Comparison Between Holistic And Subject Based Approaches to Curriculum Organization - Essay Example

? COMPARISON BETWEEN HOLISTIC AND BASED APPROACHES TO CURRICULUM ORGANIZATION Introduction Curriculum refers to a list or set of courses or subjects offered at a school. School, in this context, refers to any form of institution where learning takes place. It can be a kindergarten, preschool, high school, or any of the several matriculation institutions. Curriculum change, on the other hand, refers to the changes that occur or are made to these courses or subjects by certain individual with a reason of making learning more easy, simple, subjective, and relevant to the contemporary societies across the globe. Curriculum change is of great importance as it ensures that education in various parts of the world is a standard one to allow interaction and sharing of knowledge and ideas among intellectuals from different nations. Analysis of the previous and historical concepts and reasons that have propagated the need for curriculum change is, therefore a necessity. This paper will also analyze the main concepts of curriculum change, as well as, compare and contrast between holistic and subject based approaches to curriculum. Imperatives that drive curriculum change According to a recent research, less than 4% of teachers believe that the national curriculum is organized in such a way that it meets the needs of all their pupils. However, 90% of teachers believe that it will be a good and helpful idea if the school was to have greater freedom of developing their own curriculum. Teachers from several schools are however acting on their dissatisfaction. However, few schools have made a step to come up with their own curriculum to replace the national curriculum, especially in primary schools. These schools came up with a framework of skills their pupils needed and ensured that they organized their teachings well around it. They also ensured that the students got prepared wells for the tests and that their chosen curriculum met with the set statutory requirements. The outcomes of such schools were improved test or exam results, as well as, learning motivation. The practice has become common in various parts of Europe, particularly in the United Kingdom. There several factors and imperatives that have acted as facilitators to the practice as explained below: 1. Influential individuals Gur (2006) explain and outline the key factors that affect change in curriculum structure and composition. The first factor that initiates change is a strong and charismatic leadership system that is accepted by the academic staff members. The Main feature of such leadership is to have the necessary capacity that attracts other academic staff to agree and; rally behind the principled educational objectives supported within the environment or institution. A good and appropriate curriculum will ensure a good output especially for a class with an average or reasonable number of students (Gur, 2006, p41). This is because with a smaller class, teacher-student personal relationship is always possible. There is always an anxiety by students to produce constant excellent results because an alteration in the syllabus or curriculum. The relationship eases the performance anxieties experienced by such students and temptation to submit work that is not theirs to the tutors. However, it should be noted that individual influence on the curriculum change has its own side effects. 2. The need to improve staff training Research has proven the emergence of curricula related challenges in most institutions, especially at the nursery and primary levels of studies. Change in curriculum always comes with the need for better-trained staff members. It requires new teaching skills aimed at meeting the objectives and goals set by the new curriculum system. This may prove to be a significant challenge to most institutions implementing their own curriculum, as they will be required to come up with an impromptu notice for hiring new teachers or training the existing staff. Therefore, the curriculum change is viewed as one of the main and potential factors that can possibly influence revolution to have new teacher, objective based training method. 3. Student Abilities In any ideal world, the existing educational curriculum would be dictated by the citizen’s desires to produce graduates of the highest possible caliber. This can be done of various learning institutions strive to source the correct raw materials in sufficient quantity. Raw materials, in this case, refer to the students being admitted to schools (Gur, 2006, p49). However, this program may be hindered by the existing quota systems in most schools in the UK. This system does not allow the admission of weaker students to certain schools due to their low levels of knowledge in English and Mathematics. Sometimes institutions and national educational programmers take the path of least resistance and design their curricula for students who have shown a great potential in excelling in academics leaving the mediocre ones behind. This is because the mediocre students can only capable of muddling their ways through the learning course but they never excel. However, recent survey has come up with an outcome that most of the few students in some of the good schools in the UK and other parts of the developed nations have struggled and made great successes in their lives generating great and globally recognized innovations. Therefore, considerations of the needs of their contributions, as well as, their contributions provide a leeway for the making of a curriculum that will be favorable to them as well. 4. Pedagogical argument, academic merit Several changes are always proposed because of their undisputable goodness. One would find it hard or rather stupid and awkward to argue. For instance, it would be strange to hear an individual arguing that the introduction of laboratory classes for science-related subjects was a wrong idea. Similarly, it is imagined that most leaders would accept that changes in curriculum are indispensable for the students going to various fields of study. Curricula changes and implementation would therefore ease. 5. National and international accreditation bodies Certain professional bodies such as ACM and accreditation bodies like Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) influence course structures of various institutions. These bodies and others influence course structures of different institutions positively in such a way that these institutions end up changing their curriculum to fit the organizations’ suggestions. In addition to the above, various other bodies do the scrutiny of degree programs, even in the absence of certain specific curriculum specifications thus acting as a force that guides the curricula programs in specific directions (Gur, 2006, p42). A relevant example is in Australia. Both the Institution of Engineers and the Australian Computer Society normally accredit undergraduate degree programs in Computer Science and the accreditation is considered a marketing necessity or strategy. This is a case at university and college level, the same applies at the primary and nursery level. 6. Academic fashion Enrolment market is always competitive in most part of the world. Most institutions would like their programs to be attractive to students so that the best students can prefer them to other institutions. In principle, these institutions would like their programs to be chosen in on reputations such as, academically strongest, greatest industry relevance, most up-to-date, and best teaching in the world or within a particular state or nation. In order for an institution to maintain its reputation, it has to look deeply and carefully into its curricular structure. It is therefore, becomes its obligation to ensure that the old and less beneficial curriculum is done away with and an appropriate and relevant one implemented immediately in order for the institution to meet its goals. Impact of significant education initiatives Changes in curriculum lead to the revolution of education in the entire UK. This revolution of had great impacts that affected various societal and educational aspects in different parts of the nation. The initiatives had effects on the following aspects: 1. Curriculum organization and Children’s learning experiences Curricular change in Europe led to many changes in the curriculum organization in various schools in the UK. To begin with, the curriculum structure ensured that the information taught to the students provided a proper foundation for the next level of learning. The curriculum composition also changed significantly. Certain subjects that had been omitted were included. Some of the omitted components were practical based learning at nursery and primary schools, which had been assumed inappropriate for young learners (Ornstein, 1998, p57). Some of these included the crucial scientific concepts that were definitely crucial for the formation of a good foundation for the learners. There was also a big change in staff among different schools. This ensured proper primary teaching. The good teaching meant that the children were not left to develop simply by following their every whim. It deepened and widened children’s understanding through firing of their interests and imaginations and paving the way to higher and greater achievements through scaffolding learning within a community. As envisaged by several well known respected researchers in the cognitive field, good teaching implies that what kids can do with support from adult today , they can do unaided in the following day. More and detailed research revealed that the outcome results of several graduates increased significantly and the performance at the primary and secondary levels improved tremendously with over 30% (Burke, 2001, 48). Learning always includes four main aspects, which are fundamentals for education. They include listening, speaking, reading, reading, and writing. Initially, the discussions writing and reading in primary education sometimes failed to realize the core importance of developing the aspect of communication in children. Some of the early respondents applied the term ‘Oracy’ instead of speaking and listening skills. Such people believed that this defined dialogue engagement better and would advance the thinking of children across the entire curriculum. This failed to achieve its intended goal of facilitating communication skills among children. However, with the new curriculum initiatives, various plans and practices have been put in place to ensure that language and communication is well taught (Gruba, 2003, p14). Moreover, the government has step in to facilitate the activity through funding initiatives that ensure that communication among the children in nursery and primary schools is improved. For instance, Every Child a Talker and Time for Talk initiatives that has led to great change and increase in communication skills among various kids in the two educational levels (Gur, 2006, p44). Schools and other institutions have taken another step of taking stock of effectively they give opportunities, for instance, for children to boost their vocabulary, talk confidently and intensively, and listen attentively to other speakers. Talking or conversation may include a topic like their experiences and work across the whole aspect of curriculum to a range of audiences. In addition, the role of parents in facilitating the children’s communication skills can never be overestimated. The create time to talk and listen to their children, as they train and encourage them to talk. Apart from the general goals or the core features of literacy, reading and writing remain the main goals of most teachers. Every teacher at nursery and primary level would always love to see their pupils perform excellently in their exams, especially those related to reading and writing. A popular say by one of the primary teacher, “If children leave my school and can’t paint, that is a pity, however, if they leave and they can’t read then it is a disaster” (Burke, 2001, p18). A broad and balanced curriculum has been put in place to ensure that no child leave school without the basic knowledge of reading and writing. Primary schools have prioritized teaching those things, which are easily accessible by children at the time when they are likely to benefit. In order to strengthen language development, each learning program has highlighted the explicit opportunities for children. This is meant to enable them develop apply the full range of literacy skills they have learnt. Children are able to develop, as well as, apply their listening and speaking skills to suit a range of audiences for different purposes (Gur, 2006, p44). They are able to listen attentively to stories and tell theirs as well. They are also able to explore opinions and ideas both in informal and formal settings. They have confidence to express themselves in a creative and improvised manner displaying role-play and other drama activities, as well. The same practical principles and methods apply in other areas of learning such as mathematics, writing, and science. 2. The Range of Pedagogy engendered by the Early Years Foundation Stage and the National Curriculum As expected, change in curriculum in several schools in the UK implied a change in pedagogical practices in various institutions. This was meant to ensure that the indicated educational goals were met. The teachers training sessions and styles changed and targeted the newly implemented 1996 Education Act. One of the requirements in the act was the English and LEA model. Analytical comparison between the models of curriculum Curriculum in any organization plays a significant role in the teaching-learning process in all the educational institutions. The instructional materials, nature of the training the teachers underwent, development of teaching materials, assessment of learners, designing for guides for both the learners and instructors, and setting the principles, are all anchored on the curriculum which is a vital educational document. Thus the role of curriculum in any organization plays a vital role and absence of the document in any educational organization means that the institution cannot function as expected. Curriculum is an educational document, which guides and used for ordering the teaching-learning understandings, which the learners encounter in the educational organization. Curriculum organization involves provision of curriculum and maintaining it to run uninterrupted. Curriculum organization is more inclusive terminology, which entails resolving of aims and objectives of learning, execution, design, and assessment. Curriculum organization is a continuous process in any country or educational institution because of the changing nature of education system according to the demands of the community (Reimer, 1989, p45). The curriculum system of any nation or institution undergoes numerous changes in order to improve it, make it newer, and make it more efficient means to implement the role of education system to the next generation. Models of curriculum comprises of intersecting components, which functions as a guide for an activity. There are different models in organization, which range from simple to complex models. In many situations, models are more similar than being diverse and are almost the revised models of the previous curriculum. In organizations, especially educational institutions, there exist different types of models off curriculum organization. The Tyler Model The Tyler model of curriculum is the best model of curriculum as compared to other types of curriculum. The type of curriculum model was developed by Ralph Tyler in 1949. The Tyler model of curriculum answers the four fundamental questions Tyler asked and answers the questions using four-sequential steps. The steps according to Tyler in curriculum organization are (1) identifying the objectives, (2) choosing the means of achieving the objectives, (3) organization of the teaching-learning objectives, and (4) assessing the results or the achievement of the students. Tyler emphasized the need of collecting the relevant data in the process of organizing and developing the curriculum objectives and the data should be collected from only three sources namely: the content or the subject jurisdiction; the students; and the community (Reimer, 1989, p45). Tyler proposes that after identification of the purposes or aims which represent the preferred outcomes, the curriculum organizer is required to pass the aims through philosophical screen and psychological screen. These will lead to the development of instructional purposes or aims which will dictate the expected outcomes which are both attainable and measurable. This is followed by a stage of choosing the relevant learning experiences which will guarantee the achievement of the stated objectives. The educational experiences according to Tyler, needs to be connect to the learners previous experiences in the educational setting and the educational experiences are best based on the known experiences in the human environment. Tyler emphasized the need of proper sequencing and designing the learning experiences in order to facilitate learning. He also proposed that the elements conceptual, ideologies, skills, knowledge, and values be employed in the organization process which needs to incorporate into the curriculum (Gruba & Moffat, 2003, p47). He said that the elements will function in the organizational strategy as links between the content and specific subject and to establish the methodology approach of delivering the content to learners. In addition, Tyler suggested that the organization of the curriculum would largely depend on the evaluation of the curriculum. There is the need for curriculum implementers to understand the effectiveness of proposed curriculum through evaluation thus it will determine whether the curriculum is effective or ineffective. The Tyler thinking has greatly influenced the process of curriculum organization in many educational institutions around the world. Despite the criticism that the Tyler model is linear, the model continues to be popular (Ornstein, 1998, p57). The Taba Model The Taba model of curriculum was developed by Hilda Taba in 1962. She claimed that there was a particular structure of design that is followed in development of a curriculum. She proposed that the implementers of the curriculum, who are the teachers, need to actively participate in the organization and development of curriculum document, thus leading to a model called the grass-roots approach . She also proposed that there are seven stages in which educators have to follow in the development of this model. She criticized the Tyler model in the account that it was more of administrative curriculum. This is because the Tyler model emphasized the top-down decision-making whereby most of the decisions in the Tyler model were done by the administrators. She believed that curriculum organization and development need to be left in the hands of implementers who are the main users of the document. She greatly advocated for educators involvement in the development and organization of the curriculum and felt that teachers should use the inductive approach in development of the curriculum. This meant that teachers while building concept should start from the known to unknown or from simple to complex. The seven stages proposed by Taba in curriculum organization include identifying the requirements of the students; development of objectives according to the identified needs of the students; the next is choosing the suitable content whereby the teacher need to organize the content in an orderly manner before delivering the content; the teacher also need to organize the content by considering the maturity, the level, and interests of the leaner; the teacher also is involved in the choosing the relevant learning encounters of the learners thus enabling the teacher to choose relevant content; organization of the activities to be learned is important ;and evaluation and evaluation techniques which will asses the effectiveness of the curriculum document (Henchey, 1999, p24). The Taba curriculum has many advantages has received criticism that the system involves the educator much to a point assuming that the educator has some expertise thus become time-consuming exercise . According some experts in curriculum, curriculum development and organization need participation all the relevant stakeholders in education sector to ensure that all the interests are taken care of. According to the experts curriculum organization only allows teachers to implement it, but the major part is designed by the Ministry of Education, academic specialists, employers, and other stakeholders. The Saylor and Alexander Model Saylor and Alexander (1974) perceived curriculum development and organization being a process involving four steps. The two argued that curriculum is a document designed to offer learning opportunities in order to attain the broad-based educational aims and connected particular objectives in an educational organization. The steps proposed by the two are aimed at providing a comprehensive curriculum (Gruba & Moffat, 2003, p47). The first step is based on goals, domains, and objectives, which needed to be identified by curriculum developers. The goals in the curriculum fulfill the four curriculum domain strategies which include personal development, specialization, uninterrupted acquisition of skills, and human relationships. The second stage involves curriculum design where it specifies the learning opportunities for every curriculum realm and where and when the opportunities will be availed (Sowell, 2000, p52). The third stage involve implementation of the Curriculum which is majorly done the teachers who are involved in specifying instructional goals to be attained hence selection of relevant instructional materials and approaches to attain the goals. The fourth approach is the evaluation stage. This is where the teachers and curriculum organizers evaluate the learners using the comprehensive approaches. Evaluation enables the teachers and curriculum developers to ascertain the effectiveness of the curriculum. Three curriculum models indicate the various approaches and decisions the curriculum organizers and implementers need to undertake in an education setting globally. The three models show both differences and similarities. The models specify the stages which need to be followed in designing a curriculum. The Taba model puts more emphasis on the educator as the implementer of the developed curriculum while Tyler model emphasizes on both philosophical screen and psychological screen in which the developed skills objectives need to penetrate. There have been varied views on the superiority of the models, but many curriculum developers prefer the Tyler model being the model with greater success. References Burke, J., 2001, The Seychelles National Curriculum, Curriculum framework. New York, Cengage Publishers. Gur, H., 2006, Influences and Controls: The National Curriculum in England and Turkey: Journal of Turkish Science Education. Volume 3, (40-50). Gruba, P. & Moffat, A., 2003, What drives curriculum Change? Melbourne, Victoria, University of Melbourne Press. Henchey, N., 1999, The new curriculum reform: what does it mean? McGill Journal of Education. Vol. 34. (3). p. 227, [available at ProQuest]. Reimer, B. 1989, A comprehensive arts curriculum model. Design for Arts in Education. vol. 90(6). pp. 39-43, [Available at ProQuest] Ornstein, A. & Hunkins, F., 1998, Curriculum: Foundations, principle and issues. Boston, MA, Allyn & Bacon. Chapter 9, Aims, goals and objectives. Sowell, E. 2000, Curriculum: An integrative introduction. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Chapter 4: Studies of subject matter. Read More