Curriculum evaluation is crucial to measuring curriculum effectiveness in any educational setting.

In this lesson, we'll explore this process and examine several models that might be used for
curriculum evaluation.

Is the New Curriculum Any Good?

Mrs. Brown is a math teacher at a local junior high school. Her school has recently adopted a
new math curriculum, and Mrs. Brown has her doubts as to whether or not the choice of
curriculum was a good one. Several of the parents have also expressed their concerns. Mrs.
Brown is in need of a method for evaluating the effectiveness of this new curriculum. She is
looking to conduct a curriculum evaluation.

What Is Curriculum Evaluation?

The purpose of curriculum evaluation is to determine whether or not the newly adopted
curriculum is producing the intended results and meeting the objectives that it has set forth, and it
is an essential component in the process of adopting and implementing any new curriculum in
any educational setting. Another purpose of curriculum evaluation is to gather data that will help
in identifying areas in need of improvement or change.

Why Is It Necessary?
There are several parties, or stakeholders, interested in the process and results of curriculum
evaluation.

 Parents are interested because they want to be assured that their children are being
provided with a sound, effective education.
 Teachers are interested because they want to know that what they are teaching in the
classroom will effectively help them cover the standards and achieve the results they
know parents and administration are expecting.
 The general public is interested because they need to be sure that their local schools are
doing their best to provide solid and effective educational programs for the children in the
area.
 Administrators are interested because they need feedback on the effectiveness of their
curricular decisions.
 Curriculum publishers are interested because they can use the data and feedback from a
curriculum evaluation to drive changes and upgrades in the materials they provide.

In the end, the goal is always to make sure that students are being provided with the best
education possible. Because the curriculum is a huge part of this, curriculum evaluation is a
means of deciding whether or not the chosen curriculum is going to bring the school closer to
that goal.

Models for Curriculum Evaluation

Let's take a closer look at several of the models available for curriculum evaluation:

The Tyler Model

The Tyler model, a curriculum evaluation model that takes into account information from the
active learner and pays close attention to how well the goals and objectives of the curriculum are
supported by the experiences and activities provided, was named after its creator, Ralph Tyler,
and focuses on four main areas:
  The purpose of the curriculum being evaluated (the objectives)
 The experiences that are provided to support that purpose (the strategies and content)
 How these experiences are organized (organization of the content)
 How the outcomes are evaluated (assessment)

It has been criticized, however, for its simplicity and because assessment is a final step rather
than an ongoing part of the process.