This week we read two articles: “Curriculum Policy and the Politics of What Should be Learned in Schools” and “Saskatchewan Treaty Education document”.
The first article was a very informative document regarding curriculum policy and politics. It gave insight into the challenges of creating a curriculum. It brought up questions such as :
- Who should create the curriculum?
- Is it possible to satisfy what everyone wants in a curriculum?
- Will it be possible to make it through the curriculum in 12 years?
The second article outlined the goals for grade 12 students to be able to reach by the time they graduate regarding treaty education outcomes.
The outcomes include:
- Treaty Relationships
- Spirit and Intent of Treaties
- Historical Context of Treaties
- Treaty Promises and Provisions
To begin, curriculum is defined as “an official statement of what students are expected to know and be able to do” (Connelly 8). A curriculum is developed by government officials or by other authorities to be used in schools. This article provides a new perspective on the political issues found in schools because the curriculum is so political. As mentioned above there is so many opinions and expert advice that is offered for a curriculum it is hard to decipher what the best option would be.
After reading this article I am concerned about this statement: “Most policy decisions in education, including curriculum decisions, are made with little or no public attention” (Connelly 8). Since schools are highly public and it is a right for all children to attend school I would have believed that it would be an entirely public matter.
The Saskatchewan Treaty Education document is full of great outcomes and goals that is proposed to be in all schools. From knowledge gained in previous classes I can imagine that there must be tension regarding where this should fit into a curriculum and what should be removed in place of this addition. Everybody wants more of every subject but it just cnnot happen so something will need to be removed to create space and this will inevitably cause tension. Additionally, I could connect to this document because I graduated high school not too long ago and can recall learning these outcomes/goals in my Indigenous Studies courses that I took through out high school.
Works Cited:
Connelly, F. Michael, et al. The SAGE Handbook of Curriculum and Instruction, SAGE Publications, Incorporated, 2007. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.libproxy.uregina.ca/lib/uregina/detail.action?docID=996458
One Comment
Charlee Anderson
Hey Meghan, thank you for taking the time to write this. I wanted to begin with saying that the curriculum i just an expectation of what children and students in our schools should be learning. Along with that is who and how our curriculums are being created which is by the government and politics which is a variety of opinions. I do agree how I also had thoughts that it would have been a public matter. With that being said I think the Treaty Education document is full of great outcomes and goals in schools. I also felt that there was or will be tension with changes that are or will be happening. As long as we keep going strong and making the changes that our students are needing will lead us to the students best success.
Sincerely Charlee