Overview

This module seeks to guide curriculum professionals through the several factors to be taken into
consideration when revising curriculum change policies. It contains three activities:
1. Change to improve quality. To discuss the multiple meanings of quality in education.
2. International trends in curriculum change. To consider the main directions in which reform
is taking place.
3. Curriculum as process and product. To broaden the conception of curriculum including
several material and practical components.
Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers and
other resources referred to in the activities.

Key-words
Curriculum Reform, Revision; Renewal; Curriculum Process; Curriculum Design and Development;
Rationales for Change; Access; Quality; Relevance; Equity; Rights; Inclusion; International and
Regional Trends; Teaching and Learning; Educational Curriculum Standards, Objectives, Aims,
Competences.
This module is about policy dialogue the process of formulating curriculum-related public policies by
engaging and consulting with stakeholders. It is these policies which set the parameters for the work
of curriculum developers. The module offers opportunities for curriculum professionals to develop
their understanding of this process by exploring:

National issues that commonly prompt and shape changes in the curriculum and the
education system;

The various participants or stakeholders involved in education reform and curriculum change
and their respective roles and interests in policy formulation;

Potential problems and areas of conflict that may arise from formulation and implementation
of changes in the curriculum;

Ways of managing / dealing with conflict and resistance and mobilizing popular support for
ongoing or proposed change in the curriculum;

Examples of sensitive or challenging curriculum policy issues in particular socio-political and

cultural contexts.

The six activities in this module seek to guide curriculum professionals through the stages of
curriculum policy formulation:
1. Rationales for promoting a change. Why does curriculum change occur.
2. Actors and context for change. Conducting contextual scans of the educational system
and wider environment.
3. Design of consultation processes. How to identify legitimate stakeholders in the curriculum
and how to engage them in policy dialogue and consultations.
4. Advocacy before educational authorities. The way curriculum specialists can have
productive conversations with government decision-makers to achieve support and leadership
in the process of curriculum change.

5. Hints for planning a consultation process. With a view to generating as much consensus
as possible among stakeholders and popular support for the substance and direction of the
curriculum policies.
6. Sensitive issues. How countries in various parts of the world have dealt with some politically
and or culturally sensitive curriculum policy issues to preserve and promote national goals
and interests.
Following these six activities there is a Resources section which contains the discussion papers and
other resources referred to in the activities, plus a list of additional readings.

Curriculum design
This module provides opportunities to explore current developments in curriculum design and to
understand the central concepts involved in:

Defining national curriculum standards.

Defining curriculum outcomes, standards, competencies, objectives, content.

Current approaches to curriculum integration, diversification and differentiation with particular

reference to the following examples:

Citizenship and/or values education and social transformation;

Science and Technology Education (STE);

School health and HIV and Aids prevention;

Coping with emergency situations;

Common or connected student learning outcomes.

The principle and practice of curriculum design for Education for Sustainable Development
(ESD).

The curriculum professionals are guided into an analysis of the building blocks of curriculum at the
macro level, through three activities:
1. The structure of a curriculum framework. Includes the typical components of curriculum
frameworks to be used as a structural analysis tool.
2. Formulation of what students should know and be able to do. Helps the participant to
revise and choose several alternatives to define the expected achievements of students.
3. Approaches to curriculum integration. Reviews existing strategies for curriculum
integration with different focus and depth.
Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers and
other resources referred to in the activities, as well as a list of additional readings.

Conceptual framework
Many education systems across the world are moving away from centralized models of curriculum
decision-making towards more democratic, decentralized models. As a result of this trend, decisionmakers are considering ways of organizing the curriculum in ways other than the traditional subject
approach in which all students learn the same content at the same time. Increasingly curriculum is
being structured in ways which:

are appropriate to the needs and circumstances of regions and

address more effectively the needs of students.

One example is the trend towards adopting curriculum frameworks as overarching curriculum
documents. The purpose of a curriculum framework is to establish the parameters within which
curriculum should be developed. It often expresses the states aims of education, and can define
minimum standards for content and assessment, as well as teacher qualifications, educational
resources and learning materials, management, and evaluation. Such a framework is often approved
by a competent authority as a first step in the curriculum development process. The framework then
provides guidelines for the developers of more specific learning area syllabuses.
Another example of changing curriculum structures is the remodeling of learning experiences of many
separate subjects into a more integrated content. This is because the compartmentalization of
knowledge into discrete subjects is antithetical to how students experience life and the real world.
Learning that is integrated enables students to apply knowledge and skills more easily to their daily
lives. On a higher level, integrated content can be more readily internalized and reflected in
behaviour. Learning then becomes integrated into the self and becomes a part of ones being.
This module describes trends in curriculum development and illustrates integrated learning through
the examples of citizenship and social transformation and science and technology, which can serve
as models for other types of integration.

System mgmt. and governence

This module offers opportunities for curriculum professionals to develop their understanding of
policies and processes of system management and governance by exploring:

Possible models for managing curriculum development and implementation with particular
attention to processes of curriculum localization;

Some modalities of regulation and control in education systems:

o

keeping balance between centralization and decentralization,

school-based management of the curriculum,

localization of curriculum in national and local specific contexts in view of ensuring

greater responsiveness to local needs and realities,

different concepts of decentralization: devolution, de-concentration, decentralization

of decision-making;

Opportunities and challenges of the broader involvement of stakeholders (local government,

civil society, parents and local community) in curriculum development and implementation.

Two activities have been selected:

1. A balance of national and local needs and interests. Helps in reflecting the set of needs
and interests of different scale that have to be balanced to achieve an acceptable
implementation of the curriculum.
2. Curriculum localization. Challenges and opportunities. Leads to reflection about the
constraints that limit and also enable localization processes.

Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers
and other resources referred to in the activities, as well as complementary reading material.

Conceptual framework
Education systems are multi-faceted and consist of a number of inter-connected elements. Curriculum
is a fundamental component of any education system, but its development and implementation relies
on other components of the broader system such as teacher training, the resources provided and
the ways teachers are supervised. The structures of education management and governance and the
quality of related systems can therefore influence the quality of the curriculum that is developed and
the effectiveness of its implementation.
Curriculum development and implementation themselves are processes which require good
management planning, monitoring and evaluation. At the subject or learning area level, writing
syllabuses is normally the domain of subject experts who can be drawn from universities, schools or
other organizations relevant to the subject area itself. Their work can be informed by a range of other
experts, such as developmental psychologists, parents, practicing teachers and, in some cases,
representatives of employer groups or industry.
The syllabus writing process, however, also needs to be coordinated and managed so that the
various subject syllabuses remain consistent in approach and philosophy. Syllabuses should reflect
the same beliefs about how students learn and about teaching methodologies. They should be similar
in format and tone and use terms consistently so that teachers of more than one subject can easily
access the information and guidance which the syllabuses offer.
Therefore, what are the best ways to manage these complex processes?
System Management
System Management may be defined as the process of planning, implementing, monitoring and
evaluating the various parts of a system. In education, these parts can include strategic and
operational planning, human and financial resources, teacher education and accreditation, curriculum
and student assessment.
Traditionally curriculum has been centrally determined and the expectation of central authorities is
that students across the system will be taught the same thing the same way and often at the same
time. While this approach might give the perception of control over the quality of teaching, it does not
guarantee that the needs of individual students and of local communities are met.
Governance
The concept of governance refers to the ethics of an organization and the professional conduct of its
employees. Good governance is important in education systems because it ensures that systems
focus on delivering what is best for students and society.
There has therefore been a trend in curriculum development to more genuinely acknowledge the
social and economic needs of local communities and individual groups within society by
decentralizing curriculum, in effect by allowing local authorities and schools to develop their own
curriculum. This approach also has its risks, particularly in the degree to which:

the quality of curriculum can be guaranteed,

the risk of factionalism can be reduced, and

national goals and priorities will be pursued in a consistent way.

If these risks are managed well, decentralization of curriculum development can offer many benefits.
For example, it can increase the democratization of education by granting local stakeholders greater
autonomy and participation in curriculum design, implementation and evaluation consistent with the
achievement of national goals and standards.
Decentralization
Decentralization in education is the transfer of authority to regional, provincial and local levels. The
interdependencies of related educational organizations cannot be simplified into a hierarchical
structure or "solved" via a "top-down" approach.
The diverse modalities of decentralization may include:

the devolution of power and authority from a higher to a lower level,

wider sharing of educational management and governance functions,

broader participation in decision making processes, or

increased local autonomy in limited policy or management issues.

In some cases this trend has led to significant change in the bureaucratic structure of ministries of
education. For example, decentralization may mean the devolution of administration and
implementation functions from central to regional, provincial or local levels (administrative deconcentration).
The remainder of this section focuses on decentralization as a contemporary trend in system
management and governance, particularly in relation to curriculum processes. Decentralization has
the potential to foster the development of localized curricula which directly address a diversity of local
(sub-national) cultural and socio-economic realities. The final section explores opportunities, issues
and challenges presented by decentralization and localization of curricula through individual case
studies.

Development of learning material

This module offers opportunities for curriculum professionals to develop their understanding of
policies and processes related to the development of textbooks and other teaching / learning
materials by exploring:

Some features of a range of textbook development schemes;

Possible roles of the Ministry of Education in providing easily accessible and quality
textbooks;

Approaches to ensuring quality textbook development;

The evaluation of textbooks using agreed criteria;

Other materials (both print and non-print) that can support the teaching and learning process;
The development of community-based supplementary teaching and learning material.

The module contains five activities:

1. Policies for provision management. General options for designing a policy for textbook
development.
2. Textbook evaluation and approval. Use of criteria for revising textbooks.
3. Supplementary teaching and learning materials. Enables discussion on the wider scope of
teaching materials that have to be considered for production and/or acquisition.
4. Decisions about implementing e-learning. Highlights some particular points to be
considered when planning the implementation of e-learning strategies.
5. The teacher as curriculum materials developer. Discuss teacher efforts to produce
curriculum materials sensitive to the local conditions.
Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers and
other resources referred to in the activities, as well as additional reading material.

Conceptual framework
Equal access to quality basic education is a key educational policy target of all countries. In this
framework, quality teaching and learning materials are expected to be available for all students.
The textbook is one type of resource and a vital one in many contexts. In developing countries,
textbooks are a de facto syllabus and, apart from the teacher, the most important support for the
acquisition of knowledge and skills. They may also be the only source of information about the
curriculum for the teacher; the only books available in the average childs household, and the main
4
source of reading for the child .
This module explores trends in and processes of textbook development. In so doing the module
examines the obstacles that publishers, ministries of education, and other actors in this field may
encounter in their attempts to provide easily accessible and high quality textbooks. Policy strategies
and best practices are included.
Ideally teachers should have teaching-learning resources available in addition to textbooks. Access to
the internet opens up enormous opportunities to provide materials to supplement textbooks and
enrich the learning environment. However, the ready availability of these new materials also presents
challenges to traditional approaches to the evaluation and approval of teaching-learning resources
While curriculum can be conceptualized in a number of ways, the notions of intended and
implemented curriculum are useful for curriculum developers.
The intended (or official) school curriculum is expressed in policy documents, curriculum frameworks
or guidelines, frameworks of standards and assessment, syllabi, textbooks and other instructional
materials and clearly defines the structure, content and methods of intended learning experiences.
This intended curriculum is then put into practice through real teachers interacting with real students
in real schools. It is the real or implemented curriculum that shapes students learning experiences
and determined their learning outcomes.

Capacity building for curriculum framework

This module offers opportunities for curriculum professionals to develop their understanding of central
issues related to capacity building for curriculum implementation by exploring:

Approaches to encouraging discourse about curriculum philosophy, concepts, change and the
implications for education systems;

Strategies for promoting new approaches to teaching and learning, information and
communications technology;

Issues in school based training and teacher education;

Whole school issues.

This module is organized around three activities:

1. Approaches to capacity building. Discusses needs for training in a framework of
continuous capacity building.
2. Capacity building of curriculum professionals as a requisite for reform. Analyzes the
needs for technical training of curriculum specialists.
3. Teacher involvement in capacity building. Helps in revising the different attitudes that can
enable or block the capacity building processes.
Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers and
additional resources referred to in the activities.

Conceptual framework
Curriculum change is a dynamic and challenging process, and its success depends on all
stakeholders having the capacity to develop or adopt a shared vision, positive attitudes and
commitment. Moreover, they need to develop the necessary professional competencies in the various
aspects of curriculum change.
Capacity building is defined here as the process of assisting an individual or group to gain insights,
knowledge and experiences needed to solve problems and implement change.
As well as developing the knowledge, skills and attitudes of individuals and groups engaged in
curriculum reform, it is important to empower them in such areas as policy formulation, curriculum
design, textbook development and evaluation, piloting and innovation, implementation and curriculum
monitoring and evaluation.
Capacity building for curriculum implementation has three important dimensions:

Improving competence and positive attitudes;

Developing innovative pedagogical approaches and models;

Attracting community participation and resources.

A range of capacities is required to facilitate curriculum implementation:

Understanding core concepts (such as: frameworks; local curricula; flexibility; learner-centred
approaches).

Understanding the curriculum implementation cycle.

Monitoring and supervising (for district personnel, teachers, inspectors, principals, etc.), which
includes:
o

Assessment of teaching and learning;

o
o

Supervision;
Monitoring and evaluation of curriculum implementation.

Capacity building is not only about developing the competence of those responsible for curriculum
implementation but involves changing the attitudes and behaviours of those who might oppose
change.
Those engaged in curriculum implementation must be exposed to a variety of capacity building
activities. Training workshops, follow-up activities and school-based capacity building initiatives
should al be part of customized professional development programs.
The focus should be on building on strengths rather than highlighting what people lack or need. This
is a departure from the deficit model of training which focuses on weaknesses rather than what
people are capable of doing. Individuals must be given the opportunity to learn from one another and,
in the process, increase each others capacity. For teachers, the establishment of a teachers support
network in every school to provide collegial assistance on a continuing basis will help reduce teacher
isolation and facilitate the process of adoption of or adaptation to curriculum change. Furthermore, a
network of colleagues learning from and supporting each other is not only essential in building a
community of practice, but it will also help sustain the change process.

Process of curriculum implementation

This module offers opportunities for curriculum professionals to develop their understanding of
approaches to piloting by exploring:

Possible rationales and objectives for piloting;

Models for piloting;

Key issues in pilot planning and design;

Issues in monitoring and evaluating pilots;

Lessons and insights from successful pilots;

Piloting practices in local contexts in light of the experience of other countries;

The challenges involved making the transition from pilot initiative to mainstream provision.

The reflection proposed to the reader is organized in three activities:

1. Models for piloting. Discusses several possible models that could be selected to design and
conduct a pilot.
2. Pilot design. Helps in analyzing variables to be considered during the piloting.
3. From pilot to policy. Mainstreaming innovation. Helps participants to identify possible
potholes in the process to transfer pilot experiences to the whole educative system.

Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers and
other resources referred to in the activities, as well as additional reading material.

Conceptual framework
A pilot occurs when an authority trials curriculum in a controlled, limited way in order to:

evaluate the likelihood of its success when fully implemented, and

identify its strengths and weaknesses.

If curriculum changes are introduced without the benefit of a pilot, the legitimacy of the change can be
challenged, resistance can increase and final implementation can be jeopardized. An effective pilot
can provide an operating curriculum model and an implementation model which will be attractive to
policy makers.
A pilot can be an important tool in curriculum development and can provide significant benefits at a
number of levels. As part of a change strategy, a curriculum pilot can:

Determine the feasibility of a proposed curriculum change;

Provide empirical evidence of curriculum viability;

Determine curriculum relevance to a variety of selected contexts;

Develop new curricula in realistic settings;

Encourage experimentation and creativity;

Promote or influence processes of policy change;

Identify possible impediments to change;

Build consensus around proposed policy change; and

Develop models or capacity for implementation.

Pilots are normally commissioned by government curriculum authorities, but may be conducted by
universities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or schools.
Effective piloting depends on the choice of an appropriate model and on strategic planning. The
selection of pilot groups and evaluation methods are often key issues but the development of strong
partnerships with stakeholders and the effective dissemination of findings are also likely to be
important.
Participants in pilots also experience significant personal and professional development and can take
ownership of the proposed change. Lessons derived from the pilot can provide significant insights as
they help shape thinking, challenge assumptions, and contribute to the improvement of practice and
to the growth of research and theory building. However, pilots are often small scale projects, and the
challenges of moving from innovative pilot to mainstream implementation can only be met through
collaborative planning and long-term commitment from policy makers.

Curriculum evalution and student assessment

This module offers opportunities for curriculum professionals to develop their understanding of
curriculum evaluation and student assessment by exploring:

International and regional trends and rationales for curriculum evaluation and student learning
assessment;

Types and methods of curriculum evaluation and student assessment;

Approaches to the restructuring of evaluation and assessment systems.

This module is organized in three activities:

1. Curriculum evaluation. The participant is guided through an analytical schema to plan the
evaluation of curricula.
2. Student assessment. Participants examine considerations about student assessment that
are regularly included in curriculum materials.
3. Assessment of learning outcomes in specific content areas. Strategies and special
modalities for the assessment of learning outcomes are analyzed for content areas recently
included in curricula.
Following these activities is a Resources section which contains a list of discussion papers and
other resources referred to in the activities, and a series of additional reading materials.

Conceptual framework
Curriculum evaluation is a necessary and important aspect of any national education system. It
provides the basis for curriculum policy decisions, for feedback on continuous curriculum adjustments
and processes of curriculum implementation.
The fundamental concerns of curriculum evaluation relate to:

Effectiveness and efficiency of translating government education policy into educational

practice;

Status of curriculum contents and practices in the contexts of global, national and local

concerns;
The achievement of the goals and aims of educational programmes.

Student assessment is an important aspect of curriculum evaluation which helps to facilitate the
understanding of the impact and outcome of education programmes. A fundamental measure of the
success of any curriculum is the quality of student learning. Knowing the extent to which students
have achieved the outcomes specified in the curriculum is fundamental to both improving teaching
and evaluating the curriculum.

Curriculum evaluation
The term evaluation generally applies to the process of making a value judgment. In education, the
term evaluation is used in reference to operations associated with curricula, programs, interventions,
methods of teaching and organizational factors. Curriculum evaluation aims to examine the impact of
implemented curriculum on student (learning) achievement so that the official curriculum can be
revised if necessary and to review teaching and learning processes in the classroom. Curriculum
evaluation establishes:

Specific strengths and weaknesses of a curriculum and its implementation;

Critical information for strategic changes and policy decisions;

Inputs needed for improved learning and teaching;

Indicators for monitoring.

Curriculum evaluation may be an internal activity and process conducted by the various units within
the education system for their own respective purposes. These units may include national Ministries
of Education, regional education authorities, institutional supervision and reporting systems,
departments of education, schools and communities.
Curriculum evaluation may also be external or commissioned review processes. These may be
undertaken regularly by special committees or task forces on the curriculum, or they may be
research-based studies on the state and effectiveness of various aspects of the curriculum and its
implementation. These processes might examine, for example, the effectiveness of curriculum
content, existing pedagogies and instructional approaches, teacher training and textbooks and
instructional materials.

Student assessment
The ultimate goal of curriculum evaluation is to ensure that the curriculum is effective in promoting
improved quality of student learning. Student assessment therefore connotes assessment of student
learning. Assessment of student learning has always been a powerful influence on how and what
teachers teach and is thus an important source of feedback on the appropriateness implementation of
curriculum content.
Fulfilling the diverse objectives of diagnosis, certification and accountability requires different kinds of
assessment instruments and strategies selected to achieve specific purposes. Assessment of student
learning could be summative or formative, and there are various types of tests to address different
needs such as standardized tests, performance-based tests, ability tests, aptitude tests and
intelligence tests.