UNIT 2: Curriculum Design

1. Definition of Curriculum Design

2. Sources of Curriculum Design
3. Design, Dimensions and Considerations
1. This curriculum design is anchored
on the needs and interests of the
child.
a.) Experience Centered Curriculum
Design
b.) Child-Centered Design
c.) Learner-Centered Design
2. It prioritizes problem-solving and
thinking strategies.

a) Society
b.) Knowledge
c.) Science
3. It is the prime source of
curriculum.

a.) Society
b.) Knowledge
c.) Learners
4. It is repetition and recurring appearances
of the content that provide continuity in the
curriculum.

a) Balance
b) Articulation
c) Continuity
5. It centers on general education and
the problems are based on common
human activities.

a) Core Design
b.) Life Situation Design
c.) Humanistic Design
Learning Outcomes:

Explain the definition of Curriculum

Design.
Identify the different Sources of Curriculum
Design.
Apply the Design, Dimensions and Consideration
of Curriculum Design.
Definitions of
Curriculum
Design
 Curriculum design focuses on the creation
of the overall course blueprint, mapping
content to learning objectives, including
how to develop a course outline and build
the course.
Sources of
Curriculum
Design
1. Science

 Some curriculum leaders design

curriculum based on the use of
scientific method.

 The curriculum design contains only

observable and quantifiable elements.
 2. Society

 Society is an important source of

curriculum.
 Curriculum are designed to serve the
broad social interests of society, as
well as the local community.
3. Eternal and

Divine
 Draw on the past for guidance as to
what is appropriate content.

 Related to eternal truth revealed

through such sources as the Bible or
other religious documents.
 4. Knowledge

 Knowledge is the prime source of

curriculum.

 Knowledge can come from various

disciplines such as education, psychology,
sociology, and instructional design.
 4. Knowledge

 Educators, curriculum specialists,

researchers, and education policymakers
contribute to the knowledge base of
curriculum design through their research,
practical experience, and collaboration.
5. Learners
 Curriculum is derived from what we know
about the learner – how they learn, form
attitude and generate interests and develop
values.
 This source influences curriculum design by
stressing student-centered learning and
activities.
 The student interacts with the curriculum
rather than is feed the curriculum.
 DESIGN,
DIMENSIONS AND
CONSIDERATIONS
OF CURRICULUM
 Scope
Tyler in Ornstein (2004) defines scope as all the
content, topics, learning experiences and organizing
threads comprising the educational plan. Scope does not
only refer to the cognitive content, but also to the
affective and psychomotor content. It is the depth, as well
as, the breadth these contents. The terms broad, limited,
simple, general are few of the words that can describe
the scope.
 Sequence
To provide continuous and cumulative learning, a
vertical relationship among the elements of the
curriculum provides the sequence. Contents and
experiences are arranged in manner, where the basis
can either be logic of the subject matter or on the
developmental patterns of growth of the cognitive,
affective and psychomotor domains.
 Continuity
Continuity Vertical repetition and recurring
appearances of the content provide continuity in the
curriculum. This process enables the learner to strengthen
the permanency of learning and development of skills.
Gerome Bruner calls this “spiral curriculum” where the
content is organized to the interrelationship between the
structure of the basic ideas of a major discipline.
 Integration
“Everything is integrated and interconnected. Life is
a series of emerging themes.” This is the essence of
integration in the curriculum design. Organization is
drawn from the world themes from real life concerns.
Subject matter content or disciplined content lines are
erased and isolation is eliminated.
 Articulation
This can be done either vertically or horizontally. In
vertical articulation, contents are arranged from level to
level or grade to grade so that the content in a lower
level is connected to the next level. Horizontal
articulation happens when the association is among or
between elements that happen at the same time like
social studies in grade six is related to science in grade
six.
 Balance
Equitable assignment of content, time, experiences
and other elements to establish balance is needed in
curriculum design. Too much or too little of these
elements maybe disastrous to the curriculum. Keeping
the curriculum “in balance” requires continuous fine
tuning and review for its effectiveness and relevance.
Curriculum
Design
1. Subject-centered Design

 Subject design curriculum is the oldest and so

far the most familiar design for teachers,
parents and other laymen. According to the
advocates, subject design has an advantage
because it is easy to deliver. Complementary
books are written and support instructional
materials are commercially available.
1. Subject-centered Design

 Teachers are familiar with the format, because

they were also educated using the design.
 In the Philippine educational system, the
number of subjects in the elementary education
is fewer than in the secondary level. In college,
the number of subjects also differs according to
the degree programs being pursued.
1. Subject-centered Design

 However, the drawback of this design is that

sometimes, Learning is so compartmentalized. It
stresses so much the content that it forgets
about students’ natural tendencies, interests
and experiences. The tendency of the teacher is
to pour in so much content to the learner so
that the students become simply the empty
vessel that receive the information or content.
• Discipline Design

 This curriculum model is related to the subject

design. However, while subject design centers
only on the cluster of content, discipline design
focuses on academic disciplines.
 Discipline refers to specific knowledge learned
through a method which the scholars use to
study a specific content of their fields.
• Discipline Design

 Students in history should learn the subject

matter like historians, students in biology
should learn how biologists learn, and so with
students in mathematics should learn how
mathematicians learn. In the same manner,
teachers should teach how the scholars in the
discipline will convey the particular knowledge.
• Discipline Design

 However, the drawback of this design is that

sometimes, Learning is so compartmentalized. It
stresses so much the content that it forgets
about students’ natural tendencies, interests
and experiences. The tendency of the teacher is
to pour in so much content to the learner so
that the students become simply the empty
vessel that receive the information or content.
• Broad field Design

 Broad field or inter- disciplinary design is a

variation of the subject-centered design. This
design was made to prevent the
compartmentalization of subjects and integrate
the contents that are related to each other.
• Broad field Design

 Thus subjects such as geography, economics,

political science, anthropology, sociology and
history are fused into one subject called social
studies. Language arts will include grammar,
literature, linguistics, spelling, and composition.
• Correlation Design

 This comes from a correlated curriculum design

that links separate subject designs in order to
reduce fragmentation. Subjects are related to
one another but each subject maintains its
identity.
• Correlation Design

 For example, English literature and social

studies correlate well in the elementary level.
In the two subjects, while history is being
studied, different literary pieces during the
historical period are being studied.
 The same is true when science becomes the
core, mathematics is related to it, as they are
taken in chemistry, physics and biology.
• Process Design

 Curriculum influences the most obvious learning

situations like classroom lessons and
workplace training sessions, but it also
influences a variety of less obvious situations.
 Curriculum influences how people learn and
grow from very young ages and continues to
shape learning experiences throughout our
lives.
• Process Design

 For emerging professionals in the instructional

design field, curriculum design is one of a series
of core competencies that are necessary for
professional success (Burning Glass, 2019).
• Process Design

 Curriculum design is a team sport. The teams

who engage in curriculum design processes are
comprised of people with diverse areas of
expertise. Typically, a curriculum design team
will include subject matter experts (e.g. faculty
member), curriculum coordinator/director,
curriculum oversight groups, instructional design
and development specialists, and
teaching/facilitation personnel.
2. Learner-centered Design
 Among the progressive educational psychologists,
the learner is the center of the educative process.
This emphasis is very strong in the elementary
level, however more concern has been placed on
the secondary and even the tertiary levels.
Although in high school, the subject or content has
become the focus and in the college level, the
discipline is the center, both levels still recognize
the importance of the learner in the curriculum.
• Child-centered Design

 This design is often attributed to the influence of

John Dewey, Rouseau, Pestallozi and Froebel. The
curriculum design is anchored on the needs and
interests of the child.
 The learner is not considered as a passive
individual but as one who engages with his/her
environment. One learns by doing.
 Learners actively create, construct meanings and
understanding as viewed by the constructivists.
• Experienced-centered Curriculum
Design

 This design is similar to the child-centered design.

Although, the child remains to be the focus,
experience-centered design believes that the
interests and needs of learners cannot be pre-
planned. Instead, experiences of the learners
become the starting point of the curriculum, thus
the school environment is left open and free.
• Romantic (Radical
Design)

 Pestalozzi- “Individuals can find their true

selves by looking to their own nature”
(Hunkins & Ornstein, 2013, p.167)
 Radical Curriculum is not just learning
knowledge but experiencing it. Engagement.
• Romantic (Radical
Design)

 Students must learn ways of engaging in a

critique of knowledge.
 Radical views in society as flawed and schools
are a product of that. View the current
curriculum as oppressive.
• Humanistic Design

 The key lead personalities in this curriculum

design were Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers.
Maslow’s theory of self-actualization explains
that a person who achieves this level is
accepting of self, others and nature; is simple,
spontaneous and natural; is open to different
experiences; possesses empathy and sympathy
towards the less fortunate, among many others.
• Humanistic Design

 The person can achieve this state of self-

actualization later in life but has to start the
process while still in school. Carl Rogers, on the
other hand, believed that a person can enhance
self-directed learning by improving self-
understanding and basic attitudes to guide
behavior.
3. Problem-centered Design

 Generally, problem-centered design draws on

social problems, needs, interest and abilities of
the learners. Various problems are given
emphases. There are those that center on life
situations, contemporary life problems, areas of
living and many others.
3. Problem-centered Design

 In this curriculum, content cuts across subject

boundaries and must be based on the needs,
concerns and abilities of the students. Two
examples are given for the problem- centered
design curriculum.
• Life Situation Design

 What makes the design unique is that the

contents are organized in ways that allow
students to clearly view problem areas clearly. It
uses the past and the present experiences of
learners as a means to analyze the basic areas
of living.
 As a starting point, the pressing immediate
problems of the society and the students’
existing concerns are utilized.
• Life Situation Design

 Based on Herbert Spencer’s curriculum writing,

his emphases were activities that sustain life,
enhance life, aid in rearing children, maintain the
individual’s social and political relations and
enhance leisure, tasks and feelings.
 The connection of subject matter to real situations
increases the relevance of the curriculum.
• Core Design

 It centers on general education and the problems

are based on common human activities. The
central focus of the core design includes common
needs, problems, and concerns of the learners.
 Steps of Core Design

Step 1. Make group consensus on important

problems.
Step 2. Develop criteria for selection of important
problem.
Step 3. State and define the problem.
Step 4. Decide on areas of study, including class
grouping.
Step 5. List the needed information for resources.
 Steps of Core Design

Step 6. Obtain and organize information.

Step 7. Analyze and interpret the information.
Step 8. State the tentative conclusions.
Step 9. Present a report to a class individually or
by group.
Step 10. Evaluate the conclusions.
Step 11. Explore other venues for further problem
solving.
• Social Problems Design &
Reconstruction Design
 Curriculum that can change society.
 The curriculum should address
contemporary social problems and social
action projects aimed at reconstructing
society.
 Educators will effect social change and
create a more just society.
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING!
 References
Ornstein, A. C., &Hunkins, F. P. (2009). Curriculum foundations, principles and issues (6th ed.). Boston, MA:
Pearson Education.
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/university-of-the-philippines-system/curriculum-theory-and-development/s
ources-of-the-curriculum/18395997

https://www.slideshare.net/TharhaniGobinathan/curriculum-design-74097159

http://ruby.fgcu.edu/courses/ccarter/carterswebpage/ch08/HTML%20Presentation%20folder/tsld007.htm
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/university-of-the-philippines-system/curriculum-theory-and-development/s
ources-of-the-curriculum/18395997
https://1drv.ms/w/s!Avig0UqrHzbngR0HH5AKbMpHHddq
https://testbook.com/question-answer/which-of-the-following-dimensions-of-curriculum-de--
5ff093e5f60146475ef8f9b8#:~:text=Balance%3A,be%20disastrous%20to%20the%20curriculum.
https://slideplayer.com/amp/15957014/
https://www.slideshare.net/bencruz2005/experience-centered-design
https://www.slideshare.net/michellevuncannon/chapter-6-curriculum-design-45077693