Title Details

John D. McNeil is the author of Contemporary Curriculum: In Thought and Action, 8th Edition, published by Wiley.

PREFACE VII

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS X

PART I CONCEPTIONS OF CURRICULUM

CHAPTER 1 HUMANISTIC CURRICULUM 1

Characteristics of the Humanistic Curriculum 3

Purpose 3

Role of the Teacher 3

Forms of Humanistic Curriculum 4

A Confluent Curriculum 4

Consciousness and Transcendency 5

Responses to Depersonalization 7

Psychological Foundations of the Humanistic Curriculum 11

Third-Force Psychology 11

Historical Antecedents to the Humanistic Curriculum 15

Ancient Greeks and Romans 15

Traditional Humanities 15

Progressive Education 16

Spiritual Images 16

Criticisms of the Humanistic Curriculum 17

Concluding Comments 18

Questions 19

Suggested Strategic Research 19

CHAPTER 2 THE SOCIAL RECONSTRUCTIONIST CURRICULUM 21

Characteristics of the Social Reconstructionist Curriculum 21

Purpose 21

Role of the Teacher 22

Social Reconstruction in Practice 23

Changing the Community 23

Freire’s Social Reconstructionism 24

Eradicating Illiteracy 24

Neo-Marxists 26

Neo-Marxist Manifesto 26

Critical Theory against Reproductive Knowledge 27

Environmental Reconstruction 28

Futurologists 29

The Use of Future Planning 29

Typical Futurists’ Recommendations 30

Critical Pedagogy 30

Social Adaptation versus Social Reconstruction 31

Psychological Foundations of Social Reconstruction 32

Cultural Psychology as a Source 32

Psychoanalytical Psychology and Social Reconstruction 34

Historical Antecedents to Social Reconstruction 35

Criticisms of Social Reconstructionism 37

Concluding Comments 38

Questions 39

Suggested Strategic Research 39

CHAPTER 3 THE SYSTEMIC CURRICULUM 41

Alignment 42

Accountability 43

Standards-Based Curriculum 43

Policies for Standards-Based Curriculum 43

Common Core State Standards 46

Standards-Based Curriculum in the Classroom 47

Psychological Foundations of the Systemic Curriculum 50

Historical Antecedents to the Systemic Curriculum 51

Consequences of Systemic Curriculum 53

Concluding Comments 56

Questions 57

Suggested Strategic Research 57

CHAPTER 4 THE ACADEMIC CURRICULUM 59

Approaches to the Academic Curriculum 62

The Forms of Knowledge Approach 63

Structure in the Disciplines Approach 64

Reaction Against a Structure of Knowledge 67

Revival of the Disciplines Approach 68

Liberal Arts and the Academic Core 70

Liberal Arts in Higher Education 70

Academic Programs in the Elementary and Secondary Curriculum 72

Cultural Literacy 73

Making Subject Matter More Appealing to Growing Minds 74

Psychological Foundations of the Academic Curriculum 76

Historical Antecedents of the Academic Curriculum 78

Concluding Comments 81

Questions 82

Suggested Strategic Research 82

PART II CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 5 DECIDING WHAT SHOULD BE TAUGHT 84

Arenas for Deciding What to Teach 85

Levels of Decision Making 85

Curriculum at Different Levels 86

Contexts for Development of Curriculum 87

Range of Activity 87

Development of Materials 88

State, Regional, and Local Curriculum Planning 88

Institutional Curriculum Planning 88

Functions of the Curriculum 89

Determining What to Teach 90

Rational and Technical Models in Curriculum Decision Making 91

Needs Assessment Model 91

Steps in Needs Assessment 92

The Futuristic Model 94

The Rational Model 95

The Vocational-Training Model 98

Alternative Approaches to Determining Curriculum Purposes 100

Disjointed Incrementalism 100

Problems with Disjointed Incrementalism in Curriculum Making 101

Emergent Approaches in Curriculum Decision Making 101

A Comment on Models and Approaches for Curriculum Building 103

Concluding Comments 104

Questions 105

Suggested Strategic Research 106

CHAPTER 6 DEVELOPING AND SELECTING LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES 107

Standards for Teaching Impact Classroom Curriculum Development 108

Learning Opportunities for Higher Order Thinking 112

Transfer and Problem Solving 112

Creativity 114

Creating New Knowledge 115

Procedures for Developing Learning Activities 116

Current Orientations in Developing Learning Activities 117

Criteria for Selecting Learning Activities 120

Philosophical Criteria 121

Psychological Criteria 121

Political Criteria 123

Practicality as a Criterion 124

Research-Based Criteria 124

Criticisms of Textbooks and Learning Opportunities 125

Criticisms of Criteria for Selecting Learning Opportunities 126

Concluding Comments 126

Questions 127

Suggested Strategic Research 127

APERTURE CHAPTER 6 HOW TECHNOLOGY IS USED WITH CURRICULUM ORIENTATIONS 129

Technology in Humanistic Classrooms 129

Social Reconstruction and Technology 130

Technology in a Systemic Curriculum 131

Technology in the Academic Curriculum 133

Building Web Sites 135

New Developments in Learning Opportunities 135

CHAPTER 7 ORGANIZING LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES 137

Key Concepts in Curriculum Organization 137

Organizing Centers or Foci 138

Organizing Elements 138

Principles for Sequencing Centers and Activities Related to Elements 140

Organizing Structures 141

Structure at the Institutional Level 141

Structure at the Classroom Level 142

Organizational Patterns and Conceptions of the Curriculum 146

Unified Disciplines: The New Academic Pattern 148

Empirical Studies of the Effects of Patterns 152

Issues in Curriculum Organization 154

Concluding Comments 157

Questions 157

Suggested Strategic Research 157

PART III CURRICULUM MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER 8 MANAGING CURRICULUM 159

Schools and the Institutionalized Curriculum 159

Curriculum Change in the Context of Restructuring 161

Roles in Restructuring Curriculum 164

The Principal as Director of Learning 164

The Principal in Shared Leadership 165

Department Heads in Curriculum Management 166

Administrative Arrangements 166

Stratifying Students 168

Staffing Patterns and Scheduling 169

Supplementary Personnel 170

Nongrading 170

Facilities 170

The Middle School 171

Alternative, Magnet, Charter, and Specialist Schools 172

Trends in Reforming School Organization 174

Options in the Schools 174

Administration for Instructional Effectiveness 175

Coordinating the Curriculum 175

Effective Research and Curriculum Policy 177

Concluding Comments 179

Questions 179

Suggested Strategic Research 180

CHAPTER 9 EVALUATING THE CURRICULUM 181

Models for Evaluation 183

Consensus Models (Traditional and Technical Evaluation) 183

Pluralistic Models (Humanistic and Social Reconstructionist Evaluation) 186

Controversial Technical Issues in Curriculum Evaluation 187

The Form of Objectives (Goals, Standards, Benchmarks, and Indicators) 188

Measurement of Intended Outcomes Versus Goal-Free Evaluation 189

Norm- and Criterion-Referenced Tests 190

Tests and Invasion of Privacy 191

Authentic Assessment of Student Performance 191

Assessment as Learning 192

Techniques for Collecting Data 193

Measuring Affect 194

Sampling 195

Hazards in Conducting Traditional Evaluation 195

Value-Added Assessment 196

Concluding Comments 197

Questions 198

Suggested Strategic Research 199

CHAPTER 10 THE POLITICS OF CURRICULUM MAKING 200

Curriculum Policy 202

The Politics Involved 203

Political Decisions About What Will Be Taught 203

Concepts for Interpreting the Process of Political Decision Making 204

The Professionalization of Reform 204

Forces of Stability 204

Constraints on Policy 205

Participants in Determining Curriculum Policy 206

School-Based Political Participants 206

Community Participants 209

State Agencies 211

Testing Agencies 212

Publishers 212

The Courts 213

The Federal Government 214

Foundations 214

Special Interests 215

Conflicts in Curriculum Control 216

Concluding Comments 217

Questions 217

Suggested Strategic Research 218

PART IV ISSUES AND TRENDS

CHAPTER 11 CURRENT ISSUES DEMANDING RESPONSES 219

Curriculum for Thinking 219

The Focus of a Thinking Curriculum 221

Curriculum Competition: An International Comparison 223

Invidious Comparisons 224

Vocational Education 229

Contrasting Purposes for Vocational Education 230

Access to Vocational Education 231

Content of Vocational Education 233

Reorganizing Vocational Education 234

Trends in Vocational Education 234

Moral Education 235

Phenix’s Basic Questions in Moral Education 235

Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development 236

Character Education 237

School Safety 238

Concluding Comments 240

Questions 240

Suggested Strategic Research 240

CHAPTER 12 TRENDS IN THE SUBJECT FIELDS 242

Mathematics 243

Mathematics in Our Schools 243

Trends in Mathematics 243

Science 246

Evolution of Science Teaching 246

New Approaches in Science Education 247

Recommendations for the Future Science Curriculum 249

Physical and Health Education 251

Its Place in the Curriculum 251

Guidelines for Future Physical Education Programs 252

English 253

English as a Subject 253

Current Trends in the Teaching of English 255

Reading 256

The Curriculum of Reading 256

Contested Trends in Reading 257

History and Social Studies 259

History as a Subject 259

An Evaluation of History Curriculum 259

History and Geography in the 1990s 260

History and the Social Studies in the Standards Movement 261

Social Studies 261

The Future of Social Studies 263

Foreign Language 264

The Rise and Fall of Foreign Language 264

Efforts to Revive Language Instruction 264

The Arts 267

Concluding Comments 268

Questions 269

Suggested Strategic Research 270

PART V CURRICULUM INQUIRY: RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT

CHAPTER 13 A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE OF CURRICULUM MAKING 271

Curriculum Historians 272

Context for Formulation of the Curriculum Field 273

Founders of the Field of Curriculum 274

Herbartism and the McMurrys 275

Basic Tenets of Herbartism 275

The McMurrys’ Thinking 276

Dewey’s Opposition to Herbartism 278

Dewey’s School 278

Dewey’s Curriculum 278

Scientific Curriculum Making: Franklin Bobbitt and Werrett W. Charters 279

Societal Influences on the Scientific Movement 279

Key Ideas of Scientific Curriculum Making 280

Bobbitt’s Contribution to Curriculum Making 280

Charters’s Contribution to the Curriculum Field 282

Improvement of Instruction 283

Local Development of Curriculum 283

The Course of Study Movement 283

Caswell’s Influence on the Curriculum Field 284

Rational Curriculum Making 285

Tyler’s Curriculum Inquiry 285

Feminine Enactment of Curriculum 286

Hilda Taba 286

Mary Sheldon Barnes 289

Lucy Maynard Salmon 289

Lucy Sprague Mitchell 290

Concluding Comments 290

Questions 291

Suggested Strategic Research 291

CHAPTER 14 THE PROMISE OF THEORY AND INQUIRY IN CURRICULUM 293

State of the Field 294

The Need for Curriculum Theory 294

The Need for Curriculum Conceptions 295

The Need for Studies of Correlation and Integration 297

The Need for Studies of Sequence 298

The Need for Analyzing Education Objectives (Progressions and Standards) 299

The Need for Process–Product Research 300

Trends in Curriculum Inquiry 301

Forms of Inquiry 302

Synoptic Activity as Curriculum Inquiry 302

Inquiry in the School and Classroom 303

Narrative 303

Qualitative Inquiry in School Settings 304

Action Research as Curriculum Inquiry 304

Concluding Comments 306

Questions 307

Suggested Strategic Research 307

NAME INDEX 309

SUBJECT INDEX 315