Weinstein and fantini model of curriculum development

PART IV · Administration of Programs and Services

Table 13-2 Steps in Curriculum Development

I. Planning the Curriculum

l. Who assigns committee members?

2. What groups are represented within the committee?

3. Who determines priorities. standards, competencies, etc.?

4. How do we identify needs, problems, issues, etc.?

5. Who formulates goals and objectives? What type of goals, objectives?

II. Implementing the Curriculum

l . Who defines what knowledge is most important?

2. Who decides on instructional materials and media?

3. Who evaluates teachers? What measurement criteria ore used?

4. Who decides how teachers will be prepared and trained for the program?

5. Who determines how much money/resources will be made available?

Ill. Evaluating the Curriculum

l . Who decides how the curriculum will be evaluated?

2. I,A/ho decides on assessment procedures? Tests? And how ore they to be used?

3. Have our goals and objectives been addressed in the evaluation?

4. Does the program work? To what extent? How can it be improved?

5. Who is responsible for reporting the results? To whom?

6. Do we wish to make comparisons or judgments about the program? Why? Why not?

during the early period and set the stage for the modern period. 19 Tyler proposed a number of steps in planning a curriculum, outlined in Figure 13-1, starting with the goals of the school. These goals would be selected on the basis of what he called sources of information about important aspects of contemporary life, subject matter, and the needs and interests of learners. By analyzing changing society, at the local, state, or national level, it could be determined what goals (and also what subject matter) were most important. By consulting with sub- ject specialists (as well as teachers), helpful decisions could be determined about concepts, skills, and tasks to be taught in the various subjects (reading, math, science, etc.). By identifying the needs and interests of students, a beginning point in content, methods, and materials could be determined. (Hence, Tyler helped popularize the concept of a needs assessment study.)

Tyler then suggested that the school staff, possibly organized as a curriculum committee, screen the rec- ommended goals according to the school's (or school

1"Tyler, Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction.

district's) philosophy and beliefs about psychology learning {or what some might call learning theory . What resulted from this screening process would be instructional objectives, more specific than the schoor~ goals and designed for classroom use.

Tyler then proceeded to the selection of learning experiences that would allow the attainment of obje.::- tives. Learning experiences would take into account the developmental stage of the learners, such as their age and abilities, and consider the learners' background (present attainments), external environment (classroom and school), and what the learners did (their behav- ior) when learning. Tyler next talked about organizing learning experiences in a systematic way to produce a maximum, positive effect. Here he elaborated on the vertical (recurring subject matter such as social studies from grade to grade) relationship and horizontal (in- tegration of different subjects at the same grade levei relationship of curriculum.

Tyler elaborated on the need for evaluation tt'' determine whether the objectives were achieved or the learning experiences actually produced the intended results. Also, it was necessary to determine whether

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CHAPTER 13 · Curriculum Development and Implementation

ADMINISTRATIVE ADVICE -

Guidelines for Curriculum Development Below are some guiding statements to help clarify the steps involved in curriculum development. These statements are based on school practice and apply to all curriculum models.

• The curriculum-design committee should include teachers, parents, and administrators; some schools might include students, too.

• The committee should establish a sense of mission or purpose in the early stages or meetings.

• Needs and priorities should be addressed in relation to students and society.

• School goals and objectives should be reviewed, but they should not serve as the only guiding criteria on which to develop the curriculum. Such criteria should connote a broad educational philosophy to guide curriculum development.

• Alternative curriculum designs should be contrasted in terms of advantages and disadvantages such as cost, scheduling, class size, facilities and personnel required, existing relationship to present programs, and so on.

• To help teachers gain insight into a new or modified design, it should reveal expected cognitive and affective skills, concepts, and outcomes .

FIGURE 13-1

Tentative Objective

• Principals have significant impact on curriculum development through their influence on school climate and their support of the curriculum process.

• District administrators, especially the superinten- dent, have only a peripheral impact on curriculum development because their outlook and concerns center on managerial activities. Their curriculum role is minor, but their support and approval are essential.

• State education officials have even less impact on curriculum development, although various depart- ments publish guides, bulletins, and reports that can be informative. However, these educators establish policies, rules, and regulations that affect curriculum and instruction.

• The influence of special interest groups and local politics should not be underestimated. Polarization or conflict has frequently obscured reasonable efforts for reform and meaningful dialogue between educa- tors and parents in regard to educational matters.

Selecting Experiences

Evaluation

Organizing the Curriculum-A Behavioral Approach, Based on the Tyler Model

the curriculum was effective or ineffective and whether changes should be made or a new curriculum was warranted.

Although Tyler never introduced his model of cur- riculum development in a graphic manner, Figure 13-1

helps interpret what he was hoping to achieve. Because Tyler did not clarify at what level his model could be used, school district or school level, or whether it was a top-down (line staff) model or bottom-up (teacher empowerment) model, it can be applied to both

PART IV · Administration of Programs and Services

External Forces Legal Requirements Research Data Professional Associations State Guidelines

Curriculum I Goalsand ~ Curriculum Design Curriculum l Objectives Decisions made by f----- Implementation ~ Evaluation curriculum planners Decisions regarding Decisions assessing about the instruction by teachers. the effectiveness of characteristics of Various experiences the curriculum and

Bases of Curriculum a good curriculum: are included in the the teachers.

Society the content, its curriculum plan so

Learners organization. and that teachers have

Knowledge appropriate learning options. opportunities.

Feedback and Ad'ustment I FIGURE 13-2

Managing the Curriculum Source: Adapted from J. Galen Saylor, William M.Alexander, and Arthur J. Lewis, Curriculum Planning for Better Teaching and Learning, 4th ed (New York: Holt, Rinehart. 1981 ). pp. 29-30.

orientations. However, at the period of his writings, the top-down model prevailed in schools: Curriculum experts usually presented ideas for teachers to develop, and administrators either supervised or delegated supervisors to ensure that the ideas were implemented in the classroom.

Saylor, Alexander, and Lewis: Managerial Model

Galen Saylor and his colleagues belong to the mana- gerial school. As former administrators, they were very clear about the lines of authority and the need for su- pervisors and administrators to be in charge of the cur- riculum at the state and local district levels, in terms of curriculum guidelines and textbook selection, as well as at the school level, in terms of subjects for study on the basis of grade levels.20 Saylor saw curriculum as a general plan, through which particular plans for indi- vidual programs of studies, courses of study, syllabi, unit plans, policy statements, handbooks, and learning packages were used in different parts of the school and

20 ]. Galen Saylor, William ;\1. Alexander, and Arthur]. Lewis,

Curriculum Planning for Better Teaching and Learning, 4th ed. (New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1981).

school district by many groups of people and individu- als. Curriculum had to be put together or incorporated as a total package, or curriculum plan, by those in charge of running the schools.

As Figure 13-2 indicates, a number of consider- ations enter into the development of curriculum. Goals and objectives are largely influenced ( 1) by external forces such as legal requirements, current research, pro- fessional knowledge, interest groups, and state agen- cies and (2) by the bases of curriculum such as society. learners, and knowledge. (These bases were similar to Tyler's sources, which had originally been elaborated on by Boyd Bode and John Dewey.)

Agreed on goals and objectives then provide a basis for curriculum design, that is, a view of teach- ing and learning. Five different designs are examined: ( 1 )subjectmatter/disciplines,(2)competencies,(3 )human traits and processes, ( 4) social functions and activities, and (5) individual needs and interests. A subject matter design emphasizes the role of knowledge and problem- solving activities. Specific competencies emphasize performance objectives, task analysis, and measurable outcomes. Human traits and processes are concerned with the learners' feelings, emotions, and values, as well as the affective domain of learning. A design that focuses on social functions and activities em- phasizes the needs of society and, to a lesser extent,

CHAPTER 13 · Curriculum Development and Implementation

the needs of students. The individual needs and inter- ests design is concerned with what is relevant to and motivates learners and what learning experiences lead to their full potential. Depending on the na- ture of management, the design can be optional and chosen by the classroom teacher, or it can be recom- mended by a school curriculum committee (adminis- trators, supervisors, and/or teachers) or required by the central school district. School authorities, however, rarely require a particular design because curriculum matters involve teachers as well as possibly students and parents.

Curriculum implementation is mainly concerned with instructional activities that facilitate or put in practice the design. It includes instructional meth- ods, materials, and resources, often listed in courses of study, unit plans, and lesson plans and often observed in classrooms as the teaching and learn- ing process unfolds. Curriculum implementation includes supervision of instruction, teacher-supervisor planning and meetings, as well as staff development programs. The help teachers receive from resource per- sonnel, supervisors, and administrators is the basis of implementation.

Curriculum evaluation involves the procedures for evaluating student outcomes and the curriculum plan. Evaluative data become the basis for decision making and planning among administrators. Administrators rarely engage in this type of evaluation; rather, they often delegate it to supervisors or outside consultants who report their findings to administrators, who in turn have the option of communicating the findings to teachers, parents, or the community.

Macdonald: Systems Model

Theory development prior to the 1960s tended to sepa- rate curriculum and instruction from teaching and learn- ing. The classic model by James Macdonald showed the relationship between these four systems, as illustrated in Figure 13-3. He defined curriculum as a plan for in- struction as the plan is put into action. Teaching was defined as the broad behavior of the teacher and learn- ing as the change in learner.

Another way of explaining the Macdonald model is the following: Curriculum is planning endeavors that take place prior to instruction; instruction deals with teacher-student interaction (usually taking place in the classroom, library, or laboratory); teaching is the act of presenting stimuli or cues; and learning involves

FIGURE 13-3

Curriculum I

Instruction II

Systematizing the Curriculum Source: Adapted from James B. Macdonald, "Educa- tional Models for Instruction," in J. B. Macdonald (ed.). Theories of Instruction (Washingto