Tested curriculum is that which is taught in order to be assessed. One example of tested curriculum would be in spelling, where a child is given a list of spellings to take home and learn in preparation to be tested at some later stage. There is no other motive behind the curriculum other than for the child to learn the information presented (Cuban, 1995).

The hidden curriculum relates to the aspects of schooling which are implicit, such as aspects which produce changes in the students' values, perceptions and behaviors. These changes may be either desirable or undesirable, depending upon the behaviors and attitudes learnt. This has the power to affect an educational institution, particularly if the hidden curriculum produces undesirable effects in children (Glatthorn et al., 2006). For example in a school in which many of the children are perceived to develop worsening behavior and attitudes as they get older, there are likely to be repercussions from both parents and school governing bodies which would force the school to take action and change various elements of the organization.

The excluded curriculum is that which is excluded either intentionally or unintentionally....

This has the power to affect an institution as the effects which can be created through this exclusion could be desirable or undesirable (Goodman, 2006). For instance a school with an unintentional excluded curriculum could be seen as failing children in certain areas of their education which are not being taught. In comparison, there may be schools that choose not to teach certain areas such as religious studies, which would be desirable to some parents.
References

Cuban, L. (1995) the hidden variable: How organizations influence teacher responses to secondary science curriculum reform. Theory Into Practice, 34(1), 4-11.

Glatthorn, a.A., Boschee, F. And Whitehead, B.M. (2006) Curriculum Leadership: Development and Implementation. London: Sage.

Goodman, C.A. (2006) Teaching manual communication to preservice teachers of the deaf in accredited comprehensive undergraduate teacher preparation program. American Annals of the Deaf, 151(1), 5-15.

Wilson, L.O. (2005) What are the Types of Curriculum? Wilson's Curriculum Pages. Retrieved on October 26, 2007, at http://www.uwsp.edu/Education/lwilson/curric/curtyp.htm.

Curriculum