NUR 648 Discussion What is curriculum development

DQ1 What is curriculum development? How does nursing program curriculum remain relevant to broad societal changes, issues, or health care reform?

DQ2 Summarize the National League for Nursing Nurse Educator Competencies and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Competencies and Curricular Expectations. How can you utilize these competencies to inform your decisions in curriculum development? What challenges might you encounter with incorporating these into your teaching practice?

Curriculum development – what is it? It is the organized preparation of whatever is going to be taught in schools at a given time in a given year. They are made into official documents, as guides for teachers, and made obligatory by provincial and territorial departments.

Teachers use curricula when trying to see what to teach to students and when, as well as what the rubrics should be, what kind of worksheets and teacher worksheets they should make, among other things. It is actually up to the teachers themselves how these rubrics should be made, how these worksheets should be made and taught; it’s all up to the teachers. In a practical understanding, though, there is no concrete way to say what methodology is right to use. But it is also true that the way in which a certain topic is taught habitually resolves what is actually taught. This is why it is required to make a distinction between the official or planned curriculum and the de facto curriculum; the one that is formal and the one that is actually taught in schools.

Another topic to be discussed in this article about what curriculum development is that in the year 1959, there gathered at Woods Hole on Cape Cod a group of 35 scientists, educators, and scholars with the intention of conversing about how to improve science education, with the purpose of “examining the fundamental procedure concerned in passing on to students a intellect of the matter and technique of science” ‘(Bruner, 1960, p. xvii)’ (taken from a Curriculum Development report done by Judith Howard of the Department of Education in Elon University) They met for ten days, decided on themes and ideas about education that would have major implications for both science education and also for education in general. In the book, The Process of Education, Jerome Bruner discussed an account of the more important themes and conclusions that had emerged from that meeting. The chapter which discusses the importance of structure is one which speaks most directly about the development of curriculum, though the whole book is worth reading and rereading.

What was done at that conference was the creation of the structural theme that helped in the development of the focal points of curricula. The basic structures, which were developed to help, in turn, in the development of curricula in the aforementioned meeting, are comprised of vital ideas, like “supply and demand” (economics), “conflict” (history), or energy (physics), as well as the relationships between them. Such notions, when comprehended, make sure that students are able to be aware of many of the phenomena in that regulation as well as other analogous phenomena that may have been tackled in other places.

That report which this was information was taken from, has also referenced another author who discussed curriculum development a decade earlier than Jerome Bruner, named Ralph Tyler, who did so in his model text on curriculum development. His work was centered on the following four ideas:

1. To determine what educational principles must be reached by schools

2. The best way of deciding what kinds of learning experiences are apt to be valuable in reaching these objectives

3. The best way of putting in order familiarity of learning for effective instruction

4. The best way of evaluating aforementioned familiarity of learning (learning experiences)

Because of the importance of curriculum development in formal education, curriculum development has evolved into a dynamic process as our society has changed.
As a result, curriculum in its broadest sense refers to “individuals’ entire learning experiences – not only in school, but also in society.”
Curriculum development is defined by educators as a step-by-step process for making constructive changes to the courses available in higher education.
Curricula are influenced by global changes, which include new techniques and profiles, as well as new perspectives on research and vocations.

Educators are constantly developing new teaching techniques and strategies to improve the student learning experience, such as transformative learning or blended learning.
As a result, an institution must have a plan in place for identifying these changes and incorporating them into the curriculum.
In this blog, we will define curriculum development and explain why it is important for educators.
Aside from that, we will go over three different types of curricular structures.

What Exactly Is Curriculum Development?

Curriculum development is the process of designing and building structures for formal education instruction.
It is a step-by-step process for improving a school’s, college’s, or university’s course offerings.
As the world continues to evolve, school courses must incorporate new discoveries.

The development of curriculum is based on pedagogical approaches and learning objectives.
Furthermore, it covers a wide range of topics, from developing a career plan to designing classroom lesson activities.

Curriculum Design Subcategories

The two broad categories of current curriculum are the product category and the process category.
The product category is concerned with outcomes.
The primary goal is to achieve good grades, with an emphasis on the final product rather than the learning process.

In contrast, the process category is more open-ended and focuses on how learning evolves over time.
Educators must consider these two categories when developing curriculum.

What Exactly Is Curriculum Planning?

Curriculum planning refers to the process of determining what to learn, why to learn it, and how to organize the teaching and learning process in light of existing curriculum requirements and resources.
Curriculum planning often results in the development of a broad curriculum framework as well as a syllabus for each subject that individual schools can use as a guide.
It entails developing course and evaluation plans for a variety of disciplines at the high school level.

It also entails developing more comprehensive plans for learning units, individual lessons, and instructional sequences in the classroom.
Curriculum planning and assessment that is effective puts students and their learning needs first.
This principle can be used by teachers to create experiences that will help students become lifelong learners and responsible citizens.
This enables teachers to incorporate appropriate formative and summative assessment tools into their classroom instruction.

CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT, DIFFERENT TYPES OF CURRICULUM DESIGNS, THE NEED FOR CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT, AND THE STAGES OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

What Exactly Is Curriculum Design?

Curriculum design is the intentional, deliberate, and systematic organization of curriculum (instructional blocks) within a class or course.
In other words, it is a method for teachers to organize their lessons.
Curriculum is planned by teachers by determining what will be done, who will carry it out, and what schedule will be followed.
Each curriculum is designed with a specific educational goal in mind.

The primary goal of curriculum design is to promote student learning, but it can also be used for other purposes.
Students and their learning needs should be prioritized in curriculum planning and assessment.
This concept can be used by teachers to create experiences that will help students become lifelong learners and responsible citizens.
This allows teachers to incorporate formative and summative assessment tools into their classroom practice.

What Are the Various Types of Curricula?

Curriculum development entails the application of a variety of instructional strategies and organizational methods with the goal of achieving the best possible student growth and learning outcomes.
Each (higher education) institution’s course supervisor will have criteria, principles, and a framework that teachers must follow when developing courses.
Teachers are responsible for ensuring that their lesson plans correspond to their students’ educational needs, that the curriculum’s expected outcomes are met, and that the resources used are current and understandable.

Curricula are classified into three types: subject-centered, learner-centered, and problem-centered.

• Curriculum Development That Is Subject-Centered

A curriculum of this type focuses on a single subject or field, such as e-marketing, research skills, or communication.
This type of curriculum design is focused on the subject rather than the learner.
This is the most common type of standardized curriculum found in higher education.

Subject-centered curriculum design, in contrast to other types of curriculum designs, is not student-centered, and the approach is less concerned with individual learning.
This can result in problems with student involvement and motivation, as well as a drop-off in students who are not sensitive to this paradigm.

• Curriculum Design that is Learner-Centered

Learner-centered curriculum is designed to meet students’ needs, interests, and goals.
It recognizes that students are not all the same and that educators should not force them to adhere to a rigid curriculum.
By allowing students to make decisions, this strategy attempts to give them more control over their education.

https://ptaourchildren.org/questions-about-curriculum/sLearner-centered
Curriculum Development

Differentiated instructional plans allow for the customization of assignments, teaching and learning experiences, and activities.
This type of curriculum design has been shown to engage and motivate students.
This curriculum design has the disadvantage of putting teachers under pressure to find materials that are tailored to each student’s learning needs.
This can be difficult due to time constraints in the classroom.
Balancing individual student interests with the institution’s expected goals can be challenging.

• Problem-solving Curriculum Design

Through problem-centered curriculum design, students learn how to examine an issue and construct a solution.
Educators regard it as an authentic method of learning because students are exposed to real-life challenges.
This model assists students in developing skills that are transferable to the real world.

Problem-centered curriculum design increases curriculum relevance while also encouraging creativity, innovation, and collaboration in the classroom.
The disadvantage of this style is that it does not always account for individual learning.

Curriculum development and management enable educators to make the best use of the resources at their disposal.
One can work toward a brighter future by enacting policies that will benefit the entire system.
The curriculum of any academic institution serves as its foundation; without it, the institution cannot survive for long.

The syllabus would be all over the place because there will be no specific system objectives.
A clear set of goals and objectives must be established for the curriculum that an institution creates for its students.
Only then will the students be able to make strides toward a much brighter academic future.