Assignment 1 – The Ideal Curriculum
Assignment 1 – The Ideal Curriculum4141EBL – Curriculum Developmentcourse Convenor: Prof. Stephen BilletSubmitted by: David MartinStudent #2636349s2636349@student.griffith.edu.auDate Submitted: 15 September 2008An ideal curriculum is a much contested idea with no single, clear definition. A curriculum is often thought of as an official document that contains all the necessary information to run an education qualification, program or course CITATION Sch02 \p 3 \l 1033 (Schugurensky, 2002, p. 3). While the curriculum document will have multiple influences on deciding what is intended to occur and be used, what is actually implemented will have a great effect on the actual experience. It will be shown that the implemented and experienced curriculums are as real and important as the intended curriculum, also having multiple factors and stakeholders having influence. By being aware of the underlying theories, possible consequences and being able to actively reflect on experiences, an ideal curriculum can be brought about.National competencies in the content area of business technology and office skills will be used as the context to argue for an ideal curriculum. The competencies are delivered as part of a nationally recognised qualification at certificate and diploma levels in a TAFE institute. Therefore, a top down approach to indented curriculum will be used to discuss what kind of intents are to be used and how they can be developed, along with recognition of the transformation that will occur when it is implemented. How the curriculum is experienced is then evaluated as part of a cyclical and reflective improvement process. This will show how this view of curriculum is as ideal as the complexity and contention of the situation allows.Concept of curriculum as something intendedA simple statement such as “a curriculum is a definition of what is to be learned” CITATION Ros99 \p 8 \l 1033 (Ross, 1999, p. 8) defies the complex nature of curriculum which needs to be clear and organised but at the same time flexible enough to cater with the diverse situations that arise in a learning environment CITATION Ski84 \p 1 \l 1033 (Skilbeck, 1984, p. 1). These definitions describe the curriculum as something intended and allow all involved in the education process be aware of the targets or goals of a learning program.There are many stakeholders in vocational education. First, it requires the input of industry to create the ideal curriculum and does so in many ways. In Australia, industry has representatives across government, boards and committees that advocate the current and predicted future skills and attitude requirements in the workplace and therefore “industry defines the skills needed for people for work” CITATION Aus08 \p 3 \l 1033 (Australian National Training Authority, p. 3). The amount of influence has often depended on economic conditions of the time; recently in Australia industry has increased its influence over the intended curriculum in many ways, including reforming vocational education in schools CITATION Ski84 \p 4-5 \l 1033 (Skilbeck, 1984, pp. 4-5) and is turning the vocational system towards their own needs. In the business technology area there are changes happening in the workplace that need to be reflected in the ideal curriculum. Industry is likely to give valuable input on trends, technology type, usage and skills required to use this technology. However, the needs and wants of industry are contested by other stakeholders, including government.Because the government provides funding for vocational education, various agencies demand a high level of input into the design and intended implementation of curriculum. Vocational education in Australia, using competency based outcomes provides an intended curriculum by explicitly determining what is intended by the sponsors and developers. The national framework defines principles of training, and therefore principles of curriculum that need to be adhered to for a course to be nationally recognised and accredited CITATION Mic97 \p 5 \l 1033 (Tovey, 1997, p. 5). The intended curriculum for vocational education is provided in the form of a national set of competencies grouped into different industries. There are clearly stated goals that show what skills and knowledge the students are intended to obtain through training. The National Training System is designed to provide “skills needed to enter the workforce for the first time, to re-enter the workforce, to retrain for a new job, to upgrade skills for an existing job, and to learn throughout their lives” CITATION The08 \l 1033 (The National Training System). While some teacher representation is present on industry and governmental boards, it seems there is an aim to keep their input as low as possible in this stage of the curriculum, perhaps to counter the power they have in the classroom, as will be shown with the implemented curriculum.Regardless of the powers and processes in creating the curriculum, an intended curriculum is what is shown in official documents CITATION Sch02 \p 3 \l 1033 (Schugurensky, 2002, p. 3) and needs to contain several elements to be successful. It requires aims, goals and objectives to be explicitly stated. Aims are “broadly phrased statements of educational intent” CITATION Mur87 \p 93 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, p. 93), goals are precisely worded using non-technical language CITATION Mur87 \p 93 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, p. 93) and objectives are specific statements of intent “expressed in terms of changed learner behaviour” CITATION Mur87 \p 93 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, p. 93). These need to be defined before the content is decided upon, providing a solid foundation and to provide direction towards learning activities CITATION Mur87 \p 92 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, p. 92). General course information, methods of delivery and assessment should also be included in a curriculum document CITATION Mic97 \p 118-119 \l 1033 (Tovey, 1997, pp. 118-119). This information will start to form what and how curriculum will be enacted in learning organisations.Enacting the curriculuMAn intended curriculum, as described in the previous section outlines many details. However, an ideal curriculum will not intentionally determine the way the curriculum is enacted. This allows other stakeholders, especially teachers, to interpret and implement curriculum in the local context. This will determine what content will be included and how that content will be delivered to students in order to attain the goals, aims and objectives that were stated in the intended curriculum.There are likely to be differences between what is intended and what is enacted. Curriculum cannot be considered just as the prescribed content, but needs to consider “the nature and impact of different curricula” CITATION Sch02 \p 2 \l 1033 (Schugurensky, 2002, p. 2). The curriculum that is taught in the classroom is different from what was initially intended, which can occur for a number of reasons. Sometimes the differences can simply be a teacher’s personal approach to a topic CITATION Sch02 \p 3 \l 1033 (Schugurensky, 2002, p. 3). However, in some situations this is not appropriate, for example where safety is a paramount concern work instructions or training methods need to be followed correctly and exactly to ensure the safety of the trainees CITATION Mul00 \l 1033 (Mulchay, 2000). While it is argued that only content which leads to attaining assessment criteria should be included in the course materials CITATION Mic97 \p 123 \l 1033 (Tovey, 1997, p. 123), teachers input into the enacted curriculum is vital to ensure that local and up to date content is included to meet the overall aims and objectives.The amount and type of resources available will also have an effect on how the curriculum is enacted. It is important to remember that “delivery methods are only helpful if they contribute to the achievement of the learning outcomes” CITATION Mic97 \p 127 \l 1033 (Tovey, 1997, p. 127). This supports the need to counteract the overwhelming push for technology based solutions, which teachers can do by using a deliberate approach to using innovations that recognises the centrality of the teacher’s practical knowledge CITATION Wil08 \p 47 \l 1033 (Reynolds & Webber, 2008, p. 47). Delivery plans and class session records are examples of documentation available for the enacted curriculum. These documents are based on the intended curriculum, but have been interpreted and often expanded for local conditions and specific organisational requirements. These interpretations and implementations will have a direct affect on how the curriculum will be experienced.Experiencing the CurriculumThe literal translation of curriculum as a “course of life” offers the opportunity to give students not only a vocational experience, but a social education as well. This is another area of contention, industry has a set of skills and attitudes that are considered ideal for their workers which may be very different from what proponents of social justice would consider important. In the previous sections it was show that a curriculum is something planned by various parties and then implemented by organisations and teachers. What the learner experiences is affected by more than just these factors; their own experiences with previous education, motivation and even current personal issues. Evaluation needs to be done to ensure that students are meeting the aims and objectives of the curriculum. Further, evaluation needs to be done on the curriculum itself; are the experiences of the student in line with the intended curriculum and is the enacted curriculum capable of helping students achieving the outcomes. While this is part of a cyclical process of curriculum development, systems that focus on controls through measures of accountability and standards tend to focus on efficiency and therefore rationalise social needs within the context of what is best for the current economic climate CITATION Wil08 \p 48 \l 1033 (Reynolds & Webber, 2008, p. 48). This is not always a bad thing, economic climates are cyclical and social wellbeing can often be tied to economic wellbeing. However, the ideal curriculum should be experienced for more than economic and industrial needs only. The ideal curriculum requires moderation by social, political and economic requirements of the wider society CITATION Ski84 \p 9 \l 1033 (Skilbeck, 1984, p. 9). This is often experienced in the form of the hidden curriculum, which refers to processes and outcomes that are not explicitly intended or stated in the intended curriculum documents CITATION Mur87 \p 5 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, p. 5). An ideal curriculum could attempt to harness the hidden curriculum by making it explicit and using positive social and multicultural reinforcement. Why is this concept of curriculum ideal?For whom must the curriculum be ideal; is the ideal curriculum for industry different to the ideal curriculum for the student? Society as a whole must also be considered. This means there is no one ideal curriculum; it must be constantly updated and changed to reflect the ever changing needs of all the stakeholders and society as a whole. There is contention within the processes of creating, implementing and reviewing curriculum as something that is intended, enacted and experienced. In many ways this contention causes a cycle of continuous change, which is necessary. Work patterns and requirements and therefore educational requirements reflect the needs of current economic, social and political climates and will therefore change over time. There are several models of curriculum development; rational models use a logical and sequential structure, creating objectives that lead to other elements and evaluation of those objectives being met while cyclical models are more responsive to changing needs and consider the interrelationship and interdependence of different elements of the curriculum CITATION Mur87 \p 20-27 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, pp. 20-27). The ideal curriculum must be a balance of these, the rational model provides part of the solid national framework which vocational education works in, yet the speed of change, especially in the business technology area requires the use of a cyclical evaluation and reflection for the curriculum to be current and relevant.The basic concepts and knowledge of what and who is involved in creating and maintaining an intended curriculum will assist teachers in implementing and being a vital part of the experience learners will have when participating in education. Teachers are becoming more involved with curriculum development and need to “bring conceptual considerations to their task” CITATION Mur87 \p 18 \l 1033 (Print, 1987, p. 18).Curriculum is a complex and multi-faceted concept which leads to comprehensive documentation that shows the intended outcomes and probable methods of reaching those outcomes. What is implemented often varies, or in some cases is not explicitly determined by the intended curriculum. The experiences that the curriculum provides are then tempered by the teacher, context and the students past and present attitudes and abilities. There is also a hidden curriculum which is made up of social, cultural and personal attitudes which can vary the experience. There is much contention over curriculum because of the number and variety of stakeholders and what aims they each have for the students engaged in curriculum. While there is no one ideal curriculum, an awareness of these concepts and how they fit together to create a learning environment will certainly improve the end result of vocational training.List of References BIBLIOGRAPHY Australian National Training Authority. (n.d.). Shaping our Future: Australia's National Strategy for VET 2004-2010. Retrieved August 2, 2008, from Department of Education, Employment and Worklpace Relations: , D. (2000). Turning the Contradictions of Competence: compency-based training and beyond. Journal of Vocational Education and Training , 52 (2), 259-280.Print, M. (1987). Curriculum Development and Design. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.Reynolds, W. M., & Webber, J. A. (2008). Expanding Curriculum Theory : Dis/Positions and Lines of Flight. Taylor and Francis e-Library.Ross, A. (1999). Curriculum : Construction and Critique. London: RoutledgeFalmer.Schugurensky, D. (2002). The eight curricula of multicultural citizenship education. Multicultural Education , 10 (1), 2-6.Skilbeck, M. (1984). School and Curriculum Decisions. School-Based Pretend Development. London: Harper & Row.The National Training System. (n.d.). Retrieved August 2, 2008, from Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations: , M. (1997). Training in Australia: design, delivery, evaluation, management. Frenchs Forest: Pearson Education Australia. ................
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