Introduction
In this unit we consider the meaning of the term curriculum
and some of the basic things we need to know about it, including
the importance of adapting it to your local contexts and to
the needs and abilities of your pupils. Each school head must
know how to manage the curriculum: to follow national guidelines,
to develop a school curriculum and to organise school life in
a way which will enhance the hidden curriculum.
Individual study time : 2 hours
Learning outcomes
By the end of this unit you should be able to :
• explain the need for you to manage the establishment,
adaptation and development of the school curriculum
• identify key factors which need to be taken into account
in curriculum design
• produce a school curriculum which is compatible with
the dictates and guidelines laid down by the government.
Principles and constraints of curriculum design
Activity 1.1
(1) Explain in your own words the meaning of the term curriculum.
(2) Identify six reasons why it is quite difficult to design
a good curriculum.
Comments
The curriculum has been defined as all the experiences provided
by a school to educate the pupils. It also involves helping
teachers provide the best information on subject matter, taking
into account the interests of pupils and contemporary social
needs. A curriculum is a course of subjects and co-curricular
activities that must be covered by the pupils, but it should
also aim at developing them mentally, physically and morally,
and at embracing the hidden curriculum which includes behaviour
patterns and attitudes of the pupils and staff and the general
tone and ethos of the school.
The curriculum should be dynamic and be evolving all the
time. It is the job of the head to manage this process in
the school.
Some of the basic principles which should be taken into account
in designing your school curriculum include :
1 It should satisfy the philosophy and educational purposes
of the school and the nation.
2 It should be developed from 'grassroots' level and include
parent and community contributions.
3 It should make allowance for the special education needs
of pupils.
4 It should take into consideration the culture, customs and
traditions, both of the country and the region.
5 It should provide practical educational experiences.
Constraints
Did your list of the constraints in developing your curriculum
include the following?
1 It is not a task with which everyone in schools is familiar.
2 It is unlikely that the curriculum can take into account
every local tradition.
3 The curriculum you would like to offer may well be constrained
by a lack of physical resources.
4 There may be problems in selecting a language of instruction
which suits the needs of every pupil.
5 Some teachers believe that they have to follow the official
curriculum exactly.
6 No procedures have been developed in our school or time
allowed for curriculum development work.
Using local resources
Activity 1.2
Subjects where local studies and interpretation should be encouraged
include Art and Craft, Geography, History, Practical Agriculture,
Science. For each of these subjects indicate ways in which the
local environment can be used to enrich the curriculum:
- Art and Craft;
- Geography;
- History;
- Practical Agriculture;
- Science.
Comments
In many countries where the curriculum is designed and decided
centrally, it may appear as though teachers have little or
no input. But by indirectly interpreting and implementing
the curriculum, successful innovative ideas can ultimately
lead to curriculum modification at the national level.
You probably thought of many ways in which you already use
local resources, for example:
• Art and Craft: local designs in cloth, pottery and
architecture
• Geography: the relationships between the way people
live and their environment
• History: learning from oral traditions of the people
• Practical Agriculture : applying the lessons from local
progressive farmers to the school farm
• Science : aspects of the natural and human environments.
Factors governing the curriculum
Activity 1.3
Basic factors which need to be considered in curriculum development
include:
- the age of the pupils;
- the range of ability levels of the pupils;
- inter-relationships between subjects;
- degree specialisation in subject areas.
Identify four other factors which need to be taken into consideration.
Comments
You could also have considered :
• the time available for teaching and learning
• the availability of funds to provide both specialist
facilities, such as laboratories, and simple resources, such
as chalk and books
• the level of training and experience of the average
teacher
• the type of work and its availability open to those
pupils completing school.
The hidden curriculum
A school curriculum consists of a number of subjects which
give pupils a body of knowledge and skills, co-curricular activities
which create and develop their interests, and the 'hidden curriculum'
which mainly affects pupil attitudes, maturity, growth and behaviour.
Activity 1.4
Suggest why the following might be regarded as part of the hidden
curriculum:
- the punctuality of teachers;
- the way teachers interact with each other;
- the cleanliness of the school compound;
- the personality of the school head;
- the choice of subjects by pupils.
Comments
Although we may reveal some aspects of the hidden curriculum,
in fact there will always be many influences on the way pupils
behave, on what they learn and on the interests they develop,
which we can never plan for in the curriculum or the co-curricular
programme, or, indeed, ever find out about. But there is a
lot we can do to try to influence what happens and your answers
to the items above should have illustrated this.
Creating a total curriculum
In many countries around the world the concepts of democracy,
self-reliance and national identity are deliberately included
in the daily instructional activities and general running
of each school.
Activity 1.5
Which of the statements in Fig 1 is describing something which
supports either the Core Curriculum (Column A), the Hidden Curriculum
(Column B), or the Co-Curriculum (Column C)?
Fig 1 The total curriculum
Comments
You may find that your answers differ from someone else who
has done this exercise. These are the answers given by Mrs
A and Mr B:
| |
Mrs A |
Mr B |
| Core Curriculum |
1,2,3,5,6,7,8,9,10 |
2,3,5,10 |
| Hidden Curriculum |
1,3,6,7,8,9 |
1,4,6,7,8,9 |
| Co-Curriculum |
3,6,8 |
4,8 |
Note that some items have been placed in more than one type
of curriculum. Which of these sets of answers is closest to
your own? You might like to reflect on why such different answers
arise.
Learning about the curriculum
Activity 1.6
A man was appointed head in a new secondary school, 500 kilometres
from his home in an area unknown to him. Before arriving at
his new school he did some advance work on curriculum planning.
In order to do this he collected data and advice from a number
of sources.
(1) Complete Fig 2.
(2) Identify other people or data sources that he should have
consulted, whether available in his home location, at his new
school or elsewhere.
Fig 2 Sources of data
| In the square opposite each source: put
G = of great value; S = of some value; or L = of little
value: |
| His father, a subsistence
farmer |
|
| His local chief, one of the most respected
of traditional leaders in the country |
|
| Published educational
legislation |
|
| His former primary
school head |
|
| A visiting teacher on holiday
from the region to which the man has been appointed |
|
Comments
A new school head will have a lot to learn about the curriculum
existing in his school and about the development work which
will be needed. He will need to learn about the 'official'
curriculum, but also about the nature and quality of the work
presently done in his new school, about the pupils, the teachers
and the community, as well as about the whole environment
in which the school is located. Thus he should consult with
a wide variety of people in order to inform himself about
every aspect of school life.
Summary
In this unit we have demonstrated that there are various forms
of curriculum, all of which need to be recognised and planned
for. A school curriculum is not the same as the curriculum
prepared by the government, and it is not something which
just happens, it has to be managed and planned. Every head
has a considerable task in ensuring a full and balanced curriculum
in their school.
|
