MODULE 1
CURRICULUM and INSTRUCTION
INTRODUCTION
Curriculum is defined as a plan for providing sets of learning opportunities
for persons to be educated (Saylor et al. 1981). They point out further that the
term plan should be viewed as an intention rather than a blueprint, that planning
opportunities for learning requires making choices, and that plans have no impact
until they are set in motion. In this context, learning opportunities remain only
opportunities until learners become engaged with the opportunities.
Instruction is defined as the actual engagements of learners with planned
learning opportunities; thus, instruction can be thought of as the implementation
of the curriculum plan (Saylor et al., 1981). They emphasize that the terms
curriculum and instruction are interlocked. Thus, without a curriculum plan there
can be no effective instruction, and without instruction the curriculum has no
meaning.
General Objective
To know the different definitions of curriculum and instruction and their
relationships.
Specific Objectives. After studying this module, you should be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Define the terms curriculum and instruction.
Understand the relationship between curriculum and instruction.
Differentiate the four models of curriculum-instruction relationship.
Answer the given questions at the end of this module.
Definitions of Curriculum
The term curriculum comes from the Latin root, “currere,” which means “to run”.
In educational usage, the “course of the race,” with time came to stand for the “course of
study”. Nowadays, curriculum could have different meanings for different people
depending on how it is used (Palma, 1992).
Over the years, definitions of curriculum have included the following:
1. It is the cumulative tradition of organized knowledge
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2. It is the modes of thought
3. It is a race experience
4. It is a guided experience
5. It is a planned learning environment
6. It is a cognitive/affective content and process
7. It is an instructional plan
8. It is an instructional ends or outcomes
9. It is a technological system of production
10. It is the formal and informal content and process by which learners gain
knowledge and understanding, develop skills, and alter attitudes,
appreciations, and values under the auspices of that school.
11. It is the program of studies, the program of experiences, the program of
services, and the hidden curriculum, and
12. It is the sum of all learning content, experiences and resources that are
purposely selected, organized and implemented by the school in pursuit of
its peculiar mandate as a distinct institution of learning and human
development.
Despite the variety of definitions of curriculum gathered by the author,
there is at least a common denominator in these definitions that is, the
curriculum exists for the learner providing him with education experiences in
order to effectively pursue the general aims the schools are to pursue.
Additionally, the curriculum must possess specific criteria in order to effectively
assist the educator to meet the requirements for teaching and learning. It
depends on the school of thought one embraces. It is readily seen that curriculum
is an indispensable ingredient in the school. Without this curriculum, there is no
school. What the constitution is to state, the curriculum is to an educational
institution.
A good curriculum must satisfy certain criteria, namely:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
it is continuously evolving
is based on the needs of the people
is democratically conceived
is the result of long term efforts
is a complex of details
provides for a logical sequence of subject matter
complements and cooperates with other programs in the community
has educational quality, and
has administrative flexibility
Definitions of Instruction
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(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
An instruction is a form of communicated information that is both command
and explanation for how an action, behavior, method, or task is to begun,
completed, conducted, or executed.
The teaching and training activities of an institution, whether offered for
credit or not and whether offered through regular departments or special
divisions. Departmental or unfunded research is considered a part of
Instruction.
A planned process that facilitates learning.
The delivery of information to enable learning. The process by which
knowledge and skills are transferred to students. Instruction applies to both
training and education.
Something written in a programming language that tells the computer to do
a single small computation step.
The methods and processes by which pupil’s behavior are changed.
Instruction includes the activities dealing with the teaching of pupils.
Teaching may be provided for pupils in a school classroom, in another
location such as in a home or hospital, and other learning situations such as
those involving co-curricular activities; it may also be provided through
some other approved medium such as television, radio, telephone, and
correspondence.
Arranging conditions and contingent relationships by using materials or
media whereby learning occurs according to plan.
An instruction is to do something.
Nature of Possible Relationships
The definitions for curriculum and instruction suggest that a relationship
should exist between “what is taught” and “how is taught”. To suggest that these
entities have no relationship defies common sense. That leaves two possibilities:
curriculum and instruction could either be disjoint entities with some interrelated
functions or not disjoint, sharing several functions. Each possibility is described
here.
Curriculum and instruction can be thought of as separate, but interrelated,
entities. This means that although curricular functions are separate from those
for instruction, the effects of decisions in one entity affect decisions in the other.
A number of models have been proposed that show curriculum interrelated with
instruction. Furthermore, curriculum and instruction are systematically related;
curriculum system decisions feed into an instructional system as shown in Figure
1.
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Structuring
criteria
Selection
criteria
Curriculum
Development
system
Curriculum
(structured series of
intended learning
outcomes)
Learning
outcomes
Instructional
system
Instrumental
content
Source
(available teachable cultural content)
Teaching
behavior
reporters
Figure 1. A model showing the relationship between curriculum and instruction in
a technical approach.
Frequently, in this model the curriculum and instructional functions are
handled by different sets of people. Curriculum developers select and sequence
(or structure) content from the available teachable cultural content in the form of
intended learning outcomes, two actions that are clearly curricular functions.
Based on their repertories of teaching strategies, instructional planners/teachers
deliver instruction that enables students to attain actual learning outcomes. As
part of this process, teachers choose additional content from the same source
(shown in Figure 1 as instrumental content) that helps students learn the
intended outcomes. For example, teachers who provide vocabulary development
instruction often use similes or metaphors as instrumental content to help
students learn meanings of new words.
In this model, curriculum clearly guides instruction. Although an evaluation
system is not shown in Figure 1, Johnson’s model requires that observable
evidence be gathered in the instructional system. These empirical results are fed
back into the curriculum system, setting up potential changes in the curriculum
and completing the cycle. Curriculum functions are separate from, but related to,
instructional functions.
In this approach the planner-teacher begins by identifying a general area
for study, clearly a curricular function. Then the teacher guides the initial shared
experience and assists students in interactions among themselves with the
content and teacher.
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These interactions make the area of study meaningful through a series of
instructional functions such as sharing experiences, observation, recording
expressions, questioning, analyzing, and hypothesizing. In the diagram, these
interactions are noted by double-headed arrow suggesting two-way activity
between students and teacher. The planner-teacher may also provide further
input and foster closure. Beyond the first step in this particular mode, curriculum
and instruction are not easy distinguished.
The Relationship between Curriculum and Instruction
As we have learned, curriculum is a plan (a set of learning content and
experiences that are selected, planned, organized and implemented) while instruction is
implementation of the plan. These two are separate concept but dependent upon each
other.
Curriculum as defined by Oliver is that which is taught. Is a program, plan,
content and learning experiences. It could also be conceived as the “what?”
Instruction could be viewed as the means used to teach that which is
taught. Instruction may be characterized as methodology, the teaching act,
implementing and presentation. Therefore, instruction is defined as the
interaction between a teaching agent and one or more individuals intending to
learn. Moreover, instruction is concerned with the organization of the learners,
the learning environment, and the experiences of learning in order to achieve the
stated goals of school. According to Pratt (1994), it refers to curriculum content
and teaching strategies. He emphasized twelve principles of effective instruction,
these are: time on task, motivation, mastery learning, high expectations, reading
and study skills, planned lessons, an orderly environment, instructional variety,
cooperative learning, computer-assisted instruction, school ethos, and parent
involvement. Similarly, Dole et al. (1991) stressed that instruction can be
characterized as a process in which teachers attempt to make learning sensible
and students attempt to make sense of learning. In brief, instruction has two
aspects: teaching and learning. Teaching is the process of stimulating, directing,
guiding and encouraging learning activity. This process encompasses eight (8)
elements or so-called 8M’s of teaching (Milieu, Matter, Material, Method, Media,
Motivation, Mastery, and Measurement). Learning is the process of acquiring
knowledge, skills and values.
On the other hand, instruction is the creation and implementation of
purposely developed plans for the teaching of curriculum content. It is what
teachers often concisely refer to as “planning” and “teaching.” The relationship
between curriculum and instruction is so intimate that “curriculum and
instruction” is frequently spoken as if it were one word, “curstruction” or
“instriculum”. With curriculum being the content of what is taught along with an
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overall process of how that content is to be taught, and instruction being the
more detailed plans and the way those plans are implemented in order to teach
the curriculum content, it becomes easy to understand that the two must be
compatible in order to maximize student learning.
The case of multiage illustrates this close tie that exists between
curriculum and instruction. Currently, the most common classroom structure in
American elementary schools is the single-grade classroom. This structure is
meant to make instruction more efficient, allowing students of the same age to
move through curriculum content at the same pace. In these classrooms, the
most prevalent teaching method is whole-class direct instruction. Because of the
dominance of this structure nation-wide, commercially available curriculum and
state learning standards are designed to be implemented in this type of learning
environment. Some educators in their efforts to improve education have switched
from a single-grade classroom structure to a multiage one. The multiage
structure purposely places students of different ages together in the same
classroom while supporting an individualized continuous progress instructional
model. While changing the structure of the classroom, multiage educators also
change the instructional methods they use in order to better much the needs of
their diverse group of students. They have found that “curriculum designed for
use in single-grade classroom is not always adaptable to environments in which
whole-class direct instruction pacing are needs that are central to multiage
practices.” The instructional methods used by these teachers necessitate that
curriculum be organized in a compatible manner.
The relationship between curriculum and instruction are like Siamese. One
cannot survive without the other. Both curriculum and instruction require
decision making. There are four models under this.
Oliver identified four models of curriculum-instruction relationship:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Dualistic Model
Interlocking Model
Concentric Model
Cyclical Model
1. Dualistic Model
This type of model has two entities – curriculum is on one side and
instruction on the other. They do not meet. Yet, they are like Siamese twins
whereby one cannot function without the other. What takes place in the
classroom under the direction of the teacher seems to have little relationship
with what the master plan says should go in the classroom. The planners ignore
the instruction which should go hand in hand with the curriculum. With this
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model, the curriculum or instruction may change without significantly affecting
one another. They function independently.
Curriculum
Instruction
2. Interlocking Model
As the name implies, curriculum and instruction depend on each other.
Since the system is interlocking each other therefore, there is a relationship. It
depicts an integrated relationship between each. Hence, the separation of the
two may bring harm to each other.
Curriculum
Instruction
Instruction
Curriculum
3. Concentric Model
This model reveals varying degree of independence, interlocking from
complete detachment to interlocking relationship. In this model, instruction is
with curriculum as such as a subsystem.
Curriculum
Instruction
Instruction
Curriculum
4. Cyclical Model
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This model is a simplified model which stresses the essential element of
feedback. Curriculum and instruction are separate entities with a continuing
circular relationship. The idea is that curriculum makes a continuous impact on
instruction and, vice versa. The implication is that instructional decisions are
made after curricular decisions which in turn are modified after instructional
decisions are implemented and evaluated. Though the diagram below show
curriculum and instruction as separate, they should not be perceived that waythey should be seen as parts of a sphere.
Curriculum
Instruction
CONCLUSION
Curriculum gives meaning and directions to all educational efforts. It is a
plan for providing sets of learning opportunities for individuals to be educated
while instruction is the implementation of the plan. The relationship between
curriculum and instruction are like Siamese. One cannot survive without the
other. Both curriculum and instruction require decision making.
Questions to Answer
1.
2.
3.
4.
What is curriculum?, Instruction?
If you are to compare the curriculum, what is it like? Why?
Differentiate the four models of curriculum-instruction relationship.
In your own understanding, illustrate the relationship that exists
between curriculum and instruction.