The dominant model of curriculum design in the last century assumed that school education could be organized around aims, defined primarily in terms of students' behaviour. The credentials of this model were questioned by, among others, Lawrence Stenhouse, who pointed out that education serves purposes that cannot be stated in terms of behavioural…

Objective: The goal of this study was to evaluate a recent medical school curriculum change at our institution 3 years ago; specifically: shortening the Psychiatry core clerkship from 4 to 3 weeks and adding an optional 6-week core/elective combination rotation in lieu of the 3-week core. The authors aimed to determine whether clerkship length was…

This paper forms the first part of a project of inquiry to understand the theoretical and practical potentials of Occupy through the recent wave of occupations that have emerged in response to the politics of austerity and precarity around the world. We do this as educators who are seeking to "occupy" spaces of higher education inside and outside…

Stresses the importance of clarity and specificity of behavioral outcomes in the formulation of educational objectives. Suggests that curriculum development is more of an art than a science. (GC)

Reviews and discusses the potential accomplishments and limitations of a performance-based method of deriving instructional content, taking into account five broad classes of learning outcomes--intellectual skills, information, cognitive strategies, attitudes, and motor skills--which are viewed as what is learned in any or all of the subjects of a…

An examination of weaknessess in behaviorist and humanist models of education evaluation provides a basis for a structuralist model. This model is grounded in developmental stages, the structure of the child and the curriculum, and the idea of education as a bridge between these structures to assist the development of the child. (JMF)

Describes the process used in developing custom-tailored workplace basic skills programs. Examples show that learning objectives are mainly the same skills that are taught in more generic classes. The difference is that they use scenarios and text directly from the workplace. (Author/JOW)

Trade and industrial education (T&I) has been using performance-based instructional systems long before competency-based education (CBE) emerged as a creative innovation in other subject areas. Allen devised the forerunner of the present CBE system in 1917 by carefully plotting competencies and delineating job analyses from these, and Fryklund's…

Discusses a strategy for unifying and improving the social studies curriculum through an "outcomes sought" approach. Outlines eight measurable qualities students completing social studies should have achieved. Discusses implications of this approach. (LP)

This paper 1) discusses the problems encountered in preparing objectives for instructional programs; 2) describes an informal research project in which seven instructional designers working on the same project attempted to determine agreement on an objective; and 3) suggests how to prepare objectives so that difficulties can be minimized. One…

American educators first turned to behaviorism and the forerunner of systems theory to make education an instrument of social control for the preservation of cultural homogeneity. Rather than offering "backward" or "learning disabled" children increased educational opportunities, these procedures relegated them to a subordinate place in American…

A research-derived integrated system of curriculum development and instructional delivery called NEBEAT (Needs Based Education and Training) is described in relation to more traditional-behaviorally-based systems models. Four major components of curriculum design are examined as features which differentiate NEBEAT from its antecedents. (Author/MBR)

The use of standardized course syllabi and behavioral objectives requires the commitment and acceptance of faculty and administrators, but it can also help schools of optometry establish standards for evaluating students and improving instructional quality. Classroom, laboratory, and clinical instruction all lend themselves to writing clear…

Clarity of written expression is prized highly in the university curriculum and in the societal arena. Professors need to study, analyze, and appraise diverse recommended philosophies in teaching writing. An existentialist writing curriculum should: include extensive input from students on topics, forms of writing to be emphasized, and planning of…

This is the concluding part of an article published in the August 1983 edition. A number of arguments are developed to demonstrate the inadequacy of behaviorally defined objectives as a basis for curriculum planning. (SSH)