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Final Response Stephanie Marotto Kansas University
Final Response Stephanie Marotto Kansas University
Final Response Stephanie Marotto Kansas University
Stephanie Marotto
Kansas University
Abstract
This final response paper will be an overview and summarization of other papers
regarding curriculum development. It will analyze the arguments and theories of various
educators that support my take on what curriculum should look like. Curriculum today is
focused too much on testing. I think curriculum needs to be more meaningful and
and knowledge has emerged. Each theorist in the 20th century contributed various
ideas be applied to the current curriculum used by school districts. Though collecting
data is essential to frame instruction, testing should not be the primary focus
curriculum needing to change to a more student based structure and less focus on
Ralph Tyler and John Dewey were educational theorists and reformers who
have contributed to the educational system in the 1900s. Tyler argued curriculum
objectives have to be based on what students need, and Dewey believed curriculum
needs to focus on childrens place in society. Though Tyler and Deweys theories of
what successful curriculum entails differed, both reformers recognized any curriculum
Ralph Tyler
When Ralph Tyler was developing his theories, he asked these questions to
guide his thinking: What will be the purpose of the educational program? How can
students experiences further the purpose? Finally, how can education be evaluated? To
answer these questions, Tyler developed a linear with a starting and ending point for the
students and the curriculum. He stated the ultimate focus needs to be what we want
students to achieve and how we can make that happen. Tyler said once this question is
answered, curriculum developers can determine materials, content, instruction and
evaluation methods. When determining content for the curriculum, Tyler stated it is
essential to be mindful of students needs and make instruction meaningful (Flinders &
Thorton, 2012).
John Dewey
need to become a social institution and have social-based activities, so education can
Change in Understanding
John Dewey and Ralph Tyler presented great ideas and arguments for their
theories. I agree with John Dewey on the idea of teachers jobs are to prepare students
for success in society. However, I do not think this should be the only focus of schooling
for students. Aside from proper social skills being taught in schools, students also need
to be knowledgeable of the subject matter. Times have changed since these theorists
and college is expected for certain careers. In regards to Ralph Tyler's ideas, I still
agree with having an end goal before developing a curriculum. There needs to be an
about William Doll's educational theories, I no longer agree with the linear system.
Instead, curriculum should incorporate recursion and build upon itself.
Since the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act, teachers must teach a
curriculum that is assessment focused. Teachers need to prepare students for success
on state assessments, because if the scores are not proficient, teachers can lose their
jobs. These requirements make it difficult for teachers feel is necessary for students to
Stance development
The development on the stance of this issue of the curriculum not including
opportunities for real world connections comes from a special education teacher's
constantly struggle in the classroom because they are pushed beyond their limits. Since
those real world connections are not provided them. Students I work with are grade
levels behind, but some of whom may never be caught up. For students needing
significant, cognitive support tend to be left behind. Therefore, every year failure is
experienced because they are not able to meet the requirements of what is taught. It
would be more beneficial for these students to receive a meaningful instruction that can
Unfortunately, public school teachers are required to follow state and district
curriculums. However, teachers can create their own activities. In doing so, teachers
can create activities that adhere to the curriculum but have students create projects that
are real world based. Though it will be time consuming to plan, students are more likely
to be engaged and fun for all involved. But like Maxine Greene said, teachers need to
instruction.
My stance on this curriculum issue of instruction being too much focus on testing
will never change. The only way my stance will alter is if the required mandates change.
Due to the vast amount of testing throughout a school year, we are not preparing for
is lacking. Also, we limit our kids on understanding what they are capable of because
between mandated district and state assessments. Since the federal and state
government rely on testing for evaluating schools success and fund accordingly, it puts
a lot of pressure on teachers to best prepare students for these assessments. Since
assessment preparation is the focal point of instruction, teachers and students are not
The other issue with too much testing is educators rely too much on it for
understanding capabilities. Being a special educator, I constantly see students not doing
well on an assessment and the assumption is they are not capable. Since not one
student is the same, using only tests for measurements is limiting students.
growth.
Philosophy on Curriculum
make connections and critically think. After studying vary theorists, Maxine Greene,
William Doll and William Pinar, these three educators reinforce my personal curriculum
philosophy of learning needs to be real world based, less focused on testing and
accessible for all. Though this can be time consuming for teachers to plan, this
William Doll proposed that for students to critically think and make connections,
curriculum needs to have richness, relations, recursion and rigor. Richness is the
both teachers and students. Having richness in the curriculum goes beyond test taking
and allows for connections as well as meaningful dialogue between students. For
consistency to occur in curriculum, there needs to be recursion. The old and new
curriculum" (2012). Finally, Rigor brings together relations, richness and recursion
together. Rigor would allow students to look for alternatives, relations, and connections
Maxine Greene and William Pinar argued curriculum needs to be meaningful for
argued teachers need to re-conceptualize kids' education for them to build better
connections and see the purpose in their learning (2012). Both theorists said if the
curriculum has a good purpose, students can easily make connections and apply their
curriculum. Students need an education they can apply in their own lives outside of the
meaningful lesson. Maxine Greene stressed this point of doing everything it takes for
The students I work with really struggle and have demanding needs. The
additional support goes beyond the average student. Most kids on my special education
caseload are grade levels behind in more than one academic area, with lack of reading
fluency and accuracy causing the most impact. Also, the attention span of most of these
Any text we work on is usually expository. My main goal with this group of
students is to close the gap. However, I want them to learn new, meaningful information
that can help them within their classroom. Also, for any content or skill we are learning, I
pose the question of when and how outside of the classroom can you use this? When
we will you add with regrouping? How can you read new, unfamiliar words? Why is it
because I want my students to realize how important their education is outside of the
classroom.
Conclusion
State and district mandates are too demanding for teachers and students. The