What is curriculum mapping? Curriculum mapping is the process of recording what students will be taught over a period of time (ASCD, 2001). The curriculum map should be built using the grade level curriculum standards. A curriculum map is a living document that includes content, skills, and assessments that will be a part of the learning process. In addition, the Teaching/Learning Mapping Strategy (TLMS) also includes learning activities within a curriculum map as an important part of the learning process (ASCD, 2001). The period of time the curriculum map addresses may vary. Teachers can create a curriculum map quarterly, monthly, or for the entire school year. When a curriculum map is created for the entire year teachers are able to make connections between content areas and assure that all standards are taught within the year. The process of curriculum mapping is ongoing and must be consistently edited and revised to meet the needs of all students. Teachers may take time to reflect throughout the year to make instructional decisions based on what is best for students. Why is it important for every teacher to engage in this process? Teachers should participate in curriculum mapping because it is essential when providing students with a positive learning environment across grade levels. The process of creating a curriculum map includes researching/data collection, creating, and continually evaluating and revising (EPI, 2006). The actual mapping process requires the teacher
1- A committee of parents, students and teachers should be able to develop curriculum programs for the school. Teachers can collect information on current effective practices in their schools; they can provide demonstration lessons to the public and their colleagues. Parents can share their expertise and experiences; they can serve as cooperative advisors, editors and advocates for their children. Students can also be a part of it because it helps define acceptable levels of expectations and identify motivating practices.
Curriculums are the roadmaps for schools which provide purpose and direction for administrators, educators, parents, and students. Curriculum typically refers to, “the knowledge and skills students are expected to learn, which includes the learning standards or learning objectives they are expected to meet; the units and lessons that teachers teach; the assignments and projects given to students; the books, materials, videos, presentations, and readings used in a course; and the tests, assessments, and other methods used to evaluate student learning.” (Curriculum, 2015, para. 1) Curriculums may come in many shapes and forms, whether they’re purchased as a package at the school or district level or they’re created or refined by educators and
Being able to develop a culture of collaboration and high student achievement requires rigorous curriculum development at the school and district levels. Curriculum and instruction work together to enhance student learning. Curriculum revolves around what is taught in school and instruction centers around how something is taught. (Sorenson, 2011, p. 32-35) To be more specific instruction can be defined as, “the strategies, techniques, materials, media, and place where the curriculum is implemented in schools.” If instruction, or the how, of a teacher does not match up to the curriculum, or the what, then student achievement will suffer. Vertically and horizontally aligning curriculum with the instruction that is happening within the classroom and school will in the end lead to greater student achievement which will be reflected on student assessments. (Sorenson, 2011, p.
Facilitating a foundation in academic or philosophical pedagogy can help form a path for the educator, a path to better understanding teaching, education, learning and learners. Often, most of the programs designed for learners and the curriculum is often derived from theories. Understanding theories can help guide a teacher through their education journey. Sometimes, teachers may struggle with classroom organisation or implementing the curriculum in a considerate, all-encompassing and engaging way, especially if you are a CRT or Graduate Teacher - and often these concepts can help inspire and encourage teachers. To be an empowered teacher means your classroom and students will be empowered learners, and that is the best type of learning. There are many theories that have contributed to education as a body and has many of these theories help educational departments plan curriculums to benefit not only teachers but also all students. What makes for a great teacher is considering the characteristics of the local community as well involving students’ families’ in the school body. Influences that help shape a teacher’s identity can include…
For this program outcome I chose my curriculum analysis paper from CUR 512, Curriculum Analysis and Planning. In this course we defined curriculum, the aspects that are considered when writing curriculum, the theoretical perspectives found within curriculum, and the goals of the curriculum. By writing this paper, I was able to focus in on a unit that I teach in third grade social studies to get a full picture of the curriculum. I was also able to see the complex issues surrounding the curriculum that I never previously noticed.
When it comes to curriculums it is important to know what kids interest are and to find out what they are learning. Children being involved in the classroom is more than just participating in the lesson. The themes need to help and expand the
With the data gathered, curriculum makers may gain deeper insight as how to design and plan the curriculum that the students will know about the curriculum before they enrolled.
The Leadership Team will then need to meet with all literacy, math, and CTE teachers to develop skills for lesson planning that is aligned to the curriculum. If the curriculum is not aligned the integration will not be successful. Teachers must be willing to collaborate with one another to stay on track with the lesson plans. Curriculum maps serve as an effective tool to ensure teachers are incorporating academic standards in the lesson plans and how often they are used (Grams, Hebert-Giffin, 2011).
Brady and Kennedy (2010) define the term curriculum as ‘the means by which young people and adults gain the essential knowledge, skills and attributes they need to be productive and informed citizens in a democratic society.’ However the term has many varied definitions, it can be described as being the subject matter, the overall plan for teaching or the outcome of what is taught (Wiles, 2005). Marsh and Willis (cited in Marsh, 2009, p. 3) break curriculum down into three individual areas of ‘planned curriculum’, the objectives and aims, ‘enacted curriculum’, how the objectives are
West Point Public School, adapted the online alignment tool, Curriculum Mapper to help teachers develop their curriculums. Through the use of the program teachers are able to develop or improve their own or a schoolwide curriculum, instruction, and verities of assessments. With the use of Curriculum Mapper, teachers are able to align state standards and the school improvement goals into the curriculum. This helps teachers and administrators identify holes within the curriculum. As well as, teachers can create reports that help analyze the curriculum that identifies what is working and what is not working within the curriculum that the teachers had created. However, teachers need to first determine what they feel needs to be taught. After the teachers can determine what concepts and lessons needs to be taught to the current students based off the scope and sequence and aligning the information from the state standards and the district chosen textbooks. The teacher will then
Within three months of taking ED 523, my school district began using curriculum mapping. Curriculum mapping has facilitated my district in eliminating gaps and repetition in the curriculum and has allowed us to develop a fluent scope and sequence. This process has optimized student learning in my classroom. I now know what the students have already learned and can build upon those skills and understandings and can also better prepare them for the content they will be introduced to in the future. The mapping process has given me the ability to create cross curricular units with my colleagues. The students
Developing a curriculum is a difficult process, moreso when an educator has to keep in mind the number of students they are trying to reach. At the secondary level, it is not uncommon for a teacher to be responsible for 150 or more students. Each of these students presents a unique and trying task for educators who want to help students learn. Students have different modalities for which they gain knowledge, and it is the teacher’s job to engage those
A curriculum is any planned educational experience. Ideally, the learning objectives should incorporate the acronym “SMART”: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Targeted to the learner. Systematic Curriculum and Instructional Development (SCID) is a successful model for curriculum development customized to complement the needs of career and technical educators as well as business and industry trainers. It has five phases: design, development, implementation, evaluation. Since curriculum reflects the models of instructional delivery chosen and used, some might indicate that curriculum could be categorized according to the common psychological classifications of the four families of learning theories “Social, Information Processing, Personalist, and Behavioral” as defined by Cortes (1981). Cortes
The meaning of the term’ curriculum’ is difficult to define. For school, Pratt (in Brady and Kennedy, 2014, p. 3) argues that curriculum can be ‘an organized set of formal educational and training intentions’. For students, Marsh and Wills (in Brady and Kennedy, 2014, p. 3) maintain that curriculum is ‘an interrelated set of plans and experiences that a student undertakes under the guidance of the school’, while for teachers, the challenge is to develop curricula that will cater for the needs of all students (Ah Sam & Ackland, 2005). There are various meanings attached to the term’ curriculum’. My personal definition for school curriculum is that schools develop programs of different study areas basing on the content of the national curriculum document; teachers plan their teaching basing on the programs; eventually, students experience the curriculum by engaging in diverse teaching activities. In this essay, I will be discussing The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) in relation to the strategic plan and teaching philosophy of Hampton Park East Kindergarten.
According to Blaise and Nuttall (2011), to understand curriculum, we must first understand what is meant by the term curriculum. Within curriculum there are five key concepts, they are the intended curriculum The Intended curriculum is the curriculum that the teachers want the children to experience in order to develop particular knowledge, skills, and attitudes. (Blaise & Nuttall, 2011, p. 82). The enacted curriculum is what teachers want students to experience. important reason why the intended curriculum is enacted differently from teacher to teacher, from classroom to classroom, is that a key part of a teachers work is to interpret the official curriculum, taking into account a wide range of variables that are specific to their classroom and school setting.