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¶ … Curriculum Be Standardized for All?
The question of whether or not the curriculum should be standardized for all is indeed a hot button issue and one which garners a great deal of attention and controversy. When it comes to this particular issue, both sides actually raise very compelling points about what should be done and why standardizing the curriculum (and not standardizing the curriculum) is the best idea. Fundamentally, both sides approach this issue so strongly as a result of the fact that education, both private and public education as they exist in America, are deeply flawed and barely educate our children in a manner which allows them to compete with the best and brightest talent all over the world.
What challenges or problems does the issue present?
The biggest problem that the controversy presents is the fact that both sides raising valid points about how to handle this issue: those in support of standardizing the curriculum are able to offer truly insightful points about why. Those who are against standardizing the curriculum can often present truly damning evidence which show just what exactly will be lost in such a case.
For example, those who are in favor of standardization generally push that the curriculum contain some basic level of schooling that is high in quality, general and liberal (Pablo, 2010). Many of these supporters present "three kinds of learning and three kinds of instruction that need to be put into place due to the schools that now fail to 'cultivate proficiency' and currently have a multi-track system where the learning objectives are not the same for all" (2010). Those who are not in support of standardizing the curriculum are those who argue that not all students learn in the same way, and that young people need to have a greater control of the learning decisions and of exactly what goes into their young minds (Pablo, 2010). In this...
The issue of standardization in many ways is an issue about whose opinion matters more, the teachers/administrators or the students, and whose opinion should be able to have more weight to it.
As one expert illuminates, there's a certain amount of naivete present in the notion that one size fits all is actually the best decision for education. "Here's how well we expect students to do. Of course, all students deserve a quality education. But declaring that everyone must reach the same level is naive at best, cynical at worst, in light of wildly unequal resources" (Kohn, 2001).
Impact on Teaching and Learning
Advantages
One of the advantages that some have alluded to as being present for teachers is the fact that there will be a sense of unity and alignment within the national curriculum. This allows for greater strength within the teaching profession as a whole. Furthermore, a standardized curriculum allows for teachers to have a more concrete sense of guidance for their work inside of the profession. There's simply left less to chance: using the discretion of each individual teacher is something which just isn't suitable. Instead, think-tanks of experts get to dictate the standards, allowing for a greater uniformity of educational levels across…
References
Kohn, A. (2001, May). One-Size-Fits-All Education Doesn't Work. Retrieved from Boston Globe: http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/onesize.htm
Noddings, N. (2010, January 7). Differentiate, Don't Standardize. Retrieved from edweek.org: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2010/01/14/17noddings-comm.h29.html
Noll, J. (2009, September). A Standardized Curriculum For All? Retrieved from Standardized Curriculum: http://standardcurriculum.blogspot.com/
Pablo, P. (2010, February). Should the Curriculum be Standardized for All? Retrieved from wordpress.com: http://ewhughes.wordpress.com/2010/02/13/should-the-curriculum-be-standardized-for-all/
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