Curriculum Change in Basic Education and Teacher Professional Development Regional Experiences and National Cases

Merle C. Tan, PhD Director, National Institute for Science and

Mathematics Education Development University of the Philippines

(UP NISMED)

Basis for Education Programs and Curricular Reforms in the Region Emerging Trends and Directions Striking Differences Commonalities

Regional Experiences

Basis for Curricular Improvements: Brief Background o Education for All (EFA,1990) sought to ensure universal

basic education by diversifying the curriculum in order to meet the basic learning needs of all children, youth and adults.

o The Delors Report (1996) advocate the reorientation of education systems based on the principle of “learning throughout life” and building on the “four pillars of learning” ­ learning to know, to do, to be, and to live together.

o Project 2000+ drew attention to the increasing role of scientific literacy and technological skills in today’s evolving knowledge society and information­technology age, as well as to the importance of curricular elements that renew cultural traditions and promote social cohesion and unity.

Emerging Trends and Directions in Basic Education*

* From the Report on “Building Capacities of Curriculum Specialists in East and Southeast Asia" held in Bangkok, Thailand, on 12–16 December 2000

1. A shift in educational goals and objectives towards using educational systems to prepare learners as functioning citizens of the twenty­first century. Increasing emphases placed on enabling learners to q adjust and adapt to the accelerated and complex social changes;

q become competent workers and intelligent and independent thinkers;

q become socially responsible and morally upright individuals; and

q develop physical, aesthetic, emotional and spiritual lives to ensure their balanced growth and development, and promote caring and nurturing values and attitudes

Emerging Trends…

2. A move towards decentralizing various aspects/processes of curriculum development, implementation and administration.

q Wider consultations on the curriculum are taking place;

q Increasing participation of various stakeholders and the larger public in educational policy and decision making; and

q Allowing local schools and communities greater autonomy in implementing the national curriculum

Emerging Trends…

3. In line with EFA objectives, the national curriculum for basic education is being diversified precisely to meet the basic learning needs of different groups in the population.

q Experimentation with various methods of instruction and increasing adoption of a “differentiated curriculum.”

q Providing students at basic level, and particularly so in high school, with different educational tracks, or options (e.g., academic or college­bound, vocational, skills­oriented) to learn tasks and subject­matter contents that suit their own level of ability, aptitude, inclinations, life plans and career choices.

Emerging Trends…

4. Emphasis on education programs that enhance science and technology literacy and are introducing as much ICT in schools as they can support.

q To ensure that students acquire the skills and learn the competencies demanded by an information age and a globalizing world, and by this century’s evolving knowledge societies or economies.

.

Emerging Trends…

5. Emphasis on independent study or self­learning, and of inculcating in students the love and desire to learn and the basic skills for learning (literacy and numeracy).

q Self­learning allows students to pursue knowledge of every kind and especially knowledge that they are interested in.

q Self­learning also breaks the stereotypical view that learning is necessarily confined to classrooms and schools, and reinforces the principle that one can go on “learning throughout life.”

Emerging Trends…

6. Pedagogically, shifts have also been occurring away from traditional approaches where teachers are the major authority in knowledge construction and transmission.

q Focus on learner­centered education to enhance student’s ability to think critically and creatively and to decide on issues and solve problems.

q Learner­centered education helps students arrive at their own truths, thereby, contributing to knowledge generation and construction.

Emerging Trends…

7. Experimentation on various teaching­learning methods and approaches to attain a better integration of the contents of the curriculum both within and across subject offerings.

q Use of thematic approaches and inter­ and multidisciplinary perspectives in learning materials.

q Reducing of overloaded curriculum content through the integration of different learning areas arising form the continuous explosion of information and knowledge.

Emerging Trends…

8. There is an increasing awareness of the need to reorient teaching­learning processes and outcomes away from earlier notions that education is primarily a means for preparing students to take and pass school tests and national standard examinations.

q Education based on examinations tends to encourage memorization rather than understanding and analysis. This also measures ability and achievement narrowly, or only in terms of given test results while promoting unnecessary or unhealthy competition among students.

q An overemphasis on test scores, achievement and competition may undermine the attainment of those values; e.g., humanism, a sense of community, peace, tolerance, and respect

Summary of Emerging Trends…

q Curriculum renewal today requires educators and curriculum specialists to go beyond the framework of a content­ and competency­ based curriculum.

v To ensure that the national curriculum for basic education remains relevant and responsive to current­day problems and needs, curriculum developers must exhibit an appreciation of those contextual forces—both global and local—which impinge on the education and learning process and take these into account in revising and updating the national curriculum for basic education.

Summary of Emerging Trends…

q Educators and curriculum developers, too, must work to ensure the effective implementation of new curricular reforms and innovations.

v Need for continuing support for teacher­training programs on new pedagogies and teaching­learning strategies and information­dissemination campaigns or activities to inform parents, local communities, the student body and the larger public of the nature, directions and rationale of ongoing curricular reforms.

v Need for increasing public support and other stakeholders to enhance the chances of successfully carrying out planned curricular reforms.

Striking Curricular Differences Across Countries**

o Striking educational/curricular differences have been noted across countries, especially

Ø between the newly independent nation­states in the region on the one hand, notably Laos and Cambodia and to a certain extent, Vietnam, and

Ø the more mature and developed economies of South Korea, Japan and Malaysia, on the other.

** From the Report on “Building Capacities of Curriculum Specialists in East and Southeast Asia" held in Bangkok, Thailand, on 12–16 December 2000

Striking Curricular Differences Across Countries

In Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam,

o education programs and curricular designs are directed primarily at supporting national development plans and the countries’ aspirations of becoming modern and industrial states.

o efforts are being exerted to universalize the provision of education at elementary grades and at lower secondary level.

o curricular goals and content at basic education are oriented towards producing workers and citizens needed for reconstructing their economies and inculcating national pride and identity.

o updating of their curriculum by taking into account emerging social and global issues and concerns, new international trends in curriculum planning and design, and other pedagogical developments.

In South Korea, Japan and Malaysia,

o education programmes reveal a clearer articulation of the global context and influences on their countries.

o educational plans and goals are similarly aligned with their respective national development plans; all are concerned with gaining and maintaining a competitive edge economically in the world market, and socially and otherwise in a global village.

o more stress is on updating student­learners with the advances in science and technology and their uses and with the equally rapid developments in information­ communication technologies.

Striking Curricular Differences Across Countries

In the Philippines, educational programmes and curricular designs

o support national development plans and the countries’ aspiration of becoming a modern and industrial country

o are oriented towards producing independent workers and citizens needed for inculcating national pride and identity

o take into account emerging social and global issues and concerns, new international trends in curriculum planning and design, and other pedagogical developments

o are concerned with gaining and maintaining a competitive edge economically in the world market, and socially and otherwise in a global village

o update student­learners with the advances in science and technology and their uses and with the equally rapid developments in information­communication technologies.

Striking Curricular Differences Across Countries

Characteristics of S and M curricula,,,

v A review of the S and M curricula of some countries*** (e.g., Japan, Singapore, Australia) shows that the content and strategies are directed towards development of thinking skills.

v The S and M curricula reviewed reflect the characteristics of a ‘thinking. curriculum e.g., Ø scope promotes in­depth learning Ø content and process objectives are situated in real­world

tasks Ø tasks are sequenced to situate holistic performances in

increasingly challenging environments. Ø actively connects content and processes to learners'

backgrounds.

***UP NISMED Curriculum Framework Project, on going

In the Philippines (UP NISMED practice).. o curriculum development in S and M… Ø follows the backward process of planning the curriculum

Ø adapted from the model of Ralph Tyler which was promoted in 1959 but revived in many countries in the 90’s.

Ø used in the development of portfolios under the INTEL Teach to the Future Program.

o The backward process of curriculum designing has three stages

Stage 1: Identifying desired results Stage 2: Determining acceptable evidence Stage 3: Planning learning experiences and instruction

Curricular Reforms: Their Implications for Teacher Professional Development

New Trends in Teacher Professional Development

o Use of transactional approach rather than transmission approach

o Transmission approaches focus on training & reproduction; emphasis is on INFORMATION

o Transactional approaches focus on capacity building, empowerment and transformation; emphasis is on INTERACTION and use of a set of resources which participants can adapt and apply

o In the transmission approach, experts share information to participants, provide inputs in terms of a new resource and focus on development of skills but training is usually a one­shot deal

o In the transactional approach, some stimulus materials are made available; expert does not deliver but facilitates more interaction, critiquing, reconstruction. It is an on­going interactive activity based on a whole range of practices: theorizing ideas for further development; linking theoretical ideas with practice; reflecting, reviewing & reconstructing as work goes on

Transactional Approaches

o View teacher development as professional, social, and personal development (Bell, 1998)

o These three aspects are intertwined, interactive and interdependent.

o For change to occur, programs and activities must support all three aspects of teacher development.

What does professional development include?

o use of different teaching activities o development of beliefs & conceptions underlying the

activities o development of subject matter knowledge and skills o updating scientific/mathematical knowledge

What does social development entail?

o the renegotiation and reconstruction of what it means to be a teacher of science/mathematics

o working with other teachers to reconstruct what it means to be a teacher through sharing experiences and beliefs

What does personal development involve?

o being aware and accepting of the need for professional growth

o changing their ideas about what it means to be a teacher of science or mathematics

o teachers taking more control of their own learning and being reflective

The Challenge is…

q how to design PD programs for teachers that foster collaboration, capacity building and reflective practice

o how to design PD for learning, empowerment, and transformation

o how to move from a conception of PD which is static, top­down, and policy­oriented to one which is teacher­centered, dynamic and oriented to the active construction of professional knowledge within contextual realities

Best Practices in Professional Learning of Teachers***

o Conceptual development o ICT as a tool for learning o Creativity and practical work o Assessment and evaluation o Research o Networks and partnerships

*** Synthesized from the NIER/UNESCO APEID Final Report on the Seminar on Best Practices in Professional Learning of Teachers, 14 ­18, 2005

Best practices on conceptual development ….

o Identifying and addressing alternative conceptions as well as least learned concepts and topics

o Using real­life problem solving situations o Using inquiry­based approaches o Emphasizing the process not just the product o Motivating and engaging students in science and math

by using STS approach, integrating science and culture; acknowledging indigenous knowledge, among others)

o Facilitating open discussion about, and critiquing of of approaches towards teaching and learning of concepts

Best practices in using ICT as tools for teaching and learning..,.

o Making teachers aware that there is a variety of technologies that can be used for teaching and learning (e.g., computers, radio, videotapes)

o Transforming curriculum development centers into efficient agencies in developing teaching and learning materials using indigenous materials and resources

o Promoting balance between ICT and real­life hands­on experiences

Best practices in developing creativity using practical work approach (PWA)

o Teachers experiencing ‘students role’ so that they are able to identify key factors about ‘teaching role’

o PWA as engaging activity: hands­on, minds­on, and hearts­on; not limited to classroom activities but using the natural environment for teaching and learning and employing varied ICT resources

o Sharing of PWA experiences through reflection and journal writing

o Using lesson study approach in lesson planning (e.g., Japan)

Best practices on assessment and evaluation…

o Using varied forms of assessment, including performance­based

o Improving questioning skills of teachers o Using assessment results to improve the teaching/learning process

o Developing standards that reflect levels of quality teaching including different facets of teachers’ day­to­day work.

Best practices on improving teaching and learning through action research

o Teachers as action researchers (e.g., Malaysia’s Program for Innovation Excellence and Research (PIER) supported by the Ministry of Education

o Bridging the gap between basic and tertiary education (e.g., attached elementary schools to universities in Japan)

o Research dissemination

National Cases

• The Philippines’ basic education curriculum

• Malaysia’s Professional Development on Action Research

• Japans Professional Development on Lesson Study

The Philippines Basic Education Curriculum

o Functional literacy, equipped with life skills and appreciation for the arts

o Five learning areas: Science, Mathematics, English Filipino, and Makabayan

o National curriculum in place but with school­based adaptation

o Community support o Enabling policies from DepEd Central

Malaysia’s Teacher Action Research as Professional Development Action research is a process in which individuals or several teachers collect evidence and make decisions about their own knowledge, performance, beliefs, and effects in order to understand and improve them” (Gay and Airasian, 2000).

By doing action research, teachers n are empowered to inquire into their daily practices and

take responsibility for improving classroom teaching and to focus, reflect on and address problems of practice

n resolve teaching/learning problems n sustain and improve their good teaching practices n develop new theories/expand existing theories n disseminate theories and solutions

Action Research

OUTCOME OUTCOME

• • Research culture Research culture • • Good practice Good practice • • Quality teaching & Quality teaching &

learning learning

Funding Dialogue/ Dissemination

Training Networking/ Collaboration

Action Research Model*

*Malaysia Report, Best practices Seminar, 2005

Japan’s Lesson Study*

o An approach to instructional improvement, now generating interest in other parts of the world

o A cycle in which teachers work together to consider their long term goals for students bring those goal to life in research lessons, and collaboratively observe, discuss and refine the lessons.

*Lewis, C.C (2002)

1. Goal setting and planning

Identify goals for student learning and long term development

Collaboratively plan instruction designed to bring life to these goals including a research lesson that will be observed.

3. Lesson Discussion

Share and analyze collected data from research lesson

Identify evidence that goals for student learning and development were fostered

4. Consolidation of Ideas

If desired, refine and re teach the lesson and study it again. Write report that includes lesson plan , student data and reflections on what was learned.

The Lesson Study Cycle

2. Research Lesson

One planning team member teaches classroom lesson while other team members collect data on student thinking, learning engagement behavior., etc.

Why Lesson Study

o Brings educational goals and standards to life in the classroom;

o Promotes data­based improvement; o Targets many student qualities that improve learning;

o Creates grassroots demand for instructional improvement; and

o Values teachers’ inputs

Practice is research Research informs practice

Reciprocal relations among learners

Hierarchical relations between trainers and teachers

Communication flow: among teachers

Communication flow: trainer to teachers

Driven by participants Driven by outside expert

Begins with question Begins with answer

Lesson study Traditional

Contrasting Views of Professional Development

Curricular reforms are directed towards

development of students’ thinking skills.

Curricular reforms implementation requires quality

teacher professional development programs

“ …. professional development that does not provide opportunities for teacher­initiation and direction,

and which does not lead to meaningful professional learning outcomes

cannot be considered as quality professional development

from the perspectives of both individual growth and

institutional accountability.”

(Macpherson et. al., 1998)

References

Bell, B (1998). Teacher development in science education. In B.J. Frazer and K.G. Tobias (Eds), International handbook of science education, Part II (pp 681­693).

Delors Report (1996) Learning: The Treasure from Within International Bureau of Education­UNESCO (2002). Building the capacity

of curriculum specialists in East and Southeast Asia, in CD ROM. Lewis, C.C (2002). Lesson Study: A Handbook of teacher­led Instructional

Change Macpherson, I., et al (1998). Putting professional learning upfront. Journal

of In service Education, 24 (1), 73­86 Malaysia Report (2006) in NIER/ UNESCO Best Practices Seminar Report NIER/UNESCO (2006). Final Report on the Seminar on Best Practices in

Professional Learning of Teachers, in CD ROM. NIER/UNESCO (2005. Final Report on the Regional Workshop on

Management of Curriculum Change in Asia and the Pacific, in CD ROM Tan, M. C. (2006). Curricular Reforms: Implications for Teacher Professional

Development. Paper presented in the seminar on Curriculum Change. Philippine Social Science Center, Manila Philippines,June 06, 2006.