2.1.2

Curriculum Rationale

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What Should a Strong Curriculum Achieve?

A strong curriculum should aim to do the following:

Convey subject importance

Convey subject importance

  • Curriculum should convey our subject as concrete and meaningful in the context of the wider world.
Think outside the building

Think outside the building

  • A strong curriculum reaches beyond immediate context, beyond exam specifications and beyond the remit of a national curriculum framework.
Relate to students

Relate to students

  • A strong curriculum should enable students to form a personal connection with the subject knowledge.
  • Students can then translate this knowledge to the world around them.
Draw deep connections

Draw deep connections

  • The patterns and connections across components need to go deep and be insightful.
  • This is to help students create meaning and build a stronger schematic framework for the subject.
Acknowledge history

Acknowledge history

  • The curriculum should pay respect to its origins and traditions as part of its ongoing evolution.
  • It should also include the changes or developments of the subject over time, to expose students to the subjective and the changeable in our discipline.
Balances knowledge with practice

Balances knowledge with practice

  • The relationship between skills and knowledge as coexistent, interdependent and symbiotic.
    • Skills such as analysis and evaluation are a manifestation of knowledge in practice.
  • The curriculum must balance knowledge with opportunities to practise what has been learned.
Jump to other topics
1

Introduction

1.1

Introduction

1.1.1Shaping the Curriculum
2

Curriculum Rationale

2.1

Curriculum Rationale

2.1.1The Role of Subject Leaders2.1.2Curriculum Rationale
3

Curriculum Knowledge

3.1

Curriculum Knowledge

3.1.1Core Knowledge3.1.2Hinterland Knowledge3.1.3Substantive Knowledge3.1.4Disciplinary Knowledge3.1.5Declarative & Procedural Knowledge
4

Curriculum Sequencing

4.1

Curriculum Sequencing

4.1.1Cognitive Load Theory4.1.2Threshold Concepts
5

Assessment

5.1

Assessment

5.1.1Meaningful Assessment
6

Instruments of the Curriculum

6.1

Instruments of the Curriculum

6.1.1Instruments of the Curriculum

Practice questions on Curriculum Rationale

Can you answer these? Complete these activities in the Seneca app to progress towards your certificate.

  1. 1
    A strong curriculum reaches beyond:Fill in the list
  2. 2
    Which of the following is NOT a feature of a strong curriculum?Multiple choice
Answer all questions on Curriculum Rationale

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The Role of Subject Leaders

Core Knowledge