| Professional Development Articles
Curriculum Development
Developing curriculum for an art program
is one of the best ways for you to grow professionally.
Research and Analysis
In order to develop a curriculum in art
at any grade level, some research and analysis must take place
prior to the development. Some things that must be determined
during the research and analysis stage are:
- national standards
- state standards
- goals for student knowledge at the end of the course
- district or school objectives for the course
- prerequisites of the course
- forms of assessment being used
Understanding each of these aspects will
help you write a stronger curriculum.
The Team
Curriculum development is often done by
a team of art educators. It is helpful for the leader of the
group to provide some team-building skills and to set some
ground rules at the beginning of the development process.
One of the most effective methods of working with groups is
described in “The Seven Norms of Collaborative Work”
from The Adaptive School: Developing and Facilitating
Collaborative Groups, by Robert Garmston and Bruce Wellman.
The seven norms are as follows:
- Pausing: allow think time
- Paraphrasing: restating for understanding
- Probing: gently asking for more information
- Putting ideas on the table: suggestions are put out as
“possible” solutions
- Paying attention to self and others: watch members for
reactions, be aware of how you sound and are perceived
- Presuming positive intentions: believing that everyone
means well
- Pursuing a balance between advocacy and inquiry: as much
as we push our own desires, we also need to ask about others
While this may seem like an overly detailed
exercise, it adds to your professional development and is
critical in helping educators learn to work effectively in
diverse groups.
The Work
Begin the writing process by presenting
general concepts and key questions. As your team analyzes
these concepts and begins to build a framework for what each
course will need to include for students to achieve the goals
of the course, you will be growing professionally on a number
of levels. The process enables educators to:
- hone teamwork skills
- identify their goals
- align the curriculum with goals and standards
- set objectives
- develop types of assessment
- articulate skills and processes to be taught
Curriculum development also ensures
that sequential learning and reteaching techniques are included
in a course. The process is designed to create strong curricula,
but it also develops outstanding educators.
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