Principles of Curriculum Construction – ECI 675
Fall, 2003
Thursday, 4:00 – 6:30
Room 208

General Information

Instructor: Dr. Peggy Raines Office: 207E Eastburn
Phone: 523-7124
Email: peggy.raines@nau.edu

Course Description

Theories and practices of curriculum development and presentation of a modern and functional philosophy of curriculum construction.

Audience/ Purpose of Course

This course serves a diverse audience of students. Some may take this course to improve writing skills in related fields. Some may be taking it as part of a Masters degree program, while others may be meeting Ed. D. requirements. Given this diversity of students, the course starts with a general examination of ways of building curriculum, followed by a particular technique as the vehicle for designing a major instructional segment. The final part of the course focuses on issues of curriculum development related to school reform. Thus, the student can expect to begin the course with much “doing”, then “thinking about the doing” from several perspectives, and finally “thinking beyond the doing.” By the end of the course, students should understand traditional approaches to curriculum construction, critiques of those approaches and alternatives to those approaches.

Posner (1985) distinguishes between curriculum development technique and curriculum conscience. Knowing how to create a curriculum is technique; understanding the assumptions and consequences of a curriculum is conscience. “A curriculum planner without the former is incompetent and without the latter is ungrounded (‘merely a technician’). The field needs curriculum planners not only able to use various models but also aware of the implications of their use. The goal of this course is to move participants toward becoming such curriculum planners.

Course Objectives

1. Understand principles of curriculum design from several perspectives
2. Demonstrate competence in creating and presenting curriculum documents
3. Differentiate among technical, practical, and emancipatory approaches to curriculum
4. Identify the influences of different approaches to curriculum in school reform documents
5. Understand the foundations of curriculum
6. Participate in curricular decision-making
7. Critique curricular decision-making
Course Structure

These objectives will be accomplished through:
• Class lecture and discussion
• In-class participation
• Small-group activities
• Reading of required text, articles, outside readings
• Completion of problems/projects/assignments

Readings/Materials

Required Texts: Wiggins, G. & McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Sizer, T. R. (1992). Horace’s School: Redesigning the American High School. NY: Houghton Mifflin
Articles as assigned

Course Policies

1. Regular attendance is required. If you must be absent, arrange for another student to pick up handouts for you. You are responsible for getting class notes, announcements, etc. from another student.

2. All assignments must be word-processed. Writing errors, such as spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors, will be taken into consideration and may lower the grade. All assignments should be professional in appearance, such as you would submit to your principal or other employer.

3. Keep a copy of all assignments submitted to the professor.

4. Any assignments submitted as requirements for another class should not be submitted for this class.

5. Due dates and times will be posted for each assignment. Assignments are to be turned in on time.

6. Academic dishonesty, which includes cheating on tests, plagiarism, or lying about the work involved in class (e.g., presenting a fellow student’s work as one’s own), will not be tolerated. The policy in the NAU Student Handbook may be applied.

Evaluation

Student evaluation will be based on performance in the following areas:

• In class Group Activities – Discussions/reports on readings/projects – (100 pts)

• Benchmark assignment – Course Design Project that synthesizes learning experiences (90 pts)

• Portfolio with artifactual evidence including professional documents, reflections. (90 pts)

• Final examination – (30 pts)

The NAU Graduate Catalog identifies the grades for this university as “A—superior; B—satisfactory; C—lowest grade for graduate credit; D--not acceptable for graduate credit; F—failure. To assign grades, the following scale will be used, based on demonstrated achievement:

A = 279 - 310
B = 248 - 278
C = 217 - 247
D = 186 - 216