Ed.D. Doctor of Education Doctor of Education Curriculum and Instruction 4 â Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which historical curriculum movement in the U.S. emphasized practical life skills and vocational preparation over academic subject mastery?
- The Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education (1918) (Correct answer)
- The Committee of Ten Report (1892)
- A Nation at Risk (1983)
- No Child Left Behind (2001)
Correct answer: The Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education (1918)
The 1918 Cardinal Principles prioritized seven broad life goalsâincluding health, vocation, and citizenshipâreflecting a shift from academic elitism toward practical, democratic education.
Question 2: A teacher uses exit tickets, think-pair-share, and observational notes during a lesson. These are examples of:
- Summative assessment strategies
- Formative assessment strategies (Correct answer)
- Norm-referenced assessments
- High-stakes accountability measures
Correct answer: Formative assessment strategies
Exit tickets, think-pair-share, and observational notes are informal formative assessments used during instruction to monitor learning and adjust teaching in real time.
Question 3: Paulo Freire's critique of the 'banking model' of education argues that traditional curriculum treats students as:
- Active co-constructors of knowledge
- Passive recipients who store deposited information (Correct answer)
- Self-directed inquirers
- Critical analysts of power structures
Correct answer: Passive recipients who store deposited information
Freire's banking model metaphor describes education in which teachers 'deposit' knowledge into passive students, suppressing critical consciousness and agency.
Question 4: In Bloom's Revised Taxonomy (Anderson & Krathwohl), which cognitive level involves breaking material into component parts and determining how parts relate to one another?
- Evaluate
- Understand
- Analyze (Correct answer)
- Apply
Correct answer: Analyze
Analyzing involves differentiating, organizing, and attributingâbreaking content into parts and recognizing their relationships and organizational structures.
Question 5: A curriculum team conducts a 'needs assessment' before revising the district science curriculum. The PRIMARY purpose is to:
- Identify gaps between current student performance and desired outcomes (Correct answer)
- Select new textbooks from approved vendor lists
- Assign teachers to professional learning communities
- Determine the annual instructional calendar
Correct answer: Identify gaps between current student performance and desired outcomes
A needs assessment systematically identifies discrepancies between where students currently are and where they need to be, informing curriculum revision priorities.
Question 6: Which term describes curriculum content that schools intentionally do NOT teach, which Eisner argued shapes students as much as what is taught?
- Hidden curriculum
- Spiral curriculum
- Null curriculum (Correct answer)
- Core curriculum
Correct answer: Null curriculum
Elliot Eisner coined 'null curriculum' to describe knowledge and perspectives deliberately or inadvertently excluded from schooling, arguing these absences send powerful messages about value.
Question 7: Which approach to professional development is most aligned with building teacher capacity for sustained curriculum implementation?
- One-day workshops with external consultants
- Job-embedded coaching and collaborative inquiry cycles (Correct answer)
- Annual compliance training required by the district
- Summer institutes with no school-year follow-up
Correct answer: Job-embedded coaching and collaborative inquiry cycles
Job-embedded professional development with coaching and inquiry cycles is sustained, contextual, and directly connected to teachers' daily work, leading to deeper implementation.
Ed.D. Doctor of Education Doctor of Education Curriculum and Instruction 4
Which historical curriculum movement in the U.S. emphasized practical life skills and vocational preparation over academic subject mastery?