Curriculum

Curriculum: Concepts, Nature and
Purposes
Sangeen Muhammad
M. Phil (Education)
2nd Semester

Presentation Agenda
• Different points of view on curriculum
• Characteristics of curriculum
• Types of curriculum
• Discussion
2

Curriculum: Word origin
• Early 19th cent.: from Latin word ‘currere’ means ‘to run’,’ to
proceed’ ‘a race’, ‘a course of race’.
(Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary)
3

Introduction
• The concept of curriculum is as dynamic as the changes that
occur in society.
• In its narrow sense, curriculum is viewed merely as a listing
of subject to be taught in school.
• In a broader sense, it refers to the total learning experiences
of individuals not only in schools but in society as well.
4
Bilbao, P. P., Lucido, P. I., Iringan, T. C., & Javier, R. B. (2008). Curriculum
development. Philippines: Lorimar Publishing, Inc.

Curriculum: Different Points of View
• There are many definitions of curriculum.
• Because of this, the concept of curriculum is sometimes
characterized as fragmentary, elusive and confusing.
• The definitions are influenced by modes of thoughts,
pedagogies, political as well as cultural experiences
5

Curriculum: Different Points of View 6

Traditional Points of View of Curriculum
• “A body of subjects or subject matter prepared by the teachers
for the students to learn”.
• It was synonymous to the “course of study” and “syllabus”
7
Bilbao, P. P., Lucido, P. I., Iringan, T. C., & Javier, R. B. (2008).
Curriculum development. Philippines: Lorimar Publishing, Inc.

Robert M. Hutchins views curriculum as “permanent studies” where
the rule of grammar, reading, rhetoric and logic and mathematics
for basic education are emphasized.
(Hutchins, Robert M. (1950). The Idea of a College. Retrieved 2012-08-15)
8

Arthur Bestor as an essentialist, believes:
• mission of the school should be intellectual training, hence
curriculum should focus on the fundamental intellectual
disciplines of grammar, literature and writing.
• It should also include mathematics, science, history and foreign
language.
(BESTOR, ARTHUR E., JR. 1956. The Restoration of Learning. New York: Knopf.)
9

• Joseph Schwab’s view of curriculum is that discipline is the sole
source of curriculum.
• Thus in our education system, curriculum is divided into chunks of
knowledge.
SCHWAB, JOSEPH J. 1969. College Curriculum and Student Protest. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press.
10

Progressive Points of View of Curriculum
• To a progressivist, a listing of school, subjects, syllabi, course of
study, and list of courses or specific discipline do not make a
curriculum.
• These can only be called curriculum if the written materials are
actualized by the learner.
• Broadly speaking, curriculum is defined as the total learning
experiences of the individual.
11

• John Dewey believed that reflective thinking is a means that
unifies curricular elements.
• Thought is not derived from action but tested by application.
Experience and Education by John Dewey (1938)
Publisher: Kappa Delta Pi
12

• Caswell and Campbell viewed curriculum as “all experiences
children have under the guidance of teachers”.
Curriculum development
Author: Hollis L Caswell; Doak S Campbell
Publisher: New York, Cincinnati American Book Co.
13

• Smith, Stanley and Shores defined “curriculum as a sequence of
potential experiences set up in the schools for the purpose of
disciplining children and youth in group ways of thinking and
acting”
Book: Fundamentals of Curriculum Development.
[By] B.O. Smith, William O. Stanley, J. Harlan Shores
14

• Marsh and Willis view curriculum as all the “experiences in the
classroom which are planned and enacted by the teacher, and also
learned by the students.
Curriculum: Alternative Approaches, Ongoing Issues
Colin J. Marsh, George Willis
Pearson/Merrill Prentice Hall, 2007
15

Characteristics of the curriculum
Breadth
• Of elements of learning, aims, contents, pedagogy, assessment.
• Coverage across and within areas of the curriculum.
• Not to sacrifice breadth to depth.
16
© Keith Morrison, 2004 Published on the companion web
resource for A Guide to Teaching Practice (RoutledgeFalmer).

Balance
• Balance within and across areas of the curriculum.
• Appropriate attention to each area of the curriculum/element of
learning.
• Needs allocation of sufficient time and resources.
• Balance over time.
• Balance of aims, contents, pedagogy, assessment.
• Balance is not the same as equal shares – a balanced diet.
17

Relevance
• Relevant to what/whom?
• Present and future needs.
• Applications outside and beyond school.
18

Progression
• Of aims, content, pedagogy, assessment.
19
• Quantitatively and qualitatively
• Simple to complex
• Complex to simple
• Low order to high order
• Specific to general
• General to specific
• Concrete to abstract
• Abstract to concrete
• Familiar to unfamiliar
• Near to distant
• Development of inquiring attitude
• Growing attention and
concentration
• Range of purposes and
applications
• Breadth and depth
• Increasing confidence

Continuity
• Within and across curriculum.
• Of elements of aims, content, learning, pedagogy, assessment.
• Planned continuity and discontinuity.
20

Coherence
• Within and across the curriculum.
• Coherence of aims, content, pedagogy, assessment.
21

Types of Curriculum
1. Overt, explicit, or written curriculum
2. Societal curriculum (or social curricula)
3. The hidden or covert curriculum
4. The null curriculum
5. Phantom curriculum
6. Concomitant curriculum
22

Types of Curriculum
7. Rhetorical curriculum
8. Curriculum-in-use
9. Received curriculum
10.The internal curriculum
11.The electronic curriculum
12.Extra Curriculum
23

1. Overt, explicit, or written curriculum
• It consists of formal instruction of schooling experiences.
• It is a curriculum document, texts, supportive teaching materials
that are overtly chosen to support the instructional agenda of a
school.
• This curriculum consists of written understandings and directions
formally designated and reviewed by curriculum directors and
teachers.
24
Srivastava, D.S. & Kumari, S. (2005). Curriculum and instruction. New Delhi, India: Gyan Publishing House.

2. Societal Curriculum
• As defined by Cortes (1981)… [the] massive, ongoing, informal
curriculum of family, peer groups, neighborhoods, mosques/churches,
organizations, occupations, mass media, and other socializing forces that
“educate” all of us throughout our lives.
• This type of curricula can now be expanded to include the powerful
effects of social media (YouTube; Facebook; Twitter; Pinterest, etc.) and
how it actively helps create new perspectives, and can help shape both
individual and public opinion.
Cortes, C.E. (1981) The societal curriculum: Implications for multiethnic educations. In Banks, J.A
(ed.) Educations in the 80’s: Multiethnic education. National Education Association
25

• This is implied by the structure and nature of schools.
• It consists of the kinds of learning children derive from the nature of
school, Instruction from the classroom, Behaviors, competition for
grades.
Longstreet, W.S. and Shane, H.G. (1993) Curriculum for a new millennium. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
26

• A hidden curriculum can be defined as the lessons that are taught
informally, and usually unintentionally, in a school system.
• These include behaviors, perspectives, and attitudes that students
pick up while they're at school.
• This is contrasted with the formal curriculum, such as the courses
and activities students participate in
27

4. The Null Curriculum
• It consists of the things that we do not teach.
• It gives students messages that these elements are not important
in their educational experiences.
• For example we teach about wars but not peace, we teach about
certain cultures and histories but not about others.
• Both our choices and our omissions send messages to students.
Eisner, E.W. (1994) The educational imagination: On design and evaluation of school
programs. (3rd. ed) New York: Macmillan.
28

5. Phantom Curriculum
• It consists of the message prevalent in and through exposure to
any type of media.
• Exposure to different types of media often provides illustrative
contexts for class discussions, relevant examples, and common
icons and metaphors that make learning and content more
meaningful to the real lives and interests of today's students
29
Yarbrough E. V., Bruce W. C. & Hubright R. L. (Ed) (1974). Readings in curriculum and
supervision. New York, NY: Irvington Publishers.

6. Concomitant Curriculum
• Concomitant curriculum, through its very nature, overlaps with
both the hidden and societal curriculums.
• What is taught, or emphasized at home or those experiences that
are part of a family's experiences or related experiences approved
by the family.
• This includes, values, ethics, morals and behaviors
30
Srivastava, D.S. & Kumari, S. (2005). Curriculum and instruction. New Delhi, India: Gyan Publishing House.

6. Concomitant Curriculum
• Mayfield’s (2008) view is that the concomitant curriculum is concerned with
self-reflection and critical analysis providing students with autonomy and it
is this autonomy which is part of concomitant curriculum.
31
Mayfield, K. (2008). I love being a freak. Exploring the ways adolescent girls on the margins create
worlds of power in high school classrooms. An Arbor, MI: ProQuest.

7. Rhetorical Curriculum
• It consists of ideas offered by policy makers, school officials,
administrators, politicians.
• This curriculum may come from professional involved in concept
formation and content changes resulting from decision based on
national and state reports.
• This curriculum may also come from updated pedagogical
knowledge
32
Wilson, L. O. (2015). The second principal. Retrieved from
http://thesecondprinciple.com

8. Curriculum-in-use
• The formal curriculum (written or overt) comprises those things in
textbooks, and content and concepts in the district curriculum
guides.
• However, those “formal” elements are frequently not taught.
• The curriculum-in-use is the actual curriculum that is delivered
and presented by each teacher.
33

9. Received curriculum
• Those things that students actually take out of classrooms; those
concepts and content that are truly learned and remembered.
34
Cuban, L. (1992). Curriculum stability and change; handbook of research on curriculum.

10. The internal curriculum
• Processes, content, knowledge combined with the experiences and
realities of the learner to create new knowledge.
• While educators should be aware of this curriculum, they have
little control over the internal curriculum since it is unique to
each student
35
Olivia, P. F. (1997). Developing the curriculum (4th Ed.). New York, NY: Longman.

11. The electronic curriculum
• Those lessons learned through searching the Internet for
information, or through using e-forms of communication.
• (Wilson, 2004) This type of curriculum may be either formal or
informal, and inherent lessons may be overt or covert, good or
bad, correct or incorrect depending on ones’ views
Wilson, L. O. (1990, 2004, 2006) Curriculum course packets ED 721 & 726, unpublished
36

12. Extra Curriculum
• The school project programs. An activity at a school or college
pursued in addition to the normal course of study
37

Relationships Among the Types of Curriculum 38
Electronic
Curriculum
Formal
Curriculum
Null
Curriculum
Curriculum in Use
Null
Curriculum
Rhetorical
Curriculum
Hidden
Curriculum
Received
Curriculum
Concomitant
Curriculum
Phantom
Curriculum
Internal
Curriculum
Societal
Curriculum

Discussion
1. Does our curriculum develop Critical Thinking, Collaboration,
Communication, and Creativity in the students?
2. Are we designing authentic tasks for students?
3. Do teachers have the opportunity to provide ongoing feedback
regarding the curriculum?
39

Discussion
4. What should be done or taught in schools, colleges and universities that would
ensure a well developed society and put some limits on diversity?
5. What will be the best method to measure the effectiveness of a curriculum?
6. How to make sure the curriculum promotes the teaching and learning process?
7. To what extent does educational leadership impact the success of a curriculum?
40

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