Curriculum studies

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Curriculum studies is a concentration in the different types of curriculum and instruction concerned with understanding curricula as an active force influenced by human educational experiences.^[1] Its proponents investigate the relationship between curriculum theory and educational practice in addition to the relationship between school programs, the contours of the society, and the culture in which schools are located.

Specific questions related to curriculum studies

• What should be taught in schools?^[2]
• Why should it be taught? To whom should it be taught?^[3]
• What does it mean to be an educated person?^[3]

History

Curriculum studies was created in 1930 and known as the first subdivision of the American Educational Research Association. It was originally created to be able to manage "the transition of the American secondary school from an elite preparatory school to a mass terminal secondary school" until the 1950s when "a preparation for college" became a larger concern.^[4] In 1970 the focus of curriculum studies shifted again due to the belief of young activist. These individuals wanted to begin incorporating social and cultural aspects. This shift from developing and evaluating curriculum to understanding curriculum became known as the "Reconceptualization" of the curriculum field.^[5]

The different types of curriculum

Hidden curriculum

A type of curriculum that focuses on how society transmits culture from generation to generation has been tagged with the term "hidden curriculum"^[6] For instance, one of the 19th century founders of the discipline of sociology, Émile Durkheim, observed that more is taught and learned in schools than specified in the established curriculum of textbooks and teacher manuals. This curriculum has "non-academic functions and effects"^[7] In Moral Education Durkheim wrote:

In fact, there is a whole system of rules in the school that predetermine the child's conduct. He must come to class regularly; he must arrive at a specified time and with an appropriate bearing and attitude. He must not disrupt things in class. He must have learned his lessons, done his homework, and have done so reasonably well, etc. There are, therefore, a host of obligations that the child is required to shoulder. Together they constitute the discipline of the school. It is through the practice of school discipline that we can inculcate the spirit of discipline in the child. (1961 [1925]). Moral Education. New York, The Free Press. p . 148)

It teaches children life skills like learning to "wait quietly", exercising restraint, putting forth your best effort, completing work, keeping busy, cooperating, "showing allegiance to both teachers and peers", being neat and punctual, so on and so forth.^[7]

Common core

A type of curriculum that heavily focuses on building "literacy skills and understandings required for college and career readiness in multiple disciplines" is the curriculum aligned to common core.^[8] Common core curriculum has one main goal. That goal is to encourage critical thinking by utilizing the questioning strategy. Students gain a more advanced understanding of a topic as they have to elaborate on their thoughts. Memorization is no longer key. This type of curriculum requires instructors to ask the right kind of questions, depending on one's content area, for it to be effective.

Types of Ela and Social Studies question include:

• Literal question- a question that children can easily find the answer to
• Interpretative question- a question that requires children to dig deeper. Students are tasked with interpretating the texts meaning or content.
• Evaluative question- a question that requires students to reflect on the text in a analytical manner.

Types of Science questions include:

• Convergent question- a question that causes students to utilize basic knowledge. This the type of question lies within a three-tier question system. It should be used first.
• Divergent question- a question that can invoke a variety of responses. This is the type of question lies within a three-tier question system. It should be used second.
• Evaluative thinking- a question that can be used to gather ones opinion about the text. This is the type of question lies within a three-tier question system. It should be used third.

Types of Math questions include:

• Procedural- questions that require simple problem solving.
• Conceptual- questions that require abstract cognition and thinking regarding math concepts.^[8]
• Application- questions that require the use of math skills on real world problems.

Emergent curriculum

A type of curriculum that focuses on the implantation of children's interests is called emergent curriculum. Emergent curriculum has one main goal. That goal is to "create meaningful [learning opportunities] for children" based on those interests.^[9] This type of curriculum requires the instructor to consistently implicate certain task and skills for it to be used correctly. These tasks and skills are observations, documentation, creative brainstorming, flexibility, and patience.

• Observations- How does the student react? What was the outcome of using that particular strategy?
• Documentation- What do you see?
• Creative brainstorming- How can your students explore their topic of interest further? What are some potential activities?
• Flexibility and Patience- These aspects are needed because the curriculum is constantly undergoing change, growth, and development.

Similar to above, this curriculum also has non- academic benefits. Emergent curriculum is "meant to be culturally responsive and inclusive in nature, so that all children [can] work at their own pace".^[9] A teacher's role is to "[following] the children's lead, [expanding] on their interests, [providing] meaningful and developmentally appropriate materials, and [promoting] independent learning skills".^[9] Childrens interests guides the curriculum.

Assessments

These are the two main types of assessments used to measure mastery of standards and expectations within a chosen curriculum.

Formative

A type of low stakes assessment that indirectly measures a student's understanding of the topic. These types of assessments are typically placed throughout a unit and presented in the form of an activity. Instructors use the results "as feedback to modify [future] teaching and [or] learning activities".^[10] Examples of this type of assessment include:

• Exit slips or any type of reflection work
• Homework
• In class discussions or any question-answer sessions
• Any observations regarding student's body language

Summative

A type of high stakes assessment that directly measures students understanding of a topic. They are typically placed at the end of the unit and presented in formal or cumulative format. Instructors use it to assess "what a student has learned, or the quality of the learning, and judge performance against some standards”.^[10] Examples of this type of assessment include:

• Projects
• Unit Test
• Formal writing prompt with a rubric
• Porfilios

References

Further reading

Important Curriculum Studies books: The Curriculum: Perspective, Paradigm, and Possibility by William Schubert in addition to Understanding Curriculum by William Pinar, et al. (New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 1995).

External links to university programs

• Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, USA.
• Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/ctl/Prospective_Students/CTL_Graduate_Programs/Curriculum_Studies_and_Teacher_Development_%28CSTD%29/index.html Archived 2017-07-01 at the Wayback Machine
• University of British Columbia in Vancouver: www.ubc.ca
• University of Illinois at Chicago: http://www.uic.edu/gcat/EDCIE.shtml#e
• University of Wisconsin-Madison: https://ci.education.wisc.edu/research/curriculum-studies-global-studies/
• Monmouth University, West Long Branch, New Jersey: www.monmouth.edu
• Arcadia University, Philadelphia, PA, USA Archived 2012-06-06 at the Wayback Machine
• Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA
• University of Alberta in Edmonton: https://web.archive.org/web/20070116062802/http://www.uofaweb.ualberta.ca/secondaryed/
• North West University, North West, South Africa
• Indiana University, Bloomington, IN: www.iub.edu
• Purdue University: http://www.edci.purdue.edu/curriculum_studies/
• Texas Tech University (Lubbock, TX): https://www.depts.ttu.edu/education/graduate/curriculum-and-instruction/curriculum_studies_teacher_education.php
• Texas Christian University: https://web.archive.org/web/20140225210058/http://www.coe.tcu.edu/graduate-students-curriculum-studies.asp
• Brock University,St.Catharines,Ontario,Canada: http://www.brocku.ca/education/futurestudents/graduateed/mastersofed/program-description Curriculum Studies is now known as Social and Cultural Contexts of Education (*due to the change of the MEd program requirements commencing in 2008-09 http://www.brocku.ca/webcal/2007/graduate/educ.html)
• Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK: http://education.okstate.edu/cied
• Western University, London, ON : https://web.archive.org/web/20160308202142/http://www.edu.uwo.ca/graduate-education/Program%20Brochures/PhD%20-%20Field%20of%20Curriculum%20Studies.pdf
• DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois : https://education.depaul.edu/academics/leadership-language-curriculum/graduate/curriculum-studies-phd/Pages/default.aspx
• University of North Texas, Denton, Texas: https://www.unt.edu/academics/grad/curriculum-and-instruction-phd