TOPIC 3

Considerations in
designing curriculum
Farhana
Florina
Syafiq
hafizi

Needs
analysis

personnel

Monitorin
g&
support

content

Material
selection
Target
groups

Assessmen
t&
evaluation

Aims &
objectives
Learning
theories,
approache
s&
methods
constraint
s

NEED ANALYSIS/ NEED ASSESSMENT

Refers to the activities that involve in collecting information in
order to meet the needs of a particular students.
The outcomes of the process are used to set goals and contents
of a language curriculum based on their needs.
It examines what learners already know and what they need to
know.
To design an efficient curriculum, we must know about learners
need such as learning objectives, language attitudes, and
expectations from the course.

 Tools of collecting information: questionnaires, personal

interviews, documentations, observation, informal
consultations with teachers and learners, test.

Need analysis can guarantee that the course will contain

the relevant and useful things for students to learn.

TARGET GROUPS
Get to know the target groups:
Individual needs- prior knowledge, language and cultural
background
Abilities
Potentials
Multiple intelligence
Learning styles

Curriculum should be appropriate to target groups ;

Personal
development

Aesthetic
development

Physical
development

Social
development

Interpersonal/
intrapersonal
development

Intellectual
development

Multiple
intelligence

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

Aims of curriculum- what would students gain by learning

from it.
Aims are NOT the same as desired learning outcomes.
a)AIMS: the combined impact of curriculum, the
pedagogy, the assessment
of the various elements.
b)DESIRED LEARNING OUTCOMES: students oriented,
point to the
knowledge, skills, competencies and attitudes

CONTENT
SELECTION

 All curricula have content.

What have to be included
in curriculum?
The topics
Issues or subjects that will
be covered as it proceeds

Relevant
Outcome of the curriculum
Appropriate
The level of the target group
Curriculum is progressive,
leading students onward and
building their knowledge
Up-to-date
Content should be constantly

Valid
Content (The information)
that is authentic and
obtained from credible
sources (Reliable)
Feasibility
Capable of being done/
workable/ executable
Time, staff, funding,
educational resources

Personnel and
Material Selection

Teachers,
technical and
administrative
staff
Personnel

Finances
Teaching
rooms, office
space, social
and study
place

Selection

Equipment
Material

Books,
journals and
multimedia
resources

Assessment
&
Evaluation

Assessment

Assessment
Teaching and learning methods must support
the assessment strategy.
EXAMPLE
If students or trainees are expected to perform
well in MCQs, then a Problem-Based Learning
type course with a facilitative teaching
approach will not be appropriate.

Assessment
Teacher should check a number of aspects
relating to assessment:
Are the assessment methods which relate to the
assessment of knowledge, skills and attitudes
appropriate?
Do the teaching and learning methods support
the assessment strategy?
Are the assessment methods reliable and valid?

Assessment
Teacher should check a number of aspects
relating to assessment:
Are the assessment methods designed so that
learners can achieve the minimum performance
standards set in the curriculum and is there
capacity for learners to demonstrate higher
standards of performance (i.e. do the
assessments enable discrimination between
candidates?)

Assessment
Teacher should check a number of aspects
relating to assessment:
Are the students/trainees being assessed
sufficiently or are they being over-assessed?
Are the regulations governing assessment
procedures and awards clear and easy to follow
and are they being applied appropriately and
consistently?

Evaluation

Evaluation
Evaluation is a system of feedback, providing
information to planners, teachers/trainers, students,
parents and decision-makers.
Evaluation is a process involving on-going activities
aimed at gathering timely information about the quality
of a programme.

Evaluation
Why do we need to evaluate our courses?
To identify successes and failures of the curriculum
with a view to correcting deficiencies.
To measure if stated objectives have been achieved.
To assess if the curriculum is meeting the needs of
learners, community, etc.
To measure the cost effectiveness of the curriculum.

Evaluation
Some questions to ask when evaluating a course
or programme:
Whether the learning objectives are realistic and
relevant.
Whether the different parts of the course relate
to each other meaningfully in terms of sequence
and organization.
Whether the subject matter and content is
relevant, accurate and up to date.

Evaluation
Some questions to ask when evaluating a course
or programme:
Whether the learners entry requirements are
well defined and at the right level.
Whether the materials and delivery are pitched
at the right level for the learners at different
point in the course.
Whether the balance of teaching and learning
methods is appropriate and whether there is
enough time to ensure learning.

Evaluation
Some questions to ask when evaluating a course
or programme:
Whether teachers have the knowledge and skills
required to deliver the curriculum.
Whether the learning resources that have been
identified are adequate, appropriate and
available.

Monitoring & Support

What Should Be Monitored?

Student recruitment and selection processes:
Do the candidates meet the selection criteria?
Do the criteria provide students who are
appropriate for the course?

What Should Be Monitored?

Teaching staff:
Are the teachers available, motivated and
capable of teaching the new course?
Have any training needs for teachers been
identified and addressed?

What Should Be Monitored?

The teaching and learning process:
How is the written curriculum translated into
practice?
Are the teaching and learning methods
appropriate?
Is the balance between different types of
learning mode appropriate in achieving the
stated outcomes?

What Should Be Monitored?

Assessment:
Are the assessment appropriate in terms of
level, reliability and validity?
Do they discriminate between assessing skills,
knowledge and attitudes?
Are the regulations and procedures appropriate?
Are they being followed?

What Should Be Monitored?

Leaning resources:
Are the recommended books and journals and
other teaching materials available?
Is access to the library and other resources
adequate?

What Should Be Monitored?

Performance standards:
Are the minimum performance standards being
reflected and achieved?

Constraints

Constraints
What are the program constraints?
Technological: ICT, lab, LCDs, etc.
Timing: Implementation, Readiness
Duration: Length lectures, co-curriculum,
practicum, internship, etc.

Who is going to provide the cost of the training?

Allowances, other payments, etc.

Summary
Curriculum design is a complex activity both
conceptually and its implementation.
Designing a curriculum requires a vision of
educations meaning and purpose.
Curriculum design must be carefully considered
so that the curriculum imparts essential
knowledge, skills and attitudes.

Learning Theories, Methods and Approaches

Subject-centred
design

Learner-centred
design

Problem-centred
design

Subject-centred
design

a)
Academic
subject
design

b)
Discipline
design

c)
Broad fields
design

d)
Correlation
design

e)
Process
design

a) Academic subject design

This design is based on the belief that humans are unique

because of their intellect and the quest for and acquisition of

knowledge is to feed this intellect
Why is this model of curriculum design widely adopted?
Reason: it is much easily interpreted in textbooks and
commercially available support materials.
teachers find it easier to communicate the ideas and knowledge
of a subject presented in verbal form in textbooks.
However, critics argue that this design deemphasises the
learner by taking away their rights to choose the content that is
most meaningful to them

b) Discipline design
A discipline is a specific body of knowledge that has its own
methods of inquiry, has its specialised words and terminology,
has a tradition and a collection of literature
What is the rationale for teaching the disciplines?
According to its proponents, the school is a mini version of the
world of intellect and that the disciplines reflect that world.

c) Broad field design

known as the interdisciplinary design
The suggestion was to bring together content from different
subjects to form one logical subject
eg. Language Arts (composed of literature, grammar, linguistics
and spelling)

d) Correlation design
It lies in between the academic design model and the broad
fields design
If you do not want your curriculum to consist of five separate
subjects nor five different subject areas to be fused into one,
then the correlation design model might be an alternative.
Eg. you may want to just fuse or correlate history with literature
at the secondary school level. For example, in a history lesson
the class learns about the Japanese occupation of Malaysia.
During the literature class, students read novels about life
during that time period. However, each subject retains its own
distinct identity.

e) Process design
It stresses the learning of general procedures and processes that

are not applicable to any particular discipline.

most popular example of process design model : the teaching of
thinking skills
Students should be taught to think. Curriculum has focused on
the teaching of decision making, problem solving, critical
thinking and creative thinking.
The aim of the curriculum is to enhance these process skills
applicable to all disciplines.
Thinking critically is not unique to geography or physics.
Neither is thinking creatively the sole domain of art or
literature.

Learner-centred
design

a)
Child-centred
design

b)
Radical
design

c)
Humanistic
design

a) Child-centred design
It believes that learners should actively participate in the

teaching-learning process.
Learning should be related closely to the daily lives of students
In the child-centred model, the interests and experiences of the
learner become the subject-matter of the curriculum.
Children are given the freedom to discover and do things for
themselves rather than told how to do something.
The project method became a popular pedagogical strategy in
the child- centred design in which children solved problematic
situations calling on their knowledge and skills of science,
history, art and so on.

b) Radical design
Children should be educated towards the goal of social reform.
Learning is something that results from the interaction between
and among people.
Learners should challenge content and be allowed to give their
opinions about the information given to them.
Learners will value what they learn if they are allowed to
construct their own knowledge. When learners create meaning,
they have ownership over what they have learned resulting in
genuine thought.

c) Humanistic design
The curriculum should be designed to empower learners to be
involved in the process of realising their potential.
To facilitate learning, the teacher accepts learners as persons,
placing importance on their feelings and their opinions; while
caring for them.
In other words, the teacher is able to view the world through
the students eyes.
The humanistic curriculum design focuses on the
interconnectedness of the cognitive, affective and psychomotor
domains. The design stresses the development of positive selfconcept and interpersonal skills of learners.

Problem-centred
design

a)
Life-centred
situations

b)
Core design

a) Life-centred situations
In any society, there are persistent life situations that are
crucial to a societys successful functioning. Examples of such
life situations are healthy living, use of leisure time, ethics,
racial tolerance, citizenship skills.
Students will direct relevance in studying such social issues
when they are related to their world. Also, having students
study social or life situations will encourage them to seek ways
to improve society.
The life-centred situations curriculum has been criticised
because students do not learn much subject matter.

b) Core situations
A variation of the life-centred situations design is the coredesign model. Focus is still on the pressing problems of society;
the difference being that certain problem are selected to form
the core.
The core problems are taught to all students in a block-time
format whereby two or more periods of class time is used. A
problem solving approach is adopted in analysing social
problems. Students select a problem through consensus and
work either individually or in groups. Data is collected,
analysed, interpreted and presented in class. Findings are
evaluated and discussed.