Fluent Essays

see rubric Curriculum Development Project EDCI 5020 Some Thoughts… One might argue that few things more fundamentally influence the course of education in America than what arises from curriculum development. One might argue as well that few things more fundamentally influence the success, or lack thereof, of our nation in regard to its economic, political, and social well-being. Am I overstating things? Perhaps, yes. Perhaps, no. The reading you are asked to do during this part of your project, among other things, is meant to have you think about just how significant the concept/process/idea of curriculum development is. What do we teach in America? Why do we teach those things? What should we actually teach? Why is it crucial that students learn those things? Are those not questions the answers to which determine our destiny, the fate of our children’s children, and so on? Overstatement? Perhaps, yes. Perhaps, no. Notice in the aforementioned four questions, the generation of a sort of cycle. At any given time, there is a curriculum (influenced by what is going on in society?). At any given time, people question the merits of that curriculum (influenced by some perceived failure in the current education system?). Something new and different (better?) arises as a result of changes or differences in society, its purpose being to cure what ails us. It is an interesting cycle. It is based on how society itself influences education, and very importantly, on how education influences society. I hope, at the very least, these thoughts make you go, “Hmmm. Interesting. And I thought this class was going to be boring!” That last little joke aside, I would like for you to have these things in mind as you go through the readings for this part of the project. I also think the readings might just affirm what I have written. Of course, on the other hand, one might argue that this cycle of curriculum development that seems to run throughout the course of American History means little to nothing. Really? Perhaps, yes. Perhaps, no. You will read about the innumerable “crises” that have existed in the American education system in the readings for this part of the project, what became the solutions to them, what became the new problems, the latest and greatest solutions to those, and so on. So, what might some argue is the evidence that regardless of the condition the American education system is in (is it not always perceived to be in crisis?), regardless of what curriculum is in place, there is nothing to worry about? That evidence, some would say, is that this country continues to be the most successful economically, the most powerful politically, and the most influential socially. Test scores have reportedly declined throughout numerous periods in American history. Scores relative to other developed nations have reportedly declined over the years. Yet, America is still #1. Is this accurate? Perhaps, yes. Perhaps, no. Perhaps that argument is best left to conversations among politicians. Nevertheless, what I would argue is accurate is that we have continually developed curriculum in America with the desire, at its very core, to do better for our kids! Checkpoint One Purpose · Gain an understanding of the history of curriculum development in America. · Gain an appreciation of the significance of curriculum development in any society. · Research and explore current issues in regard to curricula used in today’s schools. · Begin to research what experts identify as the best curricula and why. · Begin to formulate ideas about what you perceive to be the best curricula to be used in today’s schools. The Readings and a Video to Watch · In your text, The Saber-Tooth Curriculum, read the Introduction written by Hornbake (pp. xiii-xxxvii). I think the introduction here provides a great deal of information about the history of curriculum development in America, at least through the early 1970s. As you read through this, please pay particular attention to the cause-effect phenomenon of curriculum development. In other words, the way society influenced curriculum development in education and the way curriculum development in education influenced society. One thing I thought of as I read this was the old question, what came first, the chicken or the egg? Another thought that kept coming to mind for me was that even though this is a historical perspective of curriculum development spanning a great number of years, and even though it was written in the early 1970s, everything sounded so familiar to me. It was as if these stories of issues from past history could be about today. You will see the following mentioned: · Shifting moral standards · New leadership in business and government · The status of womankind · Public and private medicine · Early childhood education · Hungry and poorly clothed children · The value of a democratic society · Recognizing individual differences in students · The importance of vocational education · Lack of funding · The role of local, state, and federal governments in education Do these not sound familiar? · Read The Evolution of Curriculum Development in the Context of Increasing Social and Environmental Complexity (pp. 1311-1318). First, please note the journal the article was written in and the title/job of the author of the article. I bring this up because you should always be aware of who or what is the source of your information. This is not an education journal. The author is not in the education field. His work is in conservation. Might these things influence what he says? I write that not at all to discredit him. I really, really like the article. You will notice that he references The Saber-Tooth Curriculum throughout the paper as well. I ask that you read the article for its historical perspective of curriculum development in America. Also, because I think it provides many examples of just how significant the whole concept of curriculum development is. Furthermore, I think it provides you with ideas about what might be, the potential for what can be, in regard to the next evolution of curriculum development. After all, one of the purposes of this section of the project is for you to read about curricular issues, discover more about what the experts have to say, and begin to formulate your own ideas for what would be the “best” curriculum. What happened for me is what I am hoping will happen for you throughout this project. Namely, my desire is for something to stand out to you, something about curriculum development that you would want to explore more deeply, something that will spark in you a desire to influence what students should learn and why. For me, that came with reading the article. I have looked further into the idea of systems-oriented instruction and plan to explore it in more detail. In fact, reading this led me to watching what I describe next. Where will your explorations take you? · Once again, as we move through this project, my desire is that you will go on to explore curriculum that interests you and that you believe can be a response to what are perceived to be the problems with education today, or at least things that will advance the learning of students in our present-day context. That is how I found the following video, entitled Systems Thinking Frame . You will notice that it will stop playing during the middle of the video unless you subscribe to the company that produced it. There is no need to subscribe – unless you would just like to. My reason for including it in this part of the project is because I will ask you to begin to explore what interests you and what you believe to be worthwhile in regard to curriculum development. I hope that this exercise is useful as you influence curriculum development in your current role – and future roles – in school. I am going to learn more about systems-oriented instruction. The Assignment In the format of an expository paper (see Format for Expository Paper in the Course Documents section in Moodle), respond to the following for your Checkpoint One assignment: · Historical Perspective – in your readings, you came across examples of shifts in curriculum development that resulted from societal influences and/or how education was influencing society. Choose two historical shifts/movements that you perceive to be very significant in the history of education. · Describe what the shifts were, why they occurred, and what resulted from them. For each shift, find at least one additional source of information (beyond what I have listed as reading assignments) to dig a little more into causes, the actual curriculum that resulted, and the effects of the shift. · Justify why you chose this as a shift that you perceive to be significant. In other words, explain why what happened was so very important to American society. · Exploration – After what you have read and what you have written so far, where does this take you? What are some curricular ideas out there that provide a response to the current state of education in America? Is it something that other countries are doing? Is it some novel approach to learning, like systems-oriented instruction or Hackschooling, as seen in this TED Talk (by the way, I highly recommend watching this video about hacking school – it makes one think!)? Is it better implementation of the Common Core State Standards or Louisiana Standards? · What is the current state of education where you exist (in your district, your state, and the nation)? Provide evidence that there is some issue when it comes to all students attaining high expectations in regard to academic achievement. The evidence needs to come from some reputable source of information. Include that source – or sources – in your reference section. · Explore at least one of your ideas about a useful development in curriculum. Find at least two articles that support this being a good curricular move. Be sure to use a reputable source of information when searching for articles. My recommendation is to search for articles through the NSU library, the ERIC database, or Google Scholar. · Describe what this curricular movement is about, what it is designed to improve, and why/how it is supposed to work. How will this work for the students you serve? Why is this so? Rubric for Checkpoint One Expository Paper Total Points for Section Content 100 80-100 Accounts for all aspects required in the paper (Historical Perspective – two shifts, description, why occurred, and what resulted, significance, and two additional sources and Exploration – current state of education, two additional articles in support of a curricular development, description, why it will work, and your context). References are made to at least six sources of information in APA format. Knowledge of the subject matter is comprehensive, in-depth and ranges over at least four specified sources of information. Understanding is demonstrated through an outstanding ability to grasp concepts and relate theory to practice. Writing skills include excellent mechanics, sentence structure, and organization. Application/analysis is demonstrated by grasping the inner relationship of concepts and excellent use of all specified supporting material. 60-79 Accounts for most aspects required in the paper (Historical Perspective – two shifts, description, why occurred, and what resulted, significance, and two additional sources and Exploration – current state of education, two additional articles in support of a curricular development, description, why it will work, and your context). References are made to less than six sources of information or there are issues with APA format. Knowledge of the subject matter is up to date and relevant. Understanding is demonstrated through a high level of ability to conceptualize essential ideas and relate theory to practice. Writing skills include significant mechanics, structure, and organization. Application/analysis is demonstrated by the ability to analyze and synthesize, independent analysis, and good use of specified supporting material. 0-59 Accounts for some aspects required in the paper (Historical Perspective – two shifts, description, why occurred, and what resulted, significance, and two additional sources and Exploration – current state of education, two additional articles in support of a curricular development, description, why it will work, and your context). References are made to some of the required sources of information and include APA formatting issues. Knowledge of the subject matter is relevant but not comprehensive. Understanding is demonstrated by some ability to conceptualize essential ideas and relate theory to practice. Writing skills include grammatical lapses and emotional responses are used in lieu of relevant points. Application/analysis is demonstrated through informed commentary with some evidence of genuine analysis and some use of specified supporting material. 5 Curriculum Development Student’s Name Institutional affiliation Introduction The curriculum in schools in America has evolved over the years with a lot of shifts which have resulted in changes and additions to existing curriculum. In America the stages of evolution in the curriculum follow the trends and patterns in economic development, population changes and industrial development. The curriculum has improved so much over the years and the society and societal factors have played a major role in the shifts and this is because education plays a significant role in the choices made by individuals and also influences how individuals interact with others. Historical perspective There have been various shifts in the curriculum and one of the most significant shifts in the history of curriculum development in the United States was the organizational shift in the organizational aspects of companies that necessitated the need to use system thinking skills. System thinking skills refer to the holistic approach that looks at how the constituent parts of a system are related and how those components work together. The shift resulted in changes in the workplace organization where the old system was hierarchical and rigid while the new system was more flexible and with cross functional teams. The design of the jobs also changed and the new system had an individual carry out multiple responsibilities unlike the old system where the employees only had one job. The organizational shift also resulted in the change in the communications and how decisions were made in companies. This was a significant shift because it changed the thinking in the classroom where learners now have to look at different components and see how they are related and can work together (Plate, 2012). The shift also necessitated the use of problem solving skills and now learners can evaluate existing information to come up with viable solutions to real world problems and challenges. The societal shift is another very important change in the history of education in the United States. The shift changed the entire focus of education in to addressing the needs and issues that face the society. It also focused on the equitable distribution of resources to the members of the society so that all individuals have equal access to amenities and good education (Peddiwell, 2003). The shift has also helped the curriculum focus on the development of identities for the learners to help them clearly understand who they are, who they have been and also conceptualize where they want to be. There have been various social changes that continue to take place such as the feminist movement and the green movement. With the societal shift the curriculum is made to be adaptive which means that it moves with every societal change. This is significant since it helps the learners understand the social issues that affect the world and how to be involved in impacting positive change in the communities. The shift also helped recognize the differences between the communities and how to address that in the classroom so that the curriculum is comprehensive and inclusive of all the groups. Exploration Academic achievement is still considered as very important in the American education system and this is because the performance of the students is a determinant of whether they qualify to join the institutions of higher learning. The US education system ranks as one of the best education systems in the world currently. In Louisiana state the education sector is not doing really well and the state has ranked among the bottom states for many years now. This is seen in the performance of the public schools in the state where the students are seen to perform poorly when compared to other students in the state. The City of Baker school district is a very small district that is made up of 1319 students. The district takes in more minority students and also has a big proportion of economically disadvantaged students. The high school graduation rate in the school district is 70% and that is not very bad performance. There are various useful developments in the school curriculum in the United States. One development that is significant is the focus on the understanding of the differences in abilities, interests, preferences, knowledge, and motivations among learners (Rury & Tamura, 2019). It is important for teachers to acknowledge these differences as it helps in creation of lesson plans which accommodate the needs of all the learners in the classroom. The shift towards the focus of the capabilities of the different learners is about minimizing comparing learners and acknowledging that the performance between the students in the same classroom in most cases will be different. This curricular movement will help understand students better and focus on their strengths and also on improving their weaknesses. It is a source of motivation for the learners as it will minimize the frustration of learners because of school related work and also lower the rate of school drop outs. Conclusion Just like how various aspects have evolved over time, the school curriculum in the United States has also grown so much over the years with various shifts and changes in the system. As the years progressed new concepts were introduced and one of them was system thinking where it looks at the various components of a system and how related they are. The curriculum has improved and better addresses the needs of all the learners in the classroom. References https://www.coursera.org/learn/continuous-learning-culture/lecture/8Indx/systems-thinking-frame Peddiwell, J. (2003). The saber-tooth curriculum. New York: McGraw Hill.(Original work published 1939). Plate, R. (2012). The evolution of curriculum development in the context of increasing social and environmental complexity. Creative Education, 3(08), 1311. Rury, J. L., & Tamura, E. H. (Eds.). (2019). The Oxford handbook of the history of education. Oxford University Press, USA. PERCEPTIONS OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS AND TEACHERS REGARDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES Comment by Amy Craig: Title page is double spaced. Stephen Vincent Westbrook, Ed.D. Assistant Superintendent Ascension Parish School System Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Mid-South Educational Research Association Pensacola November 2013 Introduction Educational leaders have found that traditional forms of staff development, such as when outside experts are brought into the school building to offer a workshop to teachers to enhance their pedagogical skills, do not necessarily cause teachers to change their practices in the classroom (Curry & Killion, 2009; Dufour, Dufour, Eaker, & Karhanek, 2009; Klein, 2008; Schmoker, 2005; Vescio, Ross, & Adams, 2008). As a result of the problems associated with traditional professional development activities, there has been a growing movement to create Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) on school campuses across the country (Curry & Killion, 2009; Hord, 2009; Klein, 2008; Servage, 2008). Researchers define the concept of PLCs “as a school’s professional staff who continuously seek to find answers through inquiry and then act on their learning to improve student learning” (Hipp & Huffman, 2010, p. 11). Many researchers additionally stress how PLC work is tied to gathering data about student work and linking teacher practices to student academic achievement (Klein, 2008; Louis, 2008; Rasberry & Mahajan, 2008). Comment by Amy Craig: Note that when quotation marks are used with a direct quote, a page number MUST be included. If you don’t want to do this, then PARAPHRASE. Principals, in their role as educational leaders, are vital when it comes to organizing such reform efforts (Guskey, 2009; Hipp & Huffman, 2003; Hord & Sommers, 2008; Mullen & Huttinger, 2008; Wahlstrom & Louis, 2008). The review of the related literature suggests that certain factors need to exist or be promoted by a school principal in order for this reform effort to be sustained. They include sharing and supporting leadership among teachers; developing shared values and a common vision; having teachers learn collectively and apply their learning in the classroom; sharing successful practices among teachers; and providing supportive conditions (i.e., Structures and Relationships) that enable teachers to be productive in their PLC work (Hipp & Huffman, 2003; Hipp & Huffman, 2010; Hord, 2009). Although the practice of creating PLCs has seemed promising in that it can impact student achievement (Stoll, Bolam, McMahon, Wallace, & Thomas, 2006), researchers like Servage (2008) caution that the process is difficult and requires teachers to seriously challenge their beliefs and assumptions in order to be effective. Other researchers challenge the idea that professional development can be correlated to student achievement (Guskey, 2009; Leithwood, Patten, & Jantzi, 2010). Stoll and Louis (2007) describe the difficulties that arise in promoting trust among members of a PLC group as a potential barrier to successful PLC development. Fullan (2005) further suggests that it is necessary to have PLCs at the school level interact with various other PLC groups in order for them to be effective. Only by interacting with teachers from other schools in a district – even with teachers in other districts in the state or nation – can the full potential of PLCs be realized and sustained (Fullan, 2005). Comment by Amy Craig: Notice first names are NEVER used in the narrative and you also should NEVER include the name of the article. Simply cite with author last name. The reader can then find the article in the references. As a result of a literature review, it is apparent that educators can benefit by more research being done in the area of PLCs to answer questions that have arisen. For instance, “What is being done by schools that have successfully created PLCs and made this type of job embedded professional development a deeply valued part of their culture?” “What can other schools learn from the experiences of schools with successful PLC cultures?” “What specific actions should schools wanting to implement PLCs take in order to achieve their goal?” REFERENCES Comment by Amy Craig: Notice the formatting of these reference – these are APA. NO months or days- only use the year. Check for which part is italicized, capitalized, etc… Curry, M., & Killion, J. (2009). Slicing the layers of learning. Journal of Staff Development, 30(1), 56-61. DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., & Karhanek, G. (2009). Raising the bar and closing the gap: Whatever it Takes. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press. Fullan, M. (2005). Leadership and sustainability: System thinkers in action. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Fullan, M. (2005). Professional learning communities writ large. In R. DuFour, R. Eaker, & R. DuFour (Eds.), On common ground: The power of professional learning communities (pp. 209-223). Bloomington, IN: National Educational Service. Guskey, T. R. (2009). Closing the knowledge gap on effective professional development. Educational Horizons, 87(4), 224-233. Hipp, K. K., & Huffman, J. B. (2003). Professional learning communities: Assessment – development – effects. Paper presented at the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, Sydney, Australia. Retrieved from ERIC database. (ED482255) Hipp, K. K., & Huffman, J. B. (2010). Demystifying professional learning communities. New York, NY: Rowman & Littlefield Education. Hord, S. M. (2009). Professional learning communities. Journal of Staff Development, 30(1), 40-44. Hord, S. M., & Sommers, W. A. (2008). Leading professional learning communities. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Klein, E. J. (2008). Learning, unlearning, and relearning: Lessons from one school’s approach to creating and sustaining learning communities. Teacher Education Quarterly, 35(1), 79-97. Leithwood, K., Patten, S., & Jantzi, D. (2010). Testing a conception of how school leadership influences student learning. Educational Administration Quarterly, 46(5), 671-706. Louis, K. (2008). Creating and sustaining professional communities. In A. Blankstein, P. Houston, & R. Cole (Eds.), Sustaining professional learning communities (pp. 41-57). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Mullen, C. A., & Huttinger, J. L. (2008). The principal’s role in fostering collaborative learning communities through faculty study group development. Theory into Practice, 47(4), 276-285. Olivier, D. F., & Hipp, K. K. (2010). Assessing and analyzing schools as professional learning communities. In K. Hipp & J. Huffman (Eds.), Demystifying professional learning communities (pp. 29-41). New York, NY: Rowman & Littlefield Education. Rasberry, M. A., & Mahajan, G. (2008). From isolation to collaboration: Promoting teacher leadership through PLCs. Hillsboro, NC: Center for Teaching Quality. Schmoker, M. (2005). No turning back: The ironclad case for professional learning communities. In R. DuFour, R. Eaker, & R. DuFour (Eds.), On common ground: The power of professional learning communities (pp. 135-153). Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press Servage, L. (2008). Critical and transformative practices in professional learning communities. Teacher Education Quarterly, 35(1), 63-77. Stoll, L., Bolam, R., McMahon, A., Wallace, M., & Thomas, S. (2006). Professional learning communities: A review of the literature. Journal of Educational Change, 7(4), 221-258. Stoll, L., & Louis, K. S. (2007). Professional learning communities: Divergence, depth and dilemmas. Berkshire, England: Open University Press. Vescio, V., Ross, D., & Adams, A. (2008). A review of research on the impact of professional learning communities on teaching practice and student learning. Teaching and Teacher Education: An International Journal of Research, 24(1), 80-91. Wahlstrom, K., & Louis, K.S. (2008). How teachers experience principal leadership: The roles of professional community, trust, efficacy and shared responsibility. Educational Administration Quarterly, 44(4), 458-495. 4