ENGLISH CURRICULUM

WHAT IS CURRICULUM ANALYSIS?

CURRICULUM ANALYSIS:

Unpacks a curriculum into its component parts (e.g. learning, teaching, knowledge, society, resources); evaluates how the parts fit together, say in terms of focus and coherence; checks underlying beliefs and assumptions; and seeks justification for curriculum choices and assumptions.Tyler suggested a set of inescapable questions that must be asked of any curriculum. Johnson refined these questions into a model particularly appropriate for the analysis of formal curricula. The Tyler rationale and Johnson model are particularly well suited to help the curriculum analyst tease a curriculum apart into its component parts or, Zais (1976) puts it, to understand the “anatomy of a curriculum.

 

WHY DO CURRICULUM ANALYSIS?

Curriculum analysis is necessary by vitue of its centrality to two important task performed by teachers and administrators: curriculum selections and curriculum adaptation. When selecting or adopting a curriculum for usein particular school, it is important to determine whether or not it is appropriate for the situations.

Some of the reasons for doing curriculum analysis are:

·         to make an assessment of the curriculum in order to improve it;

·         to identify potential and actual problems as early as possible and recommend possible solutions (formative assessments);

·         to make decisions about future support for continuation of the curriculum (summative);

·         to see if the different parts hold together;

·         to determine whether the goals have been met;

·         to identify strengths and successes in order to build on them;

·         to examine whether assumptions underlying the curriculum are valid and defensible;to identify blindspots, biases, perspectives;to emonstrate the worth of the curriculum to different stakeholders e.g. funders.

THE PROCESS OF CURRICULUM ANALYSIS

Postner suggests the process of curriculum analisis:

© SET 1 : Curriculum documentation and origin

- How is the curriculum documented?

- What situation resulted in the development of the curriculum?

- What perspective does the curriculum represent?

© SET 2 : Curriculum proper

- What are the purposes and content of the curriculum?

- How is the curriculum organized?

© SET 3 : Curriculum in use

- How should the curriculum be implemented?

- What can be learned from an evaluation of the curriculum?

© SET 4 : Curriculum critique

   - What are the curriculum strenghts and limitations?

THE CONCEPTS OF CURRICULUM ANALISIS

There are three concepts of curriculum analisis:

EXTERNAL micro level		IMPACT ANALYSIS		What are the effects of the curriculum?
INTERNAL		DESIGN ANALYSIS		What theories, principles, methods, standards and assumptions underpin the curriculum?

EXTERNAL           POLICY        What is the relevance of the curriculum    in macro level  ANALYSIS     relation to a particular setf social policies?

IMPACT ANALYSIS

Impact analysis is analysis at the external, micro level and involves looking for effects of that curriculum. Impact analysis: asks: “is the curriculum making a difference?”involves appraising the curriculum in terms of its external impact; requires a clear understanding of the programme goals; purposes and expected results; needs making decisions about the level of impact or unit of analysis; requires the articulation of clear questions concerning the impact; identifies appropriate means to measure impact.

DESIGN ANALYSIS

Design Analysis involves appraising the curriculum in terms of standard or agreed-on design principles. There is no single set of design principles against which to assess a curriculum. Each set of principles offer a particular perspective on the design of a curriculum. For example, a curriculum could be analysed in terms of the Tylerian model of curriculum design or in relation to principles of learning articulated by Bloom. Design analysis includes:Determining the purpose of your curriculum.Measuring the Curriculum against agreed-on design principles.

A model that has been used to unpack the design of the curriculum is one proposed by George Posner in his book Analysing the Curriculum (1992) published by McGraw-Hill. Posner unpacks the curriculum by examining it in terms of four categories of analysis: learners and learning, teachers and teaching, knowledge, society. One could extend Posner’s categories to include an analysis of curriculum in terms of available resources. Another angle from which to unpack the curriculum is in relation its core claims, assumptions and silences:

POLICY ANALYSIS

A curriculum can also be analysed to assess its relevance or relationship to a broader set of social or educational policies.