Crafting the Curriculum

Dimensions and Principles of

Curriculum Design

Amelie Anne B. Santos, CPE 205 (Curriculum Development, Evaluation and Implementation)

FIVE MAJOR PRINCIPLES

FOR ORGANIZING
CONTENT IN UNITS
(POSNER AND
RUDNITSKY, 1994)

what
relationship exists
among people,
objects or events
of the world?

1. World-related sequence

a. Space

b. time

c. physical attributes

the
relationship
reflects how ideas
are related
together in a
logical manner
2. concept-related sequence

a. class relations

b. propositional relations

based on the
process of
generating,
discovering and
verifying
knowledge,
content and

4. learning-related sequence

based on the
psychology of
learning and how
people learn

a. empirical prerequisites

b. familiarity

c. difficulty
Dissect a cat

Dissect a cadaver

d. interest

CONTINUITY

Recurring appearances of
content
Reinforces learning
Ensures permanency of learning
and skills development
Spiral curriculum - Gerome
Bruner
Basic ideas are redeveloped in
increasing depth as the learners
advance

INTEGRATION

Everything is integrated and

interconnected. Life is a series of
emerging themes.
Different areas of study are
interconnected
Subject matter content lines are
erased
Allows students to engage in
activities related to real life
concerns

Example:
A discussion on how the
environment affects animals'
(humans included) appearance
could be a successful integration
of social studies and science.
Ask the students to create a
media project to present their
findings.

ARTICULATION

Vertical Articulation contents

are arranged from level to level;
content in one grade level is
connected to the next one
Example:
Algebra teacher may start
discussing some Geometry
concepts towards the end of the
school year.

Horizontal Articulation
association or connection exists
between elements that happen
at the same time
Example:
A physics class may require
concurrent enrollment in
calculus.

BALANCE

Equitable assignment of content,

time, experiences and other
elements
Making this possible requires
continuous fine-tuning and
review

Guidelines in
Curriculum Design

Curriculum design committee

should involve all the
stakeholders: teachers, parents,
administrators and yes even
the students.

The school's vision, mission,

goals and objectives should be
reviewed and used as bases for
curriculum design.

Consider the needs and interests

of the learners (in particular)
and society (in general).

Consider the pros and cons in

terms of costs, scheduling, class
size, facilities, and personnel
required.

The curriculum design should

consider cognitive, affective,
psychomotor skills, concepts and
outcomes.

Crafting the Curriculum

Approaches to Curriculum Design

Amelie Anne B. Santos, CPE 205 (Curriculum Development, Evaluation and Implementation)

The Six Features of a

Curriculum

1. who teaches?
Quality education would not exist
without quality teachers.
Good teachers are needed to sort out
the information from the data.
Excellent teachers are needed to sort
the wisdom from the knowledge.

1. who teaches?
Institutions must recruit teachers who
are excellent and have relevant
preparation.
Teachers must receive support for
their continuing development so they
can keep up with the changing
demands of society.

2. whom do the teachers

teach?
Learners are front and center in the
educative process.
They are the most important factors in
the learning environment.

2. whom do the teachers

teach?
The educator must understand and
accept this diversity, and address the
varied needs of the students.

3. what do the teachers

teach?
Knowledge, Skills, Values
To help the learners cope with rapid
changes, to understand and to succeed
in the new work in the workplace, we
must design a curriculum oriented to
tomorrow.

3. what do the teachers

teach?
In ten years, what the students are
learning now will be obsolete.
Half of what they need to know has
not yet been fully developed.

3. what do the teachers

teach?
Teacher must:
Prepare syllabus
Explain learning goals, instructional
procedures and content
Balance theory and practice
Ensure learners' sustained interest in
the subject matter

4. how do teachers teach?

Use methods and materials that align
with the objectives of the lesson
Create situations that encourage use
of higher order thinking skills
Use information from assessment
improve, learn, and adopt a culture of
excellence

5. how much of the teaching

was learned?
Objectives of the curriculum
(knowledge, skills and values that
should be developed) are the teacher's
guide posts
At the end of the teaching act,
determine if objectives were met
(learning outcomes)

5. how much of the teaching

was learned?
Learning outcomes indicate
performance of teacher AND student
Performance feature determines
whether the curriculum has succeeded
or not

6. with whom do we teach?

Community Partners
Teaching is collaborative.
Teachers must partner with parents,
NGOs and their stakeholders.

6. with whom do we teach?

Teachers must also rely on the
resources of their partners in the
community.

As the world changes, teachers have

the opportunity to change how they
view the community, and how the
community views them.

Approaches to Curriculum
Design

Child or Learner-Centered
Approach

Based on the philosophy that the

child is the center of the educational
process
The curriculum is constructed with
the needs, interests, purposes and
abilities of the learners in mind.
It is also built upon the learner's
knowledge, skills, learnings and
potentials.

Considerations
1. A new respect for the child is
fundamental.
2. A new freedom of action is
provided.
3. The whole activity is divided into
units of work.
4. The recognition of the need for
using and exploring many media for
self-discovery and self-direction is
embraced.

Example
School X is anchored on the theory of
multiple intelligences.
It has activity centers where the
students hone their skills and
capacities.
Activities of each learner are tailored
according to his/her abilities,
interests and needs.

Example
Each child is important and each
capacity is respected.
No comparison.
Learner's performance is compared
against his/her own set targets.
Teacher acts as the guide.
Learner sets the goal, but working
within the time framework and
DepEd's minimum requirements.

SUbject-Centered Approach

Anchored on the curriculum design

which prescribes different and
separate subjects into one broad
field

Considerations
1. The primary focus is the subject
matter.
2. The emphasis is on bits and pieces of
information which are detached from
life.
3. The continuing pursuit of learning
outside the school is not emphasized.
Learning should only take place inside
the classroom.
4. The subject matter serves as a means
of identifying problems in living.

Example
School Y requires all learners to excel
in all academic fields.
Everyone must master the subject
matter.
Each child must be excellent in all
fields of discipline.
Develops an attitude of competition.

Example
School conducts cram reviews.
School puts premium on intellectual
development, and disregards
emotional and psychomotor
development.
Success = mastery

problem-Centered Approach

Based on the assumption that in the

process of living, children will
experience problems.
Thus, problem-solving enables
learners to be competent at
achieving total development as
individuals.

Considerations
1. The learners are capable of directing and
guiding themselves in resolving problems,
thus they become independent learners.
2. The learners are prepared to assume their
civic responsibilities through direct
participation in different activities.
3. The curriculum leads the learners in the
recognition of concerns and problems and
in seeking solutions. The learners are
considered problem-solvers.

Example
School Z trains students to solve reallife problems that arise out of the
needs, interests and abilities of the
learners.
School activities revolve around
solutions to issues like poverty,
drugs, deterioration of positive
values, environmental concerns, etc.

Example
Case studies and practical work are
used as methods of teaching.
Development of business skills, social
skills, construction skills are also
given emphasis.
More and more training centers are
using this approach.

The three design

approaches are
quite distinct from
each other.

However, most
administrators
meld the three