Curricular Reform in Teacher Education

REPORTER: OFRANCIA, JUNELLE

PARAS, JOHN PHILIP B.
OBJECTIVES:
o Define what is outcome-based education as this apply to teacher education
o Analyze the four principles In outcome-based education
o Describe how teaching and learning relate to OBE
o Explain how the achieved learning outcomes will be assessed
o Summarize the prospective teacher’s roles and responsibilities in the
implementation of Outcome- Based Education
INTRODUCTION
In the recent years Outcome-based education also known as OBE became the
fundamental philosophy of higher education. All curriculum including the teacher education will
be anchored on the concept of OBE in terms of course designing, instructional planning,
teaching and assessing students learning. This lesson will explain the significant reform in
teacher education in the Philippines. “There is always room for improvement”-Scott Miker.
BODY/CONTENT
According to W. Spady (1994) OBE as clearly focusing and organizing everything in the
educational system around the essential for all the students to do successfully at the end of
their learning experiences. It start with a clear picture of what is important for students to be
able to do, then organizing the curriculum, instruction and assessment to make sure that
learning happens. This means that the desired results of education which are the learning
outcomes. Which are made up of knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes that students
should acquire to reach their full potential and lead fulfilling lives as individuals.
In addition to clarify and define further, answers to the following questions should be
addressed by the teachers. What do we want these students to learn? Why do we want
students to learn these things? How can we best help students to learn these things? How will
you know when the students have learned?
In outcomes-based education According to Spady all students can learn and succeed,
but not at the same time or in the same way; successful learning promotes even more
successful learning and schools and teachers control the conditions that will determine if the
students are successful in school learning.
There are four essential principles in OBE in order to comply with the premises above.
This should be followed in either planning instruction, teaching and assessing learning. The first
principle is Clarity of Focus a teacher should have a clear focus on what he/she want students
to learn and should keep in his mind that the outcome of teaching is learning. The second
principle is Designing backwards this is related to the first principle at the beginning of a
curriculum design, the learning outcome has to be clearly defined. What to achieve at the end
of formal schooling is determined as the beginning. The third principle is High expectations,
setting high standards is very challenging to students through this the students will be
encouraged to do better and because of that they will also learn better by exerting efforts. The
fourth and last principle is Expanded opportunities we all have different intelligences and by
giving expanded opportunities we will be able to develop our potentials. This means that we
always need expanded opportunities.
Teaching-Learning in OBE
Learning is always measured by the product or by the things that we accomplished.
Anyways no matter what approach to teaching is used that intent should focus on learning.
Here are some tips in teaching-learning in OBE

 Teachers must students adequately

 Teachers must create positive learning environment
 Teachers must help their students to understand what they have to learn, why
they should learn it and how will they learn that they have learn it.
 Teachers must use a variety of teaching method.
 Teachers must provide students with enough opportunities to use the new
knowledge and skills that they gain.
 Teacher must help the students to bring each learning to a personal closure that
will make them aware of what they learned.
The table below shows the shift of OBE from a traditional to an OBE view.

From Traditional View To OBE View

Instruction Learning

Inputs and resources Learning Outcomes

Knowledge is transferred by the
teacher
Teacher dispenses knowledge
Teachers and students are
independent and in isolation
Knowledge already exists in the
mind of the learners
Teachers are designers of
methods
Teachers and students work in
teams

Assessment of Learning Outcomes in OBE

 Assessment in OBE should also be guided by the four principles of OBE which are clarity
of focus, designing backwards, high expectations and expanded opportunity. It should
contribute to the objective of improving students learning. Since in OBE, there is a need first to
establish a clear vision of what the students are expected to learn desired learning outcome),
then assessment becomes an embedded part of the system.
To be useful in OBE system, assessment should be guided by the following principles:
1. Assessment procedure should be valid. Procedure and tools should actually
assess what one intends to test.
2. Assessment procedure should be reliable. The results should be consistent.
3. Assessment procedure should be fair. Cultural background and other factors
should not influence assessment procedure.
4. Assessment should reflect the knowledge and skills that are important to the
students.
5. Assessment should tell both the teachers and students now students are
progressing.
6. Assessment should support every student’s opportunity to learn things that are
important.
7. Assessment should allow individuality or uniqueness to be demonstrated.
8. Assessment should be comprehensive to cover a wide range of learning
outcomes.

Learner’s Responsibility for Learning

Students are responsible for their own learning and progress. Nobody can learn for the
learner. It is only the learner himself who can drive himself/herself to learn, thus learning is a
personal matter. Teachers can only facilitate that learning, define the learning outcome be
achieved, and assist the students to achieve those outcomes. Students have the bigger
responsibility to achieve those outcomes. In this way they Will be able to know whether they
are learning or not.
One of the great benefits of outcomes-based education is that it makes students aware
of what they should be learning, why they earning it, what they are actually learning, and what
they should do when they are learning. All of these will conclude with the achieve learning
outcomes.
In terms of students' perspectives there are common questions that will guide them as
they learn under the OBE Curriculum framework. To guide the students in OBE learning, they
should ask themselves the following questions.
As a student,
1. What do I have to learn?
2. Why do I have to learn it?
3. What will I be doing while I am learning?
4. How will I know that I am learning, what I should be learning?
5. Will I have any say in what I learn?
a. How will I be assessed?

ACTIVITY/ASSESSENT

Write TRUE if the statement is correct and FALSE is not.

______1. The learner and the teacher can drive his/herself to learn.
______2. Assessment procedure should be fair. Cultural background and other factors should
not influence assessment procedure.
______3. Assessment in OBE should also be guided by the three principles of OBE which are
clarity of focus, designing backwards and expanded opportunity.
______4. Teachers must provide students with enough opportunities to use the new
knowledge and skills that they gain.
______5. Assessment should be comprehensive to cover a narrow range of learning outcomes.
______6. Teacher must let students themselves to bring each learning to a personal closure
that will make them aware of what they learned.
______7. Students are responsible for their own learning and progress
______8. Teachers must use a variety of teaching method.
________9. Assessment procedure should be valid. Procedure and tools should actually assess
what one intends to test.
______10. Teacher must create a positive learning environment.
Make a reflection on Curricular Reforms in Teacher Education.
Guide Questions;
1. Based from OBE or the Outcomes-Based Education the goal of teaching is learning
how are you going to maximize your knowledge to make this happen?
2. What are you going to do for the learners to learn better by using the 4 principles?
 3. High Expectations is one of the four essential principles. Do you think you need to
make high expectations/standards to make students learn?
SUMMARY
OBE According to Spady is clearly focusing and organizing everything in the educational
system around the essential for all the students to do successfully at the end of their learning
experiences. It starts with a clear picture of what is important for students to be able to do,
then organizing the curriculum, instruction and assessment to make sure that learning happens.
He also added to define and clarify further answers to the following questions should be
addressed by the teachers. What do we want these students to learn? Why do we want
students to learn these things? How can we best help students to learn these things? How will
you know when the students have learned?
Moreover, Spady premised that in OBE all students can learn but not at the same time,
successful learning promotes and schools and teachers control the conditions that will
determine if the students learn.
There are four essential principles in OBE these are clarity of focus, designing
backwards, high expectations, and expanded opportunities. These four essential principles are
very important to make learning more meaningful and for the students also to reach their full
potential in learning.
In teaching-learning in OBE Learning is measured by its outcome so no matter how good
you are in teaching if your students did not learn something from you it’s useless. That’s why
there are tips given on how should teaching-learning be done and these are;

 Teachers must prepare students adequately

 Teachers must create a positive learning environment
 Teachers must help their students to understand what they have to learn
 Teachers must use a variety of teaching methods.
 Teachers must provide students with enough opportunities
 Teachers must help students to bring each learning to a personal closure that will make
them aware of what they learned.
Assessment of Learning Outcomes in OBE is also guided by four principles of OBE which
are clarity of focus, designing backwards, high expectations, and expanded opportunity.
Guiding principles are also included to be useful in OBE system.
Learners Responsibility for learning, In OBE learners are responsible for their own
learning and progress. In other word it is learner-centered, teachers are just facilitator in
OBE system. Through this they will know if they learn or not. One of the benefits of OBE is
that it makes students aware of learning.
 There are also questions that will guide the learners as they learn under the OBE
Curriculum Framework. These are the following;
As a student,
1. What do I have to learn?
2. Why do I have to learn it?
3. What will I be doing while I am learning?
4. How will I know that I am learning, what I should be learning?
5. Will I have any say in what I learn?
6. How will I be assessed?

CONCLUSION
To conclude, to become an effective teacher you need to know how to manage the
materials that you have and of course you need to focus on what the students will learn and
how they will learn it through your desired approach. In order to have a better outcome you
should be guided by the four essential principles and the premises of Spady. Lastly teaching is
not just teaching your main goal should always be learning.
REFERENCES:
Bilbao P. B. et.al.(2020)TheTeacherAndTheSchoolCurriculum (OBE-@PPST-BASED).
LorimarPublishingInc.