Ed.D. Doctor of Education Doctor of Education Curriculum and Instruction 3 ā Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which research methodology is MOST appropriate when an Ed.D. researcher wants to understand the lived experiences of curriculum coordinators navigating policy mandates?
- Randomized controlled trial
- Meta-analysis
- Phenomenological inquiry (Correct answer)
- Correlational study
Correct answer: Phenomenological inquiry
Phenomenological inquiry explores the essence of lived human experiences, making it ideal for understanding how curriculum coordinators personally experience policy tensions.
Question 2: Curriculum differentiation based on Tomlinson's model involves modifying which three primary elements?
- Standards, pacing, and assessment weights
- Content, process, and product (Correct answer)
- Texts, worksheets, and homework
- Goals, objectives, and benchmarks
Correct answer: Content, process, and product
Tomlinson's differentiation framework addresses what students learn (content), how they make sense of it (process), and how they demonstrate understanding (product), plus learning environment.
Question 3: A district adopts a 'guaranteed and viable curriculum.' This concept is primarily associated with which researcher?
- Hilda Taba
- Ralph Tyler
- Robert Marzano (Correct answer)
- John Dewey
Correct answer: Robert Marzano
Robert Marzano's research identified a guaranteed and viable curriculumāone that is consistently taught and achievable within available instructional timeāas a top school-level factor for student achievement.
Question 4: In curriculum mapping, the PRIMARY purpose of a horizontal map is to:
- Track student progress across grade levels over multiple years
- Identify what is taught across subjects within the same grade level or time period (Correct answer)
- Align curriculum to national standards vertically
- Document teacher professional development sequences
Correct answer: Identify what is taught across subjects within the same grade level or time period
Horizontal curriculum mapping examines curriculum across subjects or classrooms at the same grade level or time period to identify overlap, gaps, and integration opportunities.
Question 5: Which instructional framework explicitly integrates disciplinary literacy by teaching reading and writing as tools for thinking within each content area?
- Understanding by Design (UbD)
- Reading Recovery
- Content-Area Literacy Integration (Correct answer)
- Direct Instruction (DI)
Correct answer: Content-Area Literacy Integration
Content-area literacy integration embeds disciplinary reading and writing practices within subject instruction so students use literacy as a cognitive tool specific to each discipline.
Question 6: A curriculum leader notices that low-income students are disproportionately placed in lower-track courses. This pattern BEST illustrates which concept?
- Mastery learning
- Curriculum tracking and stratification (Correct answer)
- Formative assessment bias
- Instructional scaffolding
Correct answer: Curriculum tracking and stratification
Curriculum tracking (also called ability grouping) has been documented to reproduce socioeconomic inequality by concentrating students from low-income backgrounds in less rigorous courses.
Question 7: Wiggins and McTighe's 'Understanding by Design' framework begins curriculum planning with:
- Selecting instructional activities that engage students
- Choosing textbooks aligned to grade-level standards
- Identifying desired results and evidence of understanding before planning instruction (Correct answer)
- Writing daily lesson objectives based on state benchmarks
Correct answer: Identifying desired results and evidence of understanding before planning instruction
UbD uses 'backward design,' starting with what students should understand and how that will be assessed before planning instructional experiences.
Ed.D. Doctor of Education Doctor of Education Curriculum and Instruction 3
Which research methodology is MOST appropriate when an Ed.D. researcher wants to understand the lived experiences of curriculum coordinators navigating policy mandates?