The Teacher and the School Curriculum

CHAPTER 2 & 3

DAISY Y. FOMOCOD, MAT, LPT

The Teachers as a Curricularist
 CURRICULARIST

a PROFESSIONAL WHO IS
CURRICULUM SPECIALIST
(Hayes,1991; Ornstein & Hunkins,
2004; Hewitt,2006)
 A teacher is a curriculum maker.
He/she writes a curriculum daily through
a lesson plan , a unit plan or a yearly
plan.

The teacher addresses the goals,
needs, interests of the learners by
creating experiences from where the
students can learn.
THE TEACHER AS A CURRICULARIST

*Knower
*Writer
*Planner
*Initiator
*Innovator
*Implementer
*Evaluator
 TRADITIONAL VS. PROGRESSIVE CURRICULUM

There are many options on how we can educate our children and the basic
option is sending them to schools—schools that have curriculums that you
as a parent must learn about. A curriculum is the set of programs offered
by any educational institutions and they are made up of different subjects
and activities that push towards a certain goal.

Currently, there are a lot of types of curriculums and most of them are
not actually specifically defined. In a general sense, curriculums are
divided into two types: the traditional and progressive curriculum. Due to
their clear distinctions, the two curriculums are often pitted against each
other hence the traditional vs. progressive issue that we are covering.

Below are points that define the two curriculums and differentiate them
to help you choose the ideal one for your child.
What is a Traditional Curriculum?

* Asits name, a traditional curriculum consists of techniques that are in line

with the old ways of teaching. It is what most of us had experienced during our
education where we sit inside a classroom and feed off from what a teacher
communicates. Lectures, use of educational materials, recitations, and
homework are part of the standard systems.

* Teachers are also an authoritative figure on a traditional curriculum and where

most of the discovery come from. Students are expected to be more passive
and there are limited chances of learning things on their own. Still, this proves
to be a very effective approach as evident from humanity’s progress when it
comes to science, medicine, technology, literature, and more.

* Traditional
curriculum is still widely utilized in America due to its tried-and-
tested framework and cultural norm. The Philippines also follows suit while
also completely refurbishing the curriculum to a new program called the K-12.
What is a progressive curriculum?
*A progressive curriculum, on the other hand, enforces students to learn
things by themselves with the teacher only acting as an active participant
rather than an intervening individual. Playing outdoors, engaging with the
real things instead of just reading about them in books, and mostly the non-
existence of written exams and memorizations are the factors found within a
progressive curriculum. The ability to discover and solve through experiments
and actual dealing with the problem are the main teaching methods here.

* Perhaps one of the prime examples of schools using a progressive curriculum

are the kindergarten institutions found in Japan. The country is known as a
progressive nation itself and it is not a surprising feat for them to start
applying a progressive curriculum to their educational system. Fuji
Kindergarten which was designed by Takaharu Tezuka is a kindergarten that
uses expansive architecture and team building activities to enrich a student’s
body and mind
Differences of curriculums

* Both curriculums have their strengths and weaknesses.

Now, you might be thinking that progressive curriculum is
the best thing for your child as it paves way for a more
dynamic manner of learning the ways of the world but
traditional curriculum also offers something more
substantially academic that might be the one for your
child.

* Here is a quick rundown of the differences of the

curriculum to know which one is more of an advantage or
disadvantage for you
Traditional curriculum: Progressive curriculum:
1.Teachers are a more influential 1. Teachers are active participants
figure
2. here are more room for
2. Students are less proactive collaboration

3. Parents are outside of the learning 3. Students are encouraged to use

field their skills

4. There are uses of worksheets, 4. More exposure to the outside world

lectures, and visual aids
5. Test results matter and are often
the passing criteria of a program
6. Traditional curriculum is easily
accessible and a quicker option
Play, interaction, and experience are
the focus
5. Progressive curriculum is still
relatively unknown with most parents
frowning at the idea
* Simply put, traditional curriculum is a more linear
approach to learning while progressive curriculum
provides more hands-on research, sudden program
detours, and a chance to learn things in the field.
Traditional curriculum also instill that school prepares
you for life and learning is bound inside the school
grounds only while progressive curriculum teaches that
school is just another part of the life and that your
community and your family are parts of the actual
“schooling”.

* With these factors, one can deduce that traditional

curriculum is boring and a thing of the past while
progressive curriculum provides a fresh air for the
stagnant educational system. However, if this is so, then
traditional curriculum should’ve been eradicated a long
time, yet it is still proven to be an effective brand of
education worldwide.
CURRICULUM FROM TRADITIONAL POINTS OF VIEW

1. Robert M. Hutchins
2. Arthur bestor
3. Joseph Schwab
4. Phillip Phenix

CURRICULUM FROM PROGRESSIVE POINTS OF VIEW

5. John Dewey
6. Holin Caswel and Kenn Campbell
7. Othaniel Smith, William Stanley and Harlan Shore
8. Colin Marsh and George Willis
CURRICULUM is what is taught in school, a set of
subjects a content, a program of studies, a set of
materials, a sequence of courses, a set of performance
objectives, everything that goes within the school. It is
what is taught inside and outside of school directed by
the teacher, everything planned by school, a series of
experiences undergone by learners in school or what
individual learner experiences as a result of school. In
short, curriculum is the total learning experiences of
the learner under the guidance of the teacher.
INSTRUCTION: Answer in your activity notebook the
following questions:

1.Describe the different approaches to school curriculum.

2. Explain by examples how the approaches clarify the

definition of curriculum.
THANK YOU