WEEK 6

TOPIC 7:CURRICULUM THEORY AND PRACTICE.
 Curriculum theory and practice.

•Four ways of approaching curriculum theory and practice:

  1. Curriculum as a body of knowledge to be transmitted.

  2. Curriculum as an attempt to achieve certain ends in students – product.

  3. Curriculum as process.

  4. Curriculum as praxis.

 

 

 Steps in getting the ‘product’
 

Step 1: Diagnosis of need

Step 2: Formulation of objectives

Step 3: Selection of content

Step 4: Organization of content (educators to   prepare the content)

Step 5: Selection of learning experiences

Step 6: Organization of learning experiences

Step 7: Determination of what to evaluate and of the ways and means of doing it. (Taba 1962).

 The advantage

•This approach of curriculum theory and practice is systematic and has considerable ‘organizing power’. 

•Central to the approach is the formulation of behavioural objectives – providing a clear notion of outcome so that content and method may be organized and the results evaluated.

 Disadvantage

 

•The problem here is that such programmes outside the learning experiences of learners.  This takes much away from learners. 

•Learners can end up with little or no voice.  They are told what they must learn and how they will do it. 

•The success or failure of both the programme and the individual learners is judged on the basis of whether pre-specified changes occur in the behaviour and person of the learner (the meeting of behavioural objectives).