Crafting the

Curriculum
Alagano, Fernandez, Robles
Organization
1. Horizontally
the direction of the curriculum
elements is sideways (e.g. Math
and Science)
2. Vertically
sequence of curricular elements
follow a vertical design (e.g. Living
Things)

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1. Subject-Centered Design
focuses on the content of the
curriculum
mostly of the textbooks, written for
the specific subject
Henry Morrison and William Harris
a. Subject Design
the oldest and so far the most
familiar design for teachers,
parents and other laymen
b. Discipline Design
focuses on academic disciplines.
Discipline refers to specific
knowledge learned through a
method which the scholars use to
study a specific content field.
c. Correlation Design
links separate subject designs in
order to reduce fragmentation
d. Broad Field Design/ Interdisciplinary
variation of the subject-centered
design
2. Learner-Centered Design
the learner is the center of the
educative process
a. Child-Centered Design

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anchored on the needs and

interests of the child
attributed to the influence of John
Dewy, Rouseau Pestallozi and
Froebel
b. Experience-centered design
experiences of the learners become
the starting point of the curriculum,
thus the school environment is left
open and free
c. Humanistic Design
curriculum the development of self
is the ultimate objective of learning
3. Problem-Centered Design
draws on social problems, needs,
interest and abilities of the learner
center on life situations,
contemporary life problems, areas
of living etc.
a. Life-Situation Design
the contents are organized in ways
that allow students to clearly view
problem areas clearly
b. Core Design
centers on general education and
the problems are based on
common human activities
Faunce and Bossing in 1959
Dimensions and Principles of Curriculum
Designs
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1. Scope
breadth and depth of curriculum
content
Coverage of curriculum
Units, sub-units, chapters or subchapters

a.
b.
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Deductive Principle
Whole to the parts
Cascading arrangement
Inductive Principle
Examples to the generalization
Simple concepts to general content

2. Sequence
vertical relationship among
curricular areas
the occurrence and reoccurrence of
content and experiences so that
students will have opportunities to
connect and enrich their
understanding of the curriculum
presented or experienced
4 principles of Sequence (Smith,
Stanley and Shore - 1957)
a. Simple to complex learning
Content experiences are arranged
from simple to complex; concrete to
abstract, from easy to difficult
b. Prerequisite learning There are
fundamental things to be learned
ahead
c. Whole to part learning Overview
before specific content or topics
d. Chronological learning Order of
events is made as a basis of
sequencing the content and
experiences

5 Major Principles in Organizing

Content in Units
1. World-related Sequence
Relationship that exists among
people, objects or events of the
world
Space, Time, Physical Attributes
2. Concept Related Sequence
Class Relations, Propositional
relations
3. Inquiry-Related Sequence
Based on scientific method of
inquiry
On the process of generating,
discovering and verifying
knowledge

Content and experiences are

sequenced logically and
methodically
4. Learning-Related Sequence
Based on psychology of learning
and how people learn
Empirical prerequisites, Familiarity,
Difficulty, Interest
3. Continuity
vertical manipulation or repetition
of curriculum components
4. Integration
linking of all types of knowledge
and experiences contained within
the curriculum plan
enables the individual to
comprehend knowledge as unified
5. Articulation
a. Vertical Articulation
depicts the relationships of certain
aspects in the curriculum sequence
to lessons, topics, or courses
appearing later in the programs
sequence
b. Horizontal Articulation
refers to the association between
or among elements occurring
simultaneously
6. Balance
giving appropriate weight to each
aspect of the design so that
distortions do not occur

Approaches to Curriculum Design

The Six (6) Features of a Curriculum
1. Who teaches? The Teacher
2. Who do the teachers teach? The
Learners
3. What do the teachers teach? Knowledge,
Skills, Values
4. How do teachers teach? Strategies &
Methods
5. How much of the teaching was learned?
Performance
6. With whom do we teach? Community
Partners

Child or Learner-Centered
Approach
Subject-Centered Approach

Problem-centered and human

relation-centered approach