Trinity College
Spring 2002
Educational Studies 350: Curriculum: Theory, Policy and Practice
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Asst. Prof. Barbara Henriques Office McCook 304 TR 2:40-3:55 McCook 305 Phone: 297-2278 Office Hours: T/Th 11-12; W 2-4; and by appointment Email: barbara.henriques@trincoll.edu http://www.trincoll.edu/depts/educ |
Introduction: What is “the Curriculum”? How has it become what it is and how has its development reflected the social and political realities of our history? Who decides what composes “the Curriculum”? What constitutes knowledge and does “the Curriculum” reflect that knowledge? Does knowledge change and how is that reflected in “the Curriculum”? Do all members of our society have equal opportunities for success with “the Curriculum”? How might the trend toward national curriculum standards influence classroom instruction and assessment? What role do interest groups play in shaping curriculum at the local, state and national level? These are some of the questions we will consider as we explore topics related to curriculum development policies, theories and practice.
A community learning component has been built into this course. Last year a joint collaborative project with the Educational Studies Program, the Trinity College Child Care Center, the Montessori Inter-district Magnet School entitled Connecting our Children with the World was funded through the 1634 Venture Capital Fund. As part of this project students developed a curriculum unit in the arts and/or sciences and presented their completed curriculum units to students in after school programs at partner schools. The units also included related “learning at home” materials and community resources.
This year we will continue this as a component of the course which allows you to put into practice what you have learned about key components of curriculum design. The curriculum unit you develop must have a clearly stated rationale, methodology, and evaluation that is grounded in theories and policies of curriculum development discussed in class. Students will present their completed units to students in after school programs. Each student presentation will be videotaped as part of the self-evaluation of the unit. Units and the teaching of the unit will also be peer evaluated.
A final version of your curriculum unit must be submitted to me on disk and as hardcopy for inclusion in the Educational Studies Resource Library.
You are responsible for any revisions made to the syllabus, which will be announced in class and posted on the course web site (see Ed Studies home page above).
Four 2-3 page analysis papers (10 points each) 40 points
#1 Historical Perspectives on Curriculum
#3 Curriculum Design, Development and Evaluation
#4 Improving the Curriculum
Curriculum Project:
Proposal (comments only)
Teaching of Curriculum Unit 15 points
Oral Presentation 10 points
Outreach Materials 10 points
Final Copy of Curriculum Unit 15 points
Peer Evaluation Report 10 points
Tu 15 Introduction to the course, overview and requirements.
Th 17 The History of Curriculum In American
Reading: “Storm over the Schoolhouse: Exploring Popular Influences upon the American Curriculum, 1890-1941” by Jonathan Zimmerman. Teachers College Record, Volume 100, Number 3, Spring 1999, pp. 602-626. http://www.tcrecord.org/PDF/10324.pdf
Tu 22 The Early 20th Century
Reading: Chapter 3: “Contestation and Curriculum: The Efforts of American Socialists, 1900-1920” by Kenneth Teitelbaum in Beyer & Apple.
Th 24 The Present
Reading: Chapter 4: “What Goes on in Classrooms? Is This the Way We Want It? by Kenneth Sirotnik in Beyer & Apple.
Assignment: Research Information for your topic. Come to class prepared to provide some sites you have identified and ideas you are thinking about for your curriculum unit.
Th 31 What Constitutes Curriculum?
Reading: Handout: “An American Curriculum?” by Cornbleth in Teachers College Record, Vol. 90, No. 4, pp. 622-646. http://www.tcrecord.org/PDF/10284.pdf
Tu 12 Evaluating Theories of Curriculum
Reading: Chapter 5: “Models of Curriculum Planning” by George Posner and Chapter 10: “Democracy and the Curriculum” by George Wood in Beyer & Apple.
Th 14 Education for All?
Reading: Chapter 6: “Multicultural Curricula: ‘Whose Knowledge?’ and Beyond by Susan Noffke in Beyer & Apple. Chapter 6: “’They Don’t What to Hear it’: Ways of Talking and Habits of the Heart in Multicultural Literature Classrooms” by Susan Miller and Gina DeBlase Trzyna in Cornbleth.
Reading: Handout: “Curriculum Alternatives in a Survivalist Culture: Basic Skills and the Minimal Self” by H. Svi Shapiro in Critical Social Issues in American Education, Shapiro and Purpel Eds.
Th 28 Personal Theories of Curriculum
Assignment: Based on the material that we have considered in this section of the course, prepare a preliminary personal statement that identifies what you see as some of the key considerations that curriculum developers need to be aware of as they write curriculum. Include citations from the readings and our discussions whenever possible. Be prepared to present your statement in class for further discussion.
Tu 05 Objectives and Goals
Review Bloom’s Taxonomy http://caribou.cc.trincoll.edu/depts_educ/Resources/Bloom.htm and http://www.edwebproject.org/edref.mi.intro.html for information on Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences. What similarities and/or differences do you see in these approaches to learning?
Th 07* Curriculum Design in Science
Reading: Project 2061 of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Check out this website and become familiar with what and how the AAAS is trying to change curriculum. http://www.project2061.org/tools/designs/default.htm
Tu 12* California and Mathematics Reform
Reading: “Instructional Policy and Classroom Performance: The Mathematics Reform in California” by David Cohen and Heather Hill. Teachers College Record, Volume 102, Number 2, February 2000, pp. 294-343. http://www.tcrecord.org/PDF/10377.pdf
Th 14* State and National Curricula
Reading: TBA
Unit Four: Improving the Curriculum
Reading: Chapter 5: “The Segregation of Stephen” by Diana Lawrence-Brown in Cornbleth.
Due: Topic Paper #3
Th 28* Gender and the Curriculum
Reading: Chapter 12: “Teaching, Gender, and Curriculum” by Sara Freedman in Beyer & Apple.
Tu 02* The Curriculum and Technology
Reading: Selections from Oversold and Underused: Computers in the Classroom by Larry Cuban. Harvard University Press, 2000.
*Note: During this time most of you will be teaching your curriculum lessons at the pre-arranged site. You will also be involved in a peer evaluation experience. It is your responsibility to be up to date with the assignments for class during this period.
· Be sure that you have made the arrangements with the site and have everything that you will need to conduct your lessons successfully for you and your students. (You might want to check to see if they have video equipment you could use. This would mean that you wouldn’t have to borrow the equipment from the Trinity AV Department.
· AV equipment must be reserved in advance (well in advance, if possible) and can be picked up at AV, McCook 123. You need to familiarize yourself with the operation of the equipment before you use it.
· I will be available via email or phone if you want to discuss your plans prior to your visit.
Th 04 Education and Business
Reading: Chapter 2: “A Tale of Two Cultures and a Technology: A/musical Politics of Curriculum in Four Acts” by Vivian Forssman and John Willinsky in Cornbleth.
Tu 09 Textbooks and the Curriculum
Th 11 Evaluation
Reading: “Rethinking “High Stakes”: Lessons from the United States and England and Wales” by Firestone and Mayrowetz in Teachers College Record, Volume 102, Number 4, August 2000, pp. 724-749.
Handout: Paper Topic #4
Tu 16 Evaluation: Another Perspective
Reading: Chapter 18: “Developing Curriculum through School Self-Evaluation” by Helen Simons in Beyer & Apple.
Oral Presentations
Th 18 Democracy and the Curriculum
Reading: Chapter 13; “Schooling for Democracy: What Kind? by Landon Beyer and Chapter 19: “Democratic Evaluation: Aesthetic, Ethical Stories in Schools” by Landon Beyer and Jo Anne Pagano in Beyer & Apple.
Oral Presentations