EMERGING TRENDS AND ISSUES IN EDUCATION

TOPIC: INTEGRATED CURRICULUMPRESENTED BY : KHURRAM RAFIROLL NO : 14035401-003M.Phil EDUCATION

CURRICULUM“the planned and guided learning

experiences and intended outcomes, formulated through the systematic reconstruction of knowledge and experiences under the auspices of the school, for the learners’ continuous and wilful growth in personal social competence” Tanner (1980) (p.13)

Curriculum

A document or plan that exists in a school or school system that defines the work of teachers, at least to the extent of identifying the content to be taught student and the method to be used in the process.

INTEGRATED CURRICULUM

A curriculum approach that purposefully draws together knowledge, skills, attitudes and values from within or across subject areas to develop a more powerful understanding of key ideas. Curriculum integration occurs when components of the curriculum are connected and related in meaningful ways by both the students and teachers. By (Robin Fogarty ….et al)

INTEGRATED CURRICULUM

Curriculum integration can be described as an approach to teaching and learning that is based on both philosophy and practicality.

It contain two parts 1. Planned 2. Spontaneous

MAIN CONCEPT1. Instruction centers around a concept, issue, problem, topic or experience in a career-themed context.2. Students explore a set of topics in several standards-based academic disciplines connected by a unifying concept that reinforces learning and brings the curriculum to life.3. The concept that is being explored brings together various aspects of the curriculum in a meaningful way.

INTEGRATED CURRICULUM

BACKGROUND Integrated curriculum is rooted in John

Dewey School in Chicago in 1898. Curriculum integration is not a new method of organizing for instruction. Educators first explored the concept of integrating curriculum in the 1890s. There have been numerous educational researchers, e.g. Susan Drake, Heidi Hayes Jacobs, James Beane and Gordon Vars, who have described various interpretations of curriculum integration, referring to the curriculum as interwoven, connected, thematic, interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, correlated, linked and holistic.

History of integrated curriculum

We have learnt about the muslim scientist and philosophers. Almost all the muslim scientists had practiced integrated curriculum. They used this approach in their teaching. That’s way they were well aware of the things and ideas. They were jack of all.

A TEACHER MUST BE JACK OF ALL , AND MASTER OF ONE SUBJECT, SO THAT HE MAY MEET THE CHALENGES OF INTEGRATED CURRICULUM

Benefits of Curriculum Integration

1.Allowing for flexibility: Through curriculum integration, teachers can plan for the development of key skills and understandings that transcend individual strands and subjects.2.Building on prior knowledge and experiences: Choosing meaningful connections among subject areas helps students build on their diverse prior knowledge and experiences, supports their holistic view of the world and ensures more meaningful learning.

Benefits of Curriculum Integration3. Unifying the students’ learning: Curriculum integration enables students to develop a unified view of the curriculum to broaden the context of their learning beyond single subject areas. 4. Reflecting the real world: When curriculum is organized in a holistic way, it better reflects the real world and the way children learn at home and in the community. 5. Matching the way students think: Brain research supports the theory that younger students take in many things and process and organize them at one time. Teaching ideas holistically, rather than in fragmented pieces, better reflects how young students’ brains process information.

Curriculum integration enables students to1. Identify both the distinctive qualities and related elements of subject areas2. Become more involved in their learning because the context is more understandable and meaningful to them3. Demonstrate and use their knowledge, skills and attitudes in a variety of learning contexts4. Make connections more easily between the content they learn in school and their out-of-school experiences5. Focus more clearly on conceptual understanding because content is aligned around key ideas.

LEVEL FOR CURRICULUM INTEGRARTION

Integrated curriculum is more helpful in primary and elementary level rather than secondary and higher levels.Because as we go in higher classes we are needed to study the one discipline at a time with full attention. Time management for integration is difficult in higher classes.

Curriculum integration enables primary teachers to:

1. Identify the connections within and among the content of subject areas.2. Provide a relevant context for learning, based on the needs of students3. Assess students’ skills and understandings in a variety of learning contexts4. Manage the content of the program of studies more easily because outcomes from different areas or key learning skills are both addressed at the same time and reinforced5. Increase students’ motivation and participation.

Key Requirements of Successful Curriculum Integration

1. Content Integrity: Having a solid understanding of the various curricula and intentionally linking curriculum outcomes by a central organizing concept, e.g., a topic, theme, issue, project or problem, will ensure the integrity of the content is maintained. The intent of the philosophy, rationale and outcomes of individual subject areas is maintained and linkages between subject areas are made explicit.

Conti…2. Authenticity:

The connections made as part of the integrative process must make sense and be significant. Topics need to be Challenging so profound generalizations and a deeper understanding of fundamental ideas can be developed through different content and contexts.

Planning for an Integrated Curriculum

There is no best way to plan for instruction and it is up to teachers to use their professional knowledge and skills to best meet the needs of their students. Teachers should use integration as a pedagogical tool and their professional judgment to determine when it is best to integrate the curriculum.

TYPES OF CURRICULUM INTEGRATION

1. Within Subject Areas (Intradisciplinary )

2. Between Subject Areas (Multidisciplinary & Interdisciplinary)

3. Beyond Subject Areas (Transdisciplinary)

EXAMPLES

Within Subject Areas (Intradisciplinary)

Intradisciplinary• Knowledge and skills are connected within one subject area.• Knowledge and skills are learned through individual subject areas.• The distinctive nature of learning is recognized in each subject area.• The students’ personal meaning and the social relevance of learning are enhanced by the integration of cognitive, affective and social domains with subject-area knowledge and skills.

Between Subject Areas

Multidisciplinary• Topics, themes, issues or big ideas bring together outcomes from more than one subject area.• The subject-area outcomes remain distinct.• Knowledge and skills are learned through individual subject areas but at times connect to cross-curricular topics, themes, issues or big ideas.

Cont..• The distinctive nature of learning is recognized in each subject area.• The students’ personal meaning and the social relevance of learning are enhanced by the integration of cognitive, affective and social domains with subject-area knowledge and skills.• The students are guided to see linkages between subject areas.

Beyond Subject AreasTransdisciplinary• Focuses on student-initiated questions and projects.• Emphasizes world contexts.• Knowledge and skills are interconnected and interdependent; there is less emphasis on the subject area.• Knowledge and skills from different subject areas are the focus of student initiated projects.

Cont..• The real-life context is emphasized.• Subject-area knowledge and skills are acquired informally.• The students initiate and direct purposeful projects that are centered and connected to real-life experiences.• The students’ initiative, imagination and creativity are enhanced

Can parents use this approach at home?It is very possible that parents are already doing integrated curriculum without realizing it.

The learner learns the things from his home and environment and try find the connections between things.

Links between integrated curriculum and positive students learning outcomesAcademic and Technical Rigor - Projects are

designed to address key learning standards identified by the school or teachers.

Authenticity - Projects use a real world context (e.g., community and workplace problems) and

address issues that matter to the students.Applied Learning - Projects engage students in

solving problems calling for competencies expectedin high-performance work organizations (e.g.,

teamwork, problem-solving, communication, etc.).Active Exploration - Projects extend beyond the

classroom by connecting to internships, field based investigations, and community explorations.

Cont..

Adult Connections - Projects connect students with adult mentors and coaches from the wider community.

Assessment Practices - Projects involve students in regular, performance-based exhibitions and assessments of their work; evaluation criteria reflect personal, school, and real-world standards of performance.

Positive attitude: Integrated curricula promote positive attitudes in

students.

Cont…Integrated curricula help students to

apply skills.An integrated knowledge base leads to

faster retrieval of information. Multiple perspectives lead to a more

integrated knowledge base. Integrated curricula encourage depth

and breadth in learning.

Benefits for teachersDesigning and delivering a multidisciplinary

integrated curriculumhelps teachers engage in and establish a culture of

professional dialogue about student work;offers a way to address and reinforce key state

academic and technical standards through applications that are more interesting and engaging to students;

provides fertile ground for high-quality student projects and presentations that encourage students to develop both academic and technical skills;

establishes a meaningful vehicle for making connections across academic disciplines;

Cont..

Encourages both teacher and student team building across technical and core departments and

Classes, which deepens camaraderie, and bonding;Facilitates teacher collaboration, thus, reducing teacher

“burn out”;Reduces classroom discipline problems because

teachers from core and technical classes meet regularly to discuss students’ performance, thereby allowing teachers to get to know individual students better;

Encourages higher expectations and student performance levels because industry partners participate in the classroom and judge the Culminating Event;

Cont..

Fosters professional growth by encouraging teachers to go beyond the boundaries of their academic and technical fields; and

Brings coherence to the curriculum by providing a thematic focus for a school program, a small learning community, or a classroom.

Helps them make connections across academic disciplines;

Demonstrates the need to apply learning from several disciplines to solve real-world problems;

Cont..

Introduces students to a wide range of career options and opportunities;

Connects students and their work to the larger community; and

Provides a better answer to the age-old question “why do I have to learn this?” than “because you need it to graduate or to go to college.”

Some Ideas for Evaluating the Integrated Curriculum Unit

Teachers can evaluate using these questions1. What links did you make between

the subject areas?2. What links did you make with the

community?3. What aspects of the integrated unit

engaged and inspired the students?4. How effectively did your lesson plans

incorporate academic content and career and technical standards?

Teachers can evaluate the unit

5. What will you do differently the next time you deliver this unit?6. What ideas and suggestions do you have for improving the integrated unit process?7. Most importantly, how did the integrated unit enhance student learning?

Students can also evaluate their integrated unit1. What skills have you developed in the course of this integrated unit?2. What would you say is the major lesson you have learned about the theme of this integrated unit?3. How would you apply the knowledge you learned to help your community?4. What connections did you make with industry partners related to your integrated unit?5. What career opportunities have you discovered?6. What would you do differently if you designed this unit?

Integrated curriculum as an trend

Integrated curriculum is an educational approach and it is an emerging trend at primary and elementary level. Many institutions are following the integrated curriculum at different levels.

Integrated curriculum as an issue

Demands and challenging situation. It requires inter departmental teams with common planning and teaching time. The fundamentals of a discipline may be neglected. Teachers may be less enthusiastic and less comfortable when not teaching their own discipline. Some people like it and unlike.

Integrated curriculum as an problemThe distribution of integrated materials and guidelines vary and depend on school.Use of Integrated curriculum is based on individual decians.It may not be used consistently with in a school or class.More trained and experienced teachers are required.

Cont..SOME PARENTS MAY FEAR THAT an integrated curriculum might somehow cause children confusion because they are dealing with more than one subjects.A proper lesson plan is required to meet the need.

THANK YOU