Curriculum Organization

Teachers have been required by various authorities to create their curriculum based on certain predetermined patterns and in relation to syllabus as outlined by the school and states. Teaching and study depend on curriculum which involves creating a plan for learning (Prevedel, 2011). This approach, subject- centered, focuses primarily on the syllabus and teachers have little discretion if any to digress from the laid down rules. Students have different needs and abilities and this kind of approach benefits some students while locking out others with different needs. This has led other teachers to adopt the learner-driven approach which focuses primarily on the needs of the individual student rather than blindly following what is laid down by the school. But this usually depends on the educational philosophy of individual teachers and what they belief constitutes a sound education.

While there are advantages and disadvantages to both system of curriculum design, it’s my humble belief that an integration of both systems bears more result as far as teaching is concerned. The first approach enables various stakeholders to work together in unison to create an enabling environment for students and teachers to work independently and yet achieve similar goals. The latter approach allows students to be involved in curriculum design and thereby factor in their special needs during teaching to enhance their scores (Education Development Center, 2011). But a blend of both enables a teacher to blend the strong points of both these approaches and use his/her own imagination to identify methods that make teaching real, fun and effective (Drake & Burns, 2011). This kind of freedom on the part of the teacher and enhanced participation on the part of the student has seen improved performance in institutions where it has been implemented. This success points to a need to give teachers more room to use strategies they believe are better suited for their class rooms so long as they bear results.