provide value to the movement” (Barseghian,
T. 2011). Fundamentally, the thought of incorporating the private sector into
the field of education is an idea yours truly had thought about for years. The
point being is that others share the same vision.
Curriculum
Influence
The factors
that influence curriculum development are the aforementioned federal, state,
and the educational institution. Curriculum development is also mostly created
by the superintendent, principal, a school board of trustees and specialists with
expertise in pedagogy across the main subject areas. The first example is
ever-popular standardized tests; they drive the content in the curriculum. It
caters to what is going to be on these exams. Afterwards, other factors are
taken into consideration. From the personal experience, one has dealt with
principal and co- teachers meeting with experts in a professional development
setting teaching at a charter school; talking about implementing practice
across, math, reading and science subject areas. Another example directly deals
with the state standardized test. During certain times of the year, the bulk of
instructional time is used to discuss and practice taking the New York State
Standardized exams. Becoming a major part of homework as the students prepare.
The instruction at this time is driven towards making sure anything having to
do with the exam is taught and reviewed rigorously.
Curriculum Design and P.B.L.
The approach
that yours truly finds appealing is the Project/Problem Based learning or the
acronym P.B.L. From this standpoint one truly thinks it is best suited to
students for two reasons. The first being that it is not boring lectured
instruction, and it gives them an opportunity to apply what they have learned
fairly quickly. The other is that it requires students to use both critical and
creative thinking. From the article Project Based Learning; “the children are
encouraged to interact with their projects in a way that has meaning for them
by posing questions and engaging in intellectual curiosity” (Strevy, D. 2014 pg462). Incorporating this approach I think allows
instruction and learning to be more interactive. “When embraced and accurately
implemented, a project- or problem-based approach to teaching can change an
educator’s view of his/her role and what it means to create authentic learning
experiences for students” (Strevy, D. 2014 pg464). Utilized in this way in
conjunction with the curriculum made instruction better for the students and yours
truly.
The
perspective of curriculum development is one that just happened to become
interesting from a moment of serendipity. It started as one being curious as to
how to apply lessons to curriculum standard. Then grew into a science project
for an afterschool S.T.E.M. program. Afterwards, it just became an unstoppable
thought that just kept evolving, teaching, learning assessing. Realizing that
if yours truly kept going the possibilities would truly become endless. I am
passionate about a lot of things. Conversely, teaching is one and developing
the curriculum to a point where school becomes a great experience for all
involved.
Conclusion
To
summarize, curriculum has a dictionary definition but takes on many different
forms in the field of education. The six concepts mentioned is a great example
of the different modalities that curriculum contains. Conversely, the materials
used and the educators involved are also important components. One discussed
the article Mind Shift, and touched on some key links that were also on the
website. In addition discussed ones experience with curriculum development and
its main purpose. Conversely, talked about the role standardized testing plays
when it comes to curriculum. Furthermore, talked about what project-based learning
is and why it should play a major role in curriculum development.
References
Strevy, D. (2014). Project-based learning; is there
a problem-based difficulty?Childhood Education, 90(6),
462-465. http://search.proquest.com.proxy1.ncu.edu/docview/1644636017?accountid=28180
Picower, B. (2012). Using Their Words: Six Elements
of Social Justice Curriculum Design for the Elementary Classroom. International
Journal Of Multicultural Education, 14(1), 1-17.
Forbes, C. T. (2013). Curriculum-dependent and
curriculum-independent factors in preservice elementary teachers' adaptation of
science curriculum materials for inquiry-based science. Journal of
Science Teacher Education, 24(1), 179-197.
doi:http://dx.doi.org.proxy1.ncu.edu/10.1007/s10972-011-9245-0
https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2011/02/04/three-trends-that-will-shape-the-future-of-curriculum/
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