Module 7: Curriculum IMPLEMENTATON

“Homework Must Be More Fun and Meaningful’

In Module 5 we discussed what was involved in curriculum planning and in Module 6 we looked at different techniques of designing the curriculum focusing on some curriculum design models. The next stage in the curriculum development process according to Tyler, Taba and Alexander & Saylor is the implementation of the curriculum plan. The final destination of any curriculum (whether it be a school, college, university or training organisation) is the classroom involving students, teachers, administrators and the community. Implementing the curriculum is the most crucial and sometimes the most difficult phase of the curriculum development process. Those responsible for implementing a curriculum often hear comments and concerns such as: o Teachers are already overloaded – how are they going to implement the new ideas. o Parents and education officers are only interested in a high pass rate in examinations – how are schools to incorporate suggested changes.
These are real concerns and made worse when persons implementing the curriculum are not clear what is expected of them. How often have we heard people say, ‘the plan was good but implementation was poor’. On the other hand, if a curriculum plan is not implemented and remains on the shelf then all efforts in planning will be a sheer waste. A curriculum must be delivered and that means it must be implemented in the classroom if it is to make an impact on student learning. Good plans reaching the classroom are not properly implemented because of a lack of planning and preparation. In some curriculum development projects, implementation is not been given due consideration; not realising that innovations need careful planning and monitoring. We hear of teachers not