CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

 INTRODUCTION
Curriculum development is a specialised area of work which expects a teacher
to have a deep understanding of the underlying concept of curriculum and also
the skill to systematically design learning experiences to achieve the socially
desired goals set by the society we live in. Curriculum development involves
various stages/steps to be followed by those engaged in designing and
developing curriculum. As a teacher you are an important agent involved in the
transaction of learning experiences to students. You should have a thorough
knowledge of the process of curriculum development. With this understanding
you will be able to transact the curriculum more intelligently, with full
knowledge of its theoretical background. Moreover, who knows one day you
may be one of the team members involved in reviewing, updating and
redesigning the curriculum of your school or the State. We hope that because of
these reasons you will find the discussion in this unit interesting and useful.
 DEFINITION AND MEANING
1. Curriculum is what is taught in a given course or subject.
2. Curriculum refers to an interactive system of instruction and learning
with specific goals, contents, strategies, measurement, and resources. The
desired outcome of curriculum is successful transfer and/or development
of knowledge, skills, and attitudes.
3. Curriculum refers to the “total learning experiences of individuals not
only in school but society as well”. (Bilbao et al., 2008)
4. Curriculum refers to the principle-driven actions and processes that
guide and foster significant learning experiences.
5. Curriculum development is a planned, thoughtful and deliberate course of
actions that ultimately enhance the quality and impact of the learning
experience for students. It includes the development and organization of
learning activities designed to meet intended learning outcomes.

 OBJECTIVES
After going through Curriculum Development. We will be able to:
1. explain various approaches to curriculum development;
2. discuss the models of curriculum planning and categorise them into
technical and nontechnical models;
3. identify the constraints related to curriculum development;
 4. elucidate the criteria for selection of aims, objectives and learning
experiences;
5. state the criteria for selection, organisation and integration of content;
6. discuss the importance of evaluation in the process of curriculum
development; and r identify major issues and trends in curriculum.

 IMPORTANCE OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

Curriculum development has a broad scope because it is not only about the
school, the learners, and the teachers. It is also about the development of society
in general.

In today’s knowledge economy, curriculum development plays a vital role in

improving a country’s economy.

It also provides answers or solutions to the world’s pressing conditions and

problems, such as threats to the environment, issues on politics, socio-economic
problems, and other issues related to poverty, climate change, and sustainable
development.

There must be a chain of the developmental process to develop a society.

First, the school curriculum, particularly in higher education, must be designed

to preserve its national identity and ensure its economy’s growth and stability.

Curriculum development matters a lot in setting the direction of change in an

organization, not only at the micro but also at macro levels. As long as
curriculum development goals and objectives are apparent in the planner’s
mind, cutting-edge achievements in various concerns can be realized.
Curriculum refers to the principle-driven actions and processes that guide
and foster significant learning experiences. Curriculum development is
a planned, thoughtful and deliberate course of actions that ultimately
enhance the quality and impact of the learning experience for students.

It includes the development and organization of learning activities designed

to meet intended learning outcomes. It also involves the thoughtful
assessment of those learning outcomes. The ultimate goal of curriculum is
to enhance the quality and impact of the teaching and learning experience.

Whether designing a course or a program of studies, there are a number of

things that must be considered to create meaningful learning experiences.
Curriculum development moves beyond a content-centred approach to one
that considers the relationship between the course/program learning
outcomes, assessment of those outcomes, and the activities and
opportunities designed to facilitate student learning. In designing a course
or program, developers need to consider:

 Outcomes: What should the learner know and be able to do at the

end of this course/program?
 Assessment: How will learners and teachers know if the learning
outcomes have been accomplished?
 Activities: What needs to be done to achieve the learning outcomes?

 APPROACHES TO CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

l activities should be planned and organised on the basis of some principles and
norms set by society. There are some planned procedures for meeting the .
educational goals through teaching and learning activities. It is essential that
these activities (i.e. learning experiences) be selected, planned and executed
carefully so that these learning experiences contribute to the welfare of the
people. Similarly we follow a systematic approach in curriculum development.
The approach is known as the cumculum approach. We can define the
curriculum approach as a design or pattern of organisation used in making
decisions about the various aspects of curriculum development and transaction.
The curriculum approach is thus a plan that the teachers follow in providing
learning activities (or experiences) to the students in school. The pattern or
design of the curriculum. to a large extent. determines the nature of the
outcomes that will be achieved after transacting the curriculum.
 MAJOR CATEGORIES OF CURRICULUM APPROACH
There are several approaches through which curriculum can be designed and
organised. These approaches are generally grouped into the following four
categories: Subject-centred approach
 Broad fields approach
 Social problems approach
 Learner-centred approach
The choice of a particular approach to the curriculum design indicates
 the bases of decisions about the types of experiences to be included in the
educational programme.
 the role of teachers. students and other agencies in the process of
curriculum planning. r the choice of method for determining the selection
and organisation of learning experiences provided by the school.
The factors influencing the selection of objectives.
i) Subject-centred approach:
The subject centred approach is one of the most widely used methods for
organising educational experiences. In this approach the subject matter becomes
the basis around which learning experiences are organised and the mastery of
subject matter becomes the basis for attainment of educational objectives.
In subject-centred curriculum, the chief responsibility of the curriculum
planners is to determine the subjects to be offered by the school and the body of
knowledge to be covered within each subject.
For example, the subjects or the programme of studies may be divided into
areas like English, Hindi, Science, Social Studies, Mathematics and so on.
Another concern of curriculum planners engaged in this activity is to devise
ways of evaluating a student's mastery over the subject matter through formal
tests, problem-solving situations, etc.
ii) Broadfields approach:
A modification of the traditional subject-design, the broad field approach seeks
to bring together into a broad organisation of the subject matter, the knowledge
and understandings pertinent to a whole area of study.
Under broad fields approach efforts are made to integrate the subject matter of
closely related disciplines.
For example, a course developed in Biology represents an effort to bring
together into one instructional unit, the knowledge, concepts and principles
from the disciplines of Zoology, Botany, Physiology, Anatomy, Bacteriology
and similar closely related fields of study.
The broad fields approach, in the strict sense of the term, is a subject approach,
but one in which the basis of selecting and organising subject matter is different
from that in the traditional subjects. Attempts are made here to correlate and
integrate various areas of knowledge.
iii) Social problems approach:
The advocates of this approach believe that the learning experiences should be
organised in terms of the major activities of the human being as she lives in
his/her culture.
This inculcates in the pupil, an awareness of the current social issues and
problems and enables him/her to effectively resolve social problems. Through
social-problems approach, courses may be developed in areas such as
environmental problems, racism, population, communications, technology and
so on.
In this approach to curriculum planning/development, leaning objectives are
framed after the social problem or issue has been analysed; the subject matter is
drawn from any source pertinent to the problem.
iv) Learner-centred approach:
Learning is what we build into behaviour from experience. We learn best from
those situations that help us solve our problem, satisfy our desire, fulfil our
interest or meet our needs. This approach to curriculum development seeks to
present through school experiences the methods which an effective citizen uses
in solving problems, pursuing his interest or meeting his needs.
The curriculum plan will thus focus on the emerging needs of the students in
their present lives. This approach prepares the student to face the present rather
than the future. A student confronted with a problem utilises his intelligence and
experiences based on his/her past knowledge to reach an intelligent decision.
For this, the appropriate learning experiences need to be planned, which are
psychologically most sound and purposeful to the student.
The curriculum would consist of topics such as, an understanding of changes
during puberty, peer-group interaction, developing personal values, etc. In other
words, the issues should relate to the developmental stages of the student.

 Issues Related to Curriculum Approaches

Some of the issues related to Curriculum approaches are as follows:
i) Curriculum approach and instructional methods:
Curriculum planners deal with knowledge and content first and then with the
teaching and learning experiences. Irrespective of their philosophical postures,
they should not ignore these two elements of the curriculum.
Many educators tend to strongly demarcate the traditional and progressive
approaches. The traditionalists are in favour of the lecture method and advocate
the subject approach. The progressives, who are the advocates of social
problems or emerging-needs approach are proponents of methods like group
discussions, etc. However, instead of adopting one stand rigidly, educators could
choose an eclectic approach.
For example, while lecturing on a short story, the teacher could at some stage
initiate a group discussion on the characters of the story.
ii) Curriculum approach and various instructional
organisations:
General education and the interdisciplinary approach are the two concepts
gaining currency in the field of curriculum. The former is considered central to
an educational programme and, therefore, is required to be opted by the
students.
The latter is formed by an intention of various subject areas like Maths, Science,
Social Studies and so on. Unfortunately, both groups have adhered strictly to
their narrow definitions. The term general education should not prevent the
teacher from developing skills related to social problems and needs.
The interdisciplinary approach need not always fuse various subject-areas into a
social problems approach.
iii) Choice of curricular approach:
Each of the four curricular approaches serves a different and important purpose
in any educational programme. Educators will rate one curricular approach
better than the other.
The real issue in considering curricular approaches is not which one is better but
how it can be optimally used for designing a balanced curriculum.

 MODELS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

The need to pian effective curricula is obvious; the difficulty, however, is that
there are various ways of defining curriculum. However, we cannot construct a
curriculum without deciding its goals, content, learning experiences and
evaluation.
The point of emphasis here is that there is more than one model to be followed
in curriculum development. Most models can be classified as either
technicavscientific or non-technician non-scientific,
We should clarify at this juncture that classifying an approach as non-technical
or non-scientific does not mean that it is in any way inferior or sub-standard.
Rather it is a way of contrasting the two concepts. The educators who believe in
subject matter design usually advocate for the technical scientific approach to
curriculum development. Those who favour a learner-centred design frequently
advocate for the non-technician-scientific approach.
1. Technical/scientific models:
The technical scientific model enables us to understand curriculum from a
macro or broad view and to see it as a complex unity of parts organised to serve
a common function viz; the education of individuals. Technical scientific
models require he educators to use an intellectual and rational approach to
accomplish their tasks.
Advocates of technical scientific models believe that it is possible to
systematically outline the procedures that will facilitate the creation of
curricula. We have listed below a few models that follow the technical scientific
approach.
 The Tyler Model

 The Taba Model

  The Saylor and Alexander Model
 The Goodlad Model
 The Hunkins Model
 The Miller and Seller Model

 PROCESS OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

The curriculum development process consists of the following six stages.
Stage 1: Assessing the educational needs
Stage 2: Formulating objectives and learning goals
Stage 3: Careful selection of learning experiences to accomplish these
objectives
Stage 4: The selecting the rich and valuable content through which teachers can
offer the learning experiences.
Stage 5: Organizing and integrating learning experiences with relevant content
keeping in mind the teaching-learning process
Stage 6: Timely and accurate evaluation of all the above phases.

 PRINCIPLES OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

The principles of the curriculum are norms, values, moralities, and philosophies
that will benefit teachers, students, and the whole education system. The
curriculum and instructional strategy are essential components of imparting
knowledge to students.

1. Totality Of Experiences
 2. Child-Centeredness
3. Conservation And Creativity
4. Integration
5. Flexibility
6. Utility
7. Character Formation
8. Mental Discipline
9. Social Fulfillment
The following are a few of the basic principles of curriculum development :

1) Principle Of Totality Of Experiences

It is imperative to realize that curriculum does not merely indicate academic
subjects traditionally taught in schools and colleges. It also includes the totality
of experiences a student gains through several curricular, extra-curricular and
co-curricular activities.

2) Principle Of Child-Centeredness
Instead of sticking to the predetermined curriculum, instructors must consider
the child’s concerns, motives, and needs while developing the curriculum. In
addition, while planning any curricular activities, educators must consider ways
to enrich learners’ interests.

3) Principle Of Conservation And Creativity

While developing a curriculum, it is mandatory to include subjects and
experiences that would help conserve cultural heritage. Furthermore, one of the
most essential principles of curriculum development is that the curriculum
cannot be static. On the contrary, it should be subject to modification as per the
requirement aligned with the changing global educational trends and students’
needs.

4) Principle Of Integration
The curriculum should be planned in such a way that varied subjects could be
added at different stages of education. Similarly, the existing subjects should be
able to integrate with other subjects apart from enabling the students to correlate
with the content.

5) Principle Of Flexibility
One of the ideal qualities that a curriculum should have is flexibility and
dynamism, as this will be instrumental in serving the needs and concerns of
individuals and society. Also, timely changes and appropriate modifications to
the curriculum allows educators and learners alike to stay updated with
academic goals.

6) Principle Of Utility
Curriculum construction should follow the principle of utility, according to
which educators must include content that is useful to the individual and
society. In addition, the curriculum must consist of rich and valuable content
that would be useful later in life.

7) Principle Of Character Formation

The goal of the curriculum is not just educating learners through bookish
knowledge. It should also encourage the development of character and
personality in students. Therefore, the curriculum must aid in students’
character training throughout the academic years.

8) Principle Of Mental Discipline

A significant task of the curriculum is to foster learners' various mental faculties
or powers through cognitive training and practice.

9) Principle Of Social Fulfilment

Education aims to provide the overall development of the students through
comprehensive teaching styles and content. Moreover, the curriculum should
also consider adding the element of social life so that learners could gain insight
into becoming responsible citizens.

 EFFECTIVE CURRICULUM DESIGNS

NAAC expects institutes to include courses in the curriculum that focus on

fostering skills in students that would prove to be beneficial for them in the
future. It should also lean towards specific skill development and creating
entrepreneurship capability.

On the other hand, the NBA emphasises a curriculum design balanced with
having core concepts depending on particular subjects. For instance, Basic
Sciences would include engineering sciences, humanities social sciences,
program core, program electives, open electives, projects, internships/seminars,
others.

According to theNew Educational Policy 2020 , institutes must include credit

courses that focus on the main subjects and extra-curricular activities.
Furthermore, weightage should be given to the courses intended for skill
enhancement. Therefore, teachers and instructors would require to design their
lesson deliveries and plan of action accordingly.

NEP has directed institutes to include MOOC courses to make education more
accessible to students of diverse socio-economic backgrounds. Massive Open
Online Courses or MOOC aims to offer online courses to learners, wherein
students would have the liberty to choose any course and program.

Furthermore, institutes and educators need to work collaboratively to devise

pedagogies and mechanisms to ensure the high quality of the courses. Learners
from all over the country will get free access to these courses, and measures and
steps are to be taken to ensure the integrity of assessments. Moreover, to make
learning more accessible, programs will also be available in vernacular
language, which means that students who are not comfortable in English can opt
for courses in their regional languages.

 COURSE LESSON PLANNING AND OUTCOMES

One of the crucial tasks of the educators would be to establish clear, specific,
and measurable statements. These statements ultimately would indicate the
knowledge, skills, and attitude that the learner would demonstrate after the
completion of a particular course.

Similarly, learning outcomes would be more student-centric, focusing on the

learner's performance rather than the instructional technique. Also, teachers
must communicate clearly throughout the learning process regarding the course.
  COURSE DELIVERY TOOLS AND METHODS

Instead of sticking to the traditional blackboard teaching, teachers should

employ new and unique course delivery tools for an enriched learning
experience. There are several methods of lesson delivery that a teacher can use
during the online class. First, they need to assess the needs of students,
depending on which they can formulate a specific method and opt for relevant
tools. A few of the best examples of course delivery tools include inquiry-based
learning, flipped classrooms, personalised education, etc.

 VARIOUS ASSESSMENT MECHANISMS FOR EFFECTIVE

EVALUATION

Assessments are an integral part of the educational system, and with online
learning becoming the standardised medium, it is essential to opt for effective
strategies. Below are a few of the most valuable tools to evaluate student
learning that educators should remember during curriculum development
process.

As a part of formative assessments, teachers can employ a few of the most

commonly used tools, such as MCQs, online quizzes, online polls, game
activities, role-playing, open discussions, essay questions etc.

Furthermore, teachers can use these assessments types in sync with the learning
objectives and assess how far the students have progressed.

 ROLE OF TEACHERS IN CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

The teacher is such a part of the curriculum that she cannot be denied
participation in the process of changing or developing curriculum.

A teacher should be directly involved with the curriculum planning and

development because it is the teacher who implements it and translates
instructional plans into action.

Teaching is an act of implementing or transacting the curriculum. Teachers

should be part of the overall development activity. This implies that teachers
should ideally be involved at every stage of curriculum planning and
development i.e. from the formation of aims to the evaluation and maintenance
of the curriculum. their help should be sought for developing curriculum
packages and conceptualizing resource designs).

They can assist in designing supportive educational environment. they can

communicate with the general public on new curricular projects and thereby
make them more receptive to curriculum change.

 SOME ISSUES IN CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

Various trends and events have influenced the task of curriculum planning in
recent years and these are likely to continue their influence in the near future.

There are some issues that often engage the attention of curriculum planners and
teachers. In this section we shall briefly discuss two such issues. They are:

Irrelevant Curriculum

Very often we hear people criticising the school and its curriculum. When
people say that the 48 curriculum is irrelevant, they generally mean that it does
not meet the needs of the society and the student. As you have studied.
curriculum planners should take the social and student-related factors into
consideration while designing curriculum for a specific target group. The
educators consider the curriculum irrelevant if it is fued or trivial. Let us
examine what a fixed or trivial curriculum is. Fixed curriculum: A relationship
exists between changes in society and changes in curriculum. The scheme of a
curriculum must take into account the intention of improving the life of the
people so that the future could be better than the present and the past. This idea
suggests that cumulative knowledge and the total culture of society must be
reflected in the curriculum. If schools are to maintain their health and vitality. the
curriculum cannot remain fixed in a world full of change. The curriculum
should have adequate flexibility to reflect and respond to social changes and
developments. lkivial curriculum: This implies that facts and figures in a
curriculum are out-dated, meaningless and non-essential to students. Such a
curriculum takes students no where as far as their growth and development is
concerned. Implementation of a trivial curriculum will waste the academic time
and energy of the students. For desired fruits the curriculum should include
updated, relevant and meaningful facts.
Emerging Curriculum

An emerging curriculum is one that constitutes new curriculum content and

areas of study. It includes those aspects which are relevant for the emerging
society. These innovative areas of study emerged from traditional subject matter
and reflect socio-political changes in the society. Such a curriculum is both
learner-oriented as well as value-oriented. Several curriculum trends are
emerging today which could be incorporated to constitute a balanced curriculum
for secondary school education.

Some of the emerging areas that can be included in the emerging curriculum
are: Special education Multicultural education Sex education Drug abuse
Population education Intercool turd relations Pollution Vocational education
Community health education These are some of the numerous emerging areas
of study that demand attention today and will continue to do so in the future as
well.
CONCLUSION
We shall now help you recapitulate what you have studied in this unit. We
started our discussion with the definition of curriculum approach which is a plan
to make decisions about teaching situations. We discussed the major approaches
to curriculum development. issues relating to the approaches and the models of
curriculum planning and categorised them as technical and non-technical
models.
We also discussed major dimensions of curriculum development, i.e. aims,
objectives, materials, methods and evaluation. These are essential components
of curriculum development. In this unit an extended treatment was given to the
process of curriculum development. We concluded the unit with a note on
contemporary issues that influence need-based curriculum. Under this we
discussed in brief, irrelevant and emerging curriculum.
Reference
1. Bilbao, P. P., Lucido, P. I., Iringan, T. C., and R. B. Javier (2008).
Curriculum development. Philippines: Lorimar Publishing, Inc.

2. https://www.iitms.co.in/
3. https://camosun.ca
4. https://egyankosh.ac.in/