After I finally gained control of my ADD and was able to read through all the material, I did have some thoughts on curriculum design. As an elementary teacher, it was interesting to read some of the high school articles and examples. It allowed me the opportunity to see a different perspective.
The first question we were asked to keep in mind was, why do we need to consider curriculum? I just thought about what my kindergarten classroom would be like if I didn't have some sort of a framework to go by when teaching in the classroom. What I think may be important to teach a child, the next teacher may not agree. Considering curiculum as a guide to our teaching decisions allows us to cover the necessary material just in the process that we want to cover it. What is nice, in Kindergarten, we take the combined curriculum approach. Our reading includes science, social studies, and math, and vice versa. The "Toward a Connected Curriculum" article really had me thinking about how curriculum is considered seperately at the high school level. This led me into thinking about what model of curriculum would currently fit my role. As a Kindergarten teacher, the open conversation model seems to be more logical for me, and enjoyable. However, I can see how this may be changed depending on the grade level or the students in your class. Having the opportunity to change (flexible curriculum) helps keep us on the right track, but allows us to help those students who have different needs. I feel as though there is often pressure from above to teach to the test based on the curriculum designed by who knows who somewhere in some office building. So having the opportunity to change when needed is the model that would be ideal. The modern approach is just that, using the framework (curriculum) as a guide for your teaching. Each style is different and each learner is different. Finding what works for each person is what makes curriculum more meaningful for each student. I believe the healthiest approach to curriculum is a combination of the older views - having a set framework - and the more modern open view. In the end, everyone has the same goal - to help students become life-long learners and accomplish all their hopes and dreams. Sometimes the lessons in life don't always come out of a textbook - or from a curriculum map for that matter.
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Hi Amanda! That was a lot of info to sift through, I agree. I teach middle school, so I found the discussion about elementary teaching strategies very interesting. The point that really hit home for was the comment about how elementary students are always asking questions if they don't understand something. They don't really care if their questions is "dumb". It is completely by the time you get to middle school. It is like pulling teeth to get some of my students to admit they don't understand something. They are so afraid of lookunf stupid in front of their friends, they would rather fail and assignment. I do agree that curriculum must be flexible. In order to make it meaningful for our students it has to be updated. What students found important or interesting 20 yrs ago thet don't today. Curriculum need to cathc up with the modern student.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite part of teaching elementary school, is the inquisitive nature of my students. They want their hands into everything, and if you present them with something unknown, rest assured, they will ask questions. : ) Having a flexible curriculum is something educators have a problem with grasping...with all the testing and requirements put on us, we are weary of straying too far. Hopefully the curriculum will soon change to meet the needs of society.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you all about seeing things from a different perspective- I often think it is a strength of this class that you are all k-12 teachers and from a variety of disciplines. I think this is really important in a curriculum class because you all come at curriculum from a different view point. For example, Amanda as a k teacher has a whole different experience with curriculum (and students' eagerness) than Amy does at her level but curriculum unites all of us teachers and students. I also like your point about the importance of where learning occurs. I like to think of the analogy of taking a journey. When we go on a trip we need a road map (or GPS) to help us find where we are going (the curriculum) but we do not get pleasure taking a trip by just following our map- the real enjoyment is what happens along the way- just like the real learning takes place as a result of having taken that trip in the first place. Does this make sense? What do you think?
ReplyDeleteI often enjoy the most scenic views by getting lost (seriously). :) Students enjoy being able to get lost in their work when it is interesting and they are active participants. The topic of physical change in science is boring. The opportunity to experiment and make chocolate ice-cream from chocolate milk is fun. Understanding and having fun is priceless.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great analogy - a journey with a gps - that is the cool thing about a gps, you can choose the path you want, if you dont like something you can take the alternate route. I love how excited and eager my Kindergartener's are about learning. It makes my job easier, but harder, because I want to keep that motivation.
ReplyDeleteAmanda,
ReplyDeleteYour statement about the best lessons in life don't come from a textbook or a curriculum map resonates with me. I think one of the most important things we can do as educators is to get our students to value learning for the sake of learning itself. In other words, we need to teach our students the value in becoming life long learners. I enjoyed reading your post because it gave me a glimpse into the elemenentary school mind set. I teach middle school where there is a definite delineation between the subject areas. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
This is the 4th time I have attempted to post, I keep getting an error.
ReplyDeleteAs a high school special education teacher, on very rare occasions will a high school student ask a question in fear that they will look "stupid" in front of classmates. And those that know the content are successful, and those how are having difficult seem to fall behind even further behind.
Amanda,
ReplyDeleteI think that teaching in the elementary level is such an inquisitive age group. So working with a flexible curriculum is ideal for the elementary setting. I currently teach in the elementary level and have taught previously in the middle levels. I love the elementary age and openness to new ideas and the inquisitive nature of our young children. As I read and thought about your post and comments from others, I wondered, if elementary age is an easy age to encourage an open mind and questioning- What can teachers in the middle- high school levels do to encourage the same type of response?
Leslie, to answer your question about encouraging engaging responses at middle and high school, I think it comes with our own personal excitment towards the topic. I will say, in high school for me, I was interested in topics that were taught to me from a teacher who was interested and motivated. The teachers opinion rubs off on the student, at any grade level. I am a terrible reader, but had a PHENOMENAL Language Arts teacher that really got me into historical fiction. Now, I can't put it down. Each teacher just has to find what motivates a particular group of students, and ultimately, find what will keep them motivated to teach it!
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