Curriculum design

After the standard-based curriculum has been created, the assessment-based units will need to be developed. The purpose is to prepare students for and engage them in performance assessments so that they might achieve authentic learning. Glatthorn provided a 4-step unit planning process, among which I think that step 2 is the most important one. Analyzing the performance task with task analysis, which is more systematic, and/or knowledge analysis, which is more specific, helps facilitate authentic learning.

Backward design stemmed from the philosophy that “to begin with the end in mind means to start with a clear understanding of your destination … so that you better understand where you are now so that the steps you take are always in the right direction.” It advocates the operationalization of the goals or standards in terms of assessment evidence at the beginning of unit planning, which leads to better student performance. An example of the application of this design in a 5th grade class vividly illustrated the 3-stage process: 1) identify desired results by setting intelligent priorities (3 knowledge categories), 2) determine acceptable evidence of understanding through a variety of formal and informal assessment, and 3) plan learning experiences and instruction (a means to an end).

By collecting data about the operational curriculum in a school and in a district, curriculum mapping provides an active tool to give people better access to the truth about what’s happening in classrooms. Today many curriculums need to change in terms of their outdated content and standards in areas such as social studies, science, math and language arts. The great potential to help educators reexamine and renegotiate content standards with immediate and powerful control makes curriculum mapping an ideal tool to create a timely curriculum.

Curriculum alignment is like a two-edged sword – it can be used to damage or to strengthen the curriculum. In order to construct a learning-centered curriculum, educators will need to align the written, the taught, and the tested curricula with good judgment and professionalism. Based on the understanding of the interactions of the 8 curriculum types, alignments of the most important types, especially the taught/learned alignment, should be given priorities in consideration.

Glatthorn, A. A. (1999, Fall). Curriculum alignment revisited. Journal of Curriculum and Supervision, 15 (1), 26-34.

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by design. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Perkins-Gough, D. (2003, December). Creating a timely curriculum: A conversation with Heidi Hayes Jacobs. Educational Leadership, 61 (4).

Glatthorn, A. A. (?). Using assessment driven instruction. ?