Curriculum Notes
Unit 5: School Curriculum: Development and Influences - Notes
Curriculum
Curriculum refers to what is taught in school, and can be defined as a set of subjects, subject content, a program of studies, a set of materials, a sequence of courses, or all of the experiences in the school. The curriculum includes the explicit curriculum (the formal policies, manuals, materials, and textbooks of a district), the implicit curriculum or hidden curriculum (the often unspoken or even unconscious assumptions, values, expectations, routines, and rituals that shape how the explicit curriculum is conveyed), the null curriculum (the curriculum that is not taught), and the extracurriculum (the variety of non-course activities such as sports and music programs that students experience as part of school life). Many districts attempt to develop an integrated curriculum that combines concepts and skills from different subject areas so they are mutually reinforcing.
Many forces influence the curriculum, including the culture of the community and school, national interests, social issues and public opinion, professional groups and individuals, state and local priorities, mass media, and educational publishing. Beyond general agreement on the need for students to know how to read, write, and compute, considerable disagreement exists about what the curriculum should be. As society becomes increasingly heterogeneous, curriculum decisions become increasingly controversial.
When teachers plan for instruction, they must consider the destination—the aims and goals of the curriculum—as well as the best way to reach the destination. When teachers plan for instruction, they consider the curriculum, state and local goals and objectives for student learning, instructional strategies for meeting those goals and means of assessing student understanding. Teachers also think about classroom management, ways to motivate students, and the characteristics and needs of individual students.
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Curriculum
Curriculum refers to what is taught in school, and can be defined as a set of subjects, subject content, a program of studies, a set of materials, a sequence of courses, or all of the experiences in the school. The curriculum includes the explicit curriculum (the formal policies, manuals, materials, and textbooks of a district), the implicit curriculum or hidden curriculum (the often unspoken or even unconscious assumptions, values, expectations, routines, and rituals that shape how the explicit curriculum is conveyed), the null curriculum (the curriculum that is not taught), and the extracurriculum (the variety of non-course activities such as sports and music programs that students experience as part of school life). Many districts attempt to develop an integrated curriculum that combines concepts and skills from different subject areas so they are mutually reinforcing.
Many forces influence the curriculum, including the culture of the community and school, national interests, social issues and public opinion, professional groups and individuals, state and local priorities, mass media, and educational publishing. Beyond general agreement on the need for students to know how to read, write, and compute, considerable disagreement exists about what the curriculum should be. As society becomes increasingly heterogeneous, curriculum decisions become increasingly controversial.
When teachers plan for instruction, they must consider the destination—the aims and goals of the curriculum—as well as the best way to reach the destination. When teachers plan for instruction, they consider the curriculum, state and local goals and objectives for student learning, instructional strategies for meeting those goals and means of assessing student understanding. Teachers also think about classroom management, ways to motivate students, and the characteristics and needs of individual students.
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