Republic of the Philippines

ZamboangaCity State Polytechnic College

GRADUATE SCHOOL
RT Lim Boulevard, Zamboanga City

Vision: ZCSPC as the leading Mission: Provide effective and efficient Core Values:
provider of globally competitive services through advanced technological 1. Love of God and Country
human resources. studies and researches for the 2. Social Responsibility
empowerment of the nation’s human 3. Commitment/Dedication to the service
resources. 4. Accountability

CURRICULUM ESSENTIALS
By: Rosario P. Ocamia and Joanes C. Ocamia

I. CURRICULUM AND THE TEACHER

A. Curriculum in School

Who Implements the Curriculum?

 The curriculum is implemented by teachers and depends on the quality

of teaching and learning strategies, learning materials and assessment.

Only those teachers who are trainees can play an effective role in

defining and implementing the curriculum.

Attitudes of Policy Makers

 Teachers cannot be taken for granted or viewed simply as skilled

technicians who dutifully realize a given set of teaching in accordance

with the directives of a distant authority.

 Policy makers should no longer assume that curriculum implementation

is a process that translates directly into classroom reality.

 Policy makers should identify, analyze and address any discrepancies

between teachers opinions and ideas offered for curriculum innovation

 Policy makers generally view teachers as technicians and do not

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 include them in the curriculum development process.

Why are Teachers Important in the Implementation of Curriculum?

 Teachers/educators are the major pillars in the teaching and learning

process.

 A teacher does more than just implement curriculum. While curriculum

specialists, administrators and outside education companies spend

countless hours developing curriculum it is the teachers who know best

what the curriculum should look like.

 Teachers know their students better than others involved in the

curriculum process. While the state often dictates the skills covered by

the curriculum, a teacher can provide insight into the types of

materials, activities and specific skills that need to be included.

 A teacher can gauge whether an activity will fit into a specified time

frame and engage students. All teachers should be allowed to provide

input during the creation stage.

 Teachers must implement the curriculum in their own classroom

sticking to the plan that has taken so much time, careful planning and

effort to create.

 Reflection on a curriculum allows teachers and others involved in the

process to find any weaknesses in the curriculum, and attempt to make

it better.

Setbacks/Shortcomings of Involving Teachers in the Process of

Curriculum Development

 In the absence of adequate teacher training, teachers may rely on their

prior beliefs and experiences in interpreting the new curriculum. This

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 will contribute to the mismatch between what the curriculum aims to

achieve and what actually happens inside the classroom.

How Can Professional Development Enhance Teachers Role in

Development and Implementation of Curriculum?

 It is the responsibility of teacher training and development programs to

provide teachers with opportunities to redirect their beliefs and reflect

upon their classroom practices, so that maximum targeted professional

development can be implemented.

Some topics to be addressed in designing professional

development opportunities for teachers who are implementing as
new program:

1. Program Philosophy

It is important for teachers to understand the philosophy behind

the program and how it may impact students, parents, administrators

and stake holders.

2. Content

Teachers may find the curriculum introduces unfamiliar content

they have not taught in a while.

3. Resources

Adequate resources should be available for implementing a new

curriculum.

Time: Teachers should be allowed to have enough time to

prepare and deliver the new requirements of the new curriculum and

take time to understand the subject.

5. School Ethos

The overall belief of the school in the new curriculum, eg the

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 faculty and community recognizes the importance of the subject in the

school curriculum

6. Professional Support

Opportunities for professional development such as workshops,

seminars, best teacher awards.

7. Professional Adequacy and Interest

Teachers own interest, ability and competence to teach the

curriculum i.e confidence in teaching, attitudes and freeness to teach

the subject.

II. THE TEACHER AS A CURRICULARIST

Curricularist

 A person who is involved in curriculum knowing, writing, planning,

implementing, evaluating, innovating, and initiating

 A teacher’s role is broader and inclusive of other functions and so

teacher is a curricularist.

What does a teacher do to deserve the label as curricularist?

 The classroom is the first place of curricular engagement. The first

school experience sets the tone to understand the meaning of

schooling through the interactions of learners and teachers that will

lead to learning. Hence, curriculum is the heart of schooling

Describing Teacher As Curricularist

1. Knows the curriculum

 Learning begins with knowing. The teacher as a learner starts with

knowing about the curriculum, the subject matter or the content.

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  As a teacher, one has to master what are included in the curriculum. It

is the acquiring academic knowledge about formal (disciplines, logic) or

informal (derived from experiences). It is mastery of the subject

matter.

2. Writes the curriculum

 A classroom teacher takes record of knowledge concepts, subject

matter or content. These need to be written or preserved. The teacher

writes books, modules, laboratory manuals, instructional guides, and

reference materials in paper or electronic media.

3. Plans the curriculum

 A good curriculum has to be planned. It is the role of the teacher to

make a yearly, monthly or daily plan of the curriculum.

 The teacher takes into consideration several factors in planning a

curriculum. These are: learners, support material, time, subject matter

or content, desired outcomes , context of the learners among others.

4. Initiates curriculum

 In cases where the curriculum is recommended to the schools from

DepEd, CHED, TESDA, UNESCO, UNICEF or other educational agencies

for improvement of quality education, the teacher is obliged to

implement.

 Implementation of a new curriculum requires the open mindedness of

the teacher, and the full belief that the curriculum will enhance

learning.

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5. Innovates the curriculum

 Creativity and innovation are hallmarks of an excellent teacher. A

curriculum is always dynamic, hence keeps on changing. From the

content strategies, ways of holding, blocks of time, ways of evaluating,

kinds of students and skills of teachers, one cannot find a single

eternal curriculum that would perpetually fit.

6. Implements the curriculum

 The curriculum that remains recommended or written will never serve

its purpose. Somebody has to implement it.

 Heart of schooling is the curriculum.

 It is this role where the teacher becomes the implementor of the

curriculum.

 She is at the height of an engagement with the learners , with support

materials in order to achieve the desired outcome. It is where

teaching, guiding and facilitating skills of the teacher is expected to be

the highest level.

7. Evaluates the curriculum

 How can one determine if the desired learning outcomes have been

achieved?

 Is the curriculum working?

III. THE TEACHER IS A KNOWER OF THE CURRICULUM

 Curriculum should be understood by teachers and other stakeholders

to affect students, parents, politicians businessmen, professionals,

gov’t officials, or even common people.

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  CURRICULUM came from the Latin word “currere” referring to the oval

track in which the Roman chariots raced

 CURRICULUM refers to the whole body of a course in an educational

institution or by a department (The New International Dictionary)

 CURRICULUM refers to the courses taught in schools and universities

(Oxford English Dictionary)

 CURRICULUM is equated with the syllabus regarded as all the

teaching-learning experiences which the students encounters while in

school

IV. THE SCHOOL CURRICULUM: DEFINITION, NATURE AND SCOPE

A. Some Definitions of The Curriculum

1. It is a written document that systematically describes goals

planned, objectives, content, learning activities, evaluation

procedures and so forth

2. The contents of a subject, concepts and tasks to be acquired,

planned activities, the desired learning outcomes and experience

product of culture and an agenda to reform society make up

curriculum

3. A curriculum includes “all of the experiences that individual

learners have in a program of education whose purpose is to

achieve broad goals and related specific objectives, which

planned in terms of framework of theory and research or past

and present professional practice.

4. It is a programme of activities (by teachers and pupils) designed

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 so that pupils will attain so far as possible certain educational

and other schooling ends or objectives.

5. Its is a plan consists of learning opportunities for a specified

time frame and place, a tool that aims to bring about behavior

changes in students as a result of planned activities and includes

all learning experiences received by students with the guidance

of school.

6. It provides answers to three questions: What knowledge, skills

and values are most worthwhile Why are they most worthwhile?

How should the young acquire them?

B. Scope of Curriculum

1. Goals - The benchmarks or expectations for teaching and learning

often made explicit in the form of a scope and sequence of skills to

be addressed

2. Methods - The specific instructional methods for the teacher, often

described in a teacher’s edition

3. Materials - The media and tools that are used for teaching and

learning

4. Assessment - The reasons for and methods of measuring student

progress.

C. Nature of Curriculum

 The instructional programme as indicated by the course offerings to

meet the varies requirements of a vast heterogeneous population

 The courses of study, embodying outlines of knowledge to be

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 taught

 All the experiences provided under the guidance of the school

 Curriculum is that which makes a difference between maturity and

immaturity, between growth and stasis, between literacy and

illiteracy, between sophistication (intellectual, moral, social and

emotional) and simplicity.

 It is the accumulated heritage of man’s knowledge filtered through

the prisms of contemporary demands and pressures. It is that

wisdom considered relevant to any age in any given location.

 It is that we choose from our vast amount of heritage of wisdom to

make a difference in the life of man.

V. APPROACHES TO SCHOOL CURRICULUM

Three Ways of Approaching a Curriculum

1. Curriculum as a Content

 Focus will be the body of knowledge to be transmitted to

students using appropriate teaching method.

 The likelihood of teaching will be limited to acquisition of facts,

concepts and principles of the subject matter; however , the

content can also be taken as a means to an end.

 Ways of presenting the content in the curriculum

 Topical approach- much content is based on knowledge ,

and experiences are included.

 Concept approach - fewer topics in clusters among major

and sub-concepts and their interaction, with relatedness

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 emphasized

 Thematic Approach- combination of concepts that develop

conceptual structures

 Modular Approach- leads to complete units of instruction

 Criteria in Selection of Content (Scheffer, 1970 in Bilbao, et

al 2009):

 Significance - Content should contribute to the ideas,

concepts, principles and generalization that should attain the

overall purpose of the curriculum. Content becomes the

means of developing cognitive, affective, or psychomotor

skills of the learners.

 Validity - Authenticity of the subject matter forms its validity.

There is a need for validity check and verification at a

regular interval, because content may not continue to be

valid.

 Utility - Usefulness of the content in the curriculum is relative

to the learners who are going to use this.

 Learnability - The complexity of the content must be within

the range of the learners.

 Feasibility - Can the subject be learned within the time

allowed, resources available, expertise of the teachers and

the nature of the learners? Are the contents of learning

which can learned beyond the formal teaching-learning

engagement? Are there opportunities to learn these?

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  Interest - Will the learners take interest in the content? What

value will the contents have in present and future life of the

learners? Interest is one of the driving forces for the

students to lean better.

 Guide in the Selection of the Content in the Curriculum

 Commonly used in the daily life

 Appropriate to the maturity levels and abilities of the

learners

 Valuable in meeting the needs and competencies of the

future career

 Related to other subject fields or discipline for

complementation and integration

 Important in transfer of learning to other disciplines

2. Curriculum as a Process

 Curriculum happens in the classrom as the questions as by the

teacher and learning activities engaged in by the students.

 The process of the teaching and learning process becomes the

central concern of teaching to emphasize critical thinking,

thinking meaning-making and heads on, hands-on doing and

many others.

 There are the ways of teaching, ways of managing the content,

guiding learning, methods of teaching and learning and

strategies of teaching or delivery modes.

 When curriculum is approached as a PROCESS, guiding

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 principles are presented:

 Curriculum process in the form of teaching methods or

strategies are means to achieve the end.

 There is no single best process in method.

 Curriculum should stimulate the learners' desire to develop

the cognitive, affective, psychomotor domain in each

individual.

 In the choice of methods, learning and teaching styles

should be considered.

 Every method or process should result to learning outcomes

which can be described as cognitive, affective, and

psychomotor.

 Flexibility in the use of the process or methods should be

considered.

 Both teaching and learning are the two important processes

in the implementation of the curriculum.

3. Curriculum as a Product

 Central to the approach is the formulation of behavioral objectives

stated as intended learning outcomes.

 These learned or achieved learning outcomes are demostrated by

the person who has meaningful experiences in the curriculum. All

these result of planning, content and processes in the curriculum.

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VI. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT: PROCESSES AND MODELS

 Curriculum is a dynamic process involving many different people and

procedures. Development connotes changes which is systematic. A

change for the better means alteration, modification, or improvement

of existing condition.

 To produce positive changes, development should be purposeful,

planned and progressive. Usually it is linear and follows a logical step-

by-step fashion involving the following phases: curriculum planning,

curriculum design, curriculum implementation and curriculum

evaluation.

 Generally, most models involve four phases.

1. Curriculum planning considers the school vision, mission and goals.

It also includes the philosophy of strong education belief of the

school. All of these will eventually be translated to classroom

desired learning outcomes for the learners.

2. Curriculum designing is the way curriculum is conceptualized to

include the selection and organization of the content, the selection

and organization of learning experiences or activities and the

selection of the assessment procedure and tools to measure

achieved learning outcomes.

3. Curriculum implementing is putting into action the plan which is

based on the curriculum design in the classroom setting or the

learning environment. The teacher is the facilitator of learning and,

together with the learners, uses the curriculum as design guides to

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 what will transpire in the classroom with the end in view of

achieving the intended learning outcomes. Implementing the

curriculum is where action takes place.

4. Curriculum evaluating determines the extent to which the desired

outcomes have been achieved. This procedure is on-going as in

finding out the progress of learning (formative) or the mastery of

learning (summative). Along the way, evaluation will determine the

factors that have hindered or supported the implementation. It will

also pinpoint where improvement can be made and corrective

measures, introduced. The result of evaluation is very important for

decision making of curriculum planners, and implementors.

Curriculum Development Process Models

1. Ralph Tyler Model: Four Basic Principles Also known as Tyler’s Rationale,

the curriculum development model emphasizes the planning phase. This is

presented in his book Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction. He

posited four fundamental principles which are illustrated as answers to the

following questions:

a. What education purposes should schools seek to attain?

b. What educational experiences can be provided that are likely to attain

these purposes?

c. How can these educational experiences be effectively organized?

d. How can we determine whether these purposes are being attained or

not?

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 Tyler’s model shows that in curriculum development, the following

considerations should be made:

a. Purposes of the school

b. Educational experiences related to the purposes

c. Organization of the experiences

d. Evaluation of the experience

2. Hilda Taba Model: Grassroots Approach Hilda Taba improved on Tyler’s

model. She believed that teachers should participate in developing a

curriculum. As a grassroot approach Taba begins from the bottom, rather

than from the top as what Tyler proposed. She presented seven major steps

to her linear model which are the ff:

a. Diagnosis of learner’s needs and expectations of the larger society

b. Formulation of learning objectives

c. Selection of learning contents

d. Organization of learning contents

e. Selection of learning experiences

f. Determination of what to evaluate and the means of doing it.

3. Galen Saylor and William Alexander Curriculum Model: Galen Saylor

and William Alexander (1974) viewed curriculum development as consisting of

four steps. Curriculum is “a plan for providing sets of learning opportunities to

achieve broad educational goals and related specific objectives for an

identifiable population served by a single school center.

a. Goals, Objectives and Domains - Curriculum planners begin by

specifying the major educational goals and specific objectives they

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 wish to accomplish. Each major goal represents a curriculum domain:

personal development, human relations, continued learning skills and

specialization.

b. Curriculum Designing - Designing a curriculum follows after appropriate

learning opportunities are determined and how each opportunity is

provided.

c. Curriculum Implementation - A designed curriculum is now ready for

implementation. Teachers then prepare instructional plans where

instructional objectives are specified and appropriate teaching methods

and strategies are utilized to achieve the desired learning outcomes

among students.

d. Evaluation - The last step of the curriculum model is evaluation. A

comprehensive evaluation using a variety of evaluation techniques is

recommended. It should involve the total educational programme of

the school and the curriculum plan, the effectiveness of instruction and

the achievement of students. Through the evaluation process,

curriculum planner and developers can determine whether or not the

goals of the school and the objectives of instruction have been met. All

the models utilized the process of (1) curriculum planning, (2)

curriculum designing, (3) curriculum implementing, and (4) curriculum

evaluating.

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REFERENCES

Capilayan, C. (2017). Teacher as Curricularist. Retrieved from

https://www.slideshare.net/criscapilayan/teacher-as-curricularist

Santos, Q. (2016). The Teacher as the Knower of the Curriculum. Retrieved

from https://www.slideshare.net/quengsantos/the-teacher-as-the-
knower-of-the-curriculum

Varlapink. (2015). Curriculum Its Meaning, Nature And Scope. Retrieved from
https://www.slideshare.net/valarpink/curriculum-its-meaning-nature-
and-scope

Tejada, J. (2017). Approaches to School Curriculum. Retrieved from

https://www.slideshare.net/JunilaTejada/approaches-to-school-
curriculum

Delacruz, D. & Del Mundo, D.F. (2016). Curriculum Development: Processes

And Models. Retrieved from https://www.slideshare.net/
DianneCarmelaDelacruz/curriculum-development-processes-and-
models

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