In the race to get kids to the finish line,

let's not bypass their developmental needs.

Thomas Armstrong

The curriculum superhighway is discarded in response to the kinds of

built across today's educa- carving an asphalt swath through stimulation the child does or doesn't
tion landscape. It has been

A
several distinct areas of the human receive.
under construction for development countryside, threatening At this time of life, it makes the most
superhighway
some is being
time. Initially, this to damage or destroy their delicate sense to encourage open-ended engage-
project focused on connecting kinder- ecosystems. Let's consider some of the ment with the world in an environment
garten to the elementary grades. Gradu- eco-disasters likely to ensue from this like that of Habibi's Hutch, a preschool
ally, it has broadened its vision until now multi-billion-dollar road project. in Austin, Texas, that calls itself a
it extends from preschool to graduate "natural childlife preserve." Children
school.' All the byways, narrow routes,
spend most of their day playing on
and winding paths that have traditionally
swing sets, in sand piles, in playhouses,
filled the journey from early childhood to
early adulthood are now being "aligned"
Human beings travel and with art materials and toys. They
perform their own plays and participate
so that the curriculum (a Latin word through different in a cooking class (Osborne, 2007). The
meaning "a lap around a racetrack") can
preschool's Web site (http://habibishutch
move along at breakneck speed. stages of life, each .cornaphilosophyhtml) explains, "Our
So far, this project has received the
kids leave the Hutch with so much
approbation of most educators and
policymakers. Such a colossal under-
with its own more than their ABCs and 123s. They
all leave with a sense of themselves
taking, however, extracts a great cost. requirements for and a wonder and drive to know
more about themselves and their
An Environmental Impact Report
Educators today are almost entirely
optimal growth. surroundings."
This approach to early childhood
engaged in academic achievement
education is a good example of a devel-
discourse (Armstrong, 2006). The topics opmentally appropriate program.
of this discourse-test scores, bench- Early Childhood Unfortunately, the curriculum super-
marks, data, accountability, and In early childhood, the developmental highway is delivering academic goods
adequate yearly progress-are the bull- bottom line is play. When I say play, I'm and materials as well as formal teaching
dozers, backhoes, cement mixers, and not talking about playing checkers or lessons from the higher grades down to
asphalt pavers that are constructing the soccer; I'm referring to open-ended play the preschool level-a trend that could
curriculum superhighway A more in a rich, multimodal environment, with ultimately destroy this precious ecology.
appropriate focus of educators' dialogue supportive facilitators and a minimum
would be human development discourse, of adult interference. Between the ages Middle Childhood
which recognizes that human beings of 2 and 6, children's brains go through In middle childhood, the developmental
travel through different stages of life, an incredible process of development. bottom line is learning how the world
each with its own requirements for Metabolism is twice that of an adult, works. Naturally, children of all ages are
optimal growth. and brain connections are formed or constantly learning about the world. But

16 EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP/MAY 2007

ASSOCIATION FOR SUPERVISION AND CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT 17
from age 7 to 10, this need becomes ecosystem could eventually decay and to regard this newly acquired meta-
especially important. Kids are becoming disappear. cognitive capacity as merely an oppor-
a more significant part of the broader tunity to teach algebra and reading
society, and they want to understand the Early Adolescence comprehension. The components of the
rules of this more complex world. Their The developmental needs of early superhighway's infrastructure-tougher
brains have matured to the point where adolescence consist primarily of social, requirements, more homework, and
they can begin to learn the formal rules emotional, and metacognitive growth. harder tests-leave teachers little
of reading, writing, and math; but they Surges of testosterone at puberty swell chance to engage students' emotions,
also need to satisfy their insatiable the amygdala, especially in boys, gener- social needs, and metacognitive
curiosity by learning how governments ating strong emotions (Giedd et al., thinking in any substantial way The
work, how butterflies grow, how their 1996). For girls, estrogen levels appear resulting deterioration in this ecosystem
community developed, and countless to affect serotonin levels, leading to may lead to environmental hazards
other things. high rates of depression (Born, Shea, & such as gangs, violence, and mental
The "children's museum" model of Steiner, 2002). The curriculum needs to disorders.

th "in
al wol thr is no ote chil excl lik you In th milosoyasta

have pased thr ha nee bee ante chil excl lik you You ma beom a

Shkspae a.- Mihlneo a Betovn You have th caact fo anything.

*

Yes yo are a mavl"-PboCsl

learning, recommended by Howard reflect young adolescents' greater sensi- Late Adolescence
Gardner (1994) among others, is a good tivity to emotional and social issues. In late adolescence, the developmental
example of how we can preserve this For example, at Benjamin Franklin bottom line is preparing to live independ-
developmental ecology. "In a children's Middle School in Ridgewood, New ently in the real world. At this age, neural
museum," Gardner explains, "kids have Jersey, students read about the Warsaw pathways in the brain are becoming
an opportunity to work with very inter- ghetto and then discuss how they can increasingly sheathed, or myelinated, so
esting kinds of things, at their own combat injustices that they see in their that nerve impulses travel more
pace, in their own way, using the kinds own lives (Curtis, 2001). quickly-especially in the frontal lobes,
of intelligence which they're strong in." Just before puberty, children's brains which control planning and decision
In a unit developed by the Minnesota experience a surge in the growth of gray making (National Institute of Mental
Children's Museum, for example, 1st matter in the frontal, parietal, and Health, 2001). At this age, young
grade students spend six weeks temporal lobes, which may be related people in many states are legally
studying insects using the museum's to what Piaget called formal operational empowered to set up their own indi-
Insect Discovery Kit and then take a trip thinking-the ability to "think about vidual retirement accounts, drive a car,
to the museum's anthill exhibit (Associa- thinking." This new capacity represents marry, vote, and engage in other adult
tion of Children's Museums, 2003). an incredible resource, enabling young responsibilities. But in a typical high
Because schools today are spending teens to begin to reflect at a more school classroom, these same adoles-
more and more class time preparing abstract level-not only to gain cents have to raise their hand for
students for academic tests that are part perspective on their own emotional permission to go to the bathroom.
of the superhighway scheme (a project responses, but also to engage intellectu- At this stage of life, kids need less
aptly called "No Child Left Behind"), ally with such universal issues as justice classroom time and more time out in
students have fewer opportunities to and individual rights. the real world, in apprenticeships,
engage in a rich exploration of our Unfortunately, the project managers internships, job shadowing, career-
incredible world. As a result, this of the curriculum superhighway appear based work experiences, and other situ-

18 EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP/MAY 2007

ations in which they can experience component of how the world works.
themselves as incipient adults. The Literacy will develop best, however, not
traffic on the curriculum superhighway, with boring worksheets and sterile
however, is especially intense at this reading programs, but with reading and
point. High school students are deluged writing experiences that give students a
with pressures to pass high-stakes tests, chance to learn about all aspects of the
meet strict graduation requirements, world, from science to history to social
and take advanced courses that will relationships. In such programs,
prepare them for four-year academic students may read historical narratives,
colleges. Many of them aren't even guidebooks on science topics, and other
allowed to dip their toes into the reading materials (such as reference
currents of the real world, because to sources, Internet text, or high-quality
take this time would mean falling fiction) that whet their curiosity to find
behind their peers in an increasingly out more about the world. Likewise,
competitive society The curriculum they may take field notes on nature
superhighway's attack on this ecosystem hikes, write letters to people of influ-
may erode students' ability to think for ence, and create reports based on what
themselves, reflect on their futures, and they've discovered about their commu-
make responsible choices that mirror nity's history.
their own proclivities and interests. In middle school, literacy needs to
take place in the context of a young
Restoring a Human teen's social, emotional, and meta-
Development Curriculum cognitive growth. Journal writing, there-
Schools need to approach curriculum in fore, is developmentally more important
a way that is environmentally sensitive than book report writing. Reading mate-
to the ecologies of different develop- rial should include emotional themes
mental stages of life. Let's start with that speak to the adolescent's inner
literacy In early childhood, literacy turmoil. Teachers should assign collabo-
needs to take place in the context of rative and cooperative reading and
play According to developmental writing assignments to honor the social
psychologist David Elkind (2001), chil- needs of early adolescence. They need
dren aren't even cognitively ready to to teach students how to use meta-
learn formal reading and math skills cognitive strategies to monitor their
until they reach Piaget's operational own reading and writing habits.
stage of cognitive development around Finally, in high school, literacy needs
age 6 or 7. In early childhood, literacy to serve the interests of the student
should be just another part of the child's becoming an independent person in the
rich multisensory environment. A play- real world. Here, college preparation
house area, for example, should include reading lists are appropriate for some
books and magazines along with dolls students. But all students should learn
and furniture. If a child wants to play at more practical literacy skills, including
being mommy reading a story to baby, how to write a rtsum6, how to skim for
that's up to her (experts call this process essential information on the Internet,
emergent literacy). and how to develop a lifelong interest in
At the elementary school level, we reading as a hobby
can appropriately teach formal reading Math and science instruction should
and writing skills, because the symbol also evolve as children move through
systems of literacy are an important each developmental ecosystem. In early

ASSOCIATION FOR SUPERVISION AND CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT 19

childhood, math and science are an important components of person- Curtis, D. (2001, Spring). We're here to raise
integral part of daily play activities as building from the rubble of the super- kids. Edutopia, 8-9. Available: www
.edutopia.org/EdutopiaPDF/Spring01.pdf
kids build with blocks, examine insects, highway construction site and preserve
Elkind, D. (2001). Much too early Education
and dangle from the jungle gym. In the delicate ecologies that make up our Next, 1(2), 9-15.
elementary school, kids are develop- students' stages of human growth and Gardner, H. (1994). Reinventing our schools:
mentally ready to learn the formal development. By dismantling the A conversation with Howard Gardner
systems of mathematics and the use of curriculum superhighway, we can [Videotape]. Bloomington, IN: AIT & Phi
science to answer questions about the ensure that our students will not stress Delta Kappa.
Giedd, J. N., Vaituzis, A. C., Hamburger,
world, from why the sky is blue to how out in traffic jams, keel over from road S. D., Lange, N., Rajapakse, J. C., Kaysen,
a car works. fatigue, or be maimed or killed in colli- D., et al. (1996). Quantitative MRI of the
In middle school, math and science sions along the way By focusing on the temporal lobe, amygdala, and
become vehicles for exploring the whole child, we can prepare our hippocampus in normal human develop-
biology of life, the ultimate nature of the students to meet the challenges of the ment: Ages 4-18 years. Journal of Compar-
ative Neurology, 366(2), 223-230.
cosmos, the consequences of a nuclear real world in the years to come. M
National Institute of Mental Health. (2001).
war, and other emotionally laden and
thought-provoking topics. Students
need to work on high-interest, group-
oriented math and science projects (for Schools need to approach curriculum
example, preserving a bird habitat or
monitoring junk food habits) and in a way that is environmentally
communicate their findings to others
through the Internet, science fairs, and sensitive to the ecologies of different
other means.
At the high school level, students developmental stages of life.
need to study for preparatory exams in
math and science to help them apply for
college or technical schools. They also
1
need to learn the practical math and See, for example, the 2004 publication of Teenage brain: A work in progress (NIH
technical skills necessary for living inde- the California Alliance of PreK-18 Partner- Publication No. 01-4929). Washington,
ships, Raising Student Achievement Through DC: Department of Health and Human
pendently (for example, financial plan- Services. Available: www.nimh.nih.gov
Effective EducationPartnerships:Policy and
ning and using computer software) and Practice (available at www.ced.csulb.edu /Publicat/teenbrain.cfm
develop the science and math literacy /Califomia-alliance/documents/Alliance Osborne, C. (2007, January 22). South
necessary to vote intelligently on such Report-printversion.pdf). Austin preschool doesn't make children
issues as taxation, global warming, and learn their ABCs, Austin American-
Statesman. Available: www.statesman.com
the costs of war.
References /news/content/news/stories/local/0 1/22/22
A human development curriculum Armstrong, T. (2006). The best schools: How preschool.html
also extends beyond literacy, math, and human development researchshould inform
science to other subjects, including the educationalpractice. Alexandria, VA: Copyright © 2007 Thomas Armstrong
arts, physical education, social skills ASCD.
Association of Children's Museums. (2003,
training, and imaginative, moral, and May 2). Whether with public schools, child-
spiritual development. In far too many Thomas Armstrong (Thomas@thomas
care providers, or transit authorities,chil-
schools, these subjects have been dren's museums partner creatively with their armstrong.com; www.thomasarmstrong
crushed beneath the heavy weight of the communities [Online news release]. .com) is a speaker with more than 30
Available: www.childrensmuseums.org years of teaching experience from the
concrete (benchmarks), asphalt (stan-
/press_releases/5 2 03.htm primary through the doctoral level. He is
dardized tests), and steel (adequate Born, L., Shea, A., & Steiner, M. (2002). The the author of 13 books, including The
yearly progress) that make up the bulk roots of depression in adolescent girls: Is Best Schools: How Human Development
of the curriculum superhighway. menarche the key? Current Psychiatry Research Should Inform Educational
As educators, we need to rescue these Reports, 4, 449-460. Practice(ASCD, 2006).

20 EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP/MAY 2007

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION

TITLE: The Curriculum Superhighway

SOURCE: Educational Leadership 64 no8 My 2007
PAGE(S): 16-20

The magazine publisher is the copyright holder of this article and it

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