To define curriculum leadership, one should first have a working definition of curriculum. According to Marsh and Willis (2007), curriculum is usually regarded to mean a program of instruction at a school including both the planned and unplanned events in the classroom (pp.16, 375). Curriculum has three basic focal points: the nature of the individual, the nature society, and the nature of a subject (P. Brown, CIED 5053 lecture notes, August 28, 2006).
Looking at these definitions, one could come up with several different meanings for curriculum leadership. A curriculum leader could be the principal at a school who guides the teaching and learning at his or her school or could be the department head that plans the course of study for a subject. A curriculum leader could be the curriculum director in a district who guides the teaching and learning within a school district by defining the district’s educational goals, learning objectives and curriculum taught to students. Curriculum leaders provide the vision for the teaching and learning that takes place within a school or district. As lifelong learners, they seek professional development opportunities and are knowledgeable of current trends in curriculum and education with the goal of improving student learning in mind. Curriculum leaders also plan and create professional development opportunities providing teachers opportunities to improve their teaching practice and knowledge, whether this is through activities such as study groups, book studies, daylong events, or ongoing professional development covering a certain area such as math or reading curriculum.
On a larger level, curriculum leaders are people who theorize about how students learn, how student learning and sc...
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.... Experience and education (Touchstone Edition). New York: Simon and Schuster.
Dewy, J. (2004). My pedagogical creed. In D. J. Flinders and S. J. Thornton (Eds.), Curriculum studies reader 2nd ed. (pp. 17-23). New York: RoutledgeFalmer.
Marsh, C. J. & Willis, G (2007). Curriculum: Alternative approaches, ongoing issues. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education.
Paris, C., & Lung, P. (2008). Agency and child-centered practices in novice teachers: Autonomy, efficacy, intentionality, and reflectivity. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 29(3), 253 – 268. Retrieved March 24, 2009, from http://www.informaworld.com.argo.library.okstate.edu/10.1080/10901020802275302
Tyler, R. W. (2004). Basic principles of curriculum and instruction. In D. J. Flinders and S. J. Thornton (Eds.), Curriculum studies reader 2nd ed. (pp. 51—59). New York: RoutledgeFalmer.
E.D. Hirsch and John Dewey present two defined approaches to curriculum and pedagogy. In this essay, I will critically compare these two educational approaches by examining the strengths and weaknesses of Dewey’s applied learning curriculum and Hirsh’s core knowledge curriculum. I will also evaluate Hirsh’s more traditional, teacher-centred pedagogy in relation to Dewey’s more hands on approach to education. It will be shown that Dewey’s ideas are more educationally and socially valuable because they aim to enable collaboration, communal inquiry and coordination of interests. I will begin by explaining and critically evaluating Hirsch’s ideas, before explaining and defending Dewey’s alternative ideas.
Connected to this theme is the development of a shared, lived experience, where students and teacher are involved in an ongoing negotiation of curriculum. In the first 13 chapters, Paley’s central focus is to develop a learning community within the safety of the classroom. In the second half of her book, Paley illustrates how the combination of these two themes in turn offers an opportunity for what we call an opening up of the definition of curriculum. This review is an analysis of these three themes within the organizational framework of Paley’s book. The theme of children and teachers as co-creators of curriculum is established in the first chapter when Paley says, “Each year I wait to be reawakened by a Reeny … something to ponder deeply and expand upon extravagantly” (p.10). Reeny responds to this call by asserting herself early on as a curriculum leader in Paley’s classroom. Because children themselves are curriculum makers and leaders, curriculum cannot be imposed upon the learner. Ultimately, this opening up of the discussion of what curriculum means is established by Reeny in the last lines of the book when she announces: “But I’m thinking, why don’t you stay and we’ll talk about it. Don’t fly away. See we can keep talking about it, okay?” (p. 99). It is in Reeny’s utterance that we understand—the curriculum conversation must necessarily begin with students’
DEVELOPMENT & IMPLEMENTATION OF A SHARED VISION: Education leaders facilitate the development and implementation of a shared vision of learning and growth of all students, (1C) Implementing the Vision connection to my action plan. I collaborate with key stakeholders with the intention of fostering a shared vision, one that is proactive in nature. Proactive interventions, such as the development of a BIP will aid in a shared vision of learning and growth for all students regardless of ability levels. INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP: Education leaders shape a collaborative culture of teaching and learning informed by professional standards and focused on student and professional growth (2C) Supporting Teachers to Improve Practice (2D) Feedback on Instruction, directly relates to my action plan as I will engage in open collaborative conversations with teachers, administrators, and essential staff members. I will conduct informal classroom observations with the intension of providing feedback, constructing classroom materials, dispersing information. EXTERNAL CONTEXT AND POLICY Education leaders influence political, social, economic, legal and cultural contexts affecting education to improve education policies and practices (6A) Understanding and Communicating Policy correlates with my action plan. I will inform all essential members of the current legal mandates established by federal law, as safeguarding student
The National Curriculum is split up into stages, these stages are determined by age groups, key stage 1 ranges from ages 5-7 which is the year group 1 and 2, then there is key stage 2 which ranges in ages 7-11 this is year groups 3-6. Key stages 3 and 4 are secondary stages, so at key stage 3 the pupils are 11-14. At the final stage of the pupils development through the National Curriculum, key stage 5 they are 14-16, at this stage they get more choice in which areas of the curriculum they want to continue in. However some subjects which are part of the National Curriculum such as, english, maths and science are compulsory. At each stage expectations are set as to pupils performance levels. Targets are laid out for programmes of study for pupils. The national curriculum helps the school create a working relationship, not only with the pupils but also with the parents. The curriculum is a way to create many more opportunities for all levels of achievement. It can help with building on certain strengths in a pupils ability. When we consider the different structures to which the curriculum can take on we must look at the way in which the information set out through the curriculum is put across to the pupils through content and organization. David Scott a Professor of Educational Leadership and Learning at the University of Lincoln?s International Institute for Educational Leadership. He is an expert in curriculum studies, David Scott identifies and depicts six curriculum ideologies. These are Foundationalism, Conventionalism, Instrumentalism, Technical Rationality, Critical Pedagogy and Post-modernism.
...y curriculum to respond to individual needs and to support particular aptitudes and talents giving everybody opportunities for achievement. These make my teaching relevant. Learners can value of what they are learning as is relevant to their lives, present and future. Balance between curriculum and learning is reflected in teaching methods and assessment strategies which, I think, enable learners exercise self- awareness and responsibility for their personal achievement.
According to Blase, Blase, and Phillips (2010) educational leaders in high preforming schools effectively balance administrative and instructional leadership and provide stability, predictability and support. The current paradigm of educational leadership is management of facility, budget, school safety, and student discipline. Administrators must place more emphasis on methods to balance the responsibility of instructional leadership. It will require effective leadership characterized by their ability to redesign their schools into an effective organization. This can be done by a leader’s willingness to take risk. Risk taking would involve the leaders’ commitment to work collaboratively with teachers to set school wide and classroom goals suited to meet the unique needs of the students. It would require educational leaders to refuse to adopt a manufactured educational program but to make a commitment to their students and teachers to create a learning environment that is unique and relevant. Educational leaders would evaluate teachers on the effectiveness of their instructional practices. Each teacher would be held accountable for data that supports the need for goals developed for their classroom and methods used to track progress, use of instructional strategies, how assessment will be incorporated to drive instruction and monitor learning, and the effective use of assessment
Marples, R. (2010). What should go on the curriculum? In Bailey, R. (Ed.), The philosophy of education: An introduction (pp 33-47). London: Bloomsbury
...m while having freedom to choose how to teach it. This allows the curriculum to become more personable. Teachers currently associate curriculum with government mandates. They believe that curriculum is what they are told to teach instead of what is desired to learn. Curriculum in the educational setting, according to Pinar, is intended to be used to teach us to think intellectually, sensitively, and with courage to prepare us to be individuals committed to other individuals.
Sitwe, M. B. (2010, October 29). Mkandawire Benson Sitwe (2010). How theories of learning influence curriculum specialists during the development Stages of the curriculum | sitwe. sitwe. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://sitwe.wordpress.com/2010/10/29/mkandawire-benson-sitwe-2010-how-theories-of-learning-influence-curriculum-specialists-during-the-development-stages-of-the-curriculum/
The National Curriculum seems to pursue the route of a “… shared and authentic ‘national’ body of accepted knowledge and standards.” (Walkup, 2011). This appears to tell us that, with the National Curriculum, we are brought together, and taught the same subjects, and have similar attainment targets; however once difference that can also come out of this, is the level and standards at which it is taught, this is because different teachers will have different ideas as to how it should be taught.
Definitions for curriculum are many and varied. Broad sweeping statements claim that curriculum is what is taught in various subjects and the amount of time given to each. While a more specific view is that curriculum are performance objectives for students that focus on specific skills or knowledge (Marsh, 2010). Marsh (2010, p. 93) defines curriculum as “an interrelated set of plans and experiences” that are completed at school. The curriculum used in education can have various interpretations, it may refer to the curriculum as a plan that encompasses all the learning that is planned and directed by the school. Cu...
One of my most influential experiences took place with my very first class, ED 523 taught by Dr. Howe. In this course, I learned about the Understanding by Design (UbD) Framework created by Wiggins and McTighe. This framework focuses on a backward design approach that uses big ideas, essential questions, and authentic assessments to create and guide curriculum (Wiggins and McTighe, 2005). The design encourages educators to “start with the end in mind.” Along with UbD, I also learned about a calendar-based curriculum mapping process created by Heidi Hayes Jacobs. The curriculum map allows for educators to examine curriculum both horizontally in a course and also vertically over the student’s K-12 academic career (Jacobs, 1997).
Curriculum is important being it’s the underlying factor that plays a role in determining ones growth, achievement and success. The majority of curriculum con...
Since then, Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction has been a standard reference for anyone working with curriculum development. Although not a strict how-to guide, the book shows how educators can critically approach curriculum planning, studying progress and retooling when needed. Its four sections focus on setting objectives, selecting learning experiences, organizing instruction, and evaluating progress. Readers will come away with a firm understanding of how to formulate educational objectives and how to analyze and adjust their plans so that students meet the objectives. Tyler also explains that curriculum planning is a continuous, cyclical process, an instrument of education that needs to be fine-tuned.
Designing curriculum, instruction, and assessments are steps teachers use to help them make sense of the concepts they teach and helps drive instruction. These steps can take on many different forms and drive a classroom in a plethora of ways. These steps, when developed properly, can help a teacher utilize each moment in the classroom and help students gain more insight to the standards they need to become proficient.