Cycle One: What is curriculum? What is its purpose? What is the relationship between student and curriculum?

William H. Schubert, educational scholar, best encompasses the ideal of curriculum when he wrote, “Curriculum, at its root, deals with the central question of what is worth knowing, …experiencing, doing, and being.”  As I read through each piece of text for this cycle, I kept returning to this statement.  When I grapple with questions of “What skills are most important for my students to learn?”  “Why is it important that I teach these skills?”  “What order should I teach course concepts in order to maximize student learning experiences?” and “What resources do I have available and/or can I access to add to student learning experiences?”  I’m contemplating the role of curriculum in my teaching and my students’ learning.

I found myself relating to John Dewey’s metaphor of curriculum providing a map that outlines students’ previous experiences and provides a guide for future experiences.  A teacher can use a curriculum map to gain insight into what students should have learned (skills, behaviors, etc.) and provide direction on what students should learn in a particular course.  Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), the more that I considered this metaphor, I came to realize that thinking of curriculum as a map reinforces the “one size fits all” view of education.  I know that a “one size fits all view” is unrealistic in a school environment as our students are diverse in their abilities, skills, interests, and motivations.  For instance, when I taught 7^th graders, those students who had attended the same elementary school had access to the same academic resources within the same curriculum, yet there were vast differences in the skill sets they entered my classroom with.  Technically, students were exposed to the same curriculum, but they came away with different experiences with course content (some had a very strong number sense, whereas others demonstrated a strength in geometric principles).  Although a map may provide insight into a group as a whole, it does not shed light on individuals – strengths, weaknesses, learning style, etc.  Therefore, as educators it is important to remember that while curriculum maps may be helpful in providing a general framework, we need to insert the children as a key component in determining what should be taught.

Dewey touches upon the divide between the child and the curriculum.  He highlights three areas of divergence.

1. The chasm between the narrow, personal world of a child and the huge, impersonal world of facts.  (I would argue that this divide is decreasing in size due to the Internet’s power to break down barriers and allow for people to easily share ideas.  Nevertheless, the chasm still exists.) 
2. Children consider their life as a whole experiences, whereas curriculum is divided into specializations (i.e. math, science, social studies, English, music, art, …)
3. Children are concerned about the practical and emotional connections they can create, while curriculum is built upon the logical classification of facts. 

As a math teacher, I really struggle with the first and third divergences.  How can I provide learning experiences for students in a way that is relevant and meaningful to their life?  (Being able to address this question will allow me to better be able to answer that all-too-famous student question directed toward math teachers:  “When am I ever going to be able to use this???)  This past year I had my Algebra 2 students construct a rollercoaster during our unit on polynomials.  Many of my students enjoyed this hands-on learning activity as they worked in teams on applying math, physics, architecture, and engineering principles.  Although I try to plan engaging learning activities for every lesson, sometimes I don’t feel that I am narrowing the divide between my students’ experiences and interests and the subject matter.  According to Sir Ken Robinson's TED Talk on Changing Education Paradigms, are these lessons doing more bad than good?

Knowing that our students’ experiences should be a driving force in shaping curriculum, should children have a say in making curriculum decisions?  That is, should our students’ interests and concerns shape what they learn in school?  If so, to what degree?  To pose a broader question:  Who should be responsible for deciding, “…what is worth knowing, …experiencing, doing, and being” – students, parents, teachers, administrators, businesses, community members, politicians?  And at what level should these decisions be made – school, district, regional, state, or national?  Understanding who the role players are in making curriculum decisions is a gray area for me as I seek to gain a deeper understanding of curriculum. 

Regardless of who is responsible, those charged with the great responsibility of curriculum development need to continually discuss, evaluate, and reflect upon the underlying educational aims:  What should the curriculum accomplish?  Who benefits from the development of the curriculum – the individual students or society as a whole?

As I reflect on the questions shared at the beginning of the post, I know that “What?” and “Why?” go hand-in-hand in developing curriculum and planning appropriate instruction to align with curricular objectives and goals.  It is only after I consider these two aspects that I will be able to take subject matter and prepare instruction that is within the range and scope of my students’ lives.