Curriculum Studies

Barbara Gilbert Mulcahy

January 21, 2020
 Who are you?
(Current position – school/grade
level, teaching experience, stage
of graduate program, etc.)

Introductions

Who am I?
 Why?

Salary

Graduate Advancement
Studies
Pursuit of new knowledge and understanding

Less is more; don’t overwhelm yourself

 Curriculum Studies Reader - Required
Text

Supplementary Readings

Course Part 1: Franklin Bobbitt and John Dewey

Overview and
Structure Guest Speaker
Part 2: Student Presentations – Assigned
Readings (February 4, 2020 March 25,
2020
Evaluation: Presentations and Final
Paper
 Student Presentations: 50%

Each student assigned a chapter: Power Point

Course Presentation, Response Paper, Three Questions

Requirements Final paper: 50%

and
Evaluation Making Sense of Curriculum Studies or

The History of Curriculum Development in a

Selected Subject.
Reading Assignment

Introduction Please read the

and Prologues assigned chapters
to each section as outlined for
of the text presentations
 Define the following terms:

Intended Curriculum

Class Activity Actual Curriculum

Hidden Curriculum

Null Curriculum
 Intended curriculum – program
of studies/lessson plans

Actual curiculum – what is

Some actually experienced
Curriculum
Concepts Hidden curriculum – not made
explicit

Null Curriculum – knowledge

deliberately not taught
 What do schools
teach?

Curriculum What should they

Inquiry teach?

Who should decide?

Three simple questions: Complex Answers

What do What
Who should
schools should they
decide?
teach? teach?
What do schools teach?

Explicit Implicit
And, what beliefs, values, or attitudes are
learned from the way classrooms are? That is,
what lessons are taught but not planned,
acquired but taken for granted? (Flinders, D &
Thornton, S. (2017). The Curriculum Studies
Reader. p. xi..
What should schools teach?

• “At present opinion is divided about the subjects of education. All

do not take the same view about what should be learned by the
young, either with a view to plain goodness or with a view to the
best life possible; nor is opinion clear whether education should be
directed mainly to the understanding, or mainly to moral
character. When we look at actual practice, the result is sadly
confusing; it throws no light on the problem whether the proper
studies to be followed are those which are useful in life, or those
which make for goodness, or those which advance the bounds of
knowledge. Each sort of study receives some votes in its favor”.
Aristotle, Politics. New York: Oxford University Press, 1945, p.
245
What are schools for? Why do we have schools?

• Consider alternative views:

• Education or Indoctrination: (What is the difference?)

• Transmission or Transformation

• Maintain and support the status quo?

• Critique and possibly change/improve existing social conditions?

Who should decide?

• Governments
• Churches
• Parents
• Special interest groups
• Everyone
 Introduction and Prologues of The
Curriculum Studies Reader

John Dewey

Next Class
Guest Speaker: Dr. Dennis Mulcahy

Presentations