Curriculum Design
- LAST REVIEWED: 12 December 2024
- LAST MODIFIED: 15 December 2011
- DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199756810-0009
- LAST REVIEWED: 12 December 2024
- LAST MODIFIED: 15 December 2011
- DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199756810-0009
Introduction
Curriculum design (also curriculum organization) refers to the ways in which we arrange the curriculum components. Regardless of the underpinning curriculum model, all curriculum designs endeavor to address four curriculum components: Why do we initiate instruction or aims? What should we teach to realize our set aims and objectives (content or subject matter)? How can we communicate target learning experiences (pedagogy, instruction)? What have we realized and what actions should we take accordingly in relation to the instructional program, learners, and teachers (evaluation)? Although most, if not all, curriculum designs include these four components, they significantly differ in how they address these elements, because of the curriculum philosophy and model on which a design is based. For example, subject-matter-based designs, which overemphasize the logical organization of content, and the learner-centered ones, which focus on the learners and their needs, entail different treatments of the four curriculum components. The following sections very briefly highlight the process of curriculum design. This will involve general overviews of major related sources, curriculum conceptualization and curriculum design stages, in addition to recent issues of classroom-level teacher curriculum design and classroom-level teacher professional development.
General Overviews
Fortunately, there are a huge number of key works that introduce the reader to the curriculum field in general and the process of curriculum design in particular. Among the best sources that show the curriculum design process in specific steps are Tyler 1949 and Taba 1962, dated but influential works. These two books also introduce the reader to the key curriculum concepts and elements. Tyler 1949 in particular is a concise but outstanding and informative source. In contrast, Taba 1962 is a detailed source that best suits those seeking to delve deeper into the field. Those interested in curriculum research, conceptualizations, and controversial issues should consult Jackson 1992, a handbook on curriculum research that delves into almost all theoretical and practical issues. Ornstein and Hunkins 2009 is a reference work for those interested in all curriculum elements. Each chapter in the book is considered a separate source on each of the curriculum elements. It provides excellent discussions about curriculum history and foundations in particular. This book, however, is not suitable for those who seek an introduction to the curriculum field. Those interested in the relationships between formal curriculum designs and teacher curriculum making and developments should turn to Connelly and Clandinin 1988. The reader should also consult the influential Clandinin and Connelly 1992 on the same issue. Those interested in the relationships between curriculum design and teacher, school, and student development would find Shawer 2010 and Craig 2006 among the best works written on the topic.
Clandinin, D. J., and F. M. Connelly. 1992. The teacher as curriculum maker. In Handbook of research on curriculum: A project of the American Educational Research Association. Edited by P. W. Jackson, 363–401. New York: Macmillan.
Clandinin and Connelly’s chapter extends the idea of a previous book on the role of teachers as curriculum makers (Connelly and Clandinin 1988). They trace the development of teachers’ roles from curriculum knowledge transmitters to curriculum knowledge producers.
Connelly, F. M., and D. J. Clandinin. 1988. Teachers as curriculum planners: Narratives of experience. Research in Education Series 15. New York: Teachers College Press.
Connelly and Clandinin’s book is a pioneering work on teachers’ experiences as curriculum planners. Although the book provides useful narrative accounts of how teachers’ work moves from curriculum implementation to curriculum design, it discusses generic-education elements of curriculum design, including scope, balance, and continuity.
Craig, C. J. 2006. Why is dissemination so difficult? The nature of teacher knowledge and the spread of curriculum reform. American Educational Research Journal 43.2: 257–293.
DOI: 10.3102/00028312043002257
Craig’s paper discusses the practical reasons behind teachers’ insistence on developing and using their own curriculum. It also highlights the positive influence of their work on their own development as well as on students and schools. Available online for purchase.
Jackson, P. W. 1992. Conceptions of curriculum and curriculum specialists. In Handbook of research on curriculum: A project of the American Educational Research Association. Edited by P. W. Jackson, 3–40. New York: Macmillan.
Jackson’s handbook is an excellent source for those interested in all curriculum-related issues, including design, conceptualization, and research.
Ornstein, Allan C., and Francis P. Hunkins. 2009. Curriculum: Foundations, principles, and theory. 5th ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
A major and comprehensive reference on almost all curriculum issues, discusses in detail and depth all curriculum foundations, philosophies, theory, models, strategies, and elements. It provides excellent chapters on curriculum design, development, implementation, and evaluation in addition to controversial issues and trends.
Shawer, S. F. 2010. Classroom-level teacher professional development and satisfaction: Teachers learn in the context of classroom-level curriculum development. Professional Development in Education 36.4: 597–620.
DOI: 10.1080/19415257.2010.489802
Discusses classroom-level teacher curriculum development as a strategy toward effective professional development for teachers and provides clear definitions of recent coinages, including “classroom-level teacher professional development.” Covers the influence of teacher curriculum making and development on teacher, student, and school.
Taba, H. 1962. Curriculum development: Theory and practice. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World.
Taba’s classic introduces almost all curriculum issues, including theory, planning, stages of design, and evaluation. All those interested in the field of curriculum in general and curriculum design in particular at all levels—including undergraduate and graduate—should consult this reference book alongside Tyler 1949.
Tyler, R. W. 1949. Basic principles of curriculum and instruction. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press.
This concise and pioneering book was considered the first to offer curriculum a systematic design of four elements—the objectives/Tyler model. Despite various criticisms, it continues to stimulate thoughts about most curriculum issues and provides one of the earliest models to curriculum, the evaluation-objectives model.
Users without a subscription are not able to see the full content on this page. Please subscribe or login.
How to Subscribe
Oxford Bibliographies Online is available by subscription and perpetual access to institutions. For more information or to contact an Oxford Sales Representative click here.
Article
- Academic Achievement
- Academic Audit for Universities
- Academic Freedom and Tenure in the United States
- Action Research in Education
- Adjuncts in Higher Education in the United States
- Administrator Preparation
- Adolescence
- Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate Courses
- Advocacy and Activism in Early Childhood
- African American Racial Identity and Learning
- Alaska Native Education
- Alternative Certification Programs for Educators
- Alternative Schools
- American Indian Education
- Animals in Environmental Education
- Art Education
- Artificial Intelligence and Learning
- Assessing School Leader Effectiveness
- Assessment, Behavioral
- Assessment, Educational
- Assessment in Early Childhood Education
- Assistive Technology
- Augmented Reality in Education
- Beginning-Teacher Induction
- Bilingual Education and Bilingualism
- Black Undergraduate Women: Critical Race and Gender Perspe...
- Black Women in Academia
- Blended Learning
- Bullying
- Case Study in Education Research
- Changing Professional and Academic Identities
- Character Education
- Children’s and Young Adult Literature
- Children's Beliefs about Intelligence
- Children's Rights in Early Childhood Education
- Citizenship Education
- Civic and Social Engagement of Higher Education
- Classroom Learning Environments: Assessing and Investigati...
- Classroom Management
- Coherent Instructional Systems at the School and School Sy...
- College Admissions in the United States
- College Athletics in the United States
- Community Relations
- Comparative Education
- Computer-Assisted Language Learning
- Computer-Based Testing
- Conceptualizing, Measuring, and Evaluating Improvement Net...
- Continuous Improvement and "High Leverage" Educational Pro...
- Counseling in Schools
- Creativity
- Critical Approaches to Gender in Higher Education
- Critical Perspectives on Educational Innovation and Improv...
- Critical Race Theory
- Crossborder and Transnational Higher Education
- Cross-National Research on Continuous Improvement
- Cross-Sector Research on Continuous Learning and Improveme...
- Cultural Diversity in Early Childhood Education
- Culturally Responsive Leadership
- Culturally Responsive Pedagogies
- Culturally Responsive Teacher Education in the United Stat...
- Curriculum Design
- Data Collection in Educational Research
- Data-driven Decision Making in the United States
- Deaf Education
- Desegregation and Integration
- Design Thinking and the Learning Sciences: Theoretical, Pr...
- Development, Moral
- Dialogic Pedagogy
- Digital Age Teacher, The
- Digital Citizenship
- Digital Divides
- Disabilities
- Distance Learning
- Distributed Leadership
- Doctoral Education and Training
- Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in Denmark
- Early Childhood Education and Development in Mexico
- Early Childhood Education in Aotearoa New Zealand
- Early Childhood Education in Australia
- Early Childhood Education in China
- Early Childhood Education in Europe
- Early Childhood Education in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Early Childhood Education in Sweden
- Early Childhood Education Pedagogy
- Early Childhood Education Policy
- Early Childhood Education, The Arts in
- Early Childhood Mathematics
- Early Childhood Science
- Early Childhood Teacher Education
- Early Childhood Teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand
- Early Years Professionalism and Professionalization Polici...
- Economics of Education
- Education For Children with Autism
- Education for Sustainable Development
- Education Leadership, Empirical Perspectives in
- Education of Native Hawaiian Students
- Education Reform and School Change
- Educational Research Approaches: A Comparison
- Educational Statistics for Longitudinal Research
- Educator Partnerships with Parents and Families with a Foc...
- Emotional and Affective Issues in Environmental and Sustai...
- Emotional and Behavioral Disorders
- English as an International Language for Academic Publishi...
- Environmental and Science Education: Overlaps and Issues
- Environmental Education
- Environmental Education in Brazil
- Epistemic Beliefs
- Equity and Improvement: Engaging Communities in Educationa...
- Equity, Ethnicity, Diversity, and Excellence in Education
- Ethical Research with Young Children
- Ethics and Education
- Ethics of Teaching
- Ethnic Studies
- Europe, History of Education in
- Evidence-Based Communication Assessment and Intervention
- Family and Community Partnerships in Education
- Family Day Care
- Federal Government Programs and Issues
- Feminization of Labor in Academia
- Finance, Education
- Financial Aid
- Formative Assessment
- Future-Focused Education
- Gender and Achievement
- Gender and Alternative Education
- Gender, Power and Politics in the Academy
- Gender-Based Violence on University Campuses
- Gifted Education
- Girls' Education in the Developing World
- Global Mindedness and Global Citizenship Education
- Global University Rankings
- Governance, Education
- Grounded Theory
- Growth of Effective Mental Health Services in Schools in t...
- Higher Education and Globalization
- Higher Education and the Developing World
- Higher Education Faculty Characteristics and Trends in the...
- Higher Education Finance
- Higher Education Governance
- Higher Education Graduate Outcomes and Destinations
- Higher Education in Africa
- Higher Education in China
- Higher Education in Latin America
- Higher Education in the United States, Historical Evolutio...
- Higher Education, International Issues in
- Higher Education Management
- Higher Education Policy
- Higher Education Research
- Higher Education Student Assessment
- High-stakes Testing
- History of Early Childhood Education in the United States
- History of Education in the United States
- History of Technology Integration in Education
- Homeschooling
- Inclusion in Early Childhood: Difference, Disability, and ...
- Inclusive Education
- Indigenous Education in a Global Context
- Indigenous Learning Environments
- Indigenous Students in Higher Education in the United Stat...
- Infant and Toddler Pedagogy
- Inservice Teacher Education
- Integrating Art across the Curriculum
- Intelligence
- Intensive Interventions for Children and Adolescents with ...
- International Perspectives on Academic Freedom
- Intersectionality and Education
- Knowledge Development in Early Childhood
- Leadership Development, Coaching and Feedback for
- Leadership in Early Childhood Education
- Leadership Training with an Emphasis on the United States
- Learning Analytics in Higher Education
- Learning Difficulties
- Learning, Lifelong
- Learning, Multimedia
- Learning Strategies
- Legal Matters and Education Law
- LGBT Youth in Schools
- Linguistic Diversity
- Linguistically Inclusive Pedagogy
- Literacy
- Literacy Development and Language Acquisition
- Literature Reviews
- Mathematics Identity
- Mathematics Instruction and Interventions for Students wit...
- Mathematics Teacher Education
- Measurement for Improvement in Education
- Measurement in Education in the United States
- Meta-Analysis and Research Synthesis in Education
- Methodological Approaches for Impact Evaluation in Educati...
- Methodologies for Conducting Education Research
- Mindfulness, Learning, and Education
- Mixed Methods Research
- Motherscholars
- Motivation
- Multiliteracies in Early Childhood Education
- Multiple Documents Literacy: Theory, Research, and Applica...
- Multivariate Research Methodology
- Museums, Education, and Curriculum
- Music Education
- Narrative Research in Education
- Native American Studies
- Nonformal and Informal Environmental Education
- Note-Taking
- Numeracy Education
- One-to-One Technology in the K-12 Classroom
- Online Education
- Open Education
- Organizing for Continuous Improvement in Education
- Organizing Schools for the Inclusion of Students with Disa...
- Outdoor Play and Learning
- Outdoor Play and Learning in Early Childhood Education
- Pedagogical Leadership
- Pedagogy of Teacher Education, A
- Performance Objectives and Measurement
- Performance-based Research Assessment in Higher Education
- Performance-based Research Funding
- Phenomenology in Educational Research
- Philosophy of Education
- Physical Education
- Play
- Podcasts in Education
- Policy
- Policy Context of United States Educational Innovation and...
- Politics of Education
- Portable Technology Use in Special Education Programs and ...
- Post-humanism and Environmental Education
- Pre-Service Teacher Education
- Problem Solving
- Productivity and Higher Education
- Professional Development
- Professional Learning Communities
- Program Evaluation
- Programs and Services for Students with Emotional or Behav...
- Psychology Learning and Teaching
- Psychometric Issues in the Assessment of English Language ...
- Qualitative Data Analysis Techniques
- Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Research Samp...
- Qualitative Research Design
- Quantitative Research Designs in Educational Research
- Queering the English Language Arts (ELA) Writing Classroom
- Race and Affirmative Action in Higher Education
- Reading Education
- Refugee and New Immigrant Learners
- Relational and Developmental Trauma and Schools
- Relational Pedagogies in Early Childhood Education
- Reliability in Educational Assessments
- Religion in Elementary and Secondary Education in the Unit...
- Researcher Development and Skills Training within the Cont...
- Research-Practice Partnerships in Education within the Uni...
- Response to Intervention
- Restorative Practices
- Risky Play in Early Childhood Education
- Role of Gender Equity Work on University Campuses through ...
- Scale and Sustainability of Education Innovation and Impro...
- Scaling Up Research-based Educational Practices
- School Accreditation
- School Choice
- School Culture
- School District Budgeting and Financial Management in the ...
- School Improvement through Inclusive Education
- School Reform
- Schools, Private and Independent
- School-Wide Positive Behavior Support
- Science Education
- Secondary to Postsecondary Transition Issues
- Self-Regulated Learning
- Self-Study of Teacher Education Practices
- Service-Learning
- Severe Disabilities
- Single Salary Schedule
- Single-sex Education
- Single-Subject Research Design
- Social Context of Education
- Social Justice
- Social Network Analysis
- Social Pedagogy
- Social Science and Education Research
- Social Studies Education
- Sociology of Education
- Standards-Based Education
- Statistical Assumptions
- STEM-related Education, Indigenous Science Education and
- Student Access, Equity, and Diversity in Higher Education
- Student Assignment Policy
- Student Engagement in Tertiary Education
- Student Learning, Development, Engagement, and Motivation ...
- Student Participation
- Student Voice in Teacher Development
- Sustainability Education in Early Childhood Education
- Sustainability in Early Childhood Education
- Sustainability in Higher Education
- Teacher Beliefs and Epistemologies
- Teacher Collaboration in School Improvement
- Teacher Evaluation and Teacher Effectiveness
- Teacher Preparation
- Teacher Training and Development
- Teacher Unions and Associations
- Teacher-Student Relationships
- Teaching Critical Thinking
- Technologies, Teaching, and Learning in Higher Education
- Technology Education in Early Childhood
- Technology, Educational
- Technology-based Assessment
- The Bologna Process
- The Regulation of Standards in Higher Education
- Theories of Educational Leadership
- Three Conceptions of Literacy: Media, Narrative, and Gamin...
- Tracking and Detracking
- Traditions of Quality Improvement in Education
- Transformative Learning
- Transitions in Early Childhood Education
- Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities in the Unite...
- Understanding the Psycho-Social Dimensions of Schools and ...
- University Faculty Roles and Responsibilities in the Unite...
- Using Ethnography in Educational Research
- Value of Higher Education for Students and Other Stakehold...
- Virtual Learning Environments
- Vocational and Technical Education
- Wellness and Well-Being in Education
- Women's and Gender Studies
- Young Children and Spirituality
- Young Children's Learning Dispositions
- Young Children's Working Theories