Curriculum: concepts and approaches I

Prof. Mark Priestley, 2019

In my dealings with teachers, school leaders and policy actors, I am often struck by the
need for education professionals to develop more nuanced concept maps relating to the
curriculum. The following text is material written for our undergraduates, and may be
useful/of interest to people working in the field.

What is a curriculum?

Curriculum is a contested and often misunderstood concept. At a simple level, the

curriculum simply means a course of study. The word is derived from the Latin word
meaning racecourse or race, and has come to mean a general course, conveying the
notion of going somewhere in a predefined direction. Indeed, this simple definition is
one that is current in many schools, where the curriculum is seen largely as the glossy
booklets that contain the content to be taught.

However, such a conception of curriculum is clearly inadequate for understanding the

complex processes of schooling in today’s society. A more sophisticated definition is
required, and there have been many attempts to provide one. For example, a Dictionary
of Education (Rowntree, 1981) offers the following definition:

[Curriculum] can refer 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. Some people use the term to refer simply to the content of what is
being taught. Others include also the teaching and learning methods involved, how
students’ attainment is measured and the underlying philosophy of education.

In line with this more holistic view, the curriculum is ‘the totality of all that is planned for
children and young people throughout their education’ (Scottish Government, 2008).
Such definitions are helpful in that they provide a broad conception of the education that
occurs in schools. However, this sort of broad definition can also be confusing, as the
term curriculum comes to mean different things to different people. For these reasons, it
is necessary to be clear about the various facets that make up the curriculum, and the
ways in which these facets link together and interact in practice. The following
terminology helps to make sense of the complexity that is the curriculum.

 Curriculum – an umbrella term denoting the totality of the learning experience of

children and young people in school. Considering the curriculum would thus include
the questions of what, how and why listed below, as well as assessment
(evaluation).

 Curriculum purposes – statements of what the curriculum is intended to achieve.

These include narrowly defined outcomes or objectives, and more broadly defined
aims or goals. This is the why of the curriculum, and is often (but not always) made
explicit in official documents that comprise the curriculum framework.

 Curriculum framework – the documents that outline the structure of the curriculum
and its purposes. This also usually includes and the content to be taught – the what
of the curriculum.

 Curriculum provision – the systems and structures established in schools to

organise teaching, for example timetabling. This is the how of the curriculum.
 Pedagogy (often referred to as instruction in the literature, especially American
writing) – the teaching strategies and learning activities planned to achieve the aims
and fulfil the planned framework. This is also the how of the curriculum.

 Assessment – the methods used to judge the extent of students’ learning (e.g. tests,
homework, observation). Assessment might be used formatively (to provide
feedback to learners to inform future learning), summatively (to provide a grade) or
evaluatively (to judge whether teaching has been effective).

The relationship between these elements is complex and can be problematic. I provide
several examples to illustrate this point:

 The particular curriculum planning model that is outlined in the framework can exert
a major influence on pedagogy. For instance, a framework that emphasises content
to be learned might encourage teacher-centred approaches to teaching, whereas a
model based on processes and skills may encourage activities that are student-
centred.

 The organisation of provision exerts an effect on pedagogy. For example, inquiry-

based methods such as cooperative learning can be difficult if the school day is
divided into small teaching blocks, as is the case in most secondary schools.

 A heavy emphasis on assessment can encourage narrow ‘teach to the test’

approaches