Objective: This study reviews the status of materials in curriculum and reform, as reflected in a network case study of curriculum in one kindergarten classroom in the United States. This paper focuses on the events leading up to and building upon one inquiry unit that became a focal point in promoting progressive curriculum reform at the school.…

Since the passing of No Child Left Behind Act of 2002 (NCLB), teacher autonomy over curricular decisions has been restricted. As a result, state and local school districts faced increased pressures to adopt highly prescriptive and standardized literacy curricular programmes. Given this context, literacy curriculum adoption has become a widely…

School-based curriculum innovations have been widely implemented in Chinese kindergartens since the turn of the new millennium. However, in the absence of professional guidance, Chinese kindergartens have been forced to "ride a blind horse" when developing curriculum. The aim of this study was to understand the nature of and mechanisms…

This study forms part of a wider comparative research project investigating the mechanisms and outcomes of school-based curriculum (SBC) development in kindergartens between the two neighbouring cities of Hong Kong and Shenzhen, under the umbrella of 'one country, two systems'. This comparison will help to clarify how sociocultural contexts may…

President Donald Trump has promised an expansion of voucher programs for private schools in the United States. Private Christian schools are likely beneficiaries of such an expansion, but little research has been conducted about the curricula they use or their suitability for public funds. This article describes and critiques the depiction of race…

Previous papers in this issue of "JCS" have presented case studies of the state-based curriculum commissions that developed the "Illinois Learning Standards" of 1997 and Norway's "Laereplanverket 1997" ("L97") (1997). The studies were developed using as a framework a body of German research that sees…

This paper explores the interrelations between power, politics, academia and curriculum reform in British Columbia (BC) using social studies curriculum documents as a case study. It describes how curriculum reform occurred and argues that reform was undemocratic as it was largely the product of individuals with power who invited individuals with…

This case study of the development of the Norwegian compulsory school curriculum of 1997, "Laereplanverket 1997," parallels a study of the development of the "Illinois Learning Standards" of 1997. The pair of case studies is designed to explore the administration of state-based curriculum-making and, in particular, the use in…

This case study of the development of the "Illinois Learning Standards" of 1997 parallels a study of the development of the Norwegian compulsory school curriculum of 1997, "Laereplanverket 1997." The pair of case studies is designed to explore the administration of state-based curriculum-making and, in particular, the use of…

Curriculum materials and knowledge about curricular purposes and structures are valuable tools that teachers often draw upon to organize instruction and facilitate student learning. Careful analysis of teachers' curriculum implementation and the decision-making that undergirds their curriculum use is critical for fully understanding enactment.…

In higher education today, institutions are facing a number of challenges--including the challenge to create future-proof graduates. Higher education institutions have a particular mandate to develop future leaders and decision-makers capable of understanding and providing solutions to complex, global issues. Education programmes that focus on…

Curriculum implementation often falls short because of a lack of cultural understanding by curriculum developers and aid organizations. This paper describes a single-case study of a professional development programme for polytechnic Heads of Department in Ghana, which aimed at identifying how curriculum development activities were sensitive to…

This paper presents a pilot comparative research project on pre-vocational education in lower secondary schools (ISCED level 2) within regions in three European countries. The primary aim of the study was to better understand how the pre-vocational education curriculum is constructed and taught within schools. A case study methodology was selected…

Broadening the role of teachers in curriculum development was among the fundamental objectives of educational reforms in the formerly communist Eastern Europe in the 1990s. The research done so far, however, calls into question the degree to which teachers perceive the relevant changes in curriculum and their new role. This article first describes…

"Potemkin schools" is used as the phrase to capture what a US science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) public speciality high school becomes as a result of its institutional branding. By way of an examination of the efforts of one teacher drawn into school branding through his "inquiry-based reform" of an Advanced Chemistry course,…