DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING A SYLLABUS FOR LEARNING

In Zambia like any other countries that do a common syllabus, the design of a
syllabus is a responsibility of the curriculum development centre (CDC) and the
imp0lementation of the syllabus is the responsibility given to the teacher. CDC is
expected to design the syllabus by any means deemed fit by CDC and the teacher
is expected to follow the syllabus as designed. In a number of cases the syllabus
designed has been driven by the needs of the citizens and/or the requirements of
the donor supporting the curriculum design.

INFORMATION ONLY? Teachers are taught that they have one major
responsibility in the classroom: pack as much information as they can into the
number of weeks allowed, so that students will come away well-educated in the
subject matter. Teaching foundational knowledge is not debatable; but how to
present it well is critical to getting that knowledge across to students in ways they
can absorb and understand.

So, when CDC sits down to construct or re-design a syllabus, they will want to
keep a number of principles in mind:

 What do they want students to understand and practice about being a

member of the academic discipline at this level?
 What texts, while strongly meeting subject coverage, will give pupils the
best opportunities to practice their skills and understanding?
 What is the best use of time for the teacher and the pupil in class, and what
is the best use of pupils’ time out of class, as they move through the units of
this subject?
 What assessments (exams, laboratory work, etc) will best build pupils’ skills
and knowledge and tell the teacher how well pupilss are building skills and
knowledge?

Once the teacher has learning goals in hand, he/she can sit down to carefully plan
the weekly and daily schedule in the subject.

1
Task: HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF THE SYLLABUS

 Divide the subject into sections, outlining knowledge and skill goals for each
term. Allow overlap (some repetition) for skills and review of subject-
matter as you move from term to term.

 Allow some time at the beginning of the term in your syllabus to emphasize
learning goals and to assess students’ current skills levels. Reiterate the
centrality of the learning goals as the term continues.

 Identify the points in the points when you will be moving pupils from one
major subject matter area to another, or when you will be introducing a
major learning goal. Then, set aside time on the syllabus between those
sections for creating assessments in which student skills and understanding
are measured.

 As the term proceeds, do not adjust the schedule on the syllabus, but adjust
your instruction for each day based on how well pupils seem to be grasping
the concepts and applying the skills designated for each section.

 Having established syllabus sections, proceed to plans for each class

meeting. Connecting subject texts and instruction materials to in-class
assignments, homework and reading questions, and modes of pupil
participation during class (group presentations, individual answers to reading
questions to begin discussions, etc.) helps all pupils to remain engaged and
active in the class.

 At the beginning of each class, take a moment to write on the board or

project on screen what was accomplished during the last class meeting, and
what will happen during this class meeting. Talk your pupils through the
review, and briefly state the class goals for the day.

 At the end of the class, very briefly summarize (or better, call on particular
students to summarize) what happened in class today, and how the learning
goals were met. Refer them to the syllabus for the next class meeting’s
assignments.

Designing a syllabus around the subject’s learning goals keeps each of the
teacher’s class meetings meaningful and focuses the pupils on thinking critically
about the subject matter—not just recording it.