SUNY series in Curriculum Issues and Inquiries – serie

In this ground-breaking book the author analyzes the roles and functions of teachers as they use and construct curriculum materials. She presents a conceptual framework for interpreting different kinds of materials, for planning instructional settings based on these interpretations, and provides teachers with concepts and strategies that will enable them to use curriculum materials professionally and flexibly. The book addresses the need for more professional and creative use of curriculum materials, and heightened teacher involvement in the process. Implications of her proposed approach for teacher education and staff development are provided.

In this ground-breaking book the author analyzes the roles and functions of teachers as they use and construct curriculum materials. She presents a conceptual framework for interpreting different kinds of materials, for planning instructional settings based on these interpretations, and provides teachers with concepts and strategies that will enable them to use curriculum materials professionally and flexibly. The book addresses the need for more professional and creative use of curriculum materials, and heightened teacher involvement in the process. Implications of her proposed approach for teacher education and staff development are provided.

Recent proposals for school reform have involved a significant shift in how curriculum decisions are made, particularly at the state level. In response to these proposals, actions taken by educators have underscored the critical nature of the issue regarding who makes curriculum decisions. This book examines the issues involved in how this pivotal concern has been addressed in the past and how it is being handled now.Each chapter contributes to a more complete understanding of the complexities involved in the recent trend toward the centralization of curriculum decision-making. The book will assist both researchers and practitioners in better understanding the issues involved as well as the impact of the movement.

Five teacher-scholars examine in a series of papers written over several years what it means to teach, to work together, to seek new forms of curriculum, and to engage in interpretive inquiry. Some of the metaphors that surfaced in their conversations and writing are Education as Journey, Language as Meaning, and Teacher as Pilgrim. Themes that grew out of their dialogue about these metaphors and their implications for curriculum and teaching include The Meaning of Questioning, Alienation, Detour, Caring, and Dwelling.

This book presents an overview of seventeen forms of inquiry used in curriculum research in education. Conventional disciplinary forms of inquiry, such as philosophical, historical, and scientific, are described, as well as more recently acknowledged forms such as ethnographic, aesthetic, narrative, phenomenological, and hermeneutic. Interdisciplinary forms such as theoretical, normative, critical, deliberative, and action research are also included. These forms of inquiry are distinguished from one another in terms of purposes, types of research questions addressed, and the processes and logic of procedure employed in arriving at knowledge claims.