Session Information
03 SES 01A, Curriculum Implementation
Paper Session
Time:
2008-09-10
09:15-10:45
Room:
B2 216
Chair:
Jan van den Akker
Contribution
In recent years, Turkey has undergone reforms in educational system. These reforms aim to shift the philosophy of education from a traditional and mainly teacher-centered perspective to a student-centered, daily life-related and mainly constructivist perspective. Role of teachers, one of the important elements in teaching and learning process, is modified by the new science and technology curriculum in Turkey. The philosophy of the new curriculum is different from other applied curriculum. That is why the perception of teachers’ role changes as any other issue in the curriculum. The philosophy of new science and technology curriculum adopts constructivism that is trend educational philosophy nowadays. Almost all of the courses’ curriculums at elementary and secondary levels have been changed. As can be foreseen, such a shift and these changes require drastic changes in role of teachers, students, parents and society as well as in the nature of learning environments. This study focus on only one dimension of the possible changes: changes in the role of teachers by the new elementary (6th, 7th, and 8th grades) science and technology curriculum. Whatever changes you do in an educational system or in a curriculum of a course, unless the teacher; in other words the implementer, applies it in the desired way, these changes would not be completed or achieved (Ornstein & Hunkins, 1998). In previous curricula teacher is the source of knowledge and responsible for transmission of information from him/her to students. However by the new science and technology curriculum, learning becomes a process implying togetherness of teacher and students. The teacher becomes a guide who helps students on their own learning
The aim of this phenomenological study is to determine how the role of teacher changes in accord with the modification of curriculum by not only investigating the content of the new curriculum and other previous curricula but also interviewing with teachers and students who experience new curriculum and the previous curriculum, and observing lessons. Moreover sub-aim of this study is to investigate how the practice and theory overlap.
The results of the study will indicate that to what degree the aimed modifications in the role of the teacher are achieved. Results will enlighten the policy makers, teacher, administers, academicians about what should be done to improve the implementation of the curriculum. Moreover, the results will show some critical points that should be considered while implicating teachers in the development and implementation of a new curriculum.
Method
This phenomenological study aims to determine how the role of teacher changes by the modification of curriculum. The new curriculum and previous curricula are analyzed, teachers and students experienced new and previous curriculum are interviewed, and lessons are observed. The semi-structured interview with teachers and students, and observation of classes are conducted. The main reason for observation is not to dismiss the effects of teachers’ supportive expressions reflected to interviews. The observations are completed before interviews in order not to affect teachers’ behavior and tasks during the interviewing. The analyses made by two independent researchers will show to what degree the role of teacher expected by curriculum match with the practical one.
Expected Outcomes
The data of pilot study shows that the role of teacher changes by means of the new science and technology curriculum. The main reform was made by changing the perception of teachers in classes. Participant teachers agree that not only their functions in class changes but also the load, and works outside of class changes. Teachers claim that they have to spend time for activity preparation that the new curriculum emphasizes. One of teachers claims that “teachers are responsible for preparing activities, controlling students during activity sessions, and not leading students lost within activities.”
Teachers declare that their function inside class is revised in terms of division of labor. Teachers emphasizes that they are to be guide, friend, helper, supporter in the process of learning. That is why they need to be minds and hands on active. What the most difficult aspect of new role of teachers is the classroom management issue according to teachers.
To sum up, teachers from elementary schools declare that the perception of teacher, function, load, and role of teacher changes through the new science and technology curriculum. Our study will investigate the findings of pilot study deeply with interviews and observations.
References
Ornstein, A. C., & Hunkins, F. P. (1998). Curriculum: Foundations, principles, and issues (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon
Search the ECER Programme
- Search for keywords and phrases in "Text Search"
- Restrict in which part of the abstracts to search in "Where to search"
- Search for authors and in the respective field.
- For planning your conference attendance you may want to use the conference app, which will be issued some weeks before the conference
- If you are a session chair, best look up your chairing duties in the conference system (Conftool) or the app.