CONSIDERATIONS IN

DESIGNING A
CURRICULUM
TSLB 3163 CURRICULUM STUDIES
Learning Objective(s)

 Discuss the factors involved in designing the curriculum:

1) Needs analysis
2) Target group
3) Aims and Objectives
4) Content
5) Learning theories, approaches and methods
6) Personnel
7) Material selection
8) Monitoring and support
9) Assessment and evaluation
10) Constraints
Components of curriculum design

• In designing a curriculum , we must consider how its other components interrelate.

• Ornstein & Hunkins - 4 components:
• Purpose i.e. aims, goals and objectives,
• Design of subject matter
• Implementation of the learning experiences
• Evaluation approaches
• Most curricular designs – context subject matter/ focus on learning activities
• Henry Giles curriculum design – The interrelationship among the four components:
• A : OBJECTIVES

• B : METHOD & ORGANISATION

• C : SUBJECT MATTER

• D : EVALUATION
Components of a curriculum design

• The design highlights these 4 questions :

• What should be done?
• What subject matter should be included?
• What instructional strategies, resources and activities should be employed?
• What methods and instruments should be used to appraise the results of the curriculum?
• Curriculum design involves philosophical and theoretical as well as practical issues .
• Our philosophy influences ;
• (I) Our interpretation and selection of objectives
• (II) Selection and organization of content
• (iii) Decisions about how to teach or deliver the curriculum content
• (iv) Judgement about how to evaluate the success of a developed curriculum.
The curriculum design phase

 the systematic process of :

 research,
 planning,
 identifying and,
 specifying the complete design of:
 the course objectives,
 lesson planning ,
 topic content,
 training methodology,
 learner exercises,
 courseware content,
 and assessment criteria
 SOURCES OF CURRICULUM DESIGN
Curriculum designers must clarify their philosophical, social and political views of society and the
individual learner. – views commonly known as curriculum’s sources.
SOURCES DESCRIPTION
SCIENCE This design relies on the scientific method when designing the curriculum. Only observable
and quantifiable elements are contained within this framework.
Problem solving is prioritized.
This design emphasizes learning how to learn.
SOCIETY School is an agent of society and therefore curriculum ideas should be drawn from analysis
of social situations. Effective curriculum will collaborate the diverse individuals and groups in
the community
MORAL DOCTRINE Curriculum design should be guided by religious texts. It takes into consideration the
relationship between knowledge and spirituality. Viewing curriculum in this framework may
allow a blend of truth, faith, knowledge, ethics, thought and action
KNOWLEDGE Is the primary source of curriculum. Teaching of such knowledge stimulates and develops
learners minds
LEARNER Curriculum should derive from our knowledge of students : how they learn, form attitudes,
generate interests and develop values
Design dimension considerations

Curriculum design addresses relationships among curriculum components . It should

achieve scope, sequence, continuity, integration, articulation and balance
DIMENSION DESCRIPTION
SCOPE The curriculum’s breadth and depth- the scope. The scope consists of
all the content, topics, learning experiences and organizing threads
comprising the educational plan. It includes all types of educational
experiences created to engage students in learning. When
considering scope, we must consider learning’s cognitive, affective
and psychomotor domains (moral and spiritual). A curriculum’s full
scope can extend over a year. A curriculum whose scope covers only
months or weeks usually is organized in units. Units are divided into
lesson plans which usually organize the information and activities into
periods of hours and minutes.
Design dimension considerations

DIMENSION DESCRIPTION
SEQUENCE When considering sequence, curriculum planners seek a
curriculum that fosters cumulative and continuous learning.
• Simple to complex : indicates that content is optimally
organized in a sequence proceeding from simple subordinate
components to complex components. Individuals are presented
with easy content (concrete) and then with more difficult
(abstract)
• Prerequisite : similar to part-to-whole-learning. It works on the
assumption that bits of information must be grasped before other
bits can be comprehended
• Whole –to- part- learning : receives support from cognitive
psychologist. The argument is that the curriculum should be
arranged so that the content is first presented in an overview
that provides students with a general idea.
• Chronological learning : refers to content whose sequence
reflects the times of real-world occurrences
Design dimension considerations

DIMENSION DESCRIPTION
CONTINUITY Continuity is vertical repetition of curriculum components. For
example ; if reading skills are an important objective then there
has to be recurring and continuing opportunity for these skills to be
practiced and developed

INTERGRATION Integration refers to linking all types of knowledge and experiences

contained within the curriculum plan. It links the curriculum’s
pieces so that learners comprehend knowledge as unified

ARTICULATION Articulation refers to the vertical and horizontal interrelatedness of

various aspects of the curriculum. Vertical articulation usually
refers to the sequencing of content from one grade level to the
other. Horizontal articulation refers to the association among
simultaneous elements, as when curriculum designers develop
relationships between eight-grade social studies and eight-grade
English.
Design dimension considerations

DIMENSION DESCRIPTION
BALANCE When designing a curriculum, educators strive to give
appropriate weight to each aspect of the design. In a
balanced curriculum, students can acquire and use the
knowledge in ways that advance their personal, social and
intellectual goals.
CONSIDERATIONS : REMEMBER!

• A curriculum is more than putting

together a set of academically required
subjects.

• Several things must be considered,

such as the learning needs of students;
the consensus of teachers and
administrators; the expectations of the
community; and current breakthroughs
in academic fields.
1. NEEDS ANALYSIS

• According to Iwai et al. (1999), the term needs analysis generally refers to the
activities that are involved in collecting information that will serve as the basis for
developing a curriculum that will meet the needs of a particular group of students.
• The curriculum designers must be aware of the learners’ strengths and weaknesses.
• It examines what learners already know and what they need to know (Nation &
Macalister, 2010).
• Many scholars indicate that knowing about learners’ needs such as “their
learning objectives, language attitudes, expectations from the course” are
necessary in order to design an efficient curriculum (Brindley, 1984; Nunan,
1988, Xenodohids, 2002, et Kayi, 2008).
1. NEEDS ANALYSIS

 also known as needs assessment - has a vital role in the process of designing and
carrying a curriculum.
 Need refers to the activities that are involved in collecting information that will serve as
the basis for developing a curriculum that will meet the needs of a particular group of
students. (Iwai et al.,1999)
 curriculum designers must be aware of the learners’ strengths and weaknesses.
 By gathering such information, therefore, the needs analysis can guarantee that the
course will contain the relevant and useful things for students to learn.
1. NEEDS ANALYSIS

Steps of a needs analysis plan include:

1. Write objectives: What is it that you want to learn from the needs analysis?

2. Select audience: Who is the target audience? Whose needs are you
measuring, and to whom will you give the required information?

3. Collect data: How will you collect data that will tell you what you need to
know? Will you collect data directly from the target audience or indirectly?

4. Select audience sample: How will you select a sample of respondents who
represent the target audience?
1. NEEDS ANALYSIS

Steps of a needs analysis plan include:

5. Choose an instrument: What instrument and techniques will you
use to collect data?
6. Analyse data: How will you do with information that you gain?
7. Follow up: What will you do with information that you gain?
8. Make decision: What kind of decision is to be made from the
information gained?
1. NEEDS ANALYSIS

Needs analysis is important to the development of a new programme:

• The outcome of a needs analysis should be a list of goals and objectives

which is important to determine the direction and target of the programme.
For example, before setting up a remedial programme in school, the teacher
should analyse the results from the summative evaluation of students’
performance.

• The findings of the needs analysis will serve as the basis for developing
tests, materials, teaching activities, evaluation strategies. For example,
students are weak in grammar, so the teacher needs to prepare more
materials and suitable tasks to address the problem identified.
1. NEEDS ANALYSIS

Needs analysis is important to the development of a new programme:

• Re-evaluating the precision accuracy of the original needs analysis is important

because the feedback helps to realign or improve existing practice in developing
curriculum. For example, before starting on a new programme, the teacher
should reflect on the shortcomings of past practices so that those
shortcomings can be overcome.
2. TARGET GROUP

Various
Learning
Individual Abilities Interests Potentials Multiple Styles or
Needs Intelligences
Learning
Modes
 2. TARGET GROUP

 Who is the target audience? For whom we design our curriculum?

 Consider the pupils’
 Individual needs
 Abilities
 Interests
 Potentials
 Multiple intelligence (visual, auditory or kinesthetic learner)
 Various learning styles or learning modes (hands on, discovery
learning, experiential; learning, distance learning )
2. TARGET GROUP

 Who is the target audience;

 What is the minimum/maximum current knowledge of the participant audience?
 What are their characteristics?
 What are their special needs?
 What knowledge and skill deficiencies currently exist?
 What are the tasks currently performed by the target audience and what new skill level
is required following the training?
2. TARGET GROUP

 What are the available delivery options and methods for transferring the new skills to
the workplace?
 What is the instructional setting; e.g. lectures, tutorials, on-the-job, self study, etc?
 How do these skills connect to the intended audience?
 What is the timeline for programme completion?
2. TARGET GROUP

 Curriculum should be appropriate for:

 - personal development (attitudes, behaviours)

 - social development (communication)
 - aesthetic development
 - interpersonal/intrapersonal development
 - physical development
 - Intellectual development
 - Multiple intelligence (linguistic, spatial, musical, logical-mathematical)
3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

• The aims of curriculum are the reasons for undertaking

the learning ‘journey’

• Aims and Learning Objectives –

• Aims are broad and all encompassing
• Objective/learning outcomes are specific, behavioural,
student- focussed
3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

 Lesson, programme, life…everything starts with an aim, objective or

purpose!!
 The aims of curriculum are the reasons for undertaking the learning
‘journey’
 E.g. Aim:
 - to prepare students for employment in a particular profession
 - to develop problem-solving skills and adapt to changes in
society
3. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

 The stated aims of a curriculum tell students what are the results of studying it is likely
to be. (what would they gain by learning from it).
 Aims are not the same as desired learning outcomes.
 a) aims should relate to the combined impact of the curriculum, the pedagogy and the
assessment of the various elements.
 b) desired learning outcomes need to be student oriented, and should point to the
knowledge, skills, competencies and attitudes of those students who successfully
complete the course.

 Aims and Learning Objectives

 Aim statements are broad and all encompassing,
 desired objective/learning outcomes are specific, behavioural, student- focussed
statements.
ITE(IPGM) EDUCATION

Vision Mission To prepare world

Leading the class teachers who
Teacher are competent and
Education passionate through
dynamic teacher
Excellence development program
(Ministry of Education, p.131, 2012)
TESL TEACHER EDUCATION CURRICULUM (PISMP)

To produce beginning teachers who

have knowledge, skills and values.

AIM
Develop the knowledge and skills of
teachers in line with the National
Philosophy of Education and the
National Education Policy towards the
realisation of Education Blueprint.
4. CONTENT

Relevant Appropriate Up-to-date

Valid Feasibility
4. CONTENT

 All curricula have content.

 Choices have to be made on what to be included in curriculum.
 The ‘content’ includes :
 the topics
 issues or subjects that will be covered as it proceeds
 Selection Principles

1) it should be relevant to the outcome of the curriculum (what do we seek

to
achieve, in line with aims/ objectives)
 an effective curriculum is PURPOSIVE
 Clearly focused on the planned outcomes
 The inclusion of irrelevant topics, however interesting in themselves, acts as a
distraction and may confuse students.

2) the content should be appropriate to the level of the target group

 an effective curriculum is progressive (simple complex, basics 
advanced), leading students onward and building their knowledge
 Materials which is too basic or too advanced for their current stage makes
students either bored or baffled, and erodes their motivation to learn
Selection Principles

3) it should be up-to-date.
 The students should be aware of what’s happening around them and
the world.
 The content should be constantly updated.

4) the content should be valid (Ornstein and Hunkins,1998)

 Validity refers to whether the information passed on to the students is
authentic and obtained from credible sources (reliable).
 Contents need to be checked to determine its accuracy.
5) feasibility (capable of being done/workable / executable)
Ornstein and Hunkins (1998)
 educators who select content have to take into consideration the
constraints of time, expertise of staff, funding, and other educational
resources that schools might face when implementing the curriculum.
 E.g. the time allocated for teaching may be insufficient to cover all the
topics, because school have to allocate time for extra-curricular activities
and other school events.
5. LEARNING THEORIES, APPROACHES AND METHODS

 The teaching and learning methods or learning experiences should be

derived from the content and learning objectives in a meaningful way
and the methods or the organisation of experiences should facilitate the
attainment of respective objectives in the cognitive, affective and
psychomotor domain.
5. LEARNING THEORIES, APPROACHES AND METHODS

 Most curriculum designs can be grouped into the following three basic
designs; namely, subject-centred designs, learner-centred designs and
problem-centred designs.

 Subject-Centred Designs include 5 types of designs: academic

subject designs, discipline designs, broad field designs, correlation
designs and process designs.
 Learner-Centred Designs include 3 types of designs identified as
child-centred, romantic/radical designs and humanistic designs.
 Problem-Centred Designs include 3 types of designs identified as
life-situations design, core design and social problems design.
5. LEARNING THEORIES, APPROACHES AND METHODS
• Academic subject designs
Subject-centered • Discipline designs
Designs • Broad field designs
• Correlation designs
• Process designs
• child-centered
Learner-centered • Romantic/Radical Designs
Designs • Humanistic designs

• life-situation designs
Problem-centered • Core designs
Designs • Social problem designs
6. PERSONNEL

• Curriculum planners
• Teachers
• Technical staff
• Administrative staff
 7. MATERIAL SELECTION

• Equipment including IT and AV equipment, models and simulators, laboratory and

clinical equipment, whiteboards, flip charts.
• Finances - the course will require adequate funding to sustain
its activities.
• Books, journals and multimedia resources – lists of core textbooks for each part of
the course and other resources including reference texts These should be
supported by other resources such as journals (printed and online) and multimedia
packages. The library will be the main support structure for these resources but
additional resources may also be delivered through an Intranet or via departmental
‘libraries’.
• Teaching rooms, office space, social and study space
• Requirements for supervision and delivery of practical teaching
(practicum) – availability of schools, mentors, supervisors.
 Personnel and Material selection

 Curriculum planners who are developing whole programmes need to think at

a strategic level about the resources required and how these can be used
effectively and efficiently.
 Teachers, technical and administrative staff – there should be sufficient staff
to deliver and support the delivery and assessment of the course.
 Staff should be appropriately skilled (in pedagogical as well as technical
areas) and qualified and should be aware not only of their own areas of
the course but also of the course as a whole in order that they can
contextualise the learners’ learning experiences.
 Equipment including IT and AV equipment, models and simulators, laboratory
and clinical equipment, whiteboards, flip charts.
 Personnel and Material selection

 Teaching rooms, office space, social and study space – there should be
adequate provision to accommodate learners at all stages of the course as
well as social and study space for students to spend time outside the
classroom.
 There should also be sufficient space for teachers to prepare teaching
and meet with students.
 Requirements for supervision and delivery of practical teaching (practicum) –
availability of schools, mentors, supervisors - it is important to ensure that
such staff are supported and trained to deliver the course.
 Other requirements which need to be considered include travel and
accommodation arrangements for learners and teachers.
 8. MONITORING AND SUPPORT

• Student recruitment and selection processes.

• Teaching staff
• Training needs for teachers
• The teaching and learning process
• Assessment
• Regulations and procedures
• Availability of recommended books and journals and
other teaching materials
• Access to the library and other resources
• Performance standards
Monitoring and Support

What should be monitored?

 Student recruitment and selection processes:
 Do the candidates meet the selection criteria?
 Do the criteria provide students who are appropriate for the course?
 Teaching staff
 Are the teachers available, motivated and capable of teaching the new course?
 Have any training needs for teachers been identified and addressed?
 The teaching and learning process:
 How is the written curriculum translated into practice?
 Are the teaching and learning methods appropriate?
 Is the balance between different types of learning mode appropriate in achieving
the stated outcomes?
Monitoring and Support

 Assessment
 Are the assessments appropriate in terms of level, reliability and validity and do they
discriminate between assessing skills, knowledge and attitudes?
 Are the regulations and procedures appropriate and are they being followed?
 Learning resources
 Are the recommended books and journals and other teaching materials available?
 Is access to the library and other resources adequate?
 Performance standards
 Are the minimum performance standards being reflected and achieved?
 9. ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION

• In designing the assessment methods that measure students’ performance, the

starting point should always be the stated learning outcomes.

• Assessments must check that students have achieved the learning outcomes in
various contexts and thus that the content has been covered.

• Evaluation is a system of feedback, providing information to planners,

teachers/trainers, students, parents and decision-makers.

• Evaluation is a process involving ongoing activities aimed at gathering timely

information about the quality of a programme.
Assessment and Evaluation

 Teaching and learning methods must support the assessment strategy.

 for example if students or trainees are expected to perform well in MCQs, then a
Problem-Based Learning type course with a facilitative teaching approach will not
be appropriate.
Assessment and Evaluation

 Teachers should check a number of aspects relating to assessment:

 Are the assessment methods which relate to the assessment of knowledge, skills
and attitudes appropriate? Do the teaching and learning methods support the
assessment strategy?
 Are the assessment methods reliable and valid?
 Are the assessment methods designed so that learners can achieve the minimum
performance standards set in the curriculum and is there capacity for learners to
demonstrate higher standards of performance (i.e. do the assessments enable
discrimination between candidates)?
 Are the students/trainees being assessed sufficiently or are they being over-
assessed?
 Are the regulations governing assessment procedures and awards clear and easy
to follow and are they being applied appropriately and consistently?
Assessment and Evaluation

 Why do we need to evaluate our courses?

 To identify successes and failures of the curriculum with a view to correcting
deficiencies.
 To measure if stated objectives have been achieved.
 To assess if the curriculum is meeting the needs of learners, community etc.
 To measure the cost effectiveness of the curriculum.
Assessment and Evaluation

 Some questions to ask when evaluating a course or programme:

 Whether the learning objectives are realistic and relevant.
 Whether the different parts of the course relate to each other meaningfully in terms
of sequence and organisation.
 Whether the subject matter and content is relevant, accurate and up to date.
 Whether the learners’ entry requirements are well defined and at the right level.
 Whether the materials and delivery are pitched at the right level for the learners at
different points in the course.
 Whether the balance of teaching and learning methods is appropriate and whether
there is enough time to ensure learning.
 Whether teachers have the knowledge and skills required to deliver the curriculum.
 Whether the learning resources that have been identified are adequate, appropriate
and available.
10. CONSTRAINTS

 What are the program constraints?

 Technological: ICT, lab, LCDs etc.
 Timing: Implementation, Readiness
 Duration: Length – lectures,
 Co-curriculum, practicum, internship, etc

 Who is going to provide the cost of the training? Allowances, other payments and
others
CONCLUSION

 Curriculum design:
 a complex activity both conceptually and its implementation.

 Designing a curriculum requires a vision of education’s meaning and purpose.

 Curriculum design must be carefully considered so that the curriculum imparts essential
knowledge, skills and attitudes.
 CONCLUSION

• Designing a curriculum involves the interaction of several participants, reaching beyond

the academic wall to impact the entire community.

• Without an effective curriculum, students would not be able to understand or meet the
challenges of society.

• A curriculum prepares an individual with the knowledge to be successful, confident and

responsible citizen.
 Tutorial Tasks

Task 1: Describe how needs analysis of target group influences the aims and objectives set
for the current curriculum. Give one example of how content is selected based on the aims
and objectives.
Task 2: Conduct a background research on the current Malaysian curriculum and English
Language syllabus. Based on your research, discuss the influencing factors that shaped the
curriculum.

• Read, “Models of curriculum designing and development”

• Identify the four curriculum design dimensions