1.

Historical Foundations

Where is the curriculum development coming from? The historical foundations

will show to us the chronological development along a timeline. Reading
materials would tell us that curriculum development started when Franklin Bobbit
(1876-1965) wrote the book “The Curriculum” Let us see how each one
contributed to curriculum development during their own time. Here are eight
among the many, we consider to have great contribution.

Persons Contributions
Franklin Bobbit (1876- 1956)  Started the curriculum
development movement
 Curriculum as a Science that
emphasizes on students’ needs
 Curriculum prepares learners
for adult life
 Objectives and activities
grouped together when task are
clarified
Werret Charters ( 1875-1952)  Like Bobbit, curriculum is
Science and emphasizes
students’ needs.
 Objectives and activities should
match. Subject matter or
content relates to objectives.
William Kilpatrick ( 1875 – 1952)  Curricula are purposeful
activities which are child-
centered.
 The purpose of the curriculum is
child development and growth.
The project method was
introduced by Kilpatrick where
teacher and student plan the
activities
 The curriculum develops social
relationships and small group
instruction.
Harold Rugg ( 1886-1960)  To Rugg, curriculum should
develop the whole child. It is
child-centered.
 With the statement of objectives
and related learning activities,
curriculum should produce
outcomes.
 Harold Rugg emphasized social
studies and the teacher plans
curriculum in advance.
Hollis Caswell (1901-1989)  Sees curriculum as organized
around social functions and
themes, organized knowledge
and learner’s interest.
 Caswell believes that
curriculum, instruction and
learning are interrelated.
 Curriculum is a set of
experiences. Subject matter is
 developed around social
functions and learners’
interests.
Ralph Tyler (1902-1994)  As one of the hallmarks of
curriculum, Tyler believes that
curriculum is a science and an
extension of school’s
philosophy. It is based on
students’ needs and interest.
 To Tyler, curriculum is always
related to instruction. Subject
matter is organized in terms of
knowledge, skills, and values.
 The process emphasizes
problem solving. The curriculum
aims to educate generalists and
not specialists.
Hilda Taba (1902-1967)  Contributed to the theoretical
and pedagogical foundations of
concepts development and
critical thinking in social studies
curriculum.
 Helped lay the foundation for
diverse student population.
Peter Oliva (1992-2012)  Described how curriculum
change its cooperative
endeavor
 Teachers and curriculum
specialist constitute the
professional core of planners
 Significant improvement through
group activity

2. Psychological Foundation of Curriculum

Psychology provides a basis to understand the teaching and learning process. It unifies
elements of the learning process. Questions which can be addressed by psychological
foundations of education are:

 How should curriculum be organized to enhance learning?

 What is the optimal level of students’ participation in learning the various
contents of the curriculum?

Association and Behaviorism

Cognitive Information Processing Theory

Persons Contribution
Ivan Pavlov  Father of the Classical
Conditioning Theory
 Thorndike’s S-R theory
 The key to learning is early years
of life, is to train them what you
want them to become
 S-R theory is a foundation of
learning practice called
 indoctrination

Edward Thorndike  Championed the Connectionism

Theory
 Proposed the three laws of
learning
- Law of readiness
- Law of exercise
- Law of effect
 Specific stimulus has specific
response
Robert Gagne  Proposed the Hierarchical
Learning theory
 Behavior is based on prerequisite
conditions
 Introduced tasking in the
formulation of objectives
Jean Piaget  Theories of Jean Piaget
 Describes cognitive development
in terms of stages from birth to
maturity
- Sensorimotor stage (0-2)
- Preoperational stage (2-7)
- Concrete Operations Stage
(7-11)
- Formal operations (11-
onwards)
-
KEY to LEARNING

 Assimilation (incorporation of new

experience)
 Accommodation (learning
modification and adaptation)
 Equilibration ( balance between
previous and later learning)
Lev Vigotsky Theory of Vigotsky
 Cultural transmission and
development
 Children could, as a result of their
interaction with society , actually
perform certain cognitive actions
prior to arriving at developmental
stage
 Learning precedes development
 Sociocultural theory

KEY to LEARNING

 Pedagogy creates learning

processes that lead to
development
 Child is an active agent in his or
her educational processes
Howard Gardner Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
 Humans have several different
ways of processing information
and these ways are relatively
independent of one another
 Eight intelligences: linguistic;
logical-mathematical; musical;
spatial; bodily kinesthetic;
interpersonal; intrapersonal; and
naturalistic
Daniel Goleman  Emotion contains the power to
affect action

Humanistic Psychology

Persons Contribution
Gestalt Gestalt Theory

 Learning is explained in terms of

“wholeness” of the problem
 Human beings do not respond to
isolated stimuli but to an
organization or pattern of stimuli

KEY to LEARNING

 Learning is complex and abstract

 Learners analyze the problem,
discriminate between essential and
non-essential data, and
 Learners will perceive something
in relation to the whole. What/how
they perceive is related to their
previous experiences.
Abraham Maslow Self-Actualization Theory
 Classic theory of human needs
 A child whose basic needs are not
met will not be interested in
acquiring knowledge of the world
 Put importance in human
emotions, based on love and trust

KEY to LEARNING

 Produce a healthy and happy

learner who can accomplish, grow
and actualize his or her human
self.
Carl Roggers Nondirective and Therapeutic Learning
 Established counselling
procedures and methods for
facilitating learning
 Children’s perceptions which are
highly individualistic, influence their
learning and behavior in class.
 KEY to LEARNING

 Curriculum concerned with

process, not product, personal
needs, not subject matter,
psychological meaning, not
cognitive scores.

Social Foundations of Curriculum

Person/s Contribution
Schools of Society  Society as a source of change
 Schools as agent of change
 Knowledge as an agent of change

John Dewey  Considered two fundamental

elements- school and society- to
be major topics needing attention
and reconstruction to encourage
experimental and plurality
Alvin Toffler  Wrote the book: Future Shock
 Believed that knowledge should
prepare students for the future
 Suggested that in the future,
parents might have the resources
to teach prescribed curriculum
from home as a result of
technology, not in spite of it. (home
schooling)
 Foresaw schools and students
worked creatively, collaboratively,
and independent of their age.