Assignment 1
Assignment 1
Assignment 1
Curriculum planning is the process of making decisions about what we learn and how to organize the teaching
and learning process. It involves the curriculum workers for example the teachers, parents, principals,
superintendents, school boards, etc. They are called as implementers of the curriculum. They need to know
how to design and develop curriculum and how to supervise and evaluate instruction in order to have a
successful curriculum planning.
5. What are the good characteristics of a good curriculum planner and why do we consider it as a
good?
The good characteristics of a good curriculum planner are:
The curriculum is based on the needs of the people.
The curriculum id democratically conceived.
The curriculum is the result f a long-term effort.
The curriculum provides for the logical sequence of subject matter.
The curriculum is a complex of details.
Therefore, no technology can ever replace a teacher; it will only support the multifaceted role of the teacher.
Thus, the complexity of teaching requires tremendous maturity, decision making in the implementation of any
curricular plan as in the choice of materials, methods or strategy of teaching and modes of evaluation.
3. What are the different factors that influence in the implementation of curriculum and discuss
each.
Curriculum Implementation Influence on Teachers
As Whitaker (1979) asserts that the teachers view their role in curriculum implementation as an autonomous
one. They select and decide what to teach from the prescribed syllabus or curriculum. Since implementation
takes place through the interaction of the learner and the planned learning opportunities, the role and influence
of the teacher in the process is indisputable.
Curriculum Implementation Influence on Learners
Learners are also a critical element in curriculum implementation. While teachers are the arbiters of the
classroom practice, the learners hold the key to what is actually transmitted and adopted from the official
curriculum. The official curriculum can be quite different from the curriculum that is actually implemented. The
learner factor influences teachers in their selection of learning experiences, hence the need to consider the
diverse characteristics of learners in curriculum implementation.
Curriculum Implementation Influence by Resource Materials and Facilities
From your experience, you are aware that no meaningful teaching and learning take place without adequate
resource materials. This applies to curriculum implementation as well. For the officially designed curriculum to
be fully implemented as per plan, the government or Ministry of Education should supply schools with
adequate resource materials such as textbooks, teaching aids and stationery in order to enable teachers and
learners to play their role satisfactorily in the curriculum implementation process.
Curriculum Implementation Influence on Interest of Groups
Can you identify interest groups in your country that could influence the implementation of curricula? A number
of these groups exist in almost all societies. These include parents, parents’ and teachers’ associations,
religious organizations, local authorities, companies and private school proprietors. These Groups can
influence implementation in the following ways:
Provide schools with financial resources to purchase required materials.
Demand the inclusion of certain subjects in the curriculum.
Influence learners to reject courses they consider detrimental to the interests of the group. It is therefore
important to involve these groups at the curriculum planning stage.
Curriculum Implementation Influence on the School Environment
One other factor that influences curriculum implementation concerns the particular circumstances of each
school. Schools located in rich socio-economic environments and those that have adequate human and
material resources can implement the curriculum to an extent that would be difficult or impossible for schools in
poor economic environments.
Curriculum Implementation Influence due to Culture and Ideology
Cultural and ideological differences within a society or country can also influence curriculum implementation.
Some communities may resist a domineering culture or government ideology and hence affect the
implementation of the centrally planned curriculum.
Curriculum Implementation Influence through Instructional Supervision
Curriculum implementation cannot be achieved unless it has been made possible through the supervisory
function of the school head. The head does this through:
- deploying staff
- allocating time to subjects taught at the school
- providing teaching and learning materials,
- creating an atmosphere conducive to effective teaching and learning
Curriculum Implementation Influence by Assessment
Assessment in the form of examinations influences curriculum implementation tremendously. Due to the great
value given to public examination certificates by communities and schools, teachers have tended to
concentrate on subjects that promote academic excellence and little else. This action by the teacher obviously
can affect the achievement of the broad goals and objectives of the curriculum.
The organizational members must have a clear understanding of the proposed innovation
Individuals within the organization must be given relevant skills so that they possess the capabilities requisite
for carrying out the innovation.
The necessary materials and equipment for the innovation must be furnished; the organizational
structure must be modified so that it is compatible with the innovation being suggested. The participants in the
innovation must be motivated to spend the required time and effort to make the innovation a success.
Linkage model
The 'linkage' model recognizes that there are innovators in research and development centers such as the
universities. Educators in the field sometimes however, find some attempts that are innovative and
inappropriate for solving the problems. What is therefore needed is a match between the problems and
innovations to establishment of linkages with the established research centers.
If we define curriculum as a set of skills and knowledge that the students are expected to achieve by the
end of a period of time then curriculum is important because it is a measureable standard that keeps students
and teachers accountable for their learning. If curriculum is defined as all the activities that take place within a
school then it is even more necessary. A particular course of study in say the native language of a particular
school system may have goals for students such as writing to inform or state an opinion on a topic.