Lesson and curriculum planning

Lesson and curriculum planning              

I found both chapters very informative. I liked chapter 3 in the sense that it presents a very brief overview of the reasons why one should plan, a couple of models for lesson planning and some practical information on the steps to plan a lesson. It is always good to go over these topics and remind ourselves of the different aspects that should play a role in our planning. From my experience, I have learned that even though all these steps seem to be pretty obvious, the success of one’s class is very dependent on how aware and systematic one becomes when applying these strategies. It provides the teacher, and the students, with structure and a felt sense of what the class’ purpose and routines are. It also helps everyone keep track of their learning and teaching process and gives all a sense of direction.

In this section, my attention was particularly drawn to the ways lessons can be evaluated. However, I would have liked to find more information on this. To me, this is probably one of the most critical aspects of lesson planning. Many teachers think their job is done once the lesson has been ‘delivered’. Evaluating our classes and lesson plans is the only way to improve them. Whether this evaluation takes the form of a mental, individual process or a written form depends on the administrative environment and/or the teacher’s  personality. However, it is important that this evaluation actually takes place and that the information derived from it be used in future lesson planning and shared with other teachers. This is a form of professional development that is simple, accessible and probably one of the most valuable tools in becoming a better teacher.

Chapter 7 also gives us a good overview on the models of curriculum design that have been more prevalent in the last decades.  All three models play a role in today’s curriculum planning and I don’t believe they are exclusive in any manner. However, even though the proposal made by the author seems very comprehensive and well-thought, I still see some gaps that need to be filled.  Mainly, I see it is still problematic to determine what role the policy dimension needs to play in curriculum design. This is, how one can bring together the policy and the pragmatic dimensions without disregarding the other. Government agencies are generally the ones responsible for determining what is ‘desirable to achieve’. This is based on decisions made by ‘society’, or at least those elected by society to rule their destiny, but many times these expectations are not aligned with the pragmatic dimension, this is, the reality of the schools where the policy is implemented.  The author proposes the participants to solve this issue, to reconcile both levels. Unfortunately, this is not a clear-cut task. There are many stakeholders interacting with these participants, and with those in charge of the policy dimension, whose interests are many times totally different. This is one issue that needs to be studied, and that is crucial in developing curricula that is achievable, but that yet helps move the society forward.