Reading Task 1

Which theories can help to guide the design of a child-centered curriculum? How might such a curriculum manifest itself in the behaviors of teachers and children?

The Barbe and Swassing learning theory suggests that learners learn best through one of three aspects – visual, auditory, or tactile/kinesthetic. This lends itself nicely to a child-centered curriculum in that when the activities are focused on, and/or performed by, the children, they inherently experience the activity through the three aforementioned aspects, thus they will all learn better.

Piaget’s theory of development states that all children go through four distinct stages, including stages that involve direct sensory experience, manipulation of objects, concrete operations, and finally logic and deductive reasoning. If left to themselves, children will actually go through all these stages when exploring an item, idea, or activity. It is my theory, then, that, while Piaget may be correct that, until the ages on hi theory, children cannot progress past the stages, children never lose the ability to learn at these stages; the stages merely piggy-back on one other. To this end, interactive, self-directed, child-centered learning and curricula is perfect because it allows all four of these stages to co-exist simultaneously.

This sort of curriculum concept can be exhibited through activities such as, for example, passing out rocks during a geology unit for the students to analyze and draw their own conclusions about. Anything that is driven by the students and their ideas, observations, or desires is child-centered learning. Thus, even merely having students run the class is child-centered. As a manner of running the class, the students could lead discussions, ask each other questions, or even rehearse and perform songs and skits. These are all methods of child-centered learning.

[ home ]  [ philosophy ]  [ mused courses ]  [ pgp ]  [ intasc standards ]  [ links ]