CURRICULUM DESIGN

Unilus - lecture Notes

1.0 Objectives
Outline
2.0 Curriculum Planning and Curriculum Design

3.0 Curriculum Planning

4.0 Curriculum Design

5.0 Subject Centred Designs

7.0 Advantages of Subject-Centred Designs

8.0 Limitations of Subject-Centred Designs

9.0 Learner Centred Designs

10.0 Advantages and Disadvantages of Subject Centres Designs

11.0 Problem Centres Designs

12.0 Core Learning Designs

13.0 Main Steps in Designing Curriculum

14. Reflection
Objectives

 By the end of this unit you should be

able to:
 Distinguish between curriculum planning
and curriculum design
 Demonstrate an understanding of the
following designs:
 Subject-centred
 Learner –centred
 Problem-centred
 Core designs
Curriculum Planning and Curriculum Design
 In the previous units you have been looking at
theories and principles that govern curriculum
development and design.
 In this particular unit we would like you to have
an understanding of curriculum design by
examining the types of curriculum designs that
education systems may employ.
 Curriculum planning and design are essential
preliminary ingredients in the curriculum
development process.
 Before the detailed construction of a curriculum
document occurs, curriculum developers are
involved in planning and designing their
proposed curriculum.
 Curriculum Planning
 Curriculum planning is a process whereby
curriculum developers conceptualize and
organize the features of the curriculum they wish
to construct(Print, 1993).
 This involves a broad analysis of the curriculum
intent(what you wish to achieve),context
(environment) conceptualizing the curriculum’s
design (what it will look like), organizing the
sequencing of developmental tasks(how to
construct the curriculum and arranging for the
process of implementation and evaluation.
 This curriculum planning is an integral part of the
curriculum development process.
 Curriculum Design
 Curriculum design refers to the arranging of elements of curriculum
into a coherent pattern.
 An essential feature of any curriculum is the conceptualization and
organization of its various parts.
 These parts are known as curriculum elements and they are
essential building blocks of any curriculum.
 Unit one looked at curriculum elements
 By organizing curriculum elements in particular ways, different
designs emerge.
 Curriculum design usually takes place as part of the curriculum
planning process.
 That is early in the conceptualization of the curriculum decisions are
made about the nature and arrangement of the various elements.
 Thus, curriculum design refers to the interrelationships between all
curriculum elements.
 Designs based on problem solving, activities and learner-centred
approaches emphasize less the content and more of the other
curriculum elements.
 Zais (1976:16) defines curriculum design as “the
arrangement of components or elements of a
curriculum……..ordinarily, the components or
elements included in a curriculum are
• (i)aims, goals and objectives,
• (ii) subject matter or content,
• (iii) learning activities and
• (iv) evaluation…..
 Thus the nature of these elements and the pattern or
organization in which they are brought together as a
unified curriculum constitute the curriculum designs
 Patterns of Curriculum Design
 There are four identified patterns of
curriculum design. These are:

 Subject-centred designs

 Learner-centred designs

 Problem-centred designs

 Core-designs
 SUBJECT CENTRED DESIGNS
 This is the oldest and most common pattern of
curriculum design.
 The subject-centred design organizes the
curriculum according to specific subjects
representing a specialized body of knowledge or
content such as mathematics, English, history,
chemistry.
 Content considerations are the basis for
decisions about the horizontal and vertical
dimensions of the curriculum.
 Each subject is treated as a discrete area of the
curriculum.
 Advantages of Subject Centred Designs
 According to Taba(1992) the following are the advantages and limitations
of the subject-centred curriculum design:
 1. It is the most systematic and effective organization for acquainting
youth with the essentials of cultural heritage.
 2. The subjects constitute a logical and effective method of organizing
bodies of subject matter, students can learn most economically and
efficiently.
 3. The approach is based on tradition. Through long established
tradition, teachers and parents tend to support what they are familiar
with.
 4. Most teachers have been trained in subject curriculum, therefore,
understand it better.
 5. Curriculum planning, implementation and evaluation is easier in the
subject-centred design.
 6. The full intellectual powers of the student can be best developed
through the study of logically organized subject matter.
 Textbooks and other curriculum packages on the education market
tend to be organized to fit the established subject categories.
Limitations of the Subject Centred Design
 The design tends to fragment knowledge and therefore,
the students’ understanding of the content studies and
yet knowledge exists as an integral whole.
 Due to excessive compartmentalization of information
selected for inclusion in different subjects, there are
normally no relationships between subjects.
 It puts excessive emphasis on content, and tends to
ignore the interests, needs and experiences of the
students.
 The subject-centred curriculum is normally oriented
towards examinations that test memory rather than
higher mental abilities.
 What do you think of the discussed advantages and
limitations?
 Learner Centred Design
 Proponents of this design view society in democratic
terms and perceive individuals as being ‘naturally
good’.
 Hence learner centred designs emphasize individual
development and their approach to organizing the
curriculum emerges from the needs, abilities, past
experiences, interests and purposes of students.
 You should bear in mind that this design
recommends that while developing the curriculum in
any subject, the learner’s physical development
should be considered.
 The design puts a lot of emphasis on problem
solving and not on a body of content.
 As a result there are two essential differences
between this and the subject-centred designs.
 Learner Centred Design
 Learner centred designs take their organizational
cues from individual student needs rather than a
body of subject matter.
 Consequently, learner-centred designs usually leave
room for variations and are not as strictly preplanned
as other designs, for they evolve from teacher-
learner interaction in relation to learning tasks.
 More commonly, however, curriculum developers
have purposeful intentions which are learner
oriented and these may be modified later upon
interaction with learners.
 What are some of the advantages of the learner-
centred design?
 Advantages of the Learner Centred Design
 Learning is personalized, relevant and
meaningful when student needs, interests,
abilities and experiences direct it.
 Learners are intrinsically motivated
 Learning becomes an active process for the
students.
 Emphasis is upon development of individual
potential and interests and individual differences
are fully met.
 Process skills are developed.
 This enables learners to cope more adequately
with the demands of life.
Disadvantages of the Learner Centred
Design
 Some critics charge that such a design
does not adequately prepare learners for
life since it neglects social goals of
education and the cultural heritage of the
people.
 Learners experience a curriculum, which
does not assure learning of useful
content.
 Problems-Centred Design
 These curriculum designs direct learners to focus their
attention on, and attempt to resolve, problems of living that
are both individual and social in nature.
 As this is such an enormous task, considerable variations
in the nature of problems to be studied may be found.
 Themes might include persistent life situations,
contemporary social problems, and concerns of the youth,
major social functions and worldwide problems such as
peace, HIV/AIDS, environment and so forth.
 Generally a preplanned approach, the problem-centred
curriculum design seeks to provide learners with
opportunities to resolve problems they are likely to
encounter, or already are, in their life.
 Unlike the leaner centred designs, emphasis is placed on
group welfare, group activities and the group resolution of
problems
 Core Learning Design
 The notion behind a core design, usually
called a core curriculum, is that there
exists a set of common
learning(knowledge, skills and values)
that should be provided to all learners in
order for them to function effectively in
society.
 The core concept, however, does vary
considerably in interpretation and one
writer has suggested that it is possible to
distinguish no less than six forms of the
core design(Zais,1976:43-3).
 Core Curriculum Design
 For our purposes, it is sufficient to understand
that a curriculum may be organized around the
idea of a core as a set of learning essential for
all learners.
 The key issues in any core design for a
curriculum are:
 What should be included in the core
 How large should the core be, i.e. what
percentage of the total content within the
written curriculum? What should be excluded
from the core?
 Is a core required of all learners?
 Core Curriculum in Practice
 In most African countries core curriculum
refers to the group of subjects that all
students must study at a given level of
education.
 At high school for instance, subject in the
curriculum are categorized and learners
are required to take an approved
combination of courses consisting of
compulsory subjects and elective
subjects.
 Main Steps in Designing Curriculum
 Designing a curriculum is the most
important work of the curriculum specialist.
 In most African countries, the curriculum for
schools and colleges are developed at the
national level by curriculum development
and research centres, while that for the
universities is prepared by the institution
concerned.
 Designing a curriculum may be carried out
to develop anew curriculum when none
ever existed or to modify an existing
curriculum.
STEPS IN DEVELOPING A CURRICULUM
IN AFRICA
 Most curriculum experts in Anglophone Africa
design curriculum through a five step cyclic
sequence, namely:
 Selection of educational objectives
 Selection of learning experiences
 Selection of content
 Organization of learning experiences and
content; and
 Evaluation
 Each of these steps is discussed in detail in the
units that follow in the second course on
Curriculum Design
 REFLECTION
1. What is the distinction between
curriculum planning and curriculum
design.
2. Briefly describe the subject-centred
and learner centred curriculum
designs.
3. What are some of the advantages and
disadvantages of the two designs
mentioned in No. 2
4. What are the problem-centred and core
curriculum designs.