CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT SINCE 1900 - ASCD

CUR R ICUL UM DE V E L OPME NT

SINC E 1900

RALPH W. TYLER

T he locus of responsibility for curriculum development has changed considerably in the last 80 years. Prior to 1910, state educa tion authorities prepared and ap proved lists of subjects to be taught in public elementary schools in their states. In some states, this responsi bility was delegated to the education

States, school districts, and schools have

different responsibilities in the curriculum

High School C orricnlnm

The early high school curriculum was determined not so much by state courses of study as by the views _ of college leaders about the subjects essential to preparation for college. A list of subjects prepared by the Com mittee of Ten in 1893 largely domi nated the college preparatory pro

authority of the county, town, or city. At that time, the curriculum was

planning process.

gram of American high schools until the 1930s.

viewed almost solely as the list of

By 1912, all states had established

subjects and the sequence in which

public high schools and, although at

they were to be taught.

that time less than 10 percent of

A Elementary school subjects were

divided into skills and content. It was believed that when students had mas

nother series of curriculum American youth were graduating from studies emerged from the psy high school, the enrollment of young chological investigations of people not planning to go to college

tered the skill subjects (reading, reading, writing, and arithmetic. For was increasing. These young people

writing, and arithmetic), they had example, when studies showed that and their parents considered the pre

the tools to master the content sub readers did not build up word recog vailing high school curriculum unre

jects (geography and history).

nition from recognizing the letters, lated to their goals. With support

Few differences were to be found but recognized the word as a whole from farmers, labor groups, and em

in the lists of skill subjects prescribed before they perceived the letters, a ployers, the Smith-Hughes Act was

by the various states. There were new reading series was produced passed in 1917, authorizing federal

some differences in content subjects, based on initial word recognition.

funds for high school vocational pro

because states usually required teach

From 1910 to 1930 the published grams. State boards of vocational edu

ing the history and geography of their courses of study issued by the states cation were made responsible for de

state, but otherwise the course of for public elementary schools changed fining the curriculum for such pro

study didn't vary greatly.

very little except to add nature study grams, with the result that they were

When Thorndike reported his ex as a content subject in the upper more tightly controlled by the state

periments, which clearly contradicted grades. But the actual curriculum than most general education courses.

the notion that particular subjects objectives, content, and learning ex

The great depression of the 1930s

disciplined students' faculties mem periences changed markedly in created a sense of crisis in American

ory, imagination, and reasoning and those schools that adopted new text schools. Students were living in a

when Dewey wrote about his school books and methods, and helped world that had changed so much they

in Chicago, where school learning teachers learn to use them.

didn't understand what was happen

activities were part of the student's This dependence on the local ing or what they could do about it.

efforts to understand and deal with school was recognized by several city High school graduates in large num

the larger world, educational leaders school administrators as early as bers were unable to find work and felt

began to think of the curriculum as 1921. In Denver and St. Louis, their schooling had not prepared them

more than a list of school subjects. citywide curriculum development to be independent adults. Many edu

Thorndike maintained that the ele projects were undertaken at the ele cators began reexamining the curricu

ments learned in school must be mentary level. In both cities, the lum, seeking to make significant re

identical with those in life outside curriculum was changed to be more forms. The period from 1931 until

the school in order for school learn in line with children's abilities and 1942, when the United States got

ing to be transferred to the world interests, and to include activities deeply involved in World War II, saw

outside. Dewey emphasized the need relevant to life in those cities. These extensive curriculum development.

for continuity of experiences in school changes could be made in the local Noting that efforts by city school

and out.

curriculum without changing the districts to construct new educational

These seminal reports stimulated state-mandated courses of study.

programs had not been followed by

empirical curriculum studies of such But it was found that continuance similar activity in states where the

matters as the arithmetic problems of the reforms required continued cities were located, two states, Kansas

children and adults actually encounter psychological support by the com and Virginia, undertook statewide

in their daily lives, the vocabulary munity, continuing inservice educa curriculum development projects.

found in materials read by children, tion, and instructional materials These involved reexamination of the

the situations in which children and relevant to the new programs.

entire curriculum, formation of a

youth have a need or opportunity to Without these conditions, the cur- comprehensive set of scope and se

write, the reading interests of chil riculums lost much of their dynamic quence guidelines, and experimenta

dren, and the like.

quality. When the administrators who tion with a variety of new kinds of

had given leadership to curriculum learning experiences.

Ralph W. Tyler is Director Emeritus, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavorial Sciences, Chicago, Illinois.

Photo: Library of Congrtls

development left Denver and St. Louis, active efforts waned and the new curriculums began to lose some of their reform features.

Because the projects in Denver and St. Louis had shown that teachers who participated actively in the plan ning of new programs were generally

MAY 1981

599

able to use them as planned, while areas. These subcommittees, com ments, the mandates were widely

other teachers often were not, the pro posed in each case of persons with ignored. Less obvious may have been

cedures used in both Kansas and Vir special competence in the subject, ex changes in the attitudes and under

ginia provided for wide-scale involve plored possible contributions the sub standing of some teachers and in the

ment of teachers. As these projects ject could make to the development of content of the several school subjects.

proceeded, the sheer magnitude of the young people in the light of current The announcement in 1957 that the

effort proved far greater than antici social conditions.

Soviet Union had produced and

pated. Available resources of leader ship and time were inadequate, and eventually the projects were discon tinued. However, they left a residue of ideas and guidelines that influenced teachers and administrators in many schools, not only in these states but in

others. The need for new educational pro

grams in American high schools be came more obvious as the depression deepened. Unemployment among youth was nearly 100 percent. High school enrollments doubled as young people, finding no jobs, stayed on in

F urthermore, an intensive study was undertaken to furnish in

formation about the interests,

abilities, and needs of American youth and to encourage teachers to learn more about their own students. With these resources in ideas and data, and with opportunities for teach ers to learn and produce resource units that became common property on which all teachers could draw, most of the schools participating in the project developed amazingly com

prehensive curriculums.

launched an artificial satellite aroused public fear that the United States had

fallen behind Russia in its collective knowledge and skills. Congress en acted the National Defense Education Act, and later the National Science Foundation was authorized to support activities to strengthen the teaching of science and mathematics in schools and colleges. During the following 15 years, more than $100 million was ex pended by the federal government on what was called "course content im

provement projects." Most of these projects were di

school. Generally, there were only C urriculum Development Shelved

rected by outstanding scientists and

two educational programs available: With the surprise attack on Pearl mathematicians. They noted that most

college preparatory and Smith-Hughes Harbor, the focus of curriculum de books used in high school science and

vocational. Most of the new students velopment suddenly shifted. No mathematics courses were not mate

were not planning to enter college longer were many youth unemployed. rially different in their content from

and they were not able to enroll in The nation's efforts were concentrated those published in 1910. Their first

the vocational courses, which were on winning the war and the schools task was to outline a series of topics

quite selective. High schools were were expected to do their part. This representing the current status of

pressured to develop new curriculums. included helping young people under these subjects. They also found that

Several large efforts were under stand the critical situation facing the most textbooks in science presented

taken in response. The Eight-Year nation and to support wartime meas information students were expected to

Study, sponsored by the Commission ures taken by the government. More memorize. So these projects turned to

on Relation of School and College of directly, schools were expected to the development of learning exer

the Progressive Education Associa provide preinduction training for the cises requiring students to carry on

tion, was the first and probably best students who would be entering the scientific inquiries much as they might

known. Others included the High military service, and to provide train be done by scientists. Textbooks, lab

School Study of the Southern Asso ing for the war industries, both for oratory guides, and audiovisual mate

ciation, the High School Study of the regular students and for young adults. rials were produced and published.

Negro High School Association, and These new expectations resulted in Summer institutes were offered to

the Michigan Study of Secondary the shelving of other curriculum de acquaint teachers with current science

Schools. As these projects proceeded velopment activities until after the and mathematics content and to help

it became clear that plans drawn up war was over.

them become familiar with the new

by central committees or by expert For a dozen years after 1946, materials.

consultants were not being carried out schools responded to well-intended In the late 1970s the National Sci

by most teachers. Unless they believed but naive pressures to change the cur ence Foundation sought to assess the

in the programs, understood their riculum so as to include the content impact of these efforts. Several

roles, had the necessary knowledge viewed as important by different pres studies, including one conducted by

and skills, and felt confident they sure groups. These included the one- the Center for Instructional Research

could use the new programs success world emphasis, air-age education, and Curriculum Evaluation of the

fully, teachers would not try them. anticommunism courses, global under University of Illinois-Urbana, estab

Leaders of the Eight-Year Study standing, environmental education, lished that there had actually been a

established summer workshops and free enterprise units, physical fitness decline in the proportion of high

weekend committee activities to pro courses, and the like. In some cases, school students taking science courses.

vide opportunities for teachers to de funds were provided to support de A majority of students interested in

velop the necessary interest, under velopment of instructional materials, science and planning careers in sci

standing, skills, and materials.

and some programs were funded to ence liked the new courses, but most

The Eight-Year Study also found a educate teachers in these areas. Most other students did not.

need for intellectual resources on schools did not become actively in College teachers of science reported

which teachers could draw. A Com volved, and none of the efforts seem that high school graduates were better

mission on the Secondary School Cur to have had permanent effect. In prepared for advanced courses than

riculum was established with sub those states where special programs previously. Perhaps the most impor

committees in all the major subject were supported by statutory require tant finding was that most teachers

600

EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP

did not understand or feel they had the skills to carry on inquiry learning. The content of the new books was being treated as material to be mem orized rather than to stimulate.

L essons L earned

What lessons can be drawn from the experience of American schools in the changing locus of responsibility for curriculum development? The most important is the recognition that, in our relatively decentralized educa tional system, different responsibilities can be met effectively at different levels of the system.

Schools exist to stimulate and guide the learning of students. Students, especially children, require the ex ample, the encouragement, and the psychological support of other per sons to carry on an extended series of learning efforts. Teaching is a human service, not a mechanical, routine ac tivity. If curriculum change involves new goals and significantly new con tent, these goals must be considered desirable by those who chiefly influ ence the child's learning, that is par ents and teachers, and these persons must understand their roles and have the skills required to perform them.

In other words, the local school, where the children are, the teachers are, and the parents are, is an impor tant locus of curriculum development. Most students are not reached by socalled "teacher-proof instructional materials. Efforts to save time and energy through circumventing the ac tive involvement of teachers are largely fruitless. And where children come from homes of uneducated par ents, the failure to involve parents limits effectiveness of the curriculum.

H owever, schools can do only a limited amount of curriculum development without encour agement, support, and technical as sistance. The education authority of the district bears responsibility for encouraging the local school, for help ing to obtain necessary resources, and providing assistance.

The state can aid curriculum de velopment by clarifying what the state and its public expect of schools in terms of major functions and compre hensive objectives, but not by spe cifying particular learnings at particu lar ages or stages, since these out comes are not uniformly obtained at the same age or grade level. The state

is also responsible for obtaining the resources for curriculum develop ment. T he time and effort required to develop significantly different edu cational programs have been greatly underestimated. L onger term plan ning is necessary, with appropriate allocation of resources.

It is also necessary to establish

priorities for curriculum development, since not everything needed can be done at once. Focus first on critical problems in the local schools, since their solution will bring most evident improvement in the education of stu dents in that school. Even though progress is slow, the projects should increase the competence and confi dence of the teachers and parents in the local school that they can solve their problems. As time goes on, the impact of these programs will be wider and more significant.

The past 80 years have not always

been periods of curriculum improve ment, but they have furnished curri culum workers with greater under standing of the curriculum develop ment process. I believe we can look ahead to increasing success in pro ducing effective educational programs in our schools.

TEACHERS HAV E RIGHT S, T OO

W hat E ducators Should K now A bout School L aw

L eigh Stelzer & J oanna Banthln

$7.9S

Published h> ihc Social Science Education Consonmm. Boulder, CO and ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management. Eugene. OR

"This is a book on the rights of teachers a subject with important implications not only for teachers themselves, but also for school admin istrators, district officials, school board members, parents, students, and everyone who has an interest in public education."

Teachers have growing concerns about how the law affects their professional and personal lives. The authors explore the extent and limit of these rights by citing relevant court cases. Described are issues teachers regularly face in regard to their rights: tenure protection, RIF rights, stu dent disciplinary options, negligence protection, freedom of speech, and privacy.

Please send me ___ _ copies of Teachers Have R ights, T oo: W hat E ducators Should K now

A bout School L aw (c, )$7.95 Total______

Name ________

Position _

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MAIL TO: Editor's Office, ERIC Clearing house on Educational Management, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403.

MAY 1981

601

Copyright ? 1981 by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. All rights reserved.

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