THE MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

Before I discuss the definition of curriculum development, let me describe to you first the
importance of curriculum. A curriculum is considered the “heart” of any learning institution
which means that schools or universities cannot exist without a curriculum. With its
importance in formal education, the curriculum has become a dynamic process due to the
changes that occur in our society. Therefore, in its broadest sense, curriculum refers to the
“total learning experiences of individuals not only in school but society as well” (Bilbao et
al., 2008).

Definition of Curriculum Development

Curriculum development is defined as planned, a purposeful, progressive, and systematic
process to create positive improvements in the educational system. Every time there are
changes or developments happening around the world, the school curricula are affected.
There is a need to update them to address the society’s needs.
To illustrate this contention, let’s trace back history.

During the ancient times, people taught their children knowledge and skills to survive by
catching fish or hunting animals for food. They had no formal education during that time, but
their children learned and acquired the knowledge and skills for survival. So, during that
time, they already had a curriculum that other educators call as, the saber-tooth curriculum.
This type of curriculum refers to a kind of curriculum that existed during the ancient times in
which the purpose of teaching was for survival.
However, when the effects of discoveries and inventions became inevitable, ancient people’s
way of life had changed for the better. As a result, education became formal, and curriculum
development evolved as systematic, planned, purposeful and progressive, even today.

Importance of Curriculum Development

Curriculum development has a broad scope because it is not only about the school, the
learners, and the teachers. It is also about the development of society in general.

In today’s knowledge economy, curriculum development plays a vital role in improving the
economy of a country. It also provides answers or solutions to the world’s pressing
conditions and problems, such as environment, politics, socio-economics, and other issues of
poverty, climate change, and sustainable development.

There must be a chain of developmental process to develop a society. First, the school
curriculum, particularly in higher education, must be developed to preserve the country’s
national identity and to ensure its economy’s growth and stability. Thus, the president of a
country must have a clear vision for his people and the country as well.

For instance, in the Philippines, if President Aquino would like the country to become the
Asia-Pacific’s tourism hub, then the school curriculum must be developed along that line.
Curricular programs for higher education can be crafted in such a way that it will boost the
tourism industry. For example, different models may arise such as edu-tourism, eco-tourism,
cultural tourism, medo-tourism, biz-tourism, techno-tourism, agri-tourism, archi-tourism,
among others.

If universities have curricular programs that are innovative and in demand in the local or
global markets, many students even from foreign countries will enroll. A higher number of
enrollees would mean income on the part of the universities. As a result, if the income is big,
it can be used for teachers’ promotion, scholarship, and remuneration. It can also be used in
funding research and development endeavors, and in putting up school facilities, libraries,
and laboratories.

I believe that the country’s economy can improve the people’s way of life through curriculum
development. And to develop it, curriculum experts or specialists should work hand in hand
with lawmakers such as senators and congressmen, the local government officials, governors,
mayors, among others. Likewise, business communities and industries, and other
economically oriented players in society may be engaged in setting and implementing rules
and policies for educational reforms.

Hence, curriculum development matters a lot in setting the direction of change in an

organization, not only at the micro but also at macro levels. As long as the goals and
objectives of curriculum development are clear in the planner’s mind, cutting-edge
achievements in various concerns can be realized

A Curriculum Development Process

The Curriculum Development (CD) process encompasses the design and development of
integrated plans for learning, the design of implementation of the plans, and of the evaluation
of the plans, their implementation and the outcomes of the learning experience.
Curriculum design is a process of critical questioning to frame learning and teaching. The
main purpose of the process is to translate broad statements of intent into specific plans and
actions. The intention is to ensure, as far as possible, alignment between the three states of
curriculum: the planned curriculum, the delivered curriculum and the experienced curriculum
[from the students' point of view].
 The three states of the curriculum (see Prideaux, 2003)
The curriculum design process at course level sets the context for topic design and topic
design sets the context for each learning experience. Topics need to be designed to come
together in structured combinations to form coherent major and minor sequences and courses.
Parts of the process especially at the course and topic levels overlap and ideally should occur
interactively with course design informing and influencing topic design and topic design
informing and influencing course design.

Interactions of levels of curriculum development

The fundamental purpose of curriculum development is to ensure that students receive
integrated, coherent learning experiences that contribute towards their personal, academic and
professional learning and development.
Defining Curriculum
Curriculum refers to the means and materials with which students will interact for
the purpose of achieving identified educational outcomes. Arising in medieval
Europe was the trivium, an educational curriculum based upon the study of
grammar, rhetoric, and logic. The later quadrivium (referring to four subjects rather
than three as represented by the trivium) emphasized the study of arithmetic,
geometry, music, and astronomy. These seven liberal arts should sound a lot like
what you experienced during your formal education

The emphasis on single subjects persists even today. Very likely you moved from
classroom to classroom, particularly throughout your secondary education, studying
a different subject with each teacher. Yet there was more to your education. Perhaps
you participated in athletics, or the band, or clubs, or student government, or made
the choice not to participate in any extracurricular activities. All of these (including
the option not to participate) are part of what we might call the contemporary
curriculum. But there is more.
Some educators would say that the curriculum consists of all the planned
experiences that the school offers as part of its educational responsibility. Then there
are those who contend that the curriculum includes not only the planned, but also
the unplanned experiences as well. For example, incidents of violence that have
occurred at a number of schools across the nation are hardly a planned component
of the curriculum. However, the manner in which violence is addressed before,
during, and after the actual event sends a very definite message about how people
in our culture interact and how the laws of our nation are applied.

Another perspective suggests that curriculum involves organized rather than planned
experiences because any event must flow of its own accord, the outcome not being
certain beforehand. For instance, competitions, whether academic or athletic, can be
organized, but the outcomes will depend on a myriad of factors that cannot be
planned.
Which brings us to the notion of emphasizing outcomes versus experiences. This
shift to the notion of outcomes is very much in keeping with the current movement
toward accountability in the public schools, that is, the perspective that there are
indeed specific things that the schools are supposed to accomplish with children.
District personnel, school administrators, and you as one of many teachers are to be
held accountable by the public/taxpayers for ensuring that those objectives are met.
Curriculum, it turns out, is indeed much more than the idea of specific subjects as
represented by the trivium or the quadrivium. And, as we will see in the next section,
it can be characterized not only by what it does include but also by what it
intentionally excludes.
A key concept to keep in mind is that the curriculum is only that part of the plan
that directly affects students. Anything in the plan that does not reach the students
constitutes an educational wish, but not a curriculum. Half a century ago Bruner
(1960) wrote, "Many curricula are originally planned with a guiding idea . . . But as
curricula are actually executed, as they grow and change, they often lose their
 original form and suffer a relapse into a certain shapelessness" (p. 54). Curriculum—
however grand the plans may be—can only be that portion of the plan that actually
reaches the student. Planning that keeps that point in focus can be expected to
result in a more focused curriculum.

The Purpose of Curriculum

We have suggested that curriculum refers to the means and materials with which the
student interacts. To determine what will constitute those means and materials, we
must decide what we want the curriculum to yield. What will constitute the
"educated" individual in our society? In other words, what purpose does the
curriculum serve?
The things that teachers teach represent what the larger society wants children to
learn. However, beyond teaching reading and writing, what are the necessary things
that they should be taught? Is it really necessary to teach science? Does teaching
mathematics really lead to logical thinking, or does it just provide students with some
basic computational skills that may or may not come in handy at some future time?
You may feel that answering such questions is not something a teacher has to be
able to do, but rest assured that at some point a parent will ask you questions like
these. As a teacher, you will be the representative of "the curriculum" to whom
parents and students turn for answers. The purpose of the curriculum is to prepare
the student to thrive within the society as it is—and that includes the capacity for
positive change and growth.

How to Use the Downloadable Unit Plan Document

1. Describe your vision, focus, objectives, and student needs.
2. Identify resources.
3. Develop experiences that meet your objectives.
4. Collect and devise materials.
5. Lock down the specifics of your task.
6. Develop plans, methods, and processes.
7. Create your students' experience.
8. Go!

PROCESS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

Design Evaluation Strategies. Evaluation is a phase in the curriculum development model

as well as a specific step. Two types of evaluation, formative and summative, are used
during curriculum development. Formative evaluations are used during the needs
assessment, product development, and testing steps.