Curriculum Design and Organization
Curriculum Design and Organization
Curriculum Design and Organization
as “the arrangement of the elements into a substantive whole.” This definition assumes
that the curriculum developer has already thought of, or perhaps formulated, the
curricular aims, goals, and objectives, and selected the appropriate curriculum content,
processes from the viewpoints of scope and horizontal integration (Reyes, 2000).
Vertical Organization
that sequence, continuity, and articulation (also referred to as vertical integration) are
skills and processes) such that new learning is based on previous learning. This
consideration applies whether one is designing a lesson, subject/course, discipline/field
what contents, skills, or processes are prerequisite for the next. A well-sequenced
chronological learning;
structure of the discipline. Mathematics starts from the simplest concepts, principles,
and operations to the most complex. One cannot understand calculus if he has not yet
history, political science, and world events which orders content “as it seems to, or
does, occur in the world”. Content, skills, and processes may also be sequenced on the
basis ofthe characteristics of learners at the different stages of their growth and
development to ensure that learning experiences are within their level of maturity and
capabilities. The developmental theories of Piaget, Kohlberg, and other scholars provide
principles also guide the sequencing of the curriculum from the psychological viewpoint.
Learners’ interests and needs, another basis for sequencing content, are actually
anchored on the psychological growth stages of man. Young children are interested in
play activities, storytelling, dancing, singing; and their needs (physiological, safety, and
affiliation) are at the lowest hierarchy in Maslow’s motivation theory. As they grow older,
their needs progress to the higher levels of the hierarchy (esteem, recognition,
hobbies and recreation; love, sex, and marriage; economic sufficiency). Information
regarding these changes in the learners as they go through the different stages of their
sequence. Lastly, sequence may be based on an analysis of the activities an adult goes
accounting, playing musical instruments). The hierarchical order at which the required
knowledge and skills are needed in the performance of such activities guides the
aforementioned bases. For example, while it is true that the content of history is based
preceded by Philippine History; and it is offered in high school or in college, not in the
elementary grades, in view of the needs and interests of the young learners.
Continuity
in which the next element is directly related to the first. Continuity, on the other hand,
refers to the repetition of related elements of contents which do not directly follow one
another (i.e., one element is temporarily separated from the first by one or more
elementary mathematics and algebraic fractions in high school. The two courses do not
successively follow one another, but the learning experiences in the latter are built on
Vertical integration refers to the arrangement of the curriculum in such a way that
relationships among topics or courses in a given field of study across grade/year levels
belong to the same field of study plan together to map out the scope and sequence of
their respective courses. For example, Grade I English teachers can confer with English
teachers in the preparatory school and in Grade II to find out where English I should
start and end. This activity will enable these three groups of teachers to know each
elementary, secondary, tertiary) is difficult, especially if a school offers only one of those
education courses in freshman college programs are shared with feeder member
schools. This arrangement enables the school offering secondary education to better
Horizontal Organization
at the same point in time (i.e., same grade or year level, or same semester/ trimester).
curriculum in terms of breadth and depth. It answers questions like: “What topics,
themes, ideas, concepts, principles, theories, and other forms of knowledge (subject
matter) as well as skills, competencies, and activities should be covered?” The basic
issue in making decisions about content is finding out which knowledge is most worthy
technology which allows for the easy storage, retrieval, and processing of information,
there is apparently less need for the teaching of facts and information that was practiced
many years ago. Emphasis should be focused on information retrieval and processing
skills, on learning how to learn, and on development thinking and creative skills.
Knowledge, skills, and attitudes that enhance the learner’s self-concept and enable one
should also be part of curriculum content, An equally important content, especially in the
curriculum of sectarian schools, are spiritual, moral, and religious values and Church’s
teachings.
the choice between breadth without depth or depth without breadth. One solution to this
problem is to minimize the teaching of the knowledge domain (who, when, what, where,
how), in favor of the thinking processes (why). This will allow for both breadth and depth
in the curriculum.
related (e.g., arithmetic, geometry, statistics, and algebra in Mathematics I, II,III, and IV
under the New Secondary Curriculum; and phonics, reading, spelling writing, and
minicourse which integrates related concepts, principles, or themes from two or more
subjects. For example, Global or Peace Education can be a minicourse that integrates
and intended outcomes of the curriculum. The curriculum is not balanced if cognitive
learning outcomes are given undue focus to the impoverishment of affective and
psychomotor outcomes, especially in the lower grades. Balance is also absent if there is
intelligences of the learners which results in the neglect of their other intelligences
when in fact, it should consider all these three bases of the curriculum. Such curriculum
is lopsided and not balanced. Balance is present if the curriculum makes provisions for
the needs and interests of the learners and their total development, and prepares them
to be responsible citizens and world managers who can envision and realize a preferred
or desired future for the present and future generations. In this light, answer should be
given to such questions as: “How much of curriculum content and learning experiences
must be devoted to social, economic, political, and other social concerns and to the
transmission of the cultural heritage of a country? How much will be devoted to the
accumulated body of knowledge in the different courses and fields of study that
comprise the curriculum? How much emphasis must be given to the learners’ interests,
needs, and demands? What should be the ratio of general education courses to the
major courses? The elective and the optional courses? What should those courses
be‘?”
Curriculum developersshould make a list of all the courses that they offer per
program, together with the actual and desired time allotment (number of
units/hours/minutes) per course. The list will show the discrepancy between the actual
practice and what is desired, which can serve as a basis in designing for balance.
Decisions on the desired time allotment will reflect the emphasis placed on the different
courses. These decisions can be based on extant literature that reflects the best
thinking on the problem, the educational philosophy ofthe school, and the curriculum
orientation ofthe decision makers, not to mention DECS orders and memoranda. It must
be mentioned, however, that balance does not mean equal emphasis, but rather,
covering what is deemed essential and important for the learners and for society. In the
last analysis, balance is relative, and it takes objectivity or freedom from biases and a
CURRICULUM DESIGNS
choose from. These designs may be broadly categorized into the following major
groups:
learner-centered designs,
unified designs.
Traditional Designs
broad field. One traditional design is subject-centered or subject specific (e.g., phonics,
writing, spelling, and reading are offered as separate subjects with specific time slots).
Another is the correlated design where the subject boundaries are still present but
related topics in two or more courses are highlighted (e.g., using measurements in
design is the broad field which is a fusion of two or more related subjects/courses. To
illustrate, Social Studies is a broad field which consists of history, geography, and civics.
Reading-phonics, spelling, and writing are now combined into the broad field, Language
Arts. Traditional designs are easy to develop and to implement because these are
highly structured. However, these designs have been the subject of criticism because
these do not make provisions for the differential needs and interests of the learners.
to cater to the different needs and interests of the students, even if the curriculum
design is subject-centered.
proponents to favor it. The continued use of this design through the years means that
people are familiar with it and comfortable using it. Furthermore, its long use gives a
sense of “tried and proven,” or, “It was good enough for me; therefore, I trust it for my
The content is rigidly sequenced. When using this design, teachers can, and almost
always do, follow the sequence of the textbook. This makes the task of keeping track of
where each lesson ends and where the next one begins easy. This tight organization
helps the teacher avoid accidental duplication of content and makes the testing simple.
Easy design of tests was mentioned earlier as strength of the textbook. Since the
easy to implement. Courses can be added to or deleted from a school’s program (or
even added to or deleted from a student’s individual curriculum). Thus transferring from
one school to another, and even from one state to another, is easy. This advantage is
realized by high school students who go on to colleges out of state. Of course, for
transfer students the college may stipulate a particular additional course or courses.
short time. This advantage becomes clear when contrasted with an inquiry curriculum
(which requires students to discover relationships for themselves before they learn
them), with case studies (which require students to sift relevant information from
irrelevant information), with simulations and games (which are student-paced), with
mastery learning (which permits students to remediate and recycle), or the discussion
method (Which also requires much more time to cover the material).
Among the limitations of the subject-centered curriculum is its failure to consider
the unique needs and interest of the students and its detachments from contemporary
events in the world. Perhaps the most severe criticism against the Subject-oriented
information mania in our schools that makes simply digesting facts a priority and
eliminates consideration of the goals to which facts and ideas might be applied.
auditory and visual skills, their kinesthetic and tactile capabilities are high. Implications
are that teachers may need to use a greater variety of instructional methods.Obviously,
necessary reinforcement.
who are willing to alter their teaching styles and lower the level of instruction to the point
Realizing that the neat containers called subjects, that had been designed to hold
and dispense knowledge had limitations, educators decided to enlarge the containers.
The results were referred to as broad-fields curriculum. The instruction in this curriculum
design must focus on the use of the concepts (content generalizations) and the contexts
According to Henson (2001), researchers have found that when students take
notes during a lecture they are far more likely to record bits and pieces of the lecture
verbatim or simply paraphrase information rather than organize the lecture material into
some sort of conceptual framework or relate the new information to what they already
know.
Learner-Centered Designs
interests of the learners based on their stage of development. Usually, this curriculum is
built upon the normal activities children engage in, such as playing, storytelling,
drawing, and the like. In this kind of curriculum, content is not organized into subjects
courseworks such as storytelling, playing, singing, etc. The three Rs will be integrated in
these activities. Another probable design under this category may be based on the
actual needs and interests of the learners as they arrive in school. They choose what
they want to learn and the teacher merely serves as a guide (e.g., where to get the
necessary information). After a learner has completed his investigation of the problem
that he has chosen, hemakes a presentation to the teacher or takes a test on the
problem. With this design, no curriculum plan is made by the teacher because the
development ofthe learners, especially in the elementary grades where the learners are
supposed to be equipped with the basic understanding and skills needed for the next
higher level of schooling. The thesis requirement in the graduate school and in some
also make provision for broad fields design and for society-centered design, through the
social action/community outreach program. This shows that the curriculum can be a
Society-Centered Designs
curriculum content is heavily loaded with societal concerns, problems, and issues. One
such design is aimed at making the students adapt to the changes in society and to
solve societal problems within their level of capabilities. Another contemporary view of
This curriculum design is aimed at making the school, the teachers, and the students
the agents of social change. Hence, curriculum content is heavy with present and future
problems of the society and with contemporary building processes to enable learners to
plan and realize societal improvement at the local and global levels.
Among the traditional curriculum designs, the traditional design, particularly the
broad field, is the most popular not only in the Philippines but in most parts of the world.
The popularity of the said curriculum design will continue although curriculum content is
bound to undergo changes. A practical guide for curriculum developers in the context of
Other curriculum designs include the Trump Plan, the Spiral Curriculum, Mastery
from existing designs because it focused on grouping. Students were required to spend
40 percent of their time in large groups, 20 percent in small groups, and the remaining
Like the core curriculum, the Trump Plan had strength in its variety. The Trump
Plan included variation in methods, materials, and even in the length of the school day
and the school year, including year-round curricula, Its emphasis on individual and
small-group work appeals to current educators. Eighty percent of today’s teachers use
small-group assignments weekly, and 90 percent work with individual students weekly.
and constructivism. It also employs developmentalism, recognizing that students are not
ready to study certain concepts until they reach the required level of development and
Mastery learning is a curriculum design that purports to offer the opportunity for
all students to succeed by giving individual students all the time they need to master the
and by using formative evaluation which is given during instruction, not to assign grades
but to improve learning by improving the curriculum and instruction. Obviously this
dedication to meeting the diverse needs of all students appeals to those contemporary
educators who are dedicated to meeting the needs of students from all cultural
backgrounds.
The problem-solving curriculum has long been a favorite design for educators
who espouse learner-centered education. lt was hoped that, by discovering the answers
to problems, students would more thoroughly understand the broader content
learn the topics at a greater depth and affords them opportunities to tie new information
to prior understanding.
Most mastery learning programs are individually based, making them attractive to
those teachers who are dedicated to meeting the needs of diverse groups of students.
These curriculum designs are all different, but they all have certain features in
underpinning philosophies and on the quality of instruction used with the designs.
Bibliography
Reyes, F. (2000). Engineering the curriculum. A guide for educators and school
managers. Manila : De La Salle University Press, Inc.
Tanner, D. (2007). Curriculum development. Theory into practice. New Jersey : Pearson
Education, Inc.