This yearbook provides a readable, usable, and practical summary of the most commonly applied elements of curriculum development on the contemporary educational scene. Separate chapters discuss: (1) "Contemporary Curriculum Circumstances" (Fenwick W. English); (2) "Curriculum Thinking" (George A. Beauchamp); (3) "Curriculum Content" ( B. Othanel Smith); (4) "Goals and Objectives" (Ronald S. Brandt and Ralph W. Tyler); (5) "Needs Assessment" (Roger A. Kaufman); (6) "Curriculum Planning" (Arthur W. Steller); (7) "Curriculum Design" (George A. Beauchamp); (8) "Curriculum Politics" (Glenys G. Unruh); (9) "Selecting Learning Activities" (Doris T. Gow and Tommye W. Casey); (10) "Curriculum Implementation" (Susan F. Loucks and Ann Lieberman); (11) "Curriculum Research and Evaluation" (Frederick A. Rodgers); and (12) "Curriculum as a Field of Practice" (Elizabeth Vallance). (CJ)

Graduate students and teachers of introductory graduate courses in curriculum have many textbooks to choose from. What is special about Fundamentals of Curriculum: Passion and Professionalism, Second Edition? Content and approach: Clear, focused, and tightly structured, this text provides essential information and resources education professionals need to effectively deal with the urgent and important curriculum problems they face in schools today. Part I ("Perspectives") looks at curriculum from five fundamental perspectives: curriculum work, traditions of curriculum practice, curriculum theories, curriculum reforms, and curriculum studies. Part II ("Practice") applies these perspectives to important curriculum challenges that arise when people try to improve curriculums in schools and classrooms. Chapter features: Each chapter opens with a thought-provoking quotation and a set of guiding questions, and ends with "Questions and Projects" and "Further Studies" essays that recommend readings, Web resources, and other ways to study more about the topic. Distinctive qualities: Comprehensive. Readers are acquainted with the major schools of thought, value systems, lines of activity, and forms of inquiry in the field. Rigorous. The most rigorous research and scholarship on curriculum questions is cited and described; research and scholarship are used to ground discussions of curriculum questions; readers are introduced to the considerations involved in doing rigorous studies of curriculum questions. Practical. First, the focus is on curriculum practice. Theory, research, and other important facets of curriculum studies are presented as vitally important to practice, but the primary subject is what teachers and others do that students experience. Second, the text is practical in a more philosophical sense, taking the fundamental questions of curriculum studies to be practical questions and the primary task of curriculum inquiry to be informing decisions about what to do. Professional. Curriculum matters are approached professionally both in the sense that the text is designed to prepare readers for professional roles doing curriculum work, and also in the moral and ethical sense that attention is paid throughout the book to the responsibility of curriculum professionals in the public schools to serve the public interest. New in the Second Edition: The essential message and basic structure of the first edition is preserved, but the text has been significantly reworked to be: *leaner and simpler--the number of chapters is reduced from 13 to nine and the number of pages reduced almost as much; *more tightly focused on the ideas, arguments, and examples that are essential learning for anyone entering the study of curriculum--chapters less central to the primary concerns of curriculum professionals and scholars have been cut; *throughly updated and strengthened as an introduction to research and scholarship in curriculum studies--many new excellent studies have been integrated, and examples, references, and recommended readings included; and *more direct--the practical, professional message that is the book's main message is more clearly articulated.

Recent proposals for school reform have involved a significant shift in how curriculum decisions are made, particularly at the state level. In response to these proposals, actions taken by educators have underscored the critical nature of the issue regarding who makes curriculum decisions. This book examines the issues involved in how this pivotal concern has been addressed in the past and how it is being handled now. Each chapter contributes to a more complete understanding of the complexities involved in the recent trend toward the centralization of curriculum decision-making. The book will assist both researchers and practitioners in better understanding the issues involved as well as the impact of the movement.

The acclaimed classic shows educators how to set classroom objectives, select learning experiences, organize instruction, and evaluate progress. In 1949, a small book had a big impact on education. In just over one hundred pages, Ralph W. Tyler presented the concept that curriculum should be dynamic, a program under constant evaluation and revision. Curriculum had always been thought of as a static, set program, and in an era preoccupied with student testing, he offered the innovative idea that teachers and administrators should spend as much time evaluating their plans as they do assessing their students. Since then, Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction has been a standard reference for anyone working with curriculum development. Although not a strict how-to guide, the book shows how educators can critically approach curriculum planning, studying progress and retooling when needed. Its four sections focus on setting objectives, selecting learning experiences, organizing instruction, and evaluating progress. Readers will come away with a firm understanding of how to formulate educational objectives and how to analyze and adjust their plans so that students meet the objectives. Tyler also explains that curriculum planning is a continuous, cyclical process, an instrument of education that needs to be fine-tuned. This emphasis on thoughtful evaluation has kept Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction a relevant, trusted companion for over sixty years. And with school districts across the nation working feverishly to align their curriculum with Common Core standards, Tyler’s straightforward recommendations are sound and effective tools for educators working to create a curriculum that integrates national objectives with their students’ needs. Praise for Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction “Tyler addresses the essential purposes of teaching in a way that still has relevance for contemporary students of education, and communicates to them how important and timeless the quality of the pupil-teacher interaction actually is.” —Times Higher Education (UK)

First published in 1978, this book looks at the ‘curriculum crisis’ of the 1970s, examining the effect it has had for Curriculum Studies and curriculum policy making. It focuses on a time when long-established structures and procedures were challenged and schools were accused of having lost touch with the wants and needs of communities. The author argues that the curriculum should become part of community interest and be led by this, rather than by professionals and initiates. Indeed, he feels that the curriculum must have an identity which avoids alliances with technocrats, bureaucrats or ideologues, but yet has a positive philosophy and a commitment to good values.

The Ninth Edition of "Curriculum Improvement" is comprehensive, unique, practical, and thought-provoking. Despite the problems it cites, the book offers a message of hope-- that schools can help to solve society's problems by impressing upon children and youth that they can achieve and succeed if they act in doing what they know to be right and productive.

Recent proposals for school reform have involved a significant shift in how curriculum decisions are made, particularly at the state level. In response to these proposals, actions taken by educators have underscored the critical nature of the issue regarding who makes curriculum decisions. This book examines the issues involved in how this pivotal concern has been addressed in the past and how it is being handled now. Each chapter contributes to a more complete understanding of the complexities involved in the recent trend toward the centralization of curriculum decision-making. The book will assist both researchers and practitioners in better understanding the issues involved as well as the impact of the movement.