HAND OUT

CURRICULUM

SUBMITTED TO: Dr.Shilpi Sarkar

PREPARED BY: Parul Sharma
INTRODUCTION
The traditional system of education used curriculum exactly in a similar sense when it insisted on
the acquisition of mastery over certain skills and certain areas of knowledge as the sole aim of
education. The teacher was expected to rain his students for realizing the aim of education by
leading them through the curriculum prescribed for the purpose.
MEANING OF CURRICUUM
The term curriculum is a “Latin word” “currere” which means ‘running’, ‘racecourse’ or ‘run
away’, which one takes to reach goal. Thus curriculum means a course to be run for reaching a
certain goal or destination.
DEFINITION OF CURRICULUM:
According to Rowtree Derek(1981)
Curriculum refers to the total structure of ideas and activities developed by an educational
institution to meet the learning needs of students and to achieve desired educational aims.
Curriculum in term of Professional Nursing:
It is defined as all the planned opportunities -subject matters(body of knowledge, skills, values)
and learning activities that the faculty plans and implements in all settings (classroom, laboratory,
hospital, community or a particular group of students for specified time period.
PURPOSES OF CURRICULUM:
 It synthesis of subjects and life.
 To help in develop democratic values.
 To provide satisfaction to the student needs.
 To help in realization of values.
 To help in development of knowledge .and enhances the knowledge.
PRINCIPLES OF CURRICULUM CONSTRUCTION:
The following principles should be kept in mind when framing a curriculum.
a) Conservative principle: It has been stated that nations live in the present, on the past and for
the future. This means that the present, the past and the future needs of the community should
be taken into consideration. Thus, the function of the school is to preserve and transmit the
traditions, knowledge, experience and way of life to the present generation.
b) Creative principle: In the curriculum those activities should be included which enable the
child to exercise his creative and constructive powers. It discovers the student interest, tastes
and aptitudes.
c) Activity principle: the curriculum should be thought in terms of activity and experiences,
rather than knowledge to be acquired and facts to be stored. Growth and learning take place
only where activity, experience rather than instruction is to meet the one of the various stages
of growth.
d) Preparation of life: curriculum must include those activities which enable the child to take
his part effectively and amicably in the activities of the community when he becomes an adult.
 We have to prepare him in such away as he is capable of facing the various challenges of the
complex problems of the future.
e) Principle of maturity: curriculum should be adapted to the grade of the pupils and to their
stage of mental and physical development in the early childhood .
f) Principle of all round development:All kinds of experiences should be provided to the
students so that they may develop their all powers.
DETERMINANTS OF CURRICULUM CONSTRUCTION:
There are determinants which influence the curriculum development in nursing education:
a) Philosophical determinant:
Philosophy in relation to curriculum construction refers to the value pattern, which determines the
objectives , content and teaching methods of the educational programe.it aims to the all-round
development of the individual. philosophical principles serving as determinants of curriculum are
following:
 Child centeredness (Naturalistic philosophy)
 Need centeredness (pragmatic philosophy)
 Activity centeredness ( projects)
b) Sociological determinant: A society may be defined as distinct group of individuals who
think themselves as a distinct group they have common set of values ,loyalities etc .this
approach considers not only the needs of the society but it also recognizes the needs of the
children. sociological considerations that guide the curriculum development are core
values, cooperation, modernisation, values. The study of the nature of the society which
nurse is part and of the health needs of society serve as an important guide in selection of
educational objectives and development of a curriculum in nursing.
c) Psychological determinant: It mainly deals with information on problems of learning
through experimentations.it provides knowledge of individual differences, evaluation,
learning serves as a background for principles of teaching and curriculum.it should be
recognized that information obtained through educational psychology applied to nursing
education through researches and experiences and helps in evaluation of learning
experiences.
d) Political determinant: It help to develop democratic values, justice, equity, socialism,
right and duties.
e) Life activities: The term activities here include the nursing and the personal activities in
which the students will engage as a nurse and as a person. These are categorized as
professional, family, civic, leisure, and serves as source of objectives in the curriculum
development. The nature, purpose, needs and interests of the student must be taken to
consideration in curricular development.
f) Scientific determinants: Science and technology helps to achieve complete development
of an individual and to prepare for complete living. It also prepares for self-protection.
TYPES OF CURRICULUM:
A)Traditional or subject centered curriculum: the traditional curriculum which as been vogue
for a sufficiently long time, is conceived in terms of subjects. Each subject is a separate entity and
its nature and score is clearly defined all stress is on the intellectual attainment of the child rather
than values of studies for personal and social development.
b)Activity curriculum: Thinkers like Rousseau, Montessori, Dewey and Gandhi realized that
education which does not influence the child conduct is not worth the time , money, and energy
invested on it.whatever have to be learnt must be learnt by doing.in this curriculum subject-matter
is translated in terms of activities and knowledge is gained as an outgrowth and product of those
activities.
c) Experience curriculum: A curriculum which gives rich and varied experiences of
knowledge ,skills, attitudes and appreciation is called experiences curriculum. Experiences is
product of education process.
d) undifferentiated curriculum: differentiation means specialization and undifferentiated is the
opposite of specialisation.it means which does not aim at the specialised study of various subjects.
Specialisation should come at higher secondary of college levels. This curriculum implies in
primary and junior secondary.
e)Basic education curriculum: with a view to bring about all round development of the child, the
curriculum of basic education has been constructed around three intergrally related centres:
 physical environment
 social environment
 craft
basic curriculum should be interpreted in the light of general principles of basic education.
f)Life centred /Balanced Curriculum: This curriculum will include all the aspects of human
activity and human development and will thus cater the needs of both the individual and the
society.We keep all the important principles of constructing in mind and then select activity and
subjects for various grades of pupils the result will be balanced curriculum.
g)Core Curriculum: It is concept born out of necessity to tame the knowledge explosion and
show the teachers and the learners hat are the essential knowledge and skills that the learners
should acquire during the course.
PROCESS OF CURRICULUM
Curriculum is a composite of entire range of experiences the learner undergoes under the guidance
of the school or college. It is a systematic arrangement of the sum total of selected experiences
planned by a school or college or a defined group of students to attain the aims of a particular
educational program. There will be common curricula for the one state or country that will be the
requirements which is prescribed by the statutory body in the form of syllabus. In India “Indian
Nursing Council” is the statutory body which prescribes syllabus for all levels of nursing
programs.it may be ANM, GNM, B.Sc, MS.c, M Phil, PhD Courses.
There are five steps for the development in curriculum are follows:
Phase -1 (formulating the statement of philosophy of the school or college or university):
 An educational philosophy states the values which are believed to be right, true and good
by the persons responsible for the school of or college. On setting up a new school of
 nursing, one of the first things to be done by the staff is to formulate a statement of
philosophy, in simple terms this is written statement of believe and values which the
school staff agreed upon as a group, in relation to the basic nursing education program
being offered.
Phase -2(Establishment of purposes and objectives):
 The term “purposes” refers to describe the overall goals of the total education program and
the term “objectives” refers to the breakdown of purposes into specific goals which can be
used to pinpoint the content. The reason for formulating the objectives is to indicate what
changes in behaviour it is hoped to bring about in the student as a result of the courses
being offered.
Phase-3 (selection of learning experience)
 A learning experiences is something in which the student actively participates and which
result in a change of behaviour. The selection of learning experiences is broadly speaking
deciding on what will be the contents of the curriculum.
 The teacher should experience which will result in desirable outcomes in both the hospital
and community health field. The kind of learning experiences which the student will
require will depend on the objectives of the curriculum.
Phase-4(Organization and integration of experiences and content)
 After the content knowledge and learning experiences have been selected carefully in
relation to the desired objectives, they must be organized in the curriculum should be
relative to one another, so that systematic body of ideas and activities will be expanded
continuously into larger and more meaningful patterns.
Criteria which can serve as guides for effective organization of the content (subject matter) and
learning experiences. These are
 Continuity
 Sequence
 Integration
Phase-5( Evaluation of the curriculum):
 The final phase in the curriculum process is the coming to conclusions about the success or
failure, of the educational enterprise by means of some measurement or assessment of
change in behaviour.
 In the curriculum evaluation, the faculty appraises the value of the educational process
employed and of the product (the capabilities of the student during and upon completion of
the program and later a practitioner in nursing..
ROLE OF CURRICULUM COORDINATOR:
Co-ordinator has multiple functions in the curriculum, he /she has a expanded role in all phase of
curriculum. The major role includes:
1. Planning:
  Develop philosophy and objectives for educational programme.
 Identifies the present needs related to educational programme.
 Formulates the plan of action. Selects and organizes learning experience. Participates in
the formulation of admission and recruitment policies
2.Organising:
 Determine the number of position and scope and responsibility of each faculty and staff.
 Analyses and prepares the job description, indicates line of authority, responsibility in the
relationship and channels of communication by means of organizational chart.
 Delegates authority with responsibility. Maintain a plan of workload among staff members
3.Directing:
 Recommends appointments and promotions based on qualification and experience.
Provides adequate orientation to staff members.
 Guides and encourages staff members in their job activities. Consistently makes
administrative decision based on establishment policies. Creates staff involvement in
designing educationally sound programme.
4.Co-ordinating :
 Co-ordinates activities relating to the programme such as administration meeting, staff
meeting, parents teachers meeting. Co-ordinates various committees like curriculum
committee, ethical committee, budgeting committee.
 Co-ordinates various programme like SNA and motivate the staff and students to
participate in the various programs.
5.Controlling:
 Maintain recognition of the educational programme by accrediting bodies like DNC, INC
and university. Prepare, secures approves and administrates the budget.