MEANING O F CURRICULUM

CURRICULUM
The term curriculum refers to the lessons and academic content taught in a school or in a
specific course or program. In dictionaries, curriculum is often defined as the courses offered
by a school, but it is rarely used in such a general sense in schools. Depending on how
broadly educators define or employ the term, curriculum typically refers to the knowledge
and
skills
students
are
expected
to
learn,
which
includes
the learning
standards or learning objectives they are expected to meet; the units and lessons that
teachers teach; the assignments and projects given to students; the books, materials, videos,
presentations, and readings used in a course; and the tests, assessments, and other
methods used to evaluate student learning. An individual teachers curriculum, for example,
would be the specific learning standards, lessons, assignments, and materials used to
organize and teach a particular course.
When the terms curriculum or curricula are used in educational contexts without qualification,
specific examples, or additional explanation, it may be difficult to determine precisely what
the terms are referring tomainly because they could be applied to either all or only some of
the component parts of a schools academic program or courses.
http://edglossary.org/curriculum/
The Glossary of Education Reform by Great Schools Partnership is licensed under a Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

WHY IS CURRICULUM IMPORTANT

This article explains the definition of curriculum development, and its importance in school, country,
and society, in general.
Before I discuss the definition of curriculum development, let me describe to you first the importance
of curriculum. A curriculum is considered the heart of any learning institution which means that
schools or universities cannot exist without a curriculum. With its importance in formal education,
curriculum has become a dynamic process due to the changes that occur in our society. Therefore, in
its broadest sense, curriculum refers to the total learning experiences of individuals not only in
school, but in society as well
HOW CAN ONE ENRICH THE CURRICULUM IN EVERY SCHOOL
Childrens education. We can enrich the curriculum by going beyond the basics. Our current time is
different from the years that passed so we must keep that as a reference in trying to develop a better
and more efficient curriculum for the students. Because a curriculum that is timely and relevant will
make the students more active in participating and in understanding. The curriculum for every school
must also be competitive so that the students will strive to be the best.
I think research is important. Every school must create a group that studies and analyzes different
curriculums and find the best or more applicable to their type of school. In that way, they can
maximize their strengths and improve the quality of education that they are giving to every student.
Proper and complete seminars of their staff are also important. They must be familiar with the
curriculum they are trying to implement.
It depends on who you talk to.
Conservatives would like to see nothing but the 3 Rs taught. Liberals would like to see every discipline
under the sun. Students would like to be entertained 24/7.
That depends. If you're a teacher, and you don't know them, then you're totally incompetent. If you're
a student, or the parent of a student, or a voter/taxpayer whose elected representatives run public
schools, you probably also want to know about them to know how your school works, what your
educational options are, or whether your elected representatives are running the schools competently.

WHY MUST THE TEACHER BE AWARE AND SENSITIVE TO THE HIDDEN CURRICULUM?
Curriculum is like a goal set to meet. it helps the teacher know what to aim to get her class to learn,
the pace to reach individual goals toward the full curriculum is set on a time line by the teacher and
that time line can be adjusted as necessary to fit the needs of the students. thus managing class time
to reach the over all curriculum (for instance the state`s requirements).

Be aware and sensitive to the hidden curriculum.

TOOLS USED BY THE SCHOOL TO ASSESS THEIR CURRICULUM
1. Paper and Pencil Strategy
- it is a traditional way of teacher in assessing student performance.
examples:
Essay- refers to a writting samples of a students in which, is used to assessed student
mastery of the concept,organizing ideas and developing the critical thinking .
Select Response- is used to identify one correct answer ( multiple choice, identification and matching type)
2. Performanced-Based Strategy
- requires students to demonstrate,create and produce.
3. Reflective Strategy
- it is a self assessment where in students reflect with there own.
4. Behavioral Strategy
- refers to the behavior of the students which the teacher usued to assessed while working/task inside the
classroom.
5.Oral Strategy
- often used by the teacher inside the classroom, a question and answer portion where in students develop their
verbal skill on how he/she response to the question given by the teacher.
6. Combination Strategy
-used by the teacher to enhanced students creativeness of answering questions.
example:
Portfolio- refers to the student work collection.
7. Personal Communication Strategy
examples:
Conference
- is aformal and informal meeting between and among the teachers, students and parents.
Interview
- a form of conversation among/between the teachers,parents and students.
Graphic organizers - tools to visually represent thoughts, ideas, knowledge and concepts. They help to organise thoughts and to
promote understanding. This section contains sample graphic organisers and some examples of how they were successfully
used by schools for various purposes.
Review and reflection tools - enable students to review and reflect on their knowledge, progress, and what they have learnt and
achieved during a unit, topic or project. Some tools are specifically designed for early years students.
Feedback tools - enable students to provide feedback on their work and performance. It also includes strategies for teachers to
increase the wait time when asking questions in class.
Rubrics - printed sets of criteria for assessing knowledge, performance or product and for giving feedback. The following tools
are examples of rubrics and how they are used in schools.

How_do_you_perceive_your_role_as_a_curricularistThe administrators will usually, call for a quick meeting to disseminate the new curriculum and hand
out the hard copies. Then after, from time to time, they usually gauge the implementation through
interviews with teachers and students plus discussions but challenges are there as to the initial
hiccups of implementation as some teachers (old school of thought) are very rigid with the older
curriculum and prefer to adhere to it. These group of teachers who are not able to accept change can
pose as an obstacle to implement documented policies. Hence, the administrators find this a
challenge in the long run. source: What is the role of the school head as a curricularist?
According to me it`s a great job to be a curriculist. Every human being in some or the other way is a
curriculist. As the work of him is to guide, plan in a decent manner,also to implente it in a best way. A
teacher, A scientist, A sculpture, An actor and many other professionals do the same.