Week 1 assignment - 30 Oct

1.     What are the differences between CURRICULUM and SYLLABUS?

While syllabus is the list of contents or body of knowledge to be transmitted, curriculum can be that and beyond. According to Smith, M. K (1996, 2000), curriculum can be syllabus from the theoretical perspective but can as well be viewed as product, process and praxis.

 Referring as product approach, Franklin Bobbitt and Ralph W. Tyler contended that curriculum centers on the change of behaviors which can be measured through a list of objectives.  It is a systematic plan to ensure what’s being learned is relevant for future use in the world outside schools.  Critics of product approach like Lawrence Stenhouse argued that curriculum as product solely focused on knowledge content and omitted students which are the important element of learning. Stenhouse concluded that curriculum should be more than just a list of objectives to achieve but viewed as a process and take into account the context which learning takes place. Another approach on curriculum is a further development of the process view proposed by Grundy. Referring as praxis, curriculum must pay attention to the relationship and interaction between teachers and students and has explicit commitment to emancipation. Furthermore, curriculum is also viewed as a mean for social change (curriculum as context) and the view that curriculum should be strictly used in the context of formal education.

In conclusion, curriculum is a much bigger term than syllabus and can be defined from different perspectives. While syllabus is mainly a list of content to define the scope of knowledge aimed to deliver, curriculum has different meanings and implications to different people depending on the approach they are taking.     

Reference

Smith, M. K. (1996, 2000) 'Curriculum theory and practice' the encyclopaedia of informal education, www.infed.org/biblio/b-curric.htm.

2.     According to Bobbitt’s “THE CURRICULUM”, What are the objectives of curriculum? If you are the curriculum planner using Bobbitt’s theory. How your curriculum would looks like?

Bobbitt contends that the objectives of curriculum are to prepare learners for specific

activities we all go through in life. These specific activities can be taught and measured through behavioral objectives.  For example, to teach an English conversation module for grade 12, I would need to plan my course using different life situations e.g. Travel, Market, Business meeting etc. Role play activities are used to demonstrate students how to use English language in different situations.  Objectives must be set to provide the set behaviors I expect to see from the students from different scenarios. Students who demonstrate the correct use of language as instructed will pass the module.

3.     Elaborate the saying of Tyler: Since the real purpose of education is not to have the instructor perform certain activities but to bring about significant changes in the students' pattern of behaviour, it becomes important to recognize that any statements of objectives of the school should be a statement of changes to take place in the students. (Tyler 1949: 44)

Tyler believed that the true purpose of education is to make changes in the students’

behaviors. As opposed to teacher-centered view, his purpose of education focuses on students and how teaching can make impact on their behaviors. Based on such belief, he further suggested that any statement of objectives of the school should clearly emphasis on the change of behaviors by stating desirable behaviors the school wishes to see achieved by students.

 

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