Module 2

Curriculum in Higher Education:

Local and International
EMRiparip
Curriculum in Higher Education:
Local and International
Lesson 1. Educational Theories
Lesson 2. The Curriculum Framework
Lesson 3. Complementary Functions of
Curriculum
Lesson 1. Educational Theories
How does an individual learn
something new when the
topic is brand new to that
person?
Plato
■Educational Philosophies
■Educational Learning Theories
■Curriculum Studies
Educational (Learning) Theories
■ a set of principles that explain how best a student can acquire, retain, and
recall new information (Stevens-Fulbrook, 2019)
■ describes how students receive, process, and retain knowledge during
learning
■ The following factors affect learning:
– cognitive, emotional, and environmental factors
– prior experience
■ All of these play a part in how understanding, or a world view, is acquired or
changed and knowledge and skills retained (Illeris, 2004; Ormrod, 2012)
 Despite many educational theories have
emerged, there are three labels that they all
fall under.

Image from https://teacherofsci.com/learning-theories-in-education/#Learning_Theories_Summary

Behaviorism
■ knowledge is independent and on the exterior
of the learner
■ the learner is a blank slate that should be
provided with the information to be learnt
■ learning is achieved when the provided
stimulus changes behavior
■ Pavlov experiment
Behaviorism involves repeated
actions, verbal reinforcement and
incentives to take part. It is great for
establishing rules, especially
for behavior management.
Cognitivism
■ It focuses on the idea that students process information they
receive rather than just responding to a stimulus.
■ There is still a behavior change evident, but this is in
response to thinking and processing information.
■ Learning occurs when the student reorganizes information,
either by finding new explanations or adapting old ones.
■ This is viewed as a change in knowledge and is stored in the
memory rather than just being viewed as a change in
behavior.
Examples of how teachers can include
cognitivism in their classroom include
linking concepts together, linking concepts
to real-world examples, discussions and
problem-solving.
Constructivism
■ We construct learning new ideas based on our own prior knowledge and
experiences.
■ Students need to have a prior base of knowledge for constructivist
approaches to be effective.
■ Learning is unique to the individual learner.
■ Students adapt their models of understanding either by reflecting on prior
theories or resolving misconceptions.
■ Students need to have a prior base of knowledge for constructivist
approaches to be effective.
■ Bruner’s spiral curriculum (1960)
Bruner’s spiral curriculum (1960)
“We begin with the hypothesis that any
subject can be taught in some intellectually
honest form to any child at any stage of
development”.
Examples of constructivism in the
classroom include problem-based learning,
research and creative projects and group
collaborations.
Image from https://teacherofsci.com/learning-theories-in-education/#Learning_Theories_Summary
Theories that influence curriculum
development

• Social Meliorism Theory

• John Dewey’s Theory
• Social Efficiency Theory
Social Meliorism Theory (Herbert
Kliebard)
■ wants the curriculum to bring about social improvement and change
■ reform movement in American education
■ believe that education is a tool to reform society and create change of
the better
■ This socialization of goal was based on the power of the individual’s
intelligence, and the ability to improve on intelligence through
education.
■ the education of students is to bring about general political and
economic changes, but more often it means the advocacy of courses to
solve problems
Herbert Kliebard posits…

“what knowledge is of most worth”

Social Meliorism Theory (Herbert
Kliebard)
■ An individual's future was not predetermined by gender, race, socio-
economic status, heredity or any other factors.
■ "The corruption and vice in the cities, the inequalities of race and gender,
and the abuse of privilege and power could all be addressed by a
curriculum that focused directly on those very issues, thereby raising a
new generation equipped to deal effectively with those abuses".
■ Some critics view this group has goals that are difficult to measure and
are a product that has slow results.
■ Kliebard discusses four curriculum groups that he calls humanist (or
mental disciplinarians), social efficiency, developmentalist (or child study),
and social meliorists.
John Dewey’s Theory

■ Curriculum should ultimately produce students who would be able

to deal effectively with the modern world.
■ Therefore, curriculum should not be presented as finished
abstractions, but should include the child’s preconceptions and
should incorporate how the child views his or her own world.
■ Dewey uses four instincts, or impulses, to describe how to
characterize children’s behavior.
■ The four instincts according to Dewey are social, constructive,
expressive, and artistic.
John Dewey’s Theory
■ Curriculum should build an orderly sense of the world where the
child lives.
■ Dewey hoped to use occupations to connect miniature versions of
fundamental activities of life classroom activities.
■ The way Dewey hoped to accomplish this goal was to combine
subject areas and materials.
■ By doing this, Dewey made connections between subjects and the
child's life.
■ Dewey is credited for the development of the progressive schools
some of which are still in existence today.
Social Efficiency major proponents
Herbert Gintis, Samuel Bowles, and John
Ogbu posit…
Social Efficiency Theory doesn’t focus on
learning philosophies but provides
answers to the question, “What are the
real results of our education system?”
Social Efficiency Theory
■ Aimed at designing a curriculum that would optimize the "social
utility" of each individual in a society.
■ By using education as an efficiency tool, society could be
controlled.
■ Students would be scientifically evaluated (such as IQ tests), and
educated towards their predicted role in society.
■ This involved the introduction of vocational and junior high
schools to address the curriculum designed around specific life
activities that correlate with each student's societal future.
Goals of Social Efficiency Theory
1. Education should be egalitarian. It should act as a force
to overcome the inequalities which arise in society.
2. Education should be developmental. It should allow
students to grow cognitively, physically, emotionally, and
critically.
3. Education should be the “social continuity of life.” It
should promote the integration of students as fully
functioning members of society.
Lesson 2. The Curriculum Framework
Curriculum as defined by Ornstein
and Hunkins
■ A plan of achieving goals
■ Dealing with learner’s experiences
■ System for dealing with people
■ A field of study with its own foundations, knowledge
domains, research, theory, principles, and specialists
■ Can be defined in terms of subject matter and content
Therefore, curriculum has the
following characteristics:
■ It includes all the experiences of children for which the
school is responsible.
■ It has content.
■ It is a system for dealing with people.
■ It is planned.
■ It is a series of courses to be taken by the students.
Elements/Components of
Curriculum
■ Aims, goals, objectives (ILO/DLO)
■ Content or subject matter
■ Learning experience (Teaching and Learning
Method)
■ Evaluation (Assessment Evaluation)
1. Aims, goals, objectives (ILO/DLO)
■ Reasons for undertaking the lesson
■ Serve as a guide for the teacher and the learner
■ Expressed in action words (Bloom’s Taxonomy of
Objectives)
■ Statement should be SMART (Specific,
Measurable, Attainable, Result-Oriented, Time-
bound)
2. Content or subject matter
■ Content of the lesson
■ Relevant to the outcomes of the curriculum
■ Purposive and clearly focused
■ Up-to date
■ Appropriate to the level of lesson
■ Progressive, leading students toward building on previous
lessons
■ References included
3. Learning experience (Teaching
and Learning Method)
■ Activities where the learners derive
experiences
■ Teaching strategies (lectures, laboratories,
fieldwork, etc.)
■ Allows cooperation, competition,
individualism, or independent learning
4. Evaluation (Assessment
Evaluation)
■ Generally, it is a feedback.
■ Formative / summative assessments
■ Three forms of assessment evaluation:
– Self-assessment
– Peer assessment
– Teacher assessment
Principles/Characteristics of
Curriculum Development
The curriculum…
is continuously evolving.
is based on the needs of the people.
is democratically conceived.
is a result of a long term effort.
Principles/Characteristics of
Curriculum Development
The curriculum…
is a complex of details.
provides for the logical sequence of subject matter.
complements and cooperates with other programs of the community.
has educational quality.
has administrative flexibility.
Roles of Curriculum

■ It is the very heart of school system.

■ It provides teachers, students, administrators and
community stakeholders with a measurable plan and
structure for delivering a quality education.
■ It identifies the learning outcomes, standards and core
competencies that students must demonstrate before
advancing to the next level.
■ It acts as a road map for teachers and students to follow on
the path to academic success.
Lesson 3. Complementary
Functions of Curriculum
New General Education
■ It is that part of the curriculum that is designed to
provide for a common universe of discourse,
understanding, and competence for the purpose
of developing thinking, socially responsible
citizens of a free society.
■ It provides a foundation for advancement into a
major field of specialization
New General Education
■ Defined as the part of the student's whole education which looks
first of all to his life as a responsible human being and citizen
(Report of Harvard Commission, 1945)
■ General education is a curricular function that represents various
pedagogical priorities.
■ As the facet of the curriculum that deals with the knowledge that
all citizens must share in common, general education
necessitates an outlook on knowledge and teaching that is
principally different from the knowledge and teaching employed in
specialized or college preparatory settings.
Specialized Education

■ It is that aspect of the curriculum designed for

the major field or professional program of
studies.
Exploratory Education

■ This function provides knowledge beyond

those general specialized education.
■ This comes in the form of electives, cognates,
minor, or allied subjects.
Exploratory Education
■ In the elementary level, exploratory function is
met through a range of activities and projects
extending from within the common core of
studies.
■ In high school or college, the exploratory
experience may impel the students towards a
scientific career or away from such career.
Exploratory Education
■ Exploration of students' "specialized interests, aptitudes,
and abilities as a basis for decisions regarding educational
opportunities" and vocational decisions was long ago
identified as one of the essential functions of the junior
high school (Gruhn & Douglass, 1947).
■ In 1995, the National Middle School Association (NMSA)
reaffirmed the importance of exploration, calling for a
"curriculum that is challenging, integrative, and exploratory"
(1995).
Enrichment Education

■ This part of curriculum is intended to

supplement and deepen one’s educative
experience beyond those connected with
general education, specialized education, and
exploratory education.
Enrichment Education
■ At the elementary level, the enrichment function
is typically provided not through course options,
but through activities growing out of the common
learning.
■ In the secondary school, students who have
completed the core courses in English language
arts.
Enrichment Education

■ Enrichment programs are after school

activities designed to give students the
opportunity to try new things and explore and
develop interests outside of the classroom
(Charlotte Brearley)
Enrichment Education
■ Enrichment describes activities which colleges provide in order to
extend students’ education beyond their main course of study.
■ The commitment to providing opportunities for broadening
students’ educational experience is widespread throughout the
further education sector.
■ Successful enrichment programs enhance students’ life at college
and increase motivation, achievements and retention. Such
programs are one way in which colleges respond to the demands
of employers’ organizations and higher education providers for
people who are flexible, responsive and resourceful.
Specialized–Interest Education

■ This function of the curriculum in the

secondary and college is typically met through
free electives.
References
■ Reyes, E. & Dizon, E. (2015). Curriculum Development. Adriana
Printing Co.
■ Bilbao, P., Dayagbil, F. & Corpuz, B. (2015). Curriculum
Development for Teachers Lorimar Publishing.
■ Stevens-Fulbrook, P. (2019). 15 Learning Theories in Education (A
Complete Summary). Retrieved from
https://teacherofsci.com/learning-theories-in-
education/#Learning_Theories_Summary
■ Enrichment of the Curriculum (1996). Retrieved from
https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/9316585.pdf
References
■ The Five Educational Learning Theories. Retrieved from
https://www.educationdegree.com/articles/educational-learning-theories/
■ Education Theory. Retrieved from https://www.k12academics.com/education-
theory/curriculum-theory
■ Theories of Education. Retrieved from
http://www.nhteapartycoalition.org/tea/wp-
content/uploads/2013/07/Education-Theories.pdf
■ Glenn, S. (2018). Importance of Curriculum to Teaching. Retrieved from
https://classroom.synonym.com/importance-curriculum-teaching-
6189570.html
■ Charmaine de Rueda. Functions of the Curriculum.
References
■ Brazee, E. (2000). Exploratory Curriculum in the Middle School. ERIC Digest.
Retrieved from https://www.ericdigests.org/2001-3/middle.htm