Building Curriculum Week 5
The curriculum has always been something difficult to get right. These outcomes and indicators build our future generation’s knowledge and beliefs. However, the curriculum can feel exclusive for some people in regards to their race, culture, gender, sex, disability, and much more. Therefore the question of ‘How do we get it right?’ rises. Well, the curriculum will never please every single student and parent, however, it would help if we have diverse opinions and views going into building the curriculum.
This does not mean listening to the majority of the public and politics making the decisions for what gets taught in classrooms, something Levin toches bases on, in his article “Curriculum Policy and the Politics of What Should be Learned in Schools”. The article focuses on the idea that curriculums policies, are made by a ‘higher power’ and that’s the government. Even though “political processes are driven by interests, and particularly by the most vocal interests” (Levin), they still fail to meet the planned results. This is due to the people deciding what the curriculum will include, are not in classrooms teaching it, and seeing how students feel about it. In addition, politics also have a bias from whose views and beliefs are included, making the curriculum even more exclusive. This then created a barrier between the curriculum and the educators themselves teaching it, making the curriculum poorly understood.
Being said, we need teachers to have more say in regards to the curriculum, considering they see how it all plays out in their classrooms. This is where “The Saskatchewan Way: Professionally Led Curriculum Development” becomes beneficial. Since the 1940s teachers in Saskatchewan have led the way in education, and are supported by the government. ‘The Saskatchewan Way’ also allows for multiple perspectives, from not just teachers by also parents, community, and more importantly students. The change happening each time to the curriculum is to further improve learning for students and have a more inclusive education. This type of curriculum development will give teachers the ability to improve the curriculum and education in regards to the response to the students learning, with help from ‘higher power’.
In conclusion, the curriculum is not easy to get right and to please everyone. However, giving teachers the tools to make a difference in regards to the curriculum will help improve education, compared to letting politics decide what and how things are taught in classrooms.
I really enjoyed reading your blog and found the connection you have made very interesting. I found many of the same points shocking, including the historical aspects of the curriculum reform as well as the notion of Saskatchewan having a more connected approach involving teachers and other perspectives. Politics will always have a level of influence when it comes to levels of bureaucracy but the tools should be given to the teachers and the instructions of proper use
I really enjoyed this post! I found it summarized the reading well, while also making connections. I agree with you that teachers need more of a say in curriculum building and that we need to step away from the politics when we can, as it is not an inclusive indicator of what should be present in our curriculums. For Saskatchewan we have such diversity in our schools, and if our curriculums are not teacher built, many of our students will be left out in the planning process.
You make alot of very strong arguments in this blog. Curriculum is a very hard thing “to get right” and please everyone and I totally agree that giving the lead to the teachers is definitely the good way to go.