MODELS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
MODELS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
Meaning and Concept of Curriculum
The curriculum is the heart of schooling, the education process. Education and curriculum are two sides of the same coin.
While education is a process curriculum is a means to the process. While education deals with how and when, curriculum deals with what. While education is a product currciulum is the plan. All resources available at school ie. the school buildings,equipments,varieties of instructional materials like books, softwares and hardware exist for just one purpose - for supporting effective implementation of curriculum.
The entire set of educational activities the curricular,co-curricular and extra-curricular activiites as well as the organization of teaching - learning strategy and the evaluation schedule flow from the school curriculum.
The term curriculum means the total situation selected and made available to the teacher to operate and to translate the ultimate aim of education to reality. In general it is identified as a course of study or subject prescribed for a course. In reality it actually refers to the total learning experiences offered to the students in a school.
Meaning of "Curriculum Development"
The term "Curriculum Development" was used first by Saylor and Alexander in their work "Planning curriculum for schools" (1973) as interchangeable with 'Curriculum Planning'. According to them curriculum development refers to creation of relevant experiences and materials to be used by the teachers to bring about the desirable behaviroural changes in the students - they are the product of the curriculum planning. It involves the techniques and methods for developing , designing, implementing and evaluating and improving the curriculum. Briefly stated curriculum development involves curriculum construction and updating it periodically. So curriculum development is a continuous process.
Tyler's Model of Curriculum Development
Ralph Winfred Tyler's (1902 - 1994 ) eminent career in education
led to the valuable contributions to the policy and practising of schooling. His influence was greatly felt in the field of testing where he transformed the idea of measurement to a grander concept of evaluation; and in the field of curriculum he designed a rationale for curriculum planning which remains vital even today. He is one of the most prominent protagonist of the older view of curriculum whose "Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction"(1949) was a great landmark in curriculum theory.
Tyler's model is a simple linear approach suggesting four fundamental questions which he insiisted must be answered in connection with development of any curriculum plan of instruction.
- What educational purposes should the school seek to attain?
- What educational experiences can be provided that are likely to attain these purposes?
- How can these educational experiences be effectively organized?
- How can we determine whether these purposes are being attained?
1. Determining the purposes of the school: According to Tyler "purposes" are objectives. Firstly,curriculum planners should identify these general instructional objectives from three sources:
1. The subject-matter ( the world of knowledge)
2. The learners
3. The society from which the learner hails.
Secondly, after identifying numerous general instructional objectives the curriculum planner should refine them by filtering through two screen:
- the philosophy of the school
- the psychology of learning
Thirdly, through such screening, specific instructional objectives are identified.
2.Identify Educational edperiences related to the purposes : Curriculum planners should identify those learning experiences, which enable the learners to attain instructional objectives.
3. Organization of the selected educational experiences : Tyler's third principle emphasizes that curriculum planners should organize and sequence that curriculum planners should organize and sequence the learning experiences. The organization of ideas,concepts,values and skills should maximize meaningful instruction and learning.
4. Evaluation of the purposes:Tyler's last princple emphasizes that curriculum planners should find out whether learning experiences have actually produced the intended results. An evaluation should relate to all the chosen obectives. Evaluation determines whether the programme is effective or ineffective. Evaluation guides whether or where the programme should be maintained or modified.
Merits and Demerits of Tyler's Model
Merits : 1. One may accept Tyler's sequential steps on the basis of time and other operations involved in the processess.
2. This model strongly supports student-centered approach to learning.
3. It identified the four basic and significant components in curriculum development
4. It is a logical and sequential approach
Demerits : 1. It has been criticised that as being far too simple.
2. Also, leaving evaluation as the final stage of curriculum process.
3. It considers only the learning experiences and does not mention about the content.
Hilda Taba's Model
According to Hilda Taba(1962), curriculum development involves seven steps. They are :
1. Diagnosis of needs : The teacher / curriculum planner identifies the needs of the students.
2. Formulation of objectives : The teacher then, specifies the objectives on the basis of students' needs.
3. Selection of content : The teacher should select contents in accordance with the objectives. The contents should be valid and significant.
4. Organisation of content : The chosen contents must be sequenced in terms of the maturity of the learners, their academic achievement and their interests.
5. Selection of learning experiences : Contents must be presented to the learners through some instructional methodologies. Here, the students interact with the contents.
6. Organisation of learning activities : Learning activities are also sequenced in the same way as the contents have been organized.
7. Evaluation and means of evaluation : The curriculum planners must determine just what objectives have been achieved.
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