Curriculum refers to the compilation of topics and subjects schools teach through planned classes throughout the academic year. It establishes what students should know and which skills they must master by the end of the learning period.
Curriculum design is not only about jotting down the subjects students should study or compiling all the concepts students must master. It is a vast area and lays a foundation of lessons taught in classrooms.
Schooling fosters healthy and responsible behavior in young students while they are on the way to adulthood. Thus, a curriculum should see the big picture and support students in gaining soft skills, including effective communication, critical thinking, problem-solving, and technical competencies. Listed below are some steps teachers can employ to develop an engaging curriculum.
Step 1: Establish the intent of your curriculum
Start the process by establishing the goals of your curriculum. It gives you a good idea of the learning outcomes and helps you begin the process. Your school’s goals, vision, mission, and values should be apparent in your curriculum.
Set out principles and purpose of the curriculum. Educational institutes must have a clear idea of what they want students to learn and how they see them prepared for subsequent phases of their lives. Additionally, schools must be aware of the intent behind the principles.
Curriculum designing requires a deep understanding of the school’s values and students’ requirements. Typically, experienced professionals holding a C&I master’s in leadership program work with teachers and help them design an effective curriculum and practical instruction methods. This ensures course objectives are aligned with students’ personal goals, educational goals, and professional requirements.
Step 2: Add extracurricular activities
An engaging curriculum does not only include academics and theoretical knowledge. Holistic learning involves extracurricular activities to equip students with real-life skills.
Consider what you plan to offer in extracurricular activities during the whole session. These activities could include sorts, workshops, projects, and other forms of experimental learning to enhance the overall learning experience.
Many students are fond of extracurricular endeavors. Plus, experiential learning helps them retain knowledge for a longer duration.
Step 3: Add quality content
Analyze and classify subjects according to what and when you want to teach. Once you have set out the ‘what’ and ‘when’ of your content, decide how to teach these concepts. While designing a curriculum, you should not have any ambiguity about why you include specific topics or ideas.
It would help to break the curriculum content into smaller, digestible parts. This way, students will be able to learn better and retain more information. After laying down all the necessary details, curate your content by carefully sequencing and classifying different components. The sequence should have easy concepts at the beginning of a session and gradually move towards complex ones.
Step 4: Plan the delivery of lessons
Designing an engaging curriculum must also include the delivery of course material. Ensure your delivery methods are engaging so that students can learn better. You can incorporate unique learning techniques such as project-based learning, role-play, videos, guest lectures, etc. Also, incorporate technology for a more exciting experience.
Adding different content delivery methods will ensure you create an environment inclusive of different learning needs. Not all students are the same. Therefore, you must be mindful of everyone’s needs. You’ll ensure that the class learns together by providing different delivery methods.
Step 5: Ensure Resources are Available
School resources are an integral aspect of delivering lessons. Poor quality or inadequate resources can underwhelm your curriculum quality and confuse students. Ensure your educational institute can arrange resources required for your curriculum delivery.
Discuss with a board of directors or other people involved and convince them to provide students with high-quality and appropriate resources. Remember, inappropriate resources will undermine your curriculum’s quality and not yield desired outcomes.
Step 6: Evaluate
The last step of designing a curriculum development is to review and evaluate. A curriculum is not written in stone; therefore, you can edit it if needed. You must regularly review and reflect on teaching and learning to determine areas that need improvement and work on them to turn them into strengths.
Regular evaluations help improve the school’s culture and bring positive change. Include continual professional development for staff as it helps them stay abreast with the recent developments in education.
Conclusion
An engaging curriculum is the basis of positive school culture as it establishes a productive learning environment. Understanding the school’s vision and learning outcomes can help teachers align the curriculum and course content accordingly. This article mentions a few tips to help education leaders and teachers design an engaging curriculum. Providing students with a holistic learning experience will ensure better learning outcomes and prepare them for the future workplace.
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