The Teacher and Student Learning

Dimensions and
Principles of
Curriculum Design
Lesson II
 Elements of the Curriculum

1 2 3 4
Objective Contents Activities Evaluation
 Dimensions of
Curriculum Design
1 2 3 4 5 6
Scope Sequence Continuity Integration Articulation Balance
Scope
Learning experiences and organizing
threads comprising the educational plan.
Scope does not only refer to the cognitive
content, but also to the affective and
psychomotor content. It is the depth, as
well as, the breadth of these contents.
The scope of the curriculum can be divided into chunks called
units, sub-units, chapters or sub-chapters.

DEDUCTIVE INDUCTIVE

General to Specific Specific to General

 Sequence
To provide continuous and cumulative
learning, a vertical relationship among the
elements of the curriculum provides the
sequence. Contents and experiences are
arranged in hierarchical manner, where the
basis can either be logic of the subject matter
or on the developmental patterns of growth of
the cognitive, affective and psychomotor
domains.
Smith, Stanley and Shore (1957) introduced four
principles for sequence. These are the following:

Simple to Complex Pre-requisite

Learning Learning

It means that there are

Complex, from concrete to
abstract, from easy to difficult.
This principle is in consonance
with developmental theories of
learning and cognition.
fundamental things to be learned
ahead. Like addition before
multiplication in mathematics or
letters before words, words before
phrases and phrases before
sentences.
Smith, Stanley and Shore (1957) introduced four
principles for sequence. These are the following:

Whole to part Chronological

Learning learning

This principle has a relations to This principle is closely allied to

gestalt. The forest before the trees.
The overview before the specific
content or topics. The meaning can
very well be understood if
everything will be taken as a whole.
history, political science or world
events. Time is the factor to be
considered. The sequence can be
arranged from the most recent to the
distant past or vice versa.
 Posner and Rudnitsky (1994) presented four major principles
for organizing content in units, which can also be applied to a
curriculum.

1. World-related sequence - What relationship exists among people, objects or

events of the world? How can contents and experiences be arranged so that they
will be consistent with the world?

Physical
Space Time
Attributes
 Posner and Rudnitsky (1994) presented four major principles
for organizing content in units, which can also be applied to a
curriculum.

2. Concept-related sequence - This arrangement reflects the organization of

the conceptual world, how ideas are related together in a logical manner.

Class Propositional
Relations Relations
 Posner and Rudnitsky (1994) presented four major principles
for organizing content in units, which can also be applied to a
curriculum.

3.Inquiry-related sequence - This is based on the scientific method of inquiry.

Based on the process of generating, discovering and verifying knowledge, content
and experiences are sequenced logically and methodically.
 Posner and Rudnitsky (1994) presented four major principles
for organizing content in units, which can also be applied to a
curriculum.

4.Learning-related sequence - This is based on the psychology of learning

and how people learn.

Empirical
prerequisites Familiarity Difficulty Interest
Continuity
Vertical repetition and recurring
appearances of the content provide
continuity in the curriculum. This process
enables the learner to strengthen the
permanency of learning and development
of skills.
Gerome Bruner calls this "spiral curriculum"
where the content is organized according to the
interrelationship between the structure of the
basic ideas of a major discipline.
Integration
Everything is integrated and interconnected.
Life is a series of emerging themes." This is
the essence of integration in the curriculum
design. Organization is drawn from the
world themes from real life concerns.
Subject matter content or disciplined content
lines are erased and isolation is eliminated.
Articulation
This can be done either vertically or
horizontally.
 Balance
Elements to establish balance is needed in
curriculum design. Too much or too
little of these elements maybe
disastrous to the curriculum. Keeping
the curriculum "in balance" requires
continuous fine tuning and review for its
effectiveness and relevance.
 Guidelines in
Curriculum Design
Curriculum design committee should involve teachers,
parents, administrators and even students.
School's vision, mission, goals and objectives should be
reviewed and used as a bases for curriculum design. The needs
and the interests of the learners, in particular, and the society,
in general, should be considered.
Alternative curriculum design should consider advantages
and disadvantages in terms of costs, scheduling, class size,
facilities and personnel required.
The curriculum design should take into account cognitive,
affective, psychomotor skills, concepts and outcomes.
Thank you for Listening
Prepared by: Reine Valerie Alonzo