Curriculum

A curriculum is a plan for school.

It shows what you will learn. It helps you grow.

Long ago, the word meant a race.

This is because learning is like a course.

Some things are taught in class. Other things happen by being at school. You might learn how to act with others.

You can also learn outside of class. This can be in clubs or sports. These activities help you learn more.

Every school has its own plan. This plan helps students get ready for life.

A curriculum is the total experience of a student.

It is more than just a list of books. It is a plan for learning. This plan helps schools reach their goals. It can include lessons, tools, and ways to test students.

The word comes from a Latin word. It meant a race or a course.

This idea means that learning is a journey. One person used the term in 1576. Later, schools used it to describe a course of study.

There are many types of curricula. The explicit curriculum is what teachers plan to teach. The implicit curriculum comes from school culture. This includes how people act and treat each other. There is also a hidden curriculum. These are lessons learned in ways that are not planned.

Students also learn through extracurricular activities. These are things like sports or clubs. Some activities happen in the community. For example, a student might learn about nature in class. Then, they might join a nature club to learn more. All these parts help prepare students for life.

A curriculum is the total experience of a student in a learning process.

It is much more than just a list of books or subjects. A curriculum includes a planned sequence of instruction. It also includes how students use materials and resources. Educators use it to reach specific goals. It can even include ways to check if students have learned. Some people see it as a way to prepare students for life.

There are many different ways to look at a curriculum. The explicit curriculum includes the subjects that are planned for teaching. This covers the skills and knowledge a school wants students to gain. The implicit curriculum comes from the culture of the school. It includes the behaviors and attitudes found in that culture. There is also a hidden curriculum. These are lessons learned from how a school is organized. These lessons are not part of the official plan. They can include the relationships between students and teachers.

Students also participate in the excluded or extracurricular curriculum. These are activities that supplement academic learning. Examples include sports, academic clubs, or the performing arts. Some activities happen in the community instead of the classroom. For instance, a student might study nature in class. Later, they might join a group like the Boy Scouts to learn more. These community programs help expand on what was taught in school. They allow students to act on their new knowledge.

The word curriculum has a very old history. It began as a Latin word meaning "a race." It comes from the verb "currere," which means to run.

The first known use in education was in 1576. This was in a work by Petrus Ramus at the University of Paris. In 1582, the term appeared in records from the University of Leiden. By 1633, the University of Glasgow used the term in English. In 1824, it was defined as a fixed course of study. This helped describe the path students take through a college or school.

Making a curriculum often follows a specific set of steps. One way to do this involves seven stages. First, experts must diagnose what the students need. Next, they must create clear objectives. Then, they select the content to be taught. After that, they organize that content into a logical order. They also choose specific learning experiences for the students. Finally, they decide how to evaluate if the learning worked. This careful planning helps schools reach their big goals.

A curriculum represents the totality of student experiences within an educational process.

While many people think of a curriculum as just a list of subjects, it is much broader. It includes a planned sequence of instruction and the interaction between students and instructional content. It also involves the use of specific materials, resources, and processes for evaluating educational objectives. Essentially, a curriculum serves as a framework for how a school or educator intends to guide a learner toward specific goals.

Educators often view curriculum through several distinct lenses. The explicit curriculum consists of the formal subjects and the identified mission of the school. It covers the specific knowledge and skills that a school expects students to acquire. The implicit curriculum refers to lessons that arise from the school's culture, such as specific behaviors and attitudes. Within this, the hidden curriculum includes things students learn because of how the school is organized. These lessons are not overtly included in the planning, but they can involve the relationships formed between students and teachers.

Another category is the excluded or null curriculum, which includes topics or perspectives left out of the formal study. This often connects to the extracurricular curriculum. Extracurricular activities are school-sponsored programs intended to supplement academic life, such as sports, academic clubs, or the performing arts. Some activities are community-based and happen outside of school hours. For example, a student might learn about environmental conservation in a classroom. They might then join a community group like the Boy Scouts to act on that knowledge through a real project.

Creating an effective curriculum can follow a structured procedure. According to the scholar Smith, this process involves seven specific steps. First, developers must perform a diagnosis of needs. Second, they must formulate clear objectives. The third step is the selection of content, followed by the organization of that content. The fifth and sixth steps involve selecting and organizing learning experiences. Finally, developers must determine what to evaluate and choose the methods for doing so. This systematic approach ensures that the content and the experience work together to meet the goals.

Curricula can vary greatly in how they are managed. Some are tightly standardized, meaning they follow strict rules and specific topics. Others allow for a high level of autonomy for both the instructor and the learner. In many countries, there are national curricula for primary and secondary education, such as the National Curriculum in the United Kingdom. On a different scale, a high school might view its curriculum as the specific set of courses required to earn a diploma. This helps prepare students for life after they graduate.

The term "curriculum" has a long history rooted in the Latin language. It originally meant "a race" or "the course of a race," derived from the verb *currere*, which means to run.

The first known use of the word in an educational context was in 1576. This appeared in a work by Petrus Ramus, a professor at the University of Paris. By 1633, the University of Glasgow used the term in English. By the nineteenth century, European universities used the word to describe complete courses of study, such as those required for a degree in surgery. In 1824, it was officially defined as a fixed course of study at a college or school.

In the early 20th century, the concept of curriculum began to evolve. In 1918, John Franklin Bobbitt published the first textbook on the subject. He viewed the curriculum as a "social-engineering arena." Bobbitt believed the curriculum should be the course of experiences that helps children become successful adults. He argued that scientific experts should design these curricula to ensure students develop the qualities desirable in society. Today, the study of curricula remains vital. Organizations like UNESCO's International Bureau of Education work to study how curricula are implemented all around the world.