Curriculum Design Process

Curriculum Design Process

By Lewis Sheffield

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Summary

When creating curriculum, it is important to have students best interests at the center of your design. There are many different approaches and models that can be used to create the lessons you feel will be most effective. When creating curriculum, it is important to take these things into consideration: What is the issue or need? Who is the target audience? What should be the able to do at the end? What is relevant content? How will they accomplish this and how will it be evaluated?

The curriculum design process is the process for the creation, development and implementation of lessons, materials and learning strategies meant to align with specific learning targets. Curriculum design has many elements and approaches used to help educators reach different performance goals with their students. Those elements can vary depending on the teachers beliefs as well as the school district.

Planning

Laying down the foundation

Timeline

Content and Methods

Define intended outcomes

When it comes to development of a curriculum, having a structured plan to determine where you would like to be and what you would like to accomplish is going to be ideal.

Implimentation

Put into play what you have prepared

Evaluaiton and REporting

Reflect on the results and make changes

Curriculum Design Models

Here are three design models that can be used to help develop your curriculum

Subject-Centered

Problem-Centered

Learner-Centered

Curriculum organization based by subjects

Curriculum organization based on needs of students

Curriculum organization based on student led learning

Subject Centered Model

The Subject centered model of curriculum building is breaking up curriculum into different subjects. This is commonly seen in the elementary school level of teaching where students have time for math, reading, social science, ect. This is one of the oldest methods of curriculum design and is used all over the world. Some of the advantages for using this method are:

• Due to age of design, there is a lot support and materials available to aide with development.
• It is easier for teachers to comprehend due to specialization training
• Curriculum planning tends to be much easier

Some of the disadvantages for this method are:

• Due to lack in one specific subject area, this could lead to knowledge fragmentation
• Does not focus on likes, needs or interests of students

Learner-Centered Model

Learner-Centered design model is focused on the needs, interest and abilities of the students. In this design model, lessons are more personalized to fit the goals and aspirations of the students. For this model to be effective, a relationship needs to be established first so that teachers can figure out where to take their curriculum next. In secondary schools this is an easy practice to run since you are usually only focusing on one subject.Advantages of this model are:

• Better connection with material since content is connected to students world
• Lessons are easily applicable to the outer world

Disadvantages of this model are:

• Needs and interests may be short lived for students
• Needs and interest of students may not be purposeful for education making curriculum design more challenging

Problem-Centered Model

Problem-Centered model of design is a student led model where students are in charge of working together to figure out the solution to various problems. In this model, the problem is presented first and the class works to gather the information to find the solution.Advantages of this model include:

• Reduction of direct teaching and promotion of student ownership of work and learning
• Stimulation of critical thinking skills allowing students to dig deeper into material to get answers and find solutions.

Disadvantages of this model include:

• Activities often take a large amount of work and preparation to complete and maintain
• Learning is heavily reliant on the students ability to find and store knowledge as well as their motivation. This might require the teacher to stay vigilant and prepared to intervein when necessary.

Design ApproachA persons approach to how they design their curriculum can change depending on the their one ideals as well as the ideals of the district that they are in. There is no one way to approach the design of your curriculum. It all depends on what you are most comfortable.

Systems Approach

Managerial Approach

Behavioral Approach

Humanistic Approach

Postmodern Approach

Academic Approach

Behavioral Approach

This is the oldest approaches when it comes to making curriculum and is also one of the most dominate. This approach is very straight forward relying on models and step by step strategies when it comes to the creation of curriculum. Learning objectives and goals are clearly laid out and activities are put in place that align with these objectives. Everything students do needs to be observable as this is proof that students have achieved the objective goals.

Managerial Approach

This approach sees the school as a collaborative resource where teachers, students and admin work together and follow set norms and behaviors. This approach is favored for those looking innovate and use admin, curriculum specialist and supervisors to help facilitate that change. Some schools may be resistant to changes, however, with this approach you look to find and plan according to the goals and principles set by the school.

Systems Approach

In this approach, each part of the school or district is viewed as a part of a whole. How does each individual part come into play when it comes to the creation of curriculum. The goal of this approach to create a responsive curriculum that is able to meet the needs of everyone who is involved. Changes in one area can have effects in another. Constant feedback helps to make sure that material stays relevant and effective.

Academic Approach

This approach looks to emphasize the mastery of subject matter and skill. The goal is to have students develop and prepare for higher level of education and eventually their careers. Curriculum is seen as a set of subjects with each having its own unique body of knowledge and skill. Academic assessment, standards and accountability are the driving force of this approach. Its biggest problem is that its focus can be too narrow on academics and fails to account for the diverse need of the learners involved.

Humanistic Approach

This approach focus on the growth of the whole individual. This includes emotional, social, spiritual and other needs. This approach looks at the needs, interests, and goals to promote a students self-actualization. The curriculum is used as a conduit to encourage a students creativity and critical thinking. The focus of the curriculum is student-centered and fosters the use of collaboration and experimental learning. The main issue with this approach is there is little focus on academic standards.

Postmodern Approach

This approach focuses on the importance of cultural diversity, diverse perspectives, and critical reflection. This approach looks to address the needs of its diverse learners and highlight their vast experiences. Curriculum us used to emphasize the different voices and perspectives students have and give them an equal opportunity to be heard. Its main criticism is it lacks academic skill in trade for identity politics.

References

Button, L. (n.d.). Curriculum Essentials: A Journey (A. Dodson, Ed.). Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike. https://oer.pressbooks.pub/ curriculumessentials/ Dodd, B. J. (2021). Curriculum Design Processes. In J. K. McDonald & R. E. West (Eds.), Design for Learning: Principles, Processes, and Praxis. EdTech Books. https://edtechbooks.org/id/curriculum_design_process Nilson, L. B. (2010). Teaching at its best: A research-based resource for college instructors (2nd ed.).  San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.  Ornstein, A. C., & Hunkins, F. P. (2016). Curriculum (7th ed.). Pearson Education. Sawi, G. (1996). Curriculum Development Guide: Population Education for Non-Formal Education Programs of Out-of-School Rural Youth. Retrieved July 26, 2023, from https://www.fao.org/3/ah650e/AH650E00.htm#Contents