MODULE 1

CURRICULUM and INSTRUCTION

INTRODUCTION

Curriculum is defined as a plan for providing sets of learning opportunities for

persons to be educated (Saylor et al. 1981). They point out further that the term plan
should be viewed as an intention rather than a blueprint, that planning opportunities for
learning requires making choices, and that plans have no impact until they are set in
motion. In this context, learning opportunities remain only opportunities until learners
become engaged with the opportunities.

Instruction is defined as the actual engagements of learners with planned

learning opportunities; thus, instruction can be thought of as the implementation of the
curriculum plan (Saylor et al., 1981). They emphasize that the terms curriculum and
instruction are interlocked. Thus, without a curriculum plan there can be no effective
instruction, and without instruction the curriculum has no meaning.

General Objective

To know the different definitions of curriculum and instruction and their

relationships.

Specific Objectives. After studying this module, you should be able to:

1. Define the terms curriculum and instruction.

2. Understand the relationship between curriculum and instruction.
3. Differentiate the four models of curriculum-instruction relationship.
4. Answer the given questions at the end of this module.

Definitions of Curriculum

The term curriculum comes from the Latin root, “currere,” which means “to run”.
In educational usage, the “course of the race,” with time came to stand for the “course
of study”. Nowadays, curriculum could have different meanings for different people
depending on how it is used (Palma, 1992).

Over the years, definitions of curriculum have included the following:

1. It is the cumulative tradition of organized knowledge

2. It is the modes of thought
3. It is a race experience
4. It is a guided experience
 5. It is a planned learning environment
6. It is a cognitive/affective content and process
7. It is an instructional plan
8. It is an instructional ends or outcomes
9. It is a technological system of production
10. It is the formal and informal content and process by which learners gain
knowledge and understanding, develop skills, and alter attitudes, appreciations,
and values under the auspices of that school.
11. It is the program of studies, the program of experiences, the program of services,
and the hidden curriculum, and
12. It is the sum of all learning content, experiences and resources that are
purposely selected, organized and implemented by the school in pursuit of its
peculiar mandate as a distinct institution of learning and human development.

Despite the variety of definitions of curriculum gathered by the author, there is at

least a common denominator in these definitions that is, the curriculum exists for the
learner providing him with education experiences in order to effectively pursue the
general aims the schools are to pursue. Additionally, the curriculum must possess
specific criteria in order to effectively assist the educator to meet the requirements for
teaching and learning. It depends on the school of thought one embraces. It is readily
seen that curriculum is an indispensable ingredient in the school. Without this
curriculum, there is no school. What the constitution is to state, the curriculum is to an
educational institution.

A good curriculum must satisfy certain criteria, namely:

(a) it is continuously evolving

(b) is based on the needs of the people
(c) is democratically conceived
(d) is the result of long term efforts
(e) is a complex of details
(f) provides for a logical sequence of subject matter
(g) complements and cooperates with other programs in the community
(h) has educational quality, and
(i) has administrative flexibility

Definitions of Instruction

(a) An instruction is a form of communicated information that is both command and

explanation for how an action, behavior, method, or task is to begun, completed,
conducted, or executed.
(b) The teaching and training activities of an institution, whether offered for credit or
not and whether offered through regular departments or special divisions.
Departmental or unfunded research is considered a part of Instruction.
(c) A planned process that facilitates learning.
(d) The delivery of information to enable learning. The process by which knowledge
and skills are transferred to students. Instruction applies to both training and
education.
(e) Something written in a programming language that tells the computer to do a
single small computation step.
(f) The methods and processes by which pupil’s behavior are changed.
(g) Instruction includes the activities dealing with the teaching of pupils. Teaching may
be provided for pupils in a school classroom, in another location such as in a home
or hospital, and other learning situations such as those involving co-curricular
activities; it may also be provided through some other approved medium such as
television, radio, telephone, and correspondence.
(h) Arranging conditions and contingent relationships by using materials or media
whereby learning occurs according to plan.
(i) An instruction is to do something.

Nature of Possible Relationships

The definitions for curriculum and instruction suggest that a relationship should
exist between “what is taught” and “how is taught”. To suggest that these entities have
no relationship defies common sense. That leaves two possibilities: curriculum and
instruction could either be disjoint entities with some interrelated functions or not
disjoint, sharing several functions. Each possibility is described here.

Curriculum and instruction can be thought of as separate, but interrelated,

entities. This means that although curricular functions are separate from those for
instruction, the effects of decisions in one entity affect decisions in the other. A number
of models have been proposed that show curriculum interrelated with instruction.
Furthermore, curriculum and instruction are systematically related; curriculum system
decisions feed into an instructional system as shown in Figure 1.
 Structuring
criteria
Curriculum Curriculum
Development (structured series of Instructional Learning
system intended learning system outcomes
Selection outcomes)
criteria

Instrumental
content

Teaching
Source behavior
(available teachable cultural content) reporters

Figure 1. A model showing the relationship between curriculum and instruction

in a technical approach.

Frequently, in this model the curriculum and instructional functions are handled
by different sets of people. Curriculum developers select and sequence (or structure)
content from the available teachable cultural content in the form of intended learning
outcomes, two actions that are clearly curricular functions. Based on their repertories of
teaching strategies, instructional planners/teachers deliver instruction that enables
students to attain actual learning outcomes. As part of this process, teachers choose
additional content from the same source (shown in Figure 1 as instrumental content)
that helps students learn the intended outcomes. For example, teachers who provide
vocabulary development instruction often use similes or metaphors as instrumental
content to help students learn meanings of new words.

In this model, curriculum clearly guides instruction. Although an evaluation

system is not shown in Figure 1, Johnson’s model requires that observable evidence be
gathered in the instructional system. These empirical results are fed back into the
curriculum system, setting up potential changes in the curriculum and completing the
cycle. Curriculum functions are separate from, but related to, instructional functions.

In this approach the planner-teacher begins by identifying a general area for

study, clearly a curricular function. Then the teacher guides the initial shared experience
and assists students in interactions among themselves with the content and teacher.

These interactions make the area of study meaningful through a series of

instructional functions such as sharing experiences, observation, recording expressions,
questioning, analyzing, and hypothesizing. In the diagram, these interactions are noted
by double-headed arrow suggesting two-way activity between students and teacher.
The planner-teacher may also provide further input and foster closure. Beyond the first
step in this particular mode, curriculum and instruction are not easy distinguished.

The Relationship between Curriculum and Instruction

As we have learned, curriculum is a plan (a set of learning content and

experiences that are selected, planned, organized and implemented) while instruction is
implementation of the plan. These two are separate concept but dependent upon each
other.

Curriculum as defined by Oliver is that which is taught. Is a program, plan,

content and learning experiences. It could also be conceived as the “what?”

Instruction could be viewed as the means used to teach that which is taught.
Instruction may be characterized as methodology, the teaching act, implementing and
presentation. Therefore, instruction is defined as the interaction between a teaching
agent and one or more individuals intending to learn. Moreover, instruction is concerned
with the organization of the learners, the learning environment, and the experiences of
learning in order to achieve the stated goals of school. According to Pratt (1994), it
refers to curriculum content and teaching strategies. He emphasized twelve principles of
effective instruction, these are: time on task, motivation, mastery learning, high
expectations, reading and study skills, planned lessons, an orderly environment,
instructional variety, cooperative learning, computer-assisted instruction, school ethos,
and parent involvement. Similarly, Dole et al. (1991) stressed that instruction can be
characterized as a process in which teachers attempt to make learning sensible and
students attempt to make sense of learning. In brief, instruction has two aspects:
teaching and learning. Teaching is the process of stimulating, directing, guiding and
encouraging learning activity. This process encompasses eight (8) elements or so-
called 8M’s of teaching (Milieu, Matter, Material, Method, Media, Motivation, Mastery,
and Measurement). Learning is the process of acquiring knowledge, skills and values.

On the other hand, instruction is the creation and implementation of purposely

developed plans for the teaching of curriculum content. It is what teachers often
concisely refer to as “planning” and “teaching.” The relationship between curriculum and
instruction is so intimate that “curriculum and instruction” is frequently spoken as if it
were one word, “curstruction” or “instriculum”. With curriculum being the content of what
is taught along with an overall process of how that content is to be taught, and
instruction being the more detailed plans and the way those plans are implemented in
order to teach the curriculum content, it becomes easy to understand that the two must
be compatible in order to maximize student learning.

The case of multiage illustrates this close tie that exists between curriculum and
instruction. Currently, the most common classroom structure in American elementary
schools is the single-grade classroom. This structure is meant to make instruction more
efficient, allowing students of the same age to move through curriculum content at the
same pace. In these classrooms, the most prevalent teaching method is whole-class
direct instruction. Because of the dominance of this structure nation-wide, commercially
available curriculum and state learning standards are designed to be implemented in
this type of learning environment. Some educators in their efforts to improve education
have switched from a single-grade classroom structure to a multiage one. The multiage
structure purposely places students of different ages together in the same classroom
while supporting an individualized continuous progress instructional model. While
changing the structure of the classroom, multiage educators also change the
instructional methods they use in order to better much the needs of their diverse group
of students. They have found that “curriculum designed for use in single-grade
classroom is not always adaptable to environments in which whole-class direct
instruction pacing are needs that are central to multiage practices.” The instructional
methods used by these teachers necessitate that curriculum be organized in a
compatible manner.

The relationship between curriculum and instruction are like Siamese. One
cannot survive without the other. Both curriculum and instruction require decision
making. There are four models under this.

Oliver identified four models of curriculum-instruction relationship:

1. Dualistic Model
2. Interlocking Model
3. Concentric Model
4. Cyclical Model

1. Dualistic Model

This type of model has two entities – curriculum is on one side and instruction on
the other. They do not meet. Yet, they are like Siamese twins whereby one cannot
function without the other. What takes place in the classroom under the direction of the
teacher seems to have little relationship with what the master plan says should go in the
classroom. The planners ignore the instruction which should go hand in hand with the
curriculum. With this model, the curriculum or instruction may change without
significantly affecting one another. They function independently.

Curriculum Instruction
2. Interlocking Model

As the name implies, curriculum and instruction depend on each other. Since the
system is interlocking each other therefore, there is a relationship. It depicts an
integrated relationship between each. Hence, the separation of the two may bring harm
to each other.

Curriculum Instruction Instruction Curriculum

3. Concentric Model

This model reveals varying degree of independence, interlocking from complete

detachment to interlocking relationship. In this model, instruction is with curriculum as
such as a subsystem.

Curriculum Instruction

Instruction Curriculum

4. Cyclical Model

This model is a simplified model which stresses the essential element of

feedback. Curriculum and instruction are separate entities with a continuing circular
relationship. The idea is that curriculum makes a continuous impact on instruction and,
vice versa. The implication is that instructional decisions are made after curricular
decisions which in turn are modified after instructional decisions are implemented and
evaluated. Though the diagram below show curriculum and instruction as separate, they
should not be perceived that way- they should be seen as parts of a sphere.
 Curriculum Instruction

CONCLUSION

Curriculum gives meaning and directions to all educational efforts. It is a plan for
providing sets of learning opportunities for individuals to be educated while instruction is
the implementation of the plan. The relationship between curriculum and instruction are
like Siamese. One cannot survive without the other. Both curriculum and instruction
require decision making.

Questions to Answer

1. What is curriculum?, Instruction?

2. If you are to compare the curriculum, what is it like? Why?
3. Differentiate the four models of curriculum-instruction relationship.
4. In your own understanding, illustrate the relationship that exists between
curriculum and instruction.