LEARNING SESSION 3 Curriculum Standards Definition and Historical

LEARNING SESSION 3: Curriculum Standards Definition and Historical Perspective Major Influences and Learner Characteristics Curriculum Standards Influences on Curriculum & Participants Curriculum Mapping At the conclusion of this session you should… 1. Articulate the goals of Standardsbased education. 2. Describe the differences between Performance Indicators and Benchmarks. 3. Know and describe the common historical themes embedded in the Standards Movement. 4. Describe the rationales for and against curriculum standards. 5. Describe the dynamic tension between Equity and Excellence Select a Curriculum Design Select Subject Matter Evaluate the Curriculum Change Process and 21 st Century Skills Potpourri: Project, Final Words, Exam

Assumptions (not excuses) about Student Learning Many variables affect what individual students learn: § Student’s interests and aptitudes § Parental expectations § School-to-school differences in Curricular content Teacher expertise Quantity and quality of administrative support Resources to fund programs Collectively, the number and complexity of influences that affect student learning make it difficult to identify common performance expectations for students in different places.

Standards-Based Education seeks to: § Establish clear statements about what students should learn § Develop valid and reliable assessment systems that can determine that desired learning has occurred.

Types of Standards Curriculum Standards Focus on the activities used by classroom teachers to convey specific types of information. Focus on instructional process Content Standards What students should know, understand, or do as a result of instruction – the “ends” of teaching Types of Content Standards Procedural Declarative Contextual Setting up an experiment Knowing what an amoeba is Classifying organisms Editing an essay Knowing the conventions Using appropriate tone of punctuation and style for a selected audience

Performance Indicators are linked with each content standard and describe specific behaviors that are expected to be demonstrated by students for mastery of that standard. Benchmarks provide clear descriptions of what a student should know and be able to do at specific times in their schooling based on age and developmental levels (K-2, 3 -5, 6 -8, 9 -12). Benchmarks measure a student’s progress towards meeting a standard.

History of the Standards Movement Historical Themes The desire/need to specify learning outcomes The linking of tests to learning expectations Test results as an indicator of quality

History of the Standards Movement Reading & Frederick Taylor (1920’s) Literature Geography “Scientific Management” History “EFFICIENCY” Spelling Teachers as Technicians Teaching and Learning can be Mechanized Drawing & Applied Art Franklin Bobbitt (1918)Mathematics Handwriting John Essential “adult” skills Foreign Languages Geometry Physiology & Hygiene Physical Training Algebra Elementary

History of the Standards Movement Ralph Tyler (1949) “Basic Principles of C & I” 1. Identify educational purposes of schools 2. Identify learning activities to match purposes 3. Sequence instructional activities 4. Test to determine achievement of purposes 5. Revising those aspects that did not prove to be effective.

History of the Standards Movement The Student Will… Robert Mager (60’s-70’s) Measurable behavioral objectives A Nation at Risk (1983) Raise school standards WILLIAM BENNETT “A Nation At Risk” But who made it so ? http: //findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m 1252/is_n 7_v 123/ai_18181682/

History of the Standards Movement Thanks a lot ! Goals 2000 (1994) National Education Standards and Improvement Council No Child Left Behind Act (2002) State curriculum standards

Rationale for Standards: p. 86 1. National security 2. Financial accountability 3. School to school differences 4. Patterns in other industrialized countries 5. A need to anchor standardized tests Rationale Against Standards : p. 93 1. Assessments and consequences 2. Clarity of learning expectations 3. Academic content of school programs 4. Educational equity as a reality State Interests: p. 88 1. Allocating scarce resources strategically 2. Assessing the impact of programs on students 3. Deploying statewide expertise to attack common educational problems 4. Improving levels of student performance 5. Promoting educational equity principle 6. Allocating resources States and individual communities face multiple demands

EXCELLENCE v. EQUITY Fundamental Ideals of American Education EXCELLENCE High expectations and high performance standards for all students Tension between the two concepts Every student has a right to an education A belief that every student black, white, rich or poor, English speaking or otherwise, has the same intellectual potential that any affluent white student does. Goal is to create a school where there are no observable differences in performance by race, class, or any other group characteristic. Upon leaving school, all students are equally likely to succeed as adults Does a uniform curriculum compromises equity?