Week Two: Curriculum Theory and Practice

Curriculum development from a traditionalist perspective is widely used across schools in Canada and other countries? Think about: (a) The ways in which you may have experienced the Tyler rationale in your own schooling; (b) What are the major limitations of the Tyler rationale/what does it make impossible; and (c) What are some of the potential benefits/what is made possible.

(a) From my schooling experience, the Tyler rationale was definitely present. It was existent during the hours of the school day when we were expected to behave a specific way. This often carried outside of school as well, due to the many activities, sports, or events that students attended. The structure that teachers and schools often placed on children, put immense pressure on their behaviour. This causes stress and anxiety on children, which I have for sure experienced. Although life gets crazy busy, I was regularly expected to do unforeseen amounts of homework or assignments on my own time. This took away from struggles I was having in my own life, but also the ability to develop further in other categories of my life. I would have difficulty managing my time between school, sports, family, friends, work and growing towards my professional goals. I would get completely overwhelmed and truly did not know how I would have time to accomplish everything given to me. The Tyler rationale is placing expectations on teachers, which can lead to pressure being built on students. This can unfortunately lead to more serious issues.

(b) The Tyler rationale does present a few limitations. Since it is a very structured process of learning, students must sit and listen to whatever material being taught. They are often not given a choice of the material or methods being taught (4). Since, course content is usually taught in one, maybe two methods it places a challenge on students who learn in different ways. Not every individual is able to grasp onto ideas in the same way, which makes it difficult to achieve their educational goals. However, there is often so much curriculum for a teacher to go through, that is doesn’t allow for adjustments in teaching methods to be made possible: “curriculum as the boundary between formal and informal education” (11). It limits the creativity within lessons in the classroom (5). The structured curriculum to follow gives many challenges to teachers.

(c) A few of the potential benefits from the Tyler rationale is that it can be a successful method if the teachers approach the concept from a positive perspective. As it is explained; “strength of the process model is that it resets upon the quality of teachers” (9). The quality of teachers, whether through passion, organization, ability to communicate, or layout of the class becomes detrimentally important. Having high quality teachers can help support the Tyler rationale, which leads to students achieving their goals. I believe that it is important to have teachers with these qualities in order to achieve a more engaging education for students. Another benefit from the Tyler rationale is the structure it provides (4). Allowing a set-up curriculum ensures that students are prepared to continue their education, regardless of the route that they take. They are in school to achieve these goals, so it is important that students can meet the required skills and abilities. The curriculum allows the teacher to help guide their students into achieving their goals.

Amber Smith

Smith, M. K. (1996, 2000) ‘Curriculum theory and practice’ The encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education, Smith – Curriculum Theory and Practice.