RAFTING THE CURRICULUM

THE TEACHER AS CURRICULUM DESIGNER

Module Overview:
A curriculum as a planned sequence of learning experiences should be at
the heart and mind of every teacher. Every teacher as a curricularist
should be involved in designing a curriculum. In fact, it is one of the
teachers' roles as a curricularist. As such, you will be a part of the
intellectual journey of your learners. You will be providing them the
necessary experiences that will enable the learner what you intend them
learn.

As a curriculum designer this task was not given much attention in the
past. Every single day, a teacher designs a lesson or utilizes a curriculum
that has been made and was previously written. Designing a curriculum is
a very challenging task. It is here where the style and creativity of the
teacher come in. Thus, this module will provide the necessary concepts
and activities that you as a teacher can refer to as you prepare yourself to
be a curriculum designer.

Fundamentals of Curriculum Designing

Desired Learning Outcomes

· Identify the fundamentals of curriculum designing

· Gain knowledge on the task of designing a curriculum

CONTENT FOCUS

BUILDING ON PETER OLIVA’S 10 AXIOMS FOR CURRICULUM

DESIGNERS

Before a teacher designs a curriculum, it would be of great

importance to connect the fundamental concepts and ideas about
curriculum mentioned in the previous modules. Every curriculum designer,
implementer, or evaluator should take in mind the following general
axioms as a guide in curriculum development. (Oliva, 2003):

1. Curriculum change is inevitable, necessary, and desirable.

Earlier, it was stated that one of the characteristics of curriculum is its

being dynamic. Because of this, teachers should respond to the changes
that occur in schools and in context development and knowledge
revolution come so fast that the need to address the changing condition
requires new designs.
2.Curriculum is a product of its time. A relevant curriculum should
respond to changes brought about by current social forces, philosophical
positions, psychological principle, new knowledge, and educational
reforms. This is also called timeliness.

3. Curriculum changes made earlier can exist concurrently with

newer curriculum changes. A revision in a curriculum starts and ends
slowly. More often, curriculum is gradually phased in and phased out, thus
the changes that occur can coexist and oftentimes overlap for long
periods of time.

4. Curriculum change depends on people who will implement the

change. Teachers who will implement the curriculum should be involved
in its development, hence should know how to design a curriculum.
Because the teachers are the implementer of the curriculum, it is best
that they should design and own changes. This will ensure an effective
and long-lasting change.

5. Curriculum development is a cooperative group activity. Group

decisions in some aspects of curriculum development are suggested.
Consultations with stakeholders when possible will add to a sense of
ownership. Even learners should participate in some aspect of curriculum
designing. Any significant change in the curriculum should involve a broad
range of stakeholders to gain their understanding, support, and input.

6. Curriculum development is a decision-making process made

from choices of alternatives. A curriculum developer or designer must
decide what contents to teach, philosophy or point of view to support, how
to provide for multicultural groups, what methods or strategies, and what
type of evaluation to use.

7. Curriculum development is an ongoing process. Continuous

monitoring, examination, evaluation, and improvement of curricula are to
be considered in the design of the curriculum As the needs of learners
change, as society changes, and as new knowledge and technology
appear, the curriculum must change.

8. Curriculum development is more effective if it is a

comprehensive process, rather than a "piecemeal". A curriculum
design should be based on a careful plan, should clearly establish
intended outcomes, support resources and needed time available and
should equip teaching staff pedagogically.

9. Curriculum development is more effective when it follows a

systematic process

A curriculum design is composed of desired outcomes, subject matter

content complemented with references, set of procedures, needed
materials and resources and evaluation procedure which can be placed in
a matrix.

10. Curriculum development starts from where the curriculum

is. Curriculum planners and designers should begin with existing
curriculum. An existing design is a good starting point for any teacher who
plans to enhance and enrich a curriculum.

Building upon the ideas of Oliva, let us continue learning how to design a
curriculum by identifying its components. For most curricula the major
components or elements are answers to the following questions:

l. What learning outcomes need to be achieved'? (Intended Learning

Outcomes)

2. What content should be included to achieve the learning outcomes?

(Subject Matter)

3. What learning experiences and resources should be employed?

(Teaching-Learning Methods)

4. How will the achieved learning outcomes be measured? (Assessment

of Achieved Learning Outcomes)

Elements or Components of a Curriculum Design

There are many labels or names for curriculum design. Some would call it
a syllabus, or a lesson plan. Some would call it a unit plan or a course
design. Whatever is the name of the design, the common components for
all of them are almost the same. However, some schools, institutions or
departments may add other minor parts or trimmings to the design.

Let us take the Lesson Plan as a miniscule curriculum. A lesson plan or

teaching guide includes (l) Intended Learning Outcomes (ILO) or the
Desired Learning Outcome (DLO) formerly labelled as behavioral
objectives, (2) Subject Matter or Content, (3) Teaching and Learning
Methods, and (4) Assessment Evaluation. Each of these components or
elements is described below.

1. Behavioral Objectives or Intended Learning Outcomes

Begin with the end in view. The objectives or intended learning Outcomes
are the reasons for undertaking the learning lesson from the student's
point of view; it is desired learning outcome that is to be accomplished in
a particular learning episode, engaged in by the learners under the
guidance of the teacher. As a curriculum designer, the beginning of the
learning journey is the learning outcomes to be achieved. In this way, both
the learner and the teacher are guided by what to accomplish.

The behavioral objectives, intended learning outcomes or desired

learning outcomes are expressed in action words found in the revised
Bloom’s Taxonomy of Objectives for the development of the cognitive
skills. For the affective skills, the taxonomy made by krathwohl and for the
psychomotor domain by Simpson.

The statement should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable,

Result-oriented and Time bound. For a beginner, it would help if you
provide the Condition, Performance and Extent Level of Performance in
the statement of the Intended learninfg outcomes.

For example, if a lesson intends the students to identify the parts of a

simple flower as stated the desired learning outcomes, then Students
should have identified the parts of a simple flower, at the end of
the lesson.

Sometimes the phrase intended learning outcomes is used to refer to the

anticipated results after completing the planned activity or lesson. In
framing learning outcomes, it is good practice to:

v Express each outcome in terms of what successful students be able to

do. For example, rather than stating Students be able to explain the
reason why... it should be: 'Students must have explained the reasons
why...' This helps students to focus on what they have to achieve as
learning. It will also help curricularist devise appropriate assessment
tasks.

v Include different kinds of outcomes. The most common are cognitive

objectives (learning facts, theories, formulae, principles etc.) and
performance outcomes (learning how to carry out procedures. calculations
and processes, which typically include gathering information and
communicating results). In some contexts, affective outcomes are
important too (for developing attitudes or values, e.g. those required as a
person and for a particular profession).

Il. Content/Subject Matter

The content of the lesson or unit is the topic or subject matter that will be
covered. In selecting content, you should bear in mind the following
principles in addition to those mentioned about the content in lessons.

· Subject matter should be relevant to the outcomes of the

curriculum. An effective curriculum is purposive clearly focused on the
planned learning outcomes.
· Subject matter should be appropriate to the level of the lesson or
unit. An effective curriculum is progressive, leading students towards
building on previous lessons. Contents which are too basic or too
advanced for the development levels of learners make students either
bored or baffled, and affect their motivation to learn

· Subject matter should be up to date and, if possible, should reflect

current knowledge and concepts

Ill. References

The reference follows the content. It tells where the content or subject
matter has been taken. The reference may be a book, a module or any
publication. It must bear the author of the material and if possible, the
publications. Some examples are given below.

1. Project wild (1992) K to 12 Activity Guide, An Interdisciplinary,

Supplementary Conservation and Environmental Education Program.
Council of Environmental Education, Bethesda, MD

2. Bilbao, Purita P. and Corpuz, Brenda B. et al (2012). The Teaching

Profession 2nd edition. Lorimar Publishing Inc. Quezon City

B. Teaching and Learning Methods

These are the activities where the learners derive experiences. It is always
good to keep in mind the teaching strategies that students will experience
(lectures, laboratory classes, fieldwork etc.) and make them learn. The
teaching-learning methods should allow cooperation, competition as well
as individualism or independent learning among the students. For
example:

Cooperative learning activities allow students to work together.

Students are guided to learn on their own to find solutions to their
problems. The role of the teachers is to guide the learners. Democratic
process is encouraged, and each one contributes to the success of'
learning. Students learn from each other in ways. Group projects and
activities considerably enhance the curriculum.

• Independent learning activities allow learners to develop personal

responsibility. The degree of Independence to learn how to learn is
enhanced. This strategy is more appropriate for fast learners.

v Competitive activities, where students will test their competencies

against another in a healthy manner allow learners to perform to their
maximum. Most successful individuals in their adult life are competitive,
even in early schooling. They mostly become the survivors in a very
competitive world.

v The use of delivery modes to provide learning experiences

recommended. Online learning and similar modes are increasingly
important in many curricula, but these need to be planned carefully to be
effective.

VI. Assessment/Evaluation

Learning occurs most effectively when students receive feedback, ie.

when they receive information on what they have already (and have not)
learned. The process by which this information is generated is assessment
It has three main forms:

+ Self -assessment, through which students learn to monitor and

evaluate their own learning. This should be a significant element in the
curriculum because we aim to produce graduates who are appropriately
reflective and self-critical.

+ Peer assessment, in which students provide feedback on each other's

learning. This can be viewed as an extension of self-assessment and
presupposes trust and mutual respect. Research suggests that students
can learn to judge each other's work as reliably as staff.

+ Teacher assessment, in which the teacher prepares and administers

tests and gives feedback on the student's performance.

Assessment may be formative (providing feedback to help the

student learn more) or summative (expressing a judgment on the
student's achievement by reference to stated criteria). Many assessment
tasks Involve an element of both, e.g. an assignment that is marked and
returned to the student with detailed comments.

Summative assessment usually involves the allocation of marks or grades.

This helps the teacher make decisions about the progress or performance
of the students.

Students usually learn more by understanding the strengths and

weaknesses of their work than by knowing the mark or grade given to it
for this reason, summative assessment tasks (including unseen
examinations) should include an element of formative feedback, if
possible

Application of the Fundamental Components to Other Curriculum

Designs

While our example refers only to designing a lesson plan which is a mini
curriculum, similar components will also be used in making a syllabus for
teaching in higher education courses or other curricular projects. Based on
the curriculum models we have learned; the fundamental components
Include the following:

Major components of a Course Design or Syllabus

l. Intended Outcomes (or objectives)

2. Content/Subject Matter (with references)

3. Methods/Strategies (with needed resources)

4. Evaluation (means of' assessment)

All other additional components are trimmings that each designer may
place. This additional part may be an institutional template, suggested by
other curriculum experts and as required by educational agencies like the
Department of Education, Commission on Higher education, Accrediting
Agencies, Organizations that would serve the purposes they intend to
achieve.

Curriculum Design and Organization

Intended Learning outcomes

At the end of this chapter, students are expected to:

v Discuss the major components and sources of curriculum design.

v Identify the difference between horizontal and vertical organizations of

curriculum design.

v Explain the common qualities of curriculum design.

v Differentiate the following types curriculum designs: Subject-centered,

Learner-centered, and Problem-centered designs.

Introduction

Upon reading the previous modules , we then wonder, how one

contemplates education, curriculum, and curriculum designs and its
organization when it is influenced by countless fields of knowing and
feeling. It is a fact that people draw from their experiences, their lived
histories, their values, their belief systems, their social interactions, and
their imaginations.
How do we choose from among various ideas of education, curriculum'?
What are the sources to be considered and how to organize them? There
is no simple answer. Educational thinkers and doers must consider
diversity.

ENGAGE

SOURCES OF CURRICULUM DESIGN

Curriculum designers must clear up their philosophical, social, and

political viewpoints for society and the individual learner - these
viewpoints are commonly called curriculum's sources. American educator
David Ferrero stated, educational action (in this item, it is curricular
design) begins with recognizing one's beliefs and values, which influence
what one considers worth knowing and teaching. If we neglect
philosophical, social, and political questions. we design curriculum with
limited or confused rationales.

Four foundations of curriculum design were stated by Ronald Doll, these

are: science. society, eternal truths, and divine will. These curriculum
sources identified by Dewey and Bode and popularized by Tyler are,
knowledge, society, and the learner partially overlap with one another.

Science as a Source

Some curriculum leaders depend on the scientific method when designing

curriculum. They value the observable, quantifiable and prioritized
problem- solving. Their designs highlight learning how to learn.

Most of their argument of thinking processes is founded on cognitive

psychology. Promoted problem-solving procedures suggest our valuing of
science and thinking strategies. With knowledge explosion in our time, the
only endless journey seems to be the procedures by which we process
knowledge.

Society as a Source

Curriculum designers believe that school is a vehicle for development of

society and its curriculum ideas should come from the exploration of the
social situation. They also consider the present and future characteristic
of society. Here in our country, fighting poverty is an ongoing goal

School must recognize that they are part and parcel of the design to serve
the interest of the community and society as a whole. Curriculum
designers should not disregard social multiplicity, ethnic groups, and
social classes. Said multiplicity increasingly manifest as the Philippines
accepting more foreign students and immigrant groups coming from the
Asian region. Curriculum design then must be managed within social,
economic, and political contexts. The big challenge then is to respond to
students' unique needs and the particular demands of multiplicity of
social groups while letting students achieve, understanding of the
common culture and attain common, agreed competencies. Definitely the
search for common curriculum assumes that there is something general
and universal for all to know and experience.

The need for collaboration among diverse individuals and groups must
be realized by curriculum designers to have an effective outcome. People
from different backgrounds and cultures are demanding a voice regarding
how education is organized and experienced. In our 0ur time, society is
currently a powerful influence on curriculum design. As noted by Arthur
Ellis, no curriculum or curriculum design can be considered or created
apart from the people who make up our evolving society.

Moral Doctrine as a Source

Some curriculum designers look into the past for guidance in their present
work on the appropriate content of curriculum. These designers stress
what they regard as lasting truths advanced by the great thinkers of the
past. Their emphasis is on the content and labels some subjects as more
influential than others.

The Bible or other religious documents are references of some people who
believe that curriculum design should be based on it. This view, was
common in our schools during the Spanish period. While today, it has
lesser influence in public schools in the country, primarily because of the
separation of church and state written in our constitution. Moreover, many
private and parochial schools still support this up to now.

Dwayne Huebner stated that education can address spirituality without

bringing in religion. He further argued that, to have spirit is to be in touch
with life's forces or energies. Being in touch with spirit allows one to see
the essence of reality and to generate new ways of viewing knowledge,
new relationships among people, and new ways of perceiving one's
existence.

While for James Moffett, spirituality fosters mindfulness, attentiveness,

awareness of the outside world, and self-awareness. Spiritual individuals
develop empathy and insight. Curriculum designers who draw on
spirituality reach a fuller understanding than those who rely only on
science. Spiritual individuals develop empathy and compassion. They
consider and promote the welfare of others. They welcome differing
viewpoints. Spiritual curriculum designers ask questions about the nature
of the world, the purpose of life, and what it means to be human and
knowledgeable.

William Pinar remarks that viewing curriculum as religious text may allow
for a blending of truth, faith, knowledge, ethics, thought, and action. He
thinks that faith, ethics, and action need more emphasis.
Knowledge as a Source

According to some, knowledge is the primary source of curriculum and

Herbert Spencer positioned knowledge within the framework of
curriculum, when he asked, " What knowledge is of most worth?"

Placing knowledge at the center of curriculum design recognize that

knowledge is perhaps a discipline, having the specific structure and
methods by which scholars stretch out its boundaries. Knowledge that
does not have a unique content is an undisciplined one; as an alternative,
its content is shaped according to an investigation's focus. An example.
mathematics subjects as a discipline have a distinctive conceptual
structure and require a distinctive process. While in contrast, social
sciences subjects are undisciplined in that its contents are represented by
various disciplines and modified to a special focus.

Knowledge is exploding exponentially, therefore this is the

challenge for those who agree that knowledge as the primary source of
curricular design. While the said knowledge explosion is ongoing, the time
for engaging students with curriculum is not increasing. A requirement of
180 school days session is still the requirement of most schools. Spencer's
question is now even more overwhelming. Not only must we reconsider"
what knowledge is of most worth?" but we must conceive the following
queries: "For whom is this knowledge of value? Is there any knowledge
that must be possessed by the majority?" "What intellectual skills must be
taught enable common and uncommon knowledge to be utilized for
individual and social

The Learner as a Source

Others consider that curriculum should stem from our knowledge of

students: we must know how they learn, form attitudes, create interests,
and develop values. From progressive curricular leaders, humanistic
educators, and many curricular workers involved in postmodern dialogue,
learner should be the primary source of curriculum change.

Said curricular leaders tend to draw heavily on psychological foundations,

especially how minds create meaning. Lots of cognitive research has
supported curriculum designers with ways to improve educational
activities that aid perceiving, thinking, and learning. Microbiological
research on the brain had much significance for educators in the final
years of the 1900s. We learned that the anatomy of child's brain is heavily
influenced by the educational environment, and that the quantity and
quality of experiences physically affect the brain's development.

The learner-focused curriculum design highlights students' knowledge.

Individuals build rather than simply obtain, knowledge, and they do so in
specific ways with special specific assumptions. To answer a question,
they may use the same words, but their deep comprehension of the
material is entirely different. The learner as a source of curriculum design,
overlaps with methods that focus on knowledge or science, in that the
science-based method highlights how individuals process information.
Obviously, all sources of curriculum design overlap to a certain degree.
Learner-based curriculum design seeks to inspire students and promotes
their individual uniqueness.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK: HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL

ORGANIZATION

In curriculum design, the organization of curriculum's components

have two organizational dimensions: l) Horizontal organization which
blends curriculum elements- for example, by combining world history,
geography, and political science content to create "Contemporary World
Issues" course or by combining English and Business content. 2) Vertical
organization which is the sequencing of curriculum elements. Ranking
"the Philippine History in grade 7 social studies and "Asian History" in
grade 8 social studies is an example of vertical organization. Often,
curricula are structured so that the same topics are tackled in different
grade but in increasing items and at increasingly higher levels of difficulty.
For example, in the first grade the mathematical concept of set is
introduced and then revised in the succeeding year in the curriculum.

Curriculum Tips

Points to Consider When Contemplating Curriculum Design

Curriculum design reflects the curriculum architecture. Here are some useful points to consider in
"thinking" an effective curriculum design:

v Reflect on your philosophical educational, and curriculum assumptions with regard to the goals of the
school (or a school district)

v Consider your student's needs and aspirations.

v Consider the various design components and their organization.

v Sketch out the various design components to be implemented.

v Cross check your "selected" design components (objectives, content, learning experiences, and evaluation
approaches) against the school mission.

v Share your curriculum design with a colleague.

Source: Adapted from Ornstein and Hunkins 2009,

Curriculum, Foundations, Principles and Issues

While design decisions are necessary, in most schools, curricular designs
obtain little attention. Seldom curricular worker does little "designing"
other than to suggest content that manifest their philosophical and
political viewpoints, which commonly are not carefully planned. Some
educators recognize how socio-economic, political, and cultural factors
shape their choices about horizontal and vertical organization. Though, an
increasing number of curricular workers consider that design reveals
multiplicity of voices, meanings, and points of view.

CURRICULUM DESIGN QUALITIES

No curriculum design is really unique. Instead, all designs have some

qualities in common with Other designs. It is the combination of features
that makes each design unique. Examples of features are the following:

Scope

Curriculum scope refers to the breadth and depth of curriculum content at

any given time. From Ralph Tyler’s; book of In Basic Principles of
Curriculum Instruction, it refers to scope as consisting of all the contents,
topics, learning experiences, and organizing threads comprising the
educational plan. While, John Goodlad and Zhisin Su reiterated this which
refers to the curriculum's horizontal dimension. All the types of
educational experiences Constructed to involve students in learning are
part of the scope.

A curriculum whose scope covers only months or weeks usually is

structured in units. Units are divided into lesson plans, which usually
structure the information and activities into a period of hours or minutes.
This can continue over a year or more.

Educators who are deciding on curriculum content and its degree of detail,
are considering the curriculum's scope. In our present time, knowledge
explosion has made dealing with curriculum scope almost overwhelming.
A few teachers respond to content overload by disregarding certain
content areas or omitting new content topics. Some make an effort to
interrelate certain topics to construct curriculum themes.

To view the curriculum scope, we must consider the learnings in cognitive,

affective, and psychomotor domains. We need to decide what will be
included and in what detail within each domain must be given an
emphasis.

Sequence

Curriculum sequence is concerned with the order of topics overtime. For

example, in biology subject, students might study the cell and then the
tissue, organs, and systems. With this concern over a period of time,
curriculum sequence is called a vertical dimension.
A standing argument whether the sequence of content and experiences
should be established on the reason of the subject matter or the way
individuals process knowledge. Those claiming for sequence founded on
psychological principles draw on research on human growth,
development, and learning. Piaget's research provided a framework for
sequencing content and experiences (or activities) and for connecting
expectations to students’ cognitive levels. Most schools consider students'
stages of thinking in planning curriculum objectives, content, and
experiences by grade level. Therefore, the curriculum is sequenced based
on Piaget's theory of cognitive development.

As mentioned in the previous topic, curriculum designers are also shaped

by current research on brain development. It explained that experiences
within the educational environment greatly influence the individual's
brain. It is then that we need to develop curricular experiences that
maximize students brain development. As explained in many
psychological development textbooks infant's brain has more synaptic
connections or links between neurons than an adult's brain. From ages 2
to 12, these connections strengthen but decrease in number. Only the
hardiest dendrites (the parts of the nerve cell that accept messages)
become part of the adult brain. Therefore, it is important that education
give careful thought to the contents and experiences that are stated on
the educational program.

Curriculum workers are faced with sequencing the content which are
taken from some fairly well accepted learning principles. Othaniel Smith,
William Stanby and Harlan Shores in 1973 introduced four principles, they
are;

1. Simple to complex learning indicates that content to optimally

organize in a sequence preceding from simple subordinate components to
complex components highlighting interrelationships among components.
Optimal learning results when individuals are presented with easy (often
concrete) content and then with more difficult (often abstract) content.

2. Prerequisite learning is similar to part—to-whole learning. It works

on the assumption that bits of information must be grasped before other
bits can be comprehended.

3. Whole—to—part Learning receives support from cognitive

psychologists. They have urged that the curriculum be arranged so that
the content or experience is first presented in an overview that provides
students with a general idea of the information or situation.

4. Chronological learning refers to content whose sequence reflects

the times of real-world occurrences. History, political science, and world
events frequently are organized chronologically.
While in 1976, Gerald Posner and Kenneth Strike provided the field of
curriculum with four types of sequencing. Their views were: 1) The
concept-related method draws heavily on the structure of knowledge. It
focuses on concepts' interrelationships rather than on knowledge of the
concrete. 2) The inquiry-related model, where topics are sequenced to
reflect the steps of scholarly investigation. Instructional designers have
incorporated the inquiry-related sequence into what they call case-based
reasoning, which was developed to maximize computers' capabilities. The
computer would apply previous learning to new situations. Similarly,
people advance their knowledge by processing and organizing new
experiences for later use. Based on the inquiry related model, if people
fail to use acquired information, they must recognize a failure in reasoning
or a deficiency in knowledge. In principle, this is how scholars advance
inquiries. 3) The learner-related sequence, where individuals learn
through experiencing content and activities. 4) Utilization-related learning
which focuses on how people who use knowledge or engage in a
particular activity in the world that actually proceed through
the activity.

Continuity

Continuity refers to “smoothness” or absence of disruption in the

curriculum over time. A curriculum might have good sequence but might
also have disruptions. Curriculum would lack continuity. For example, as
shown in the Table 4.1, Curriculum 1 has a good sequence and good
continuity. Curriculum 2 has good 'sequence but lacks continuity.
Curriculum 3 has poor sequence. Even though no topics are missing, the
lack of order builds disruptions; therefore curriculum 3 lacks continuity.
Then, sequence without continuity is possible, but continuity without
sequence IS not.

Table 4.1

Curriculum 1 Curriculum 2 Curriculum 3

A A A
B B B
C D
D D C
E E E
F F
G G H
H H G

Continuity is mostly manifested in Jerome Bruner's notion of the "spiral

curriculum. Bruner cited that the curriculum should be organized
according to the interrelationships among the basic ideas and structures
of each major discipline. For students to understand these ideas and
structures, they should be developed and redeveloped in a spiral fashion,"
in increasing depth and breath as students advance through the school
program.

Integration

Linking all types of knowledge and experiences contained within the

curriculum plan is known as integration. Basically, it links all of the
curriculum's pieces so that students understand knowledge as united
rather than fragmented. The horizontal relationships among topics and
themes from all knowledge domains is the emphasis of integration.

Most curriculum leaders and educators manage to excessively emphasize

integration encouraging an interdisciplinary curriculum, particularly a
curriculum that would not be considered as a standard curriculum content.
Thus, curriculum integration is not simply a design dimension but also a
way of thinking about schools' commitment, curriculum sources, and the
nature and uses of knowledge.

Supporters of curriculum integration do not support a multidisciplinary

curriculum. They believed, that knowledge is still artificially
compartmentalized. These supporters claim that the curriculum should be
organized within world themes developed from a real-life affair; a
boundary between the subject content of different disciplines should be
removed.

Naturally, some integration is needed. Hilda Taba, in the year 1960s, cited
out that the curriculum was disjointed, fragmented, segmented, and
detached from reality. She mentioned that a curriculum that presents
information only in bits and pieces prevents students from seeing
knowledge as unified.

The movements like postmodernism, constructionism, and post-

structuralism will nurture continued discussion of curriculum integration.
They advance the idea that knowledge cannot be split up from its reality;
people cannot detach themselves from their explorations, and the
curriculum cannot exist as separate fragments.

Articulation

Articulation refers to the smooth flow of the curriculum on both vertical

and horizontal dimensions, it is the ways in which curriculum components
occurring later in a program's sequence relate to those occurring earlier.
For example, a teacher might design a statistics course so that it relates
statistics concepts to key concepts presented in financial literacy course.
Vertical articulation usually suggests the sequencing of content from one
grade level to another. Said articulation guarantees that students obtain
the needed preparation for coursework. Horizontal articulation (other
called correlation) usually is the association among simultaneous
elements, as when curriculum designers create relationships between
eight-grade mathematics and eighth-grade social studies.

To engage in horizontal articulation, curriculum workers seek to combine

contents in one portion of the educational program with contents similar
in rationality or subject matter. For example, curricular worker might
relate statistics and scientific thinking. Most of the present emphasis on
integrating the curriculum is the labor of horizontal articulation. This
quality of curriculum design is difficult to achieve, only few schools have
created procedures by which interconnections among subjects are clearly
stated.

Moreover, articulation within school is sometimes difficult to achieve and

even from one school to another. It is because sometimes, students who
are new to a school are retaught material they learned in their previous
school at a lower grade level, or they fail a particular concept or topic
because it was lectured in a lower grade at their new school.

Balance

In designing a curriculum, educators attempt to provide necessary weight

to each part of the design. Therefore, in a balance curriculum, students
must obtain and use knowledge in ways that progress their personal,
social and intellectual goals.

Doll states that achieving balance is difficult because we are striving to

localize and individualize the curriculum while trying to maintain a
common content. Having a balanced CUrricu1um involves constant
modification as well as balance in one's philosophy and psychology of
learning. See Curriculum Tips on the next page.

Curriculum TIPS

Guidelines for Curriculum Design

The following statements identify some steps that can be taken in designing a

curriculum. These statements, drawn from observations of school practice, are applicable to whatever design
is selected.

v Create a curriculum design committee comprising teachers, parents, community members, administrators,
and, if appropriate, students.
v Create a schedule for meetings to make curriculum-design decisions.

v Gather data about educational issues and suggested solutions.

v Process data on available curriculum designs, and compare designs with regard to advantages and
disadvantages such as cost, scheduling, class size, student population characteristics, students' academic
strengths, adequacy of learning environments, and match with existing curricula. Also assess whether the
community is likely to accept the design.

v Schedule time for reflection on the design.

v Schedule time for revision of the design.

v Explain the design to educational colleagues, community members, and if

appropriate, students.

TYPES OF CURRICULUM DESIGNS

The curriculum components can be arranged in various ways. But, in spite

all the discussion about postmodern beliefs of knowledge and making
curricula for social awareness and freedom, most curriculum designs are
interpretations or versions of three basic designs. They subject-centered
designs, (2) learner-centered designs, and (3) problem-centered designs.
Each category comprises several examples as cited in the chart below.

Subject-centered Designs Learner-centered Designs Problem-centered Designs

Subject Design Child-centered Design Life Situation Designs
Discipline Design Experience-centered Design Social Problem/Reconstructionist
Design
Broad Field Design Romantic/Radical Design
Correlation Design Humanistic Design
Process Design

Subject-Centered Designs

Among the curriculum designs, the most popular and widely used is the
subject centered designs. Its knowledge and content are well accepted as
integral parts of the curriculum and it has the most classifications.
Concepts dominant to a culture are mostly emphasized than weak ones.
Content is central to schooling in our culture, thus, we have many
concepts to interpret for our society.

1. Subject Design
The oldest and best-known school design to both teachers and laypeople
is the subject design. Mostly our teachers and layperson are educated and
trained in schools using it.

It is also highlighted because of the constant pressure on school standards

and accountability.

Henry Morrison was the early spokesperson for the subject curriculum, he
was the superintendent of public instruction in New Hampshire and later
joined the University of Chicago. Morrison claimed that the subject matter
curriculum aimed most to literacy, and therefore should be the focus of
the elementary curriculum. He further cited that such design permitted
secondary students to create interest and competencies in specific
subject areas. Still, he assumed that different courses should be offered to
meet students' needs.

While in the mid-1930s, Robert Hutchins indicated which subjects such a

curriculum design would comprise a school (1) language and its uses
(reading, writing, grammar, literature), (2) mathematics, (3) sciences, (4)
history, and (5) foreign languages.

The curriculum is organized according to how essential knowledge has

developed in various subject areas in the subject matter design. With the
knowledge explosion and the resulting specializations in various fields of
study, subject divisions are made as to culture, political science,
economics, and history. Then English can be divided into literature,
writing, speech, reading, linguistics, and grammar.

Said design rests on the idea that subjects are best outlined in textbooks.
It is the teacher who normally assumes the active role in lecturing, direct
instruction, recitation, and large group dialogue. Mostly, discussion
proceeds from simple to complex idea. Reasoning is emphasized.

Supporters of this design uphold the importance of verbal activities,

claiming that knowledge and ideas are best communicated and stored in
verbal form. They are also aware that the subject design introduces
students to fundamental knowledge of society. Moreover,this design is
easy to present because complementary textbooks and support materials
are commercially available.

Opponents, conversely. challenge that the subject design blocks program

individualization and de-emphasizes the leaner. They further claim that
this design disempowers students by not allowing them to choose the
content most meaningful for them.

They also argue that the curricular content is presented without

consideration of context. Other opponents challenge that highlighting
subject matter neglects to foster social psychological, and physical
development and to some extent promotes an intellectual elite.
Another weakness of the subject design is that learning tends to be
grouped and mnemonic skills tend to be emphasized. The subject design
emphasizes content and disregards students’ needs, interest and
experiences. Thus. teachers tend to foster student passivity, in delivering
the curriculum.

For Dewey, he was interested in divorcing knowledge from the learner's

experiences and essentially transmitting secondhand knowledge and
others' ideas. For Dewey, the curriculum should emphasize both subject
matter and the learner.

2. Discipline Design

This new design acquired popularity during the 1950s and reached its
peak during the mid l960s. The basis of this discipline design is with
contents' inherent organization. On the other hand, the subject design
does not make clear initial basis on which it is organized or established.
the discipline design's orientation does specify its focus on the academic
disciplines.

Proponents of this design Arthur King and John Brownell point out that
a discipline is specific knowledge that has the following important
characteristics: a community of persons. an expression of human
imagination, a domain, a tradition, a mode of inquiry, a conceptual
structure, specialized language, a heritage of literature. a network of
communications, a valuative and affective stance, and an instructive
community.

The disciplined knowledge emphasizes science, mathematics. English,

history, and some other disciplines. There is the idea that the school is a
microcosm of the world of intellect reflected by such disciplines. The
scholars' method in studying the content of this field indicate the ways in
which students learn that content. This simply means students would
perform mathematics as a neophyte mathematician. and students would
approach history topics by following used by historians.

Followers of the discipline design emphasize understanding the

conceptual structure and processes of the disciplines. Probably it is the
most important difference between the discipline design and the subject-
matter design. In the subject-matter design, students considered to have
learned if they simply acquire information; while in the discipline design,
students experience the disciplines so that they can understand and
theorize. Sometimes it is difficult to determine whether a classroom has a
subject-matter or discipline design. The major distinguishing characteristic
seems to be whether students actually use some of the discipline's
methods process information

This design encourages students to see each discipline's basic logic or

structure—the main relationships in concepts. and principles—what Joseph
Schwab called the ' 'substantive structure” and Philip Phenix called
"realms of meaning." Said structure means to allow a "deep"
understanding of the content and knowledge of how it can be applied
Harry Broudy named such knowledge as (e.g. problem-solving
procedures) "applicative knowledge

3. Broad-Fields Design

This design is also known to others as the interdisciplinary design. This is

another type of the Subject-centered design. Many educators decided to
correct the division and classifications caused by the subject design which
is limiting. Designers of this discipline tried to give students a
comprehensive understanding of all the content areas. Educators made an
effort to integrate content that match together soundly. They fused
subjects in social studies like: History, sociology, anthropology, political
science, economics and geography. Chemistry and physics were fit into
general science. While linguistics, grammar, literature and were carved
into language arts.

It can be seen that the view for the broad-fields was noble and easy.
Educators can simply combine two or more related subjects, presently
familiar in the school, into a single broader field of study. It is then, that
the design was transformed from traditional subject patterns Though this
design takes part in the college level in the early of 20th century. it
became most prevalent at the elementary and secondary levels. Now in
our time. this design is used only in the Introductory course in college
level, and widely used within the K-12 curriculum.

Same with other designs, this design has its weaknesses. First and
foremost, is breadth at the price of depth. Definitely, a year of history
makes more historical knowledge than a year of social studies. We can
also ask question like; Is it necessary to have a great depth at the
elementary level? Is it not the purpose of the curriculum to familiarize
students with the complete field of social science?

The issue of depth is even more vital when one magnifies the broad-fields
design to an integrated curriculum design. A question is, how much depth
will students get following or structuring webs of related concepts? And
then, how much depth can one achieve in history by following the theme
from ancient to modern age? It can be stated that the philosophies of
school and educators will guide their responses.

4. Correlational Design
Some innovative curriculum leaders began searching their way not to
create a broad-fields design and recognize there are time when separate
subjects require connection to avoid fragmentation or division of its
curricular content. Halfway between separate subjects and total content
integration, was born the correlation design which attempts to identify
ways in which subjects can be linked yet maintain their own identities.

Perhaps the most frequently correlated subjects are English literature and
history at the secondary level and language arts and social studies at the
elementary level. Upon studying a historical period, students read novels
related to the same period in their English class. Then, mathematics
courses and science are also frequently correlated, a good example of this
is a chemistry subject which may have a unit in math that deals with the
mathematics required to conduct an experiment. Therefore, the content
areas retain their characteristics, and the teachers of these courses
maintain their subject-matter specialties.

At present, few teachers use correlation design, maybe because it

compels them to plan lessons cooperatively. At the elementary level,
teachers will somehow find this difficult to accomplish because they have
self-contained classes and often do not have time for such collaboration.
While teachers in the secondary level are organized into separate
departments tend to encourage isolation. They also meet time schedules
imposed by specific classes and so teachers have little time to work with
other teachers on team teaching.

5. Process Designs

In previous topics, consideration is often given to the procedures and

processes by Which individuals achieve knowledge. As mentioned,
students studying biology learn methods for dealing with biological
knowledge, students in history classes learn the ways of historiography.

However, proponents of the disciplines design advise students to learn

process, while other educators are proposing curricular designs that
emphasize the learning of general procedures applicable to all disciplines.
Curricula for teaching critical thinking demonstrate this procedural design.

The responsibility of educators for their students is to teach them "how to

think." To address this, curricular designs must develop learners on how
to learn the application of process to subject matter. "The good thinker,
processing a spirit of inquiry, a desire to pose questions vital to the world.
The good thinker considers the world, actual and desired, inquiring things
valued and desired." Process designs focus on the student as meaning
maker.

This design stresses those procedures that allow students to analyze

reality and construct frameworks different from the way the world appears
to the casual viewer. A lot of discussion has ensued as regards to
involving students in their learning and empowering them to be the vital
players in the classroom. However. a lot of debate needs to be addressed
as to the nature of the process to be highlighted. Certain postmodernists
challenge the process designs that favor the scientific methods of inquiry
resulting in a world that, to some point, they build.

This design reveals a modern orientation, the process of knowledge

acquisition which needs to learned by the students. for them to reach a
certain degree of consensus. While Jean Francois Lyotard and other
people claimed that we must be involved in a process not to reach
unanimity but to search for variability. Postmodern process design
highlights statements and that are open to argument, designs are
organized so that students can repeatedly review their understandings.

In this postmodern process-design, it motivates students to unravel the

processes by which they examine and reach conclusions. They need to
study their information-processing methods in order to gain visions into
how knowledge is produced. This postmodern process design highlights
the role of language in building as well as signifying reality. Process
designs the most active in the future. It is quite likely that they will
increasingly merge with designs known as learner-centered.

Learner-Centered Designs

All curricular leaders desire to develop a curriculum significant to

students. With this, those educators in the early 1990s stated that
students are the program's emphasis. Progressive proponents have come
to be called learner-centered designs. These designs are realized more
often at the elementary level than in the secondary. In elementary
schools, teachers manage to highlight the whole child. While in the
secondary level, the stress is more on subject-centered designs, mainly
because of the influence of textbooks and the colleges and universities at
which the discipline is a foremost planner for the curriculum.

1. Child-Centered Design

Proponents of this design believe that students must be enthusiastic in

their learning environments and that learning should not be detached
from students' lives which is mostly in the paradigm of the subject-
centered designs. As an alternative, the design should be centered on
students' lives, needs, and interests.

From Arthur Ellis, he said that "attending to students' needs and interest
requires careful observation of students and faith that they can articulate
those needs and interests. Also, young students' interests must have
educational value."

As discussed in the book of Ornstein and Hunkins, 2009, people with this
view consider knowledge as an outgrowth of personal experience. People
use knowledge to advance their goals and construct it from their
interactions with their world. Learners actively construct their own
understandings. Learning is not the passive reception of information from
an authority. Students must have classroom opportunities to explore
firsthand physical, social, emotional, and logical knowledge. This view has
a long history. John Locke, noted that individuals construct bodies of
knowledge from a foundation of simple ideas derived from their
experiences. Immanuel Kant postulated that aspects of our knowledge
result from our cognitive actions; we construct our universe to have
certain properties. The shift in emphasis from subject matter to children's
needs and interest was part of what Rousseau believed that children
should be taught within the context of their natural environment, not in an
artificial one like a classroom. Teaching must suit a child's developmental
level.

Advocates of child-centered design draw on the thinking of some other

pedagogical giants like Henrich Pestalozzi and Friedrich Froebel, who
claimed that children would achieve self-realization through social
participation, which they expressed as the principle of learning by doing.
They used the social approach to education which provided the foundation
for much of Francis Parker's work. With this, he disputed that effective
education did not call tor strict discipline. Instead, attaining the child's
innate tendency to become involved in exciting things is in the
institutional approach that is somewhat free.

Teacher who involved children in discussion would find that they could
efficiently participate in their own learning. Parker set his understandings
of teaching into practice in creating the curricula of science and
geography. He debated geography teachers enable children to experience
the content as geographer out in the field by making observations,
recording them in sketchbooks. and analyzing them. This approach to
curriculum was called Quincy system, the name of the place where
Parker was a school superintendent in Quincy, Massachusetts.

This design is mostly employed in our schools today. But. Jon Goodlad and
Zhixin Su described that these designs are often found to contradict a
view of curriculum as primarily content-driven. With these, some
curriculum leaders attempt to have more educators accept, child-centered
design by way of negotiated curriculum, consists of student-teacher
negotiations concerning what content will address what interests. This
gives students opportunities to create their own curricula and learning.

2.Experience-Centered Design

This design closely look like child-centered design for which children's
concern are the source for shaping children's school world. But. its
difference from child-centered design, that children's needs and interests
cannot be planned for all children.
The view that a curriculum cannot be predesigned. that the thing must be
prepared "on the spot" as a teacher responds to each child, makes
experience - centered almost hopeless to implement. It also disregards
the huge amount of information accessible children's growth and
development-cognitive, affective, emotional, and social.

Supporters of child or experience-centered curriculum seriously highlights

the interest, creativity, and self-direction. In this design, the teacher's role
is to build inspiring learning environments in which students can explore,
come into direct contact with knowledge, and observe others' learning
and actions. The social activity for this design is the child's learning.

Dewey commented that children's impulsive power, their demand for

cannot be suppressed. For him, interest was purposeful. In Experience and
Education• wrote that education should commence with the experience
learners already possessed they entered school. Experience was
essentially the starting point for all further

Moreover, he stated that children exist in a personal world of experiences

and their interests are personal concerns, rather than bodies of knowledge
and their attendant facts, concepts, generalizations, and theories.

Therefore, Dewey never supported building children's interests in the

curriculum or placing children in the role of curriculum makers. He pointed
out, "The easy thing is to seize upon something in the nature of the child,
or upon something in the developed consciousness of the adult, and insist
upon that as the key to the whole problem."

For Dewey, educators must analyze children's experiences and see how
these experiences formed children's knowledge. As for starting points,
areas where the child's natural interests could be connected to formalized
knowledge. This is why Dewey required educators to think of the child's
experiences as fluid and dynamic. Hence, the curriculum would
frequently change to focus on students' needs. Dewey was satisfied that
the subjects studied in the curriculum are formalized learning originated
from children's experiences. The content is methodically planned as a
result of careful consideration.

Endorsers of experience-centered curriculum design have confidence in

each student's uniqueness and skill. They trust that an open, free school
environment will motivate all students to shine. Research already proved
that students in best school environments are self-motivated. With it, the
educators' role is to give opportunities, not to command certain actions.
Thomas Armstrong expresses creating a friendly classroom environment,
one that radiates a joyful atmosphere and capitalizes on students' natural
character to learn. This environment rejoices students' freedom to choose;
does not require students to think and study in specific ways in order to
succeed. This does not mean that students are abandoned to wander in
their academic efforts. It simply means the teacher who has designed an
experience-centered curriculum has designed possible experiences for
students to reflect. Students are authorized to shape their own learning
within the context provided by the teacher.

3. Romantic (Radical) Design

In recent time, crusaders who support radical school modification have

highlighted learner-centered design. These followers basically follow
Rosseau's position on the value of attending to the nature of individuals
and Pestalozzi's philosophy that individuals can find their true selves by
looking to their own nature. While their thought seems progressive, they
describe primarily on the opinions of more recent philosophers: Paulo
Freire, a radical Brazilian educator and Jurgen Habermas, a German
philosopher.

Normally, the radicals reflect current society as corrupt, suppressive, and

powerless to remedy itself. For them, schools are using their curricula to
indoctrinate and then control Students rather than to educate and liberate
them. They further express that curricula are Organized to foster in
students a belief in and desire tor a common culture that does not
actually exist but merely promote prejudice.

The thinking of some present-day radicals was influenced by Freire's

teaching. believes that education should inform the masses about their
oppression, provoke them to feel dissatisfied with their condition, and give
them the skills necessary for correcting the identified injustices.

Curricular leaders who supports radical views consider that individuals

must learn ways of involvement in an analysis of knowledge. Learning is
reflective, it is not externally inflicted by someone in power. Knowledge
does not reside in a unit plan or course syllabus.

Explained by Ornstein and Hunkins in their book Curriculum, Foundations,

Principles and Issues, that perhaps the biggest difference between
mainstream educators and radicals is that radicals view society as deeply
flawed and believe that education indoctrinates students to serve
controlling groups. For example, schools neglect to incorporate into the
curriculum issues and problems related to race and gender relations, the
environment (both social and natural), crime and violence, and economic
imperialism. Many radicals view the Western intellectual tradition, and its
standard curricula, as imperialistic and oppressive (e.g. with regard to
women). Curricula with a radical design address social and economic
inequality and injustice and foster respect for diversity. They are overtly
political.

4. Humanistic Design

This design gained prominence in the 1960s and '70s. But as early as the
1920s and '30s this design appeared as part of progressive philosophy and
the whole-child movement In psychology. After World War Il, humanistic
design linked to existentialism in educational philosophy.

This new psychological orientation stressed that human action was more
than a reaction to a stimulus, that meaning was more important than
methods, that the emphasis of considerati011 should be on the subjective
rather than objective nature of human existence, and that there is an
association between learning and feeling.

From this framework, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum

Development (ASCD) published its 1962 yearbook, Perceiving, Behaving,
Becoming. The characterized a new emphasis for education, an approach
to curricular design and delivery that would allow individuals to become
fully functioning persons.

In the yearbook of ASCLYs in 1977, they discussed that Feeling, Valuing,

and the Art of Growing are highlighted in the affective dimensions of
humanistic educational design and further stressed human potential. It
even recommended that educators must allow students to feel, value, and
grow.

Abraham Maslow's view of self-actualization was heavily influenced by

humanistic design. Maslow enumerated the characteristics of a self-
actualized person: ( l ) accepting of self. others, and nature; (2)
spontaneous, simple, and natural; (3) problem-oriented; (4) open to
experiences beyond the ordinary; (5) empathetic and sympathetic toward
the less fortunate; (6) sophisticated in interpersonal relations; (7) favoring
democratic decision making; and (8) possessing a philosophical sense of
humor. He stressed that people do not self-actualize until they are 40 or
older, but the process starts when they are students. Various educators
overlook this detail and think that their humanistic design will have
students achieve self-actualization as a finish product.

In Carl Roger's effort, he stated self-directed learning wherein students

draw on their own resources to develop self-understanding and guide their
own behavior. Moreover, in this design, educators should plan an
environment that inspire genuineness, empathy, and respect for self and
others. In this type of environment, students will naturally improve as a
fully functioning people as affirmed by Carl Roger.

Confluence idea became a part of humanistic education in the 1970s. This

stresses participation; it highlights power sharing, negotiation, and joint
responsibility. It gives emphasis to the whole person and the integration
of thinking, feeling, and acting. Thus, subject matter's relevance to
students' needs and lives is their focus.

This humanistic education also realizes that the cognitive, affective, and
psychomotor domains are interrelated and that a curriculum should
address these dimensions. Certain humanistic educators added the social
and spiritual domains in their curricula while others, produce curricula that
prioritize the uniqueness of the human personality but also the superiority
of individuality. For Phenix, such a curriculum shows reality as a “single
interconnected whole, and with it is a complete account of any entity that
would require the comprehension of every other entity."

For humanists, education should address pleasure and desire such as

aesthetic pleasure. Emphasizing natural and human-created beauty,
humanistic curriculum designs allow students to experience learning with
emotion, and wonder. Curricular content should elicit emotion as well as
thought. It should address not only the conceptual structures of
knowledge but also its implications. The curriculum design should allow
students to formulate a perceived individual and social good, and
encourage them to participate in a community

Even humanistic curricular design has great qualities, they also share
many of the weaknesses like the learner-centered design. For them
teachers must have a great skill and competence in dealing with
individuals. They also require teachers to have a complete change of
mindset because they value the social, emotional, and spiritual areas
more than the intellectual area. More often, available educational
materials are not suitable.

Table 4.2 The Curriculum Matrix

In designing a curriculum, keep in mind the various levels at which we can consider the
curriculum's content components. The following list of curriculum dimensions should assist
in considering content in-depth.

1. Consider the content's intellectual dimension. This is perhaps the curriculum's most
commonly thought of dimension. The content selected should stimulate students' intellectual
development.

2.Consider the content's emotional dimension. We know much less about this dimension,
but we are obtaining a better understanding of it as the affective domain of knowledge.

3.Consider the content's social dimension. The content selected should contribute to
student' social development and stress human relations.

4. Consider the content's physical dimension, commonly referred to as the psychomotor

domain of knowledge. Content should be selected to develop physical skills and allow
students to become more physically self-aware.

5. Consider the content's aesthetic dimension. People have an aesthetic dimension, yet we
currently have little knowledge of aesthetics' place in education.

6. Consider the content's transcendent or spiritual dimension, which most public

schools totally exclude from consideration. We tend to confuse this dimension with formal
religion. This content dimension does not directly relate to the rational. However, we need to
have content that causes students to reflect on the nature of their humanness and helps them
transcend tv current levels of knowledge and action.

Here are some of the criticisms of humanistic design: l) it fails to adequately consider the
consequences for learners; 2) its stress on human uniqueness conflicts with its stresses on
activities that all students experience: 3) it overemphasizes the individual, ignoring society's
needs; and 4) some critics accuse, that humanistic design does not incorporate insight from
behaviorism and cognitive developmental theory.

Problem-centered Designs

This third major type of curriculum design concentrates on real-life

problems of individuals and society which is based on social issues.
Problem-centered curriculum designs are planned to strengthen cultural
traditions and address unmet needs of the community and society.

This design places the individual within a social setting, but its main
difference from learner-centered design is that they plan before the
students' arrival (while they can then be adjusted to students' concerns,
and situations).

In the problem-centered design, its curricular organization depends in

large part on the nature of the problems to be reviewed while, its content
often extends beyond subject boundaries. Students’ needs, concerns and
abilities must also be addressed. This two-fold stress on both content and
learners' development differentiate problem-centered design from the
other major types of curriculum design.

Various types of problem-centered design differ in the levels to which they

emphasize social needs as opposed to individual needs. Like, l) some of
them focus on persistent life situations; 2) others center on contemporary
social problems; 3) some address areas of living; 4) others are concerned
with reconstructing society.

1. Life-Situations Design

This curriculum design can be traced back to the nineteenth century and
Herbert Spencer's writings on a curriculum for complete living. Spencer's
curriculum stressed activities that (l) sustain life, (2) enhance life, (3) aid
in rearing children, (4) maintain the individual's social and political
relations, and (5) enhance leisure, tasks, and feelings. From these, the
Commission on the Reorganization of Secondary Education, of the United
States, sponsored by the National Education Association, recommended
this design in 1918. The commission Outlined a curriculum that would deal
with health, command of fundamentals, "worthy home membership,
"vocation, citizenship, leisure, and ethical character.

Three rules are fundamental to life-situations design: ( l ) dealing with

persistent life situations is crucial to a society's successful functioning,
and it makes educational sense to organize a curriculum around them; (2)
students will see the relevance of content If it IS Organized around
aspects of community life; and (3) having students study social or lite
situations will directly involve them in improving society

The strength of this design is its focus on problem-solving procedures.

Process and content are successfully integrated into curricular experience.
Some opponents resist that the Students do not learn much subject
matter. Nevertheless, proponents affirm that lite-situations design draws
heavily from traditional content. The uniqueness of the design is that the
content is Organized in ways that allow students to clearly view problem
areas.

The additional strength of this design is that it uses learners' past and
present experiences to get them to examine the basic aspects of living. In
this regard the design considerably differs from experience-centered
design, in which learners' felt needs and interests are the sole basis for
content and experience selection while the life-situations design takes
students, existing concerns as well as society’s pressing problems, as a
starting point. It also integrates subject matter cutting across separate
subjects and centering on related categories of social life. It motivates
students to learn and apply problem-solving procedures. Connecting
subject matter to real situations increases the curriculum's relevance.

Yet, it is Interesting to determine the scope and sequence of living's vital

aspects. Are major activities of today going to be vital activities in the
future?

Some opponents of this design believe that life-situations design does not
sufficiently expose students to their cultural heritage. Besides, it tends to
train youth to accept existing conditions and thus preserve the social
status quo. However, if students are educated to be critical of their social
situations. they will intelligently assess, rather than blindly follow the
status quo.

Other opponents resist that teachers lack sufficient preparation to mount

life situations curriculum. Others claim that textbooks and other teaching
materials prevent the implementation of such a curriculum. Hence, many
teachers have difficulty with life. situations design because it differs too
much from their training. Lastly, life-situations organization differs from
the traditional curriculum endorsed by secondary schools’ colleges, and
universities.

2. Reconstructionist Design
Educators who support this design feel that the curriculum should
promote social action aimed at reconstructing society; it should promote
society's social, political; and economic development. Educators want to
emphasize social justice to its curricula.

The features of this design first appeared in the 1920s and '30s. It was
George Counts who considered society to be totally reorganized to
promote the common good. For him, the times required a new social
order, and schools should play a major role in such redesign He also
presented some of his thinking in a speech entitled "Dare Progressive
Education be Progressive?" He challenged the Progressive Education
Association to broaden its thinking beyond the current social structure and
accused its members of advocating only curricula that perpetuated
middle-class dominance and privilege. Counts expanded on his call for a
reconstructed society in Dare the Schools Build a New Social Order? He
argued that should involve students in creating a more equitable society.

Harold Rugg also believed that schools should engage children in critical
analysis of society in order to improve it. He criticized child-centered
schools, opposing that their laissez-faire approach to curriculum
development produced a confusion of disjoined curriculum and rarely
involved a careful review of a child's educational program.

For Theodore Brameld. who advocated reconstructionism well into the

1950s, claimed that reconstructionists were committed to facilitating the
emergence of a new culture. He also believed that times required a new
social order, existing society displayed decay, poverty. crime, racial
conflict. unemployment, political oppression, and the destruction of the
environment. His argument certainly remains relevant. Moreover, he
stated that schools should help students develop into social beings
dedicated to the common good.

The major purpose of the social reconstructionist curriculum is to involve

students in critical examination of the local. national, and international
community in order to address humanity's problems. Careful
consideration is given to the political practices of business and
government groups and their impact on the workforce. Therefore, it
encourages curriculum changes in industrial and political system.