Eastern Michigan University

CURR 305
Curriculum and Methods (Secondary)
Three Semester Hours

EMU Program Theme: EMU teacher preparation programs develop knowledgeable professionals who are caring, reflective decision-makers in a culturally and technologically diverse democratic society.

Catalog Description: The concept of curriculum and its relationship to differing philosophies of education and styles of teaching. The instructional process and multiple teaching strategies examined and applied through lesson planning and demonstration. Classroom management principles and techniques considered in the light of a curriculum and instruction perspective. Includes a planned practicum experience in public schools in addition to the regularly scheduled hours.

Course Purpose: This course develops the pedagogical and curriculum knowledge needed by a teacher. It is taken along with a course in assessment and a field experience in a grade 7-12 classroom. As students apply the course ideas in the field, and reflect on the meaning of these experiences, they become reflective decision-makers. Readings and discussions focus on the roles and responsibilities of teachers in a diverse democratic society. Professional challenges and issues are also considered. Finally, students learn to develop caring classroom environments for learning and risk-taking.

Course Outcomes:

By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. Reflect upon and discuss various philosophies of education and curriculum
2. Select and analyze curriculum standards, goals and content
3. Write clearly stated learning outcomes
4. Apply principles of systematic instructional planning and decision making that result in students' conceptual learning
5.    Design, use and analyze the effects of direct, inductive, and social (group learning) lessons
6. Demonstrate success in using questioning, discussion, and other communication strategies
7.    Explain how to adapt curriculum, instruction, assessments, and management for students with special physical, cultural, intellectual or emotional needs.
8. Describe ways to create an organized, caring classroom environment that promotes student motivation, attention, and learning

 

Textbook: Sparks-Langer, G., Pasch, M., Starko, A., Gardner, T., Moody, C., (2000) Teaching As Decision Making:Successful Practices For The Secondary Teacher. Merrill/Prentice-Hall.

Course Requirements:

40% Unit (Two-three weeks): Rationale, Classroom Composition, Content Analysis, Goals and Objectives, Pre-assessment, Lesson Plans, Authentic Assessment and Test (from EDPS 340), Family/Community Involvement, Bibliography/Resources

***Must follow guidelines approved by Teacher Education Department.

20% Microteaching:Teach 1-2 lessons to grade 7-12 students and/or to peers using combinations of direct, inductive, and social approaches.

20% Classroom Management Project:Collect resources and/or make plans for the first weeks of teaching. Integrate readings and resources to create the project. May include designing lessons to teach others in the class about classroom management.

20% Tests .Self-Reflection Journals, Papers and/or Projects

Course Content:

1 TEACHING AS DECISION MAKING

A. Reflective Decision Making

The Decision Making Model
The Authors' Beliefs and Assumptions
How Is the Text Content Organized?
How Is the Text Content Presented?

B. Planning a Unit of Instruction

General Unit Planning
Example Unit: Zimbabwe: A World's View from Africa

2 CHOOSING AND ANALYZING CLASSROOM GOALS

A. Choosing Worthwhile Educational Goals

Three Views of Educational Philosophy
A Short Course on Recent Educational History
Classification of Educational Goals

B. Analyzing Content Goals

Zimbabwe: A World's View from Africa
Ken Cowan's Puzzle
Three Domains of Educational Content
The Structure of Subject Matter
Concept Learning
Concept Mapping
Generalization Learning
Factual Learning
Content Analysis
Content Analysis in an Interdisciplinary Unit
C. The Analysis of Learning Process

Final Thoughts on the Structure of Content and the
Analysis of the Learning Process

3 WRITING INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES AND EVALUATING RESULTS

A. Writing Clearly Stated Objectives

The Controversy over the Use of Instructional Objectives
The Nature of an Instructional Objective
Recognizing Instructional Objectives
Writing Clearly Stated Instructional Objectives

B. Writing and Classifying Cognitive Objectives

Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives
Common Questions about Bloom's Taxonomy
Independent Practice Activity B. Bloom's Taxonomy

C. Designing Evaluation Procedures

Diagnosing Learners: Pre-assessment
Validity
Reliability
Enhancing the Reliability of the Teacher-Developed Test
Alternative Evaluation Approaches
Evaluation/Assessment Modes and Educational Philosophies

4 UNDERSTANDING STUDENT LEARNING

A. The Learner: Students' Personal Characteristics

Intellectual Abilities
Prior Knowledge and Experience
Culture
Interests
Learning Styles

B. Learning: How Does Learning Occur?

Sensory Memory
Short-Term Memory
Long-Term Memory
Constructivism and Brain-Compatible Learning

5 DEVELOPING POWERFUL LEARNING ACTIVITIES

A. Authentic Learning

What Makes a Problem Real?
Building Toward Authentic Learning

B. Principles for Designing Learning Experiences

Cultural Context Principle
Conceptual Focus Principle
Prior Knowledge Principle
Higher Level Thinking Principle
Active Processing Principle
Variety Principle

6 DESIGNING LEARNING EXPERIENCES: DIRECT TEACHING

A. Research, Teaching Approaches and Lesson Planning Research on Teaching

Four Approaches to Teaching
A Lesson Planning Framework
B. Direct Teaching

The Elements of Direct Lessons
When to Use Direct Lessons

7 DESIGNING LEARNING EXPERIENCES: INDUCTIVE APPROACHES

A. Inductive Approaches

Experiences Designed to Build Concepts
Inquiry Lessons: Interpreting and Applying Data
Authentic Research with Students
Problem-Based Learning
Metacognition and Planning Inductive Experiences

B. Questioning and Discussion

Questioning
Conducting Discussions

8 DESIGNING LEARNING EXPERIENCES: SOCIAL  AND INDEPENDENT APPROACHES

A. Social Approaches

Role Play
Simulations: Human and Electronic

Cooperative Group Learning

B. Centers, Contracts, and Skills of Independent Learning
Centers
Contracts
Teaching Skills of Independence
Students, Interaction, and Developing a Learning Community

9 TEACHING FOR DIVERSITY

A. Students with Educational Disabilities

What Are Educational Disabilities?
Educational Disabilities in School
Strategies for Teaching Students with Disabilities
Recent Educational Movements Affecting Students with Disabilities
Learning Together
B. Gifted and Talented Students
What Is a "Gifted" Student?
What Are Gifted Students Like?
But What Do I Do With Gifted Students?

Serving Many Students

C. Teaching for Diversity
Teaching for Diversity

Teaching Bilingual Students

D. Teaching in Urban Schools and Other Settings
Teaching Strategies for Urban Schools: The PREMIER Model

 

10 CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT: TRADITIONS, PROGRAMS, AND RESEARCH

A. Three Traditions of Classroom Management

Tradition 1: Commonsense
Tradition 2: Behavior Management

Tradition 3: Humanistic

B. Useful Insights from Contemporary Research Findings
Establishing Classroom Rules
Establishing Classroom Routines and Procedures
The Effective Classroom Manager
Preventing Classroom Disruptions
Saving Instructional Time: Time on Task

11 A RATIONAL APPROACH TO CLASSROOM MANAGEMEN26

A. Proactive Strategies to Prevent Classroom Disruptions

Teacher and Student Needs
Classroom Arrangement
Teaching a Discipline Curriculum

B. Responding to Disruptive Student s

Dreikur 's Classification System of Misbehavior
Establishing an Information System
The Use of Positive Moments
Implementing Positive Moments: A Summary
Organizing and Conducting Quality Circle Meetings
Responding to Emergencies

C. Additional Management Techniques

Nonverbal Classroom Management Techniques
Verbal Cues in Management Techniques
Cultural Continuity and Discontinuity

12 LOOKING BACK AND LOOKING AHEAD

A. The Teacher as Decision Maker

Review of the Book's Structure
The Decision-Making Model
B. The Teacher as Continuous Learner

C. The Teacher as Educational Change Agent

A Historical Perspective
Liberating Education from Past Limitations
Hopeful Trends in Education
Your Role in the Future of Education
A Note on the Process of Change

 

References/Knowledge-Base:

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