Case Study: Integrating Curriculum Theory

What are your impressions of the superintendent and curriculum director? Did they adequately address Mr. Novac‘s responsibilities in this incident? Why or why not?

In this case, we see that there are some problems in the implementation of the Novac’s Theory of Curriculum Implementations. We can observe that in this school the student who are in the second grade have achieved better scores than the third grade students. It means they have a high achievement score. The administrators in this case would surely advise to principal of the school to observe the performance of his teachers and see if they are properly implementing the Theory of Curriculum Implementation in letter and spirit. The principal would have to make sure that the theory have been followed and implemented in order to rid this issue of lower grade school children getting high achievement scores than the higher grade students.

What are your impressions of the third-grade teachers in this elementary school in the Plentywood School District?

In this case we might be able to blame the teachers for not properly implementing t Theory of Curriculum Implementation. Thy need to focus on the teaching techniques that they are incorporating and consult the principal to know how to implement the theory. If they think that there is something wrong with implementing the theory and cannot yield positive results with it, they might arrange a meeting with the principal and discuss it with him and provide him with some suggestions to make the condition better as for as the results of the students are concerned.

If the principal meets with the third-grade teachers, what should be discussed?

The principal ca politely discuss the situation of the differences in the achievement scores and ask for their suggestions. We know that the Theory itself has no problems but the teachers are missing on fully implementing it. They might need training or other techniques to implement the Theory. The principal has the authority to arrange a proper guidance for the teachers to make things work.

What are some possible reasons why third- grade students in Mr. Novac’s school are low achievers?

We have already discussed that the Theory was not properly implemented. The other reasons can be that the teachers are not taking full interest in the teaching process. One of the reason for this could be that the principal himself has not be paying regular visits to the classes and meeting the teachers. The teachers have therefore, become lazy and do not care that much about implementing the theory. The teachers might be relying on providing the students with notes that they use as a learning material instead of using a mixture of learning materials.

What are some theoretical curriculum approaches that Mr. Novac might use to increase student achievement scores? Identify the strategies and explain why you think they might be effective?

There are many ways that Mr. Novac can use to address the problem in hand. He can call upon the families of the students and other educator to his school and arrange a seminar. The teacher will participate in these activities. Then there could be discussions between all of them to address the problem. I am sure they will reach on some consensus on devising new teaching and learning strategies.

Dewey’s Curriculum Theory can also be studied by the principal. In this theory the students are taught to incorporate their strengths like their social, expressive and artistic inbuilt properties to get acquainted with the changing world and its requirement with modern coping techniques.

There are other theories and practices that focus on developing a quality curriculum for the students. A curriculum that would prepare the students to identify their role in the society and be ready to perform all their social duties for the society to function properly. Social Efficiency Educator is a theory that deals with the social aspects of the course curriculum. The students are evaluated with observational techniques combined with testing. This is different than the traditional techniques that have been used to evaluate the students over the years. The theory focuses on guiding the students on different units of the curriculum and arranging brainstorming sessions. The assessment tools and their reliability and validity are also addressed in the implementation of the theory. The results that are gathered after the implementation of the theory can be put forward to the representatives from the community, educators and the parents. They can then make decisions and recommendations. One of the positive sides of this theory is that the school administration has to be involved in the process. Thus it can ensure the full participation of the teaching staff as well. In my opinion, this is the most scientific way of addressing the problem of achievement test scores in the case under discussion.