Can the Curriculum Guide

Both Emancipate and

Educate Teachers?
An Article Review by
1) Muhammad Arif bin Mohd Norkulis (2012459672)
2) Radhiah Binti Mohd Hanafi
(2013899754)

 Journals title is Can the Curriculum Guide Both

Emancipate and Educate Teachers
Written by Asher Shkedi
Published in 1998
Published by The Ontario Institute for Studies in
Education

JOURNALS INFORMATION

 Conducted via Qualitative-Ethnographic Interview

The article describes the impossibility of combining a
clear pedagogical-content approach while also allowing
autonomy for teachers using a curriculum. The main
demographic (students) in which the curriculum is
designed towards are the Jewish youths and their study of
the Hebrew prophet, Jonah through the Book of Noah.

What is this study about?

 Disciplinary
The principles connected to the composition of knowledge, known as structure of
knowledge are central to the curriculum. That is, there are principles, concepts, basic
assumptions, and methods of studying that distinguish each content area from all
other areas. The teachers function, according to this understanding, is to provide
students with the structures of knowledge.

Normative
This conception assumes that the subject matter presents ideas of truth and that the
actions that follow from them are good and desirable. In this approach, the role of the
teacher is first and foremost to ensure that the students learn the subject matter and
the messages implicit in it. Success is measured by categories borrowed from a
normative view of the subject matter

Didactic
This approach focuses the central message of the curriculum on the proposed didactic
system. This refers to characteristics of learning activities, to the organization of
activities, to proposed learning tracks, and so forth. Accordingly, the curriculum
guide is seen as a means of exposing teachers to appropriate didactic approaches.
Didactic art was meant both to entertain and to instruct. Didactic plays, for instance, were
intended to convey a moral theme or other rich truth to the audience.

The 3 Main Approaches

 There are three main literature used in the curricula

1. Curriculum Awas written centralizing on The Book of Jonah for the Middle Grades. The
curriculum package includes
A student book with activities and sources for students
A teachers book that includes instructions for teacher and solutions for activities in the student book

2. Curriculum Bwas written for Jonah and Yom Kippur: Teaching Jewish Values. This package is
intended for Jewish youth living outside Israel, although is used by some teachers in Israel. The
curriculum package includes
Student sourcebook
Activities workbook for students that can be changed or added on to
Teachers book that includes student sources and activities and material guidelines

3. Curriculum Cwas written for Jonah and Amos: For the Junior High School Student. The
package includes
A teachers book
A source activities book for student

*Teachers book is essentially composed of the students book with some additional comments and the side as well
as several introductoryu pages.

What is the curriculum used

here?

 Curriculum A. Not one teacher (of twenty-three) thought that

the approach of this curriculum allows for or invites autonomy by the
teachers.
Some even stated explicitly that the approach of the curriculum does not allow
them to be autonomous at all.

Curriculum B. Only three teachers (of thirty) felt that

the approach of the entire curriculum unit allows for autonomy.
the teachers distinguish, then, between the pedagogical-content approach of
the teachers guide, with its intellectual and ideological message that is
apparent nonautonomy, and the array of activities that allow for a choice to
relay autonomy.

Curriculum C. Only two teachers (of thirty) felt that

the approach of the curriculum limits their autonomy.
the pedagogical-content direction of the curriculum is seen by most of the
teachers as general, advised, nonobligatory guidelines only.

FINDINGS

 Curriculum must be clearly

written/explained
Curriculum can be too rigid
Possibility to combine both pedagogical
approach and autonomy to the teachers in
a curriculum
Autonomy to the teachers (to what extent)
Teachers as curriculum developers

Comment/Opinion

POSITIVE

NEGATIVE

Can exercise their

creativity in class
Avoid from being
predictable and too
monotonous
Value as a teacher
Cater to different
learners styles

Without proper
explanation, teachers
might misuse the
freedom given
Might be difficult for
new teachers with no
experience
Over-teaching/underteaching

Autonomy to Teachers

 In conclusion, the paper has uncovered several facts:

Teachers are able to identify the approaches that the writers
used when writing the curriculum (either disciplinary,
normative and didactic)
The paper finds that Curriculum C is the most autonomous,
followed by Curriculum B which allows some autonomy
and finally Curriculum A which does not allow any
autonomy whatsoever
Teachers need to be involved in the curriculum writing
process, also, curriculum should be designed individually
and catering towards each teacher as everyone has their
respective preferences and style of teaching.

CONCLUSION