Implicit Curriculum Theory

Implicit Curriculum Theory

The implicit curriculum theory is an approach to learning through teachers’ values, the behaviors they display, and the interactions they have with their students. It also immerses students in real-life experiences that promote critical thinking skills. The article, Bridging the Explicit and Implicit Curricula: Critically Thoughtful Critical Thinking, leads the reader through a scenario of social work training opportunities emphasizing the use of implicit and explicit experiences. These training exercises help students grasp the details of the profession through authentic experiences in the field. This style of curriculum stems from the early theorists of John Dewey and Paulo Freire whose foundation of learning centers on individual experiences, critical thinking, and student-centered activities.

“Students in this way develop their critical thinking skills through the explicit curriculum via content and assignments and through the implicit curriculum via, among other things, immersion in social work values; direct experience with diversity; and the relationships established with fellow students, community partners, and their instructors as critical pedagogues” (Miller, Tice, & Hall, 2011, p. 43).

This article is from EBSCOHOST peer-reviewed library where several other articles cover similar learning examples in various educational settings. The decision to select this particular article centers on the combination of both implicit and explicit opportunities in the field of social work and the description of student-centered activities that outline the application of the curriculum.

Problem-Based Learning

Problem-based curriculum integrates learning through performance activities and solvi...

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...ainen, P. (2009). Designing and implementing a PBL course on educational digital video production: lessons learned from a design-based research. Educational Technology Research & Development, 57(2), 211-228.

Miller, S. E., Tice, C. J., & Hall, D. (2011). Bridging the explicit and implicit curricula: Critically thoughtful critical thinking. Journal Of Baccalaureate Social Work, 16(1), 33-45.

Parrish, P. E. (2009). Aesthetic principles for instructional design. Educational Technology Research And Development, 57(4), 511-528.

Posner, G. J. (2004). Analyzing the curriculum. Boston: McGraw-Hill.

Tanner, D., & Tanner, L. (2007). Curriculum development: theory into practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Merrill/Prentice Hall.

Thomas, W. (2009). Ensuring a graduated integrated progression of learning in a changing environment. ANZ Journal Of Surgery, 79(3), 143-147.