FED Curriculum Theory and Development 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Ralph Tyler's rationale for curriculum development is best summarized as organizing curriculum around which four questions?
- Who, what, when, and where
- Purposes, experiences, organization, and evaluation (Correct answer)
- Standards, assessments, materials, and pacing
- Objectives, activities, resources, and grading
Correct answer: Purposes, experiences, organization, and evaluation
Tyler's 1949 'Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction' proposed building curriculum around four questions: educational purposes, learning experiences, organization, and evaluation.
Question 2: The term 'null curriculum' refers to:
- Content that is mandated but never taught
- Subject matter that schools do not teach, implicitly communicating what is unimportant (Correct answer)
- A curriculum with no measurable learning objectives
- State-mandated curriculum that schools reject
Correct answer: Subject matter that schools do not teach, implicitly communicating what is unimportant
Elliot Eisner coined 'null curriculum' to describe the knowledge and ways of thinking that schools exclude, which by omission signal their lack of value.
Question 3: Backward design, as advocated by Wiggins and McTighe in 'Understanding by Design,' starts curriculum planning by:
- Selecting textbooks and materials first
- Beginning with desired learning outcomes and assessments, then planning instruction (Correct answer)
- Writing daily lesson plans before unit goals
- Reviewing state standards after instruction is complete
Correct answer: Beginning with desired learning outcomes and assessments, then planning instruction
Backward design reverses traditional planning by first identifying what students should know and understand (goals), then designing assessments, and finally planning learning experiences.
Question 4: Which curriculum approach emphasizes integrating subject areas around real-world themes or problems rather than teaching them as separate disciplines?
- Subject-centered curriculum
- Interdisciplinary or integrated curriculum (Correct answer)
- Core knowledge curriculum
- Discipline-based curriculum
Correct answer: Interdisciplinary or integrated curriculum
Interdisciplinary curriculum integration connects content from multiple subjects around meaningful themes or problems, reflecting how knowledge is applied in real life.
Question 5: The concept of 'scope and sequence' in curriculum development refers to:
- The length of school day and calendar year
- The breadth of content covered (scope) and the order in which it is taught (sequence) (Correct answer)
- The number of electives versus required courses
- State assessment design and test scheduling
Correct answer: The breadth of content covered (scope) and the order in which it is taught (sequence)
Scope defines the range and depth of content to be covered; sequence specifies the order in which topics are introduced and developed across grade levels.
Question 6: Hilda Taba's approach to curriculum development is distinguished by its emphasis on:
- Top-down administrative mandates
- Teacher-driven, grassroots curriculum creation beginning with specific units (Correct answer)
- Strict separation of academic disciplines
- Standardized testing as the primary curriculum driver
Correct answer: Teacher-driven, grassroots curriculum creation beginning with specific units
Taba advocated an inductive, bottom-up approach where teachers develop specific units first and then generalize to broader curriculum design, reversing Tyler's top-down model.
FED Curriculum Theory and Development 1
Ralph Tyler's rationale for curriculum development is best summarized as organizing curriculum around which four questions?