Curriculum in Education Reform

Many education reform efforts focus on curriculum, the knowledge and skills that we want students to learn. These efforts tend to emphasize higher order thinking skills (such as problem solving) and connections to the world beyond the classroom. In contrast, the more traditional curriculum tends to focus on basic skills and academic subjects as they have historically been presented in schools. Unfortunately, curriculum discussions often result in polarization and ideological clashes rather than finding an optimum balance. Some of the most important trends in curriculum based education reform include:

• Standards. The development of standards is one of the most prominent features of the education reform landscape. Standards have been developed for many academic areas defining what students should know and be able to do at different grade levels. These standards have been developed by national organizations, states and large school districts.
  • Making Standards Matter 1998 An annual report by the American Federation of Teachers that analyzes the quality of the academic standards in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico and monitors the extent to which those standards are driving education reform.
  • CPRE Policy Brief Developing Content Standards: Creating a Process for Change
  • Improving America's Schools Act (IASA) Newsletter This issue provides an overview of the variety of standards-setting activities occurring in elementary and secondary education in this country. The issue describes:
    1. prevailing definitions of the concept of standards;
    2. the processes some states are using to develop their own content and student performance standards;
    3. the legislative requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1994;
    4. examples of state and local content standards;
    5. an overview of the activities in two subject areas to raise expectations and standards.
  • Curriculum Reform Brief from McREL.
  • Developing Educational Standards An annotated list of Internet sites with K-12 educational standards and curriculum frameworks documents - from the Putnam Valley Schools, Putnam Valley, NY.

• Higher Order Thinking Skills. Traditional curricula tend to emphasize memorization and repetitious practice of basic skills. Many curriculum reform efforts promote a greater focus on skills such as logical analysis and problem solving.
  • I Wonder Inquiry-based learning and teaching ideas and resources for teachers and students.
  • Science Teaching and Learning through Inquiry and Context
  • What Happens Between Assessments? from Educational Leadership. If we expect students to improve their performance on new, more authentic measures, we need to engage in "performance-based instruction" on a regular basis.
  • Problem Based Learning Description of PBL, characteristics of good problems and a resource for science and mathematics problems.

• Depth Not Breadth. The traditional curriculum tends to superficially cover a multitude of topics within each subject area. Many curriculum reform efforts promote a more in depth, selective focus, emphasizing fewer topics. The analysis of student performance in the Third International Mathematics and Science Study highlighted this factor.
  • TIMSS Report Pursuing Excellence: Initial Findings from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study
  • Refocusing U.S. Math and Science Education From Issues in Science and Technology OnLine.
  • AIMS Education Foundation The Foundation is engaged in a major long-term research and development effort to develop a comprehensive math/science program guided by the recommendations in Project 2061 Benchmarks, NCTM Standards, and NRC National Science Education Standards. Activities Integrating Math and Science (AIMS) include K-9 curriculum and professional development. This effort is supported by grants, program income, and endowment fund earnings.

• World Beyond the Classroom. Traditional curriculum tends to provoke the perennial student question, "Why do I have to learn this?" Some curriculum reform efforts emphasize real world topics and learning situations. This focus is intrinsic to programs such as Service Learning and School to Work initiatives.
  • Service Learning site Includes definitions, descriptions, and examples of service learning programs.
  • A School to Work Summary Includes what, why, and examples.
  • School to Work National Office Includes Hot Topics, Key Resources, and a searchable database of information.