Planning a competence-based curriculum: the case of four secondary schools in England

Despite the belief that schools tend to be resistant to change, it is possible to find secondary schools in the UK which are investing in the design of an innovative curriculum for their Year 7 (11-year-old students). This article focuses on four of these schools and discusses some of the challenges they face in planning and implementing their competence-based curricula (CBC). Such curricula tend to be based on the rationale that they better prepare all students for the constant changes of human knowledge and understanding. They develop transferable skills rather than subject-specific content, which are considered necessary requirements for learners as future productive members of society in the twenty-first century. Advocates of CBC argue that such curricula are more inclusive and emancipatory than traditional curricula, although this view is contested. Employing Bernstein's concepts of framing and classification of the curriculum, this article describes the challenges and constraints encountered by four schools which have endeavoured to develop a competence-based curriculum.     

How has recent curriculum reform in China influenced school-based teacher learning? An ethnographic study of two subject departments in Shanghai,China

Curriculum reforms with a focus on helping students ‘learn to learn’ are now an established global educational phenomenon. China has been implementing such curriculum reform and this poses challenges to teachers as they need to develop new pedagogical skills and knowledge to deal with new educational demands that arise. This ethnographic study investigates the impacts of current curriculum reform on teacher learning using two subject departments from two schools in Shanghai, China. It shows that teachers direct much attention towards searching for good practices and norms of practice to encounter new curriculum challenges. Findings show that outside experts who act as ‘boundary brokers’ are crucial in teacher learning. They also identify two modes of teacher learning activities: hierarchical, which relies on imported expert knowledge; and reciprocal, which depends on exploiting local knowledge. Striking a balance between these two approaches may be the way forward.     

国外中小学学校课程决策的经验与启示

国外中小学在课程决策方面有丰富的实践经验。它们赋予学校一定的决策自主权,充分发挥决策主体的作用,建立基于学生生活经验的个性化学习决策理念,注重实践性课程决策,创建决策团体,发挥集体优势,建立一定的保障措施。这些对我国中小学学校课程决策具有参考价值。     

论语文课程情趣资源的开发

新一轮课程改革,离不开对课程资源的开发。情趣因素是语文课程中非常重要而长期被忽视的资源,具有广阔的开发空间。对语文情趣资源的开发,要注意综合开发和深度开发相结合,充分发挥课程本身的优势,做到以内为主,内外结合。     

论教师参与校本课程开发的专业支撑

校本课程开发是一项专业性很强的活动,非常依赖于教师的专业素养。教师参与校本课程开发必须具备一定的专业支撑,其中充分的知识准备、相应的课程技能、必要的专业品格是至关重要的。其中充分的知识准备是基础和前提,课程技能是其必要的操作方式,而专业品格则构成教师参与校本课程开发的专业支撑的动力系统,它们相互联系,交互作用,统一于教师参与校本课程开发的各项活动中。     

革新课程领导的现实意义和策略

新课程改革实施给学校教育教学工作带来了全方位的挑战。新课程实施中遇到的问题不能完全归结为教师个人的能力、水平和适应性,而应该是学校组织行为方式的问题;也不能归结为评价改革问题,而是学校全方位的课程领导问题。现实的革新的课程领导发展路向应该重点放在学校的教育哲学和课程实施策略的革新、学校课程与教学的整合革新、学校组织的重组和行为优化以及评价制度和方式的革新。     

我国课程改革政策制定的理论障碍及其消除

在我国课程改革政策的制定中存在着三大亟需克服的理论障碍--课程研究领域长期忽视课程政策研究;教育研究者与教育决策者之间存在着两种文化的樊篱;课程理论与政策理论之间表现出游离状态.而消除理论障碍的策略在于:拓展课程研究的政策领域、认清课程政策的中介价值;实现从单纯的教育研究者到政策型研究者以及从纯粹的教育决策者到研究型决策者角色的转变;加强课程理论研究的实践问题取向与政策取向;强化课程政策制定的理论探讨.     

教师与企业共同参与校企合作课程开发的策略

学校和企业双方是影响校企合作课程开发的最重要的两方面因素。学校层面,教师是最关键的要素,他们参与校企合作课程开发的策略主要包括：树立正确的开发理念;提高课程开发的能力;掌握课程开发的技术。企业层面,企业专家参与课程开发,是课程改革的必然趋势和选择,他们参与校企舍作课程开发的策略主要包括：明确自己在开发中的地位;明确自己所肩负的重要职责。     

北京景山学校校本课程“小学低年级社会综合课”的研究与实践

2000年开始,北京景山学校开设了校本课程小学低年级社会综合课。根据景山学校的办学目标和理念,依据学习心理学和学生年龄特点,确定了校本课程的目标和内容;根据课程目标的需要改变教学方法,以学生喜闻乐见的形式组织教学,并探索了情景式教学、模拟式教学、实践式教学、研究式教学等教学方式。景山学校的校本课程的研究与实践将对其他学校的校本课程建设具有参考借鉴意义。     

试论专业教研室主任在职业教育课程改革中的角色定位

职业教育课程改革中,专业教研室主任的作用不可忽视。专业教研室主任是职教理念的先行者;是专业课程改革的策划者;是专业课程开发的组织者,是新课程教学的主要实施者;是校企合作的密切联系者;是教学效果的评价者,在职业教育课程改革中,扮演着重要的角色。     

Science Curriculum Components Favored by Taiwanese Biology Teachers

The new 1–9 curriculum framework in Taiwan provides a remarkable change from previous frameworks in terms of the coverage of content and the powers of teachers. This study employs a modified repertory grid technique to investigate biology teachers' preferences with regard to six curriculum components. One hundred and eighty-five in-service and pre-service biology teachers were asked to determine which science curriculum components they liked and disliked most of all to include in their biology classes. The data show that the rank order of these science curriculum components, from top to bottom, was as follows: application of science, manipulation skills, scientific concepts, social/ethical issues, problem-solving skills, and the history of science. They also showed that pre-service biology teachers, as compared with in-service biology teachers, favored problem-solving skills significantly more than manipulative skills, while in-service biology teachers, as compared with pre-service biology teachers, favored manipulative skills significantly more than problem-solving skills. Some recommendations for ensuring the successful implementation of the Taiwanese 1–9 curriculum framework are also proposed.     

A narrative exploration of how curricula for children with profound and multiple learning difficulties shape and are shaped by the practices of their teachers

This article presents the findings of a study that asked teachers to narrate their interactions with learners from the perspective of the curriculum that the school adopted. Thirteen female teachers, employed at eight special secondary schools for children with profound and multiple learning difficulties in England, participated in the research. They narrated their experiences, which were consequently subject to phenomenological hermeneutic analysis. All the teachers displayed a high degree of individuality and conceptualised their work not straightforwardly as teaching the espoused curriculum, but rather as they themselves being the ‘curriculum‐in‐action’, with their practice lying alongside and only obliquely cognisant of their school's explicit provision. The narratives disclosed ongoing conflict with school leaders being interpreted as a threat to their specific pedagogic practices as well as their professionalism. The research raises questions about the ability of the ‘special curriculum’ to be truly responsive to pupils' needs within this complex pedagogical environment.     

新中国课程政策的历史回顾与理论思考

课程政策的发展变化是通过一系列课程政策载体来体现的，因此，分析新中国课程政策的最直接和显而易见的方式，就是分析课程政策具体而有形的载体－课程计划、课程标准和教科书。在此基础上，从学理的角度揭示出来的课程政策的核心问题主要有：课程权力的集中与分散、课程权力分配的合情与合理和课程权力的分离与共享。提出的新的研究视角是：政治视角、推行的手段视角、成本与收益视角以及文化视解等。它们共同为完善课程政策及其研究奠定了良好的基础。     

A Mothers Thoughts on Bullying,Failure and One Special Needs Child

In Hong Kong the secondary school curriculum has long been criticized for its heavy emphasis on academic performance and examination-oriented approaches to subject learning. As a consequence, pupils in Hong Kong only possess knowledge and skills that could carry them through examinations. They lack qualities and dispositions as well as related skills and understandings which will help them to make sense of this complicated society. It is noted that time has come for a reflection of the secondary curriculum and this article argues for the introduction of Personal and Social Education in secondary schools in Hong Kong which can bring relevance, breath, and balance to the curriculum from three aspects – aims of education, change in society, and nature of work.     

Understanding the complexity of teacher interaction in a teacher professional learning community

In this study, we examine a professional learning community of primary school teachers developing a joint school-based curriculum for science and technology (S&T) education. Team meetings were observed over the course of one school year and the participating teachers and school head were interviewed. An essential factor in the team’s collaboration was its ability to achieve synthesis, that is, the extent to which the teachers were able to abstract from concrete experiences in S&T education in order to formulate and develop a shared vision and curriculum. They exchanged many examples and were able to create a shared idea highlighting critical elements in their approach to teaching this school subject. However, the teachers experienced difficulties in determining the level at which a school-based curriculum should be defined. The outcomes of this team’s collaboration are discussed in terms of leadership and the aims of the S&T innovation.     

关于大学课程建设目的和课程视野的思考

课程建设是提高高等教育质量的核心环节,是教育教学改革的最终落脚点.当前大学课程建设面临诸多的困难与挑战,对此应采取切实有效的策略.其内容包括：以更为明确的“课程目的”指导课程建设;将课程建设从“教师”立场转向“学生”立场;努力提升教师课程建设的能力和水平;让学生成为课程建设的积极力量;将社会需要作为课程建设的直接依据;以更加开放的课程视野推进课程建设;以新的概念来定义和建设教师队伍.     

义务教育数学课程标准修订过程与主要内容

义务教育数学课程标准2001年实施以来,取得明显成效,也发现一些问题。2005年开始修订义务教育数学课程标准。修订组在广泛调查研究,征求多方面意见的基础上,对标准进行了认真修订。修订后的标准在体例与结构上略有调整,增加了目标行为动词的解释,三个学段统一表述实施建议,案例作为附录后移;理念与目标的表述更加清晰;三个学段的课程内容做了一些调整,内容总量基本未变,具体内容和要求几个学段有不同程度调整。数学课程标准的修订是课程改革十年经验总结的结果,对于义务教育阶段数学课程与教学改革将产生重要影响。     

基于课程与教学目标的作业设计研究

根据教学发展历程,我国的作业设计主要有三种类型:教师中心的作业设计、教材中心的作业设计和基于课程和教学目标的作业设计。为了减少作业的随意性,增加有效性,应该从基于教师自身经验或教科书的作业设计,走向基于课程和教学目标的作业设计,即课程和教学目标是作业目标来源,作业评价和批改设计先于作业设计,指向学生学习能力和效果。基于课程和教学目标的作业设计,要求教师能够像专家一样,结合课程标准、教材、教学进度与内容进行整体地考量。这种作业模式要从理想走向现实必须完善学科课程标准,提高教师作业设计能力。     

缄默知识视阈下初等教育专业实践课程体系的构建探索

课程体系的建立必须以人才培养的知识结构为基础。就教师的知识结构而言,有显性知识,也有缄默知识,它们在教师的教育教学活动中都发挥着重要作用。丰富的实践教学活动是获得缄默知识的有效途径。为此,我们构建了由社会实践、课堂教学实践或渗透式课堂教学实践、教育实习、科研能力训练和课外教育活动实践等组成的实践课程体系,建立了协同化的实践教学管理体制,并改革实践教学评价模式,凸显评价的发展功能,以达到促进学生职业能力发展,提高就业竞争力的目的。     

The Introduction of Personal and Social Education in Secondary Schools in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong the secondary school curriculum has long been criticized for its heavy emphasis on academic performance and examination-oriented approaches to subject learning. As a consequence, pupils in Hong Kong only possess knowledge and skills that could carry them through examinations. They lack qualities and dispositions as well as related skills and understandings which will help them to make sense of this complicated society. It is noted that time has come for a reflection of the secondary curriculum and this article argues for the introduction of Personal and Social Education in secondary schools in Hong Kong which can bring relevance, breath, and balance to the curriculum from three aspects – aims of education, change in society, and nature of work.