UNIT 7-INCLUSIVE CURRICULUM)

In order to ensure that no one is left behind, education must be inclusive. For education to be inclusive, every student should have an equal chance to participate in the educational process. The idea behind inclusive education is that students with disabilities shouldn't have to rely solely on specialized services in order to take advantage of educational opportunities, projects, and processes that are typically available to everyone. While allowing each member to take part in group activities, integrity is maintained. This shows that adjustments are being made that take into account all people, not just those who belong to certain groups or have unique abilities, limits, or requirements.

The inclusion method, also known as the key strategy, can be used to reach out to all children and encourage their learning. We had an interesting activity about chocolate where every individual had created very interesting memes, Poems, funny ads and a business scheme about Chocolate. This demonstrated that when designing a curriculum, different elements of curriculum design must be considered, as even a simple chocolate can be learned in so many different ways, and a complex human being may be able to learn in even more ways. I also learned about differentiated instructions through a group activity that demonstrated different methods of instruction. For different forms of instruction, we did different activities such as posters, role play, illustrations, translation and summarizer etc. So, in History subject, we have various topic that needs to incorporate role play, translation and etc, so in future in order to cater for the needs of the students, differentiated instructions are very crucial. Overall I enjoyed learning this unit as we were engaged most of the time.

I Drew this during the activity, my favourite chocolate

Individual creativity sent in CUS Telegram group.

I also enjoyed learning about the Universal Design for Learning. UDL means developing a flexible learning environment. It is all about meeting the needs of all students. 

UNIT 6 - CURRICULUM DESIGN

The understanding of how a curriculum is truly curated was the main goal of this course. Curriculum design, according to Barlow et al. (1984), is primarily concerned with questions like what to include in the curriculum and how to present it so that it may be applied successfully. It can be considered in a variety of contexts. There are seven different types of curriculum designs: subject-centred, learner-centred, problem-centred, balanced, integrated, and board-field. We were split up into groups to talk about a certain aspect of curriculum design for this.

Most interesting: Since it focuses on preparing children for their future, I appreciated learning about balanced and child-centred curriculum design.

Balance Curriculum Design 

Child-Centered Design

Both of these curriculum designs put a strong emphasis on competency-based education and take a variety of learners into account. Learning about the core curriculum was also interesting to me. A core curriculum is a group of common courses that are required of all undergraduates and are thought to be essential for students' general education, regardless of their choice of major. One of its many fascinating elements was how the core curriculum contributes to addressing social concerns in society. In addition, the subject matter is chosen in accordance with everyday events. Additionally, it seeks to maximize student participation. Additionally, it emphasizes the introduction of interactive teaching and learning strategies to improve a favourable environment.

The learner's requirements want, and aspirations are taken into account in the learner-centred design, which is the least interesting. It also has a few significant flaws, like the possibility that learners' interests and requirements are not legitimate. Additionally, it might not reflect the fundamental learning abilities and could end up being expensive because it calls for resources that are available to each individual.

UNIT 5 -ELEMENTS OF CURRICULUM

We first learned about curricular components including goals, objectives, and outcomes in Unit 5. Given that they serve as the foundation of the teaching and learning paradigm, it is crucial that we examine each of these components in depth. Through demanding and cooperative group work over the course of a week, members of various groups exchanged their perspectives on the curriculum's components. We were able to learn more about the curriculum's components, differentiate between them, and understand how they are used in the Bhutanese educational system by responding to nine questions about them. As we worked on the curriculum's components, I was reassured to learn that each curriculum had distinct goals that cascade into the creation of goals and objectives.

In our own specialized subject, we were asked to discuss the elements of the curriculum, where we went through the History curriculum and we presented it to the whole class. Different groups had shown their own creativity to showcase the elements of the curriculum.

Elements of the curriculum presented by the various groups.

UNIT 4 -Curriculum Development in Models

 

Having researched and gained knowledge of the foundations of and influences on curriculum. Next, we covered curriculum design models. It discussed various models of curriculum design, including Tyler's, Wheeler's, Kerr's, objective models, process models, and models for designing a curriculum for a school. Decker Walker's Naturalistic model, which really illustrates the procedure that takes place throughout curriculum building, was also covered.

I considered Hildy Taba's methodology to be adequate and logical in terms of curriculum design. Some of its distinctive characteristics include an emphasis on students' needs, an inductive method, and a requirement that only instructors construct the curriculum because they have firsthand knowledge of events in the classroom. It helped me realize how crucial it is to put kids' needs first while developing any program. The majority of curricula, on the other hand, are currently created purely for aesthetic purposes without an adequate teacher or student input. It also caused me to consider how crucial it is for those of us who will soon be teachers to comprehend and pay attention when developing a curriculum.

 

The Bruner Spiral Curriculum model was the least engaging of all the lessons. The idea behind Bruner's spiral curriculum was a little unclear in terms of prior knowledge, as without prior information there might not have even been a spiral curriculum, to begin with. Additionally, this model takes a lot of effort and is particularly irrelevant for short courses.

UNIT 3- Bases of Curriculum

 

We have gained knowledge of the bases of the curriculum from unit III of the curriculum studies module. The fact that there are numerous curriculum pillars and pillars in the educational system of Bhutan surprises me greatly. However, a few fundamentals still need to be taught and introduced to the curriculum right away. The four pillars of the curriculum—social factors, theories of human development, nature of learning and learning styles, and nature of knowledge implemented by future curriculum planners or us teachers will result in competent and engaged students. I have provided the following basic curricular information:

An accurate belief that is supported by facts, information and abilities gained via observations and experiences is called knowledge. Knowledge can be obtained from sense experience, reason, authority, intuition, revelation, and faith, among other things. There are various varieties of knowledge. 1. The practice of classifying anything or someone into a certain group or system based on qualities is known as classification. It helps to categorize the learner's interests and requirements and contributes to the development of a curriculum that offers a better knowledge of links and interconnections between various things. 2. A generalization is a claim that describes the connections between or among ideas. It creates larger, more thorough explanations for the observed event. 3. Laws: When we start to see patterns in the way things happen, that is when we start to understand the laws. 4. A theory is a claim that details specific correlations between variables to explain a certain aspect of a phenomenon. After multiple analyses, it helps to relate, explain, and anticipate a greater variety of experimental and observational findings most straightforwardly and effectively. 5. Explanation is the analysis of natural phenomena and processes. Through the use of logic, theories, events, and any processes can be justified or evaluated.

A person's preferred method of acquiring, processing, and retaining knowledge is referred to as their learning style. For instance, individuals exhibit distinctive learning behaviours at school or college, and there is always evidence of individual differences among the students because they all have diverse skill sets. Thus, a person's method of learning is their learning style. The various learning styles are as follows:

1. Visual learners: People that learn best visually prefer visual cues like charts, diagrams, photos, movies, body language, and facial expressions.

2. Auditory or musical learners: These individuals can learn through the use of sound or audio.

3. Kinaesthetic learners are those who learn best through movement, material contact, and hands-on activities. actively investigate their surroundings in the physical sense.

4. Read/write learners are those who possess the capacity to analyze information and produce works that combine oral and written language, such as memos, speeches, and books. The repetition of printed words aids in learning.

5. Intrapersonal learners appreciate working and learning without the company of other students.

6. Interpersonal learner: Students love collaborating with others and developing their ideas.

7. Naturalist Learner: Students can recognize and differentiate between various kinds of plants, animals, and weather patterns that can be found in the natural world.

8. Logical learners (mathematical learning style) are capable of making connections between ideas, formulating equations and proofs, doing computations, and solving abstract problems.

Teachers should use a variety of combinations of experience, reflection, conceptualization, and experimentation while designing their instructional techniques to connect with all learning preferences. A wide range of experiential components, including sound, music, pictures, movement, experience, and even talking, can be used by teachers in the classroom.

The learner will be able to absorb knowledge in a way that best suits how they learn and remember it by utilizing a range of instructional techniques, including the utilization of visual, aural, and kinesthetic activities. To study effectively, students must be aware of their preferred learning styles because they can make learning more interesting, engaging, and effortless. Knowing one's learning style will help students absorb material more readily, make studying pleasurable, and have greater confidence in their ability to learn. Knowing the needs of different learners requires an understanding of their learning styles. It may be simpler to design, alter, and construct curricula and more effective educational programs. Different learning styles should be emphasized in the curriculum. Knowing the various learning preferences will motivate curriculum creators to adapt and build the curriculum based on the learner's interests. The creator of the curriculum must create suitable content, promotes student participation, and meets the needs of the students.

Additionally, theories such as Kohl Berg and Gilligan, Jean Piaget, and Erik Erikson's theory were taught to us. These theories should be used as a basis for curriculum planning since they describe the capacities and skills of various age groups of children. How children learn morality and reasoning is the main topic of Kohlberg's theory of moral development. It aids kids in developing the highest moral standards possible so they can grow up to be morally upright adults. Although some feminist psychologists have criticized Giligan's views for treating women's voices as a single homogenous thing and ignoring the diversity of women based on age, class, colour, and other aspects, these concepts were ground-breaking. According to Jean Piaget's thesis, the curriculum should be designed with the child's age and developmental stage in mind. Once more, teachers must work extra hard to provide in-class activities for individuals and small groups as opposed to the entire class. Assessments should be centred on each student's progress rather than on the typical expectations of their age-group peers. According to Erikson's Theory, the curriculum should be tailored to the child's developmental stage, concentrating on the requirements of that stage.

As future educators or curriculum designers, it is our responsibility to develop curricula that incorporate knowledge of theories of human development. For example, we must frame the curriculum to match students' developmental stages, needs of diverse learners, inclusive education, use of the appropriate vocabulary according to grade level, appropriate curriculum for different ages, use of learning styles, learner's abilities, content that is precise and authentic, ways of learning pace, and use of visual aids. The learning styles, nature of the knowledge, teaching methodologies, theories of human development, curriculum contents, assessment methods, and learning environment are the most crucial needs in curriculum creation.

Additionally, we studied societal forces. The ten social forces—increasing ethnic and cultural diversity, environment, shifting morals and values, family, microelectronics revolution, shifting nature of work, equal rights, crime and violence, lack of meaning and purposes, and global interdependence—must be incorporated into curriculum planning or classroom instruction. We must give the pupils a lesson on social forces that affect individuals on a personal level, such as career, citizenship, and self-fulfilment. As teachers, we must again base our lessons on the strength of social forces like humanity, culture, socialization and culture, subculture, and cultural pluralism. As a result, the pupils will become competent and possess the capacity for critical thought.

Even future curricula must be planned in light of the extent of social forces because, if they are, students will value, respect, and have favourable attitudes toward culture. Even educators must impart to their diverse students the value and respect of many cultures. Teachers shouldn't belittle different cultures. Teachers must treat all students equally.
Then and only then does it provide room for students to participate and take an active role in their education. In my opinion, if teachers and curriculum developers want their pupils to be internationally competitive, they should consider all of the curriculum's foundational elements.

Most  interested: The two topics that piqued my curiosity the most were learning style and nature of learning. Due to the fact that it discusses how to teach this pupil and how to recognize the many sorts of learners. I was once more made aware of the variety of students in each lesson. I discovered that some students learn best by hearing their teachers speak or by listening to audio recordings, while others learn best by viewing images and watching videos. While others like to learn through games or hands-on experience. I want to use the necessary teaching techniques in the future in order to give my pupils the best possible learning experiences.

Less interesting or learned: I found levels of social forces to be the least interesting due to their dynamic nature, which will continue to change in accordance with circumstances. However, I have personally observed that the Bhutanese curriculum falls behind in terms of staying current with events in and across the world. Because the job and the applicant are not a good fit, the number of unemployment cases is increasing. Bhutanese curriculum developers must adapt to the changing times and provide updated curricula for the benefit of the country's future productive leaders because the curriculum becomes outdated in about a year.

UNIT 2- Educational Philosophy

Unit two was on Educational Philosophy.

“Formal education teaches how to stand, but to see the rainbow you must come out and walk many steps on your own.”
― Amit Ray, Nonviolence: The Transforming Power

With the help of my tutor and my peers, I successfully finished the second unit for curriculum studies. I gain knowledge, skills, and values from the activities and lessons in this unit, all of which are crucial components of learning. I began to understand the significance of cooperative learning as a teaching strategy because learning often occurs through collaboration, communication, and environmental exploration. We are given plenty of chances to figure out for ourselves how to make learning meaningful. I was rather shocked to see that the curriculum for kids is designed using particular ideas.

In class, we learnt about the four philosophies of Education.

I learned that the fundamental building blocks of one's own teaching and learning are respectful, supportive interactions between teachers and students. The curriculum is developed in response to student interest, instructor observation, and life events affecting the students and their families. The diversity of the students, teachers, and families in a classroom is reflected, valued, and expanded upon in our curriculum. We have the ability to make important decisions about how to use the resources and activities throughout the day and offer a chance to engage in groups so that we may share our experiences with other participants. The environment and activities in the classroom were purposefully planned by my teacher to give us a place to be inspired to study, discover, and solve problems, which I felt was the true spirit of the teaching and learning process.

The lesson about inquiry-based learning that I took away from this unit was the most intriguing. The Gross National Happiness (GNH)-infused curriculum allowed us the opportunity to conduct interviews with respondents, which I found to be valuable and decided to use when I go to the real world. Through interviews, I developed my sociability abilities and confidence level, both of which are crucial for success in life. In addition, I discovered how to use technology in learning and teaching, such as through video editions (Blended classroom). I discovered from my friend's presentation that GNH principles are now reinforced in all school activities, negating the need for value education programs.

The key takeaways from the group presentation include the following: GNH, or global non-governmental organization, or holistic development, aims to transform all schools through a focus on innovation and improvement in school leadership and management practices, green schools for green Bhutan (physical and psychosocial ambience), curriculum focus on strengthening teaching and learning as well as classroom management, continuous and holistic assessment, and co-curricular activities for wholesome development. In my perspective, the majority of students still do not properly get the importance of GNH. The majority of pupils appear to be engaged in undesirable habits based on their behaviours and personalities. I studied various educational theories and how GNH is incorporated into the Bhutanese curriculum, to put it briefly.

UNIT 1- Conception of Curriculum

I had a hazy understanding of the curriculum and its function in the educational system when I initially started learning the Curriculum Studies subject. I was shocked to learn that the depth of the curriculum studies issue was greater than I had anticipated. We investigated the various conceptualizations of curriculum, including humanistic conceptions, social reconstructionist conceptions, technical conceptions, cognitive process conceptions, academic subject conceptions, eclectic conceptions, and curriculum as a cunning tactic. We also talked about many kinds of curriculum, including hidden curricula, taught curriculum, Prescribed curriculum and learned curriculum. I had the chance to learn about the curriculum in general, as well as its various ideas and varieties, while I was a student teacher.

I was able to reconsider my initial opinions on the curriculum. I have always believed that teachers are exclusively knowledgeable in their specific profession. that regulating the curriculum is the responsibility of the experts and decision-makers. However, when I listened to my classmates' presentations on their ideas for the curriculum. I came to see the value of teachers as a resource for curriculum-related reforms or problems. I valued technological conception over all other conceptions. The use of information and communication technology (ICT) tools in the classroom is required by this technological conception. It can improve students' learning using visual aids, simulations, and interactive web resources. It has become clear that using technology is essential as the globe develops quickly.

Therefore, in my opinion, teachers should incorporate ICT tools to help students become more technology-driven members of society. This idea may also contribute to the advancement of competency-based education in the field of History. I also had considerable difficulty understanding the Null Curriculum, one of the sorts of curricula, despite the interactive presentations. It is described as a curriculum when teachers skip over a subject and pupils assume it is not significant to their lives or their education. It seemed to me to be rather contradictory and extremely worrying for the teaching-learning process. This serves as a timely reminder to prospective teachers to be aware of learning that occurs outside of the classroom. I would utilize the information to distinguish between different perspectives and curricula in light of what I already know about this subject. I believe it is essential for teachers to be knowledgeable about all the ideas and justifications used to develop the curriculum.