Curriculum is an event which goes beyond the curriculum guide because of the many interactions involved. It is situated in a classroom, personal, social, historical, and political context. The implications of the definition for curriculum developers and researchers are discussed. (MT)

Since education is both a science and an art, it is difficult for curriculum theorists to develop rules and principles which apply to both aspects. Practical uses of curriculum theory include the application of existing models to specific situations, and practitioners using their own practical experiences and relating them to curriculum models.…

Curriculum theory is defined as an integrated cluster of sets of analyses, interpretations, and understandings of curricular phenomena. Curriculum theory development processes are described and reasons for a lack of curriculum theory are presented. Four problems arising in the development of curriculum theory are examined. (JN)

Four characteristics of curriculum theory are proposed: (1) Curriculum theory focuses on content, aims, and program development in education; (2) Curriculum theory rationalizes procedures for curriculum construction; (3) Curriculum theory conceptualizes curricular phenomena; and (4) Curriculum theory attempts to explain curricular phenomena. (JN)

A university professor and two elementary principals met to discuss their lives and development as principals, focusing on the role of curriculum theory. The article discusses principals as leaders and learners, the teacher as curriculum, inquiry, reflection, and the theory practice relationship. (SM)

Curriculum activities in arts education during the last two decades and their significance for curriculum development in the arts are explored in this article. (DF)

Two studies of curriculum are used as examples of trends in social science research. Criteria are developed for the "ideal" social science and then applied to the two studies. Curriculum theorizing is discussed as related to social science theory. Suggestions are made for the content of an adequate curriculum theory. (JN)

This article describes a research model that can help curriculum developers document both curriculum practices in the schools and perceptions of those practices by scholars, state department of education staff, teachers, and others. The model was developed to guide the collection of research data for John Goodlad's "Study of Schooling." (PP)

The article examines problems in the U.S. public school system. It describes the factory and corporate models of education and suggests that, despite the conservative origins of the current wave of school reform, progress is possible. The article also discusses sociocultural factors and the importance of theory in school reform. (SM)

Curriculum theory must attend to three problem areas: educational practice, ethical criteria, and content. Educational practice includes questions about predictions, explanations, and descriptions. Ethical criteria are used to clarify improvements in values. Substantive content ranges across areas of human inquiry from the humanities to natural…

Though the second wave of curriculum theorizing attempts to improve students' and teachers' lives, transform conventional curriculum development, and challenge neoconservative curricula, this paper argues that it has not affected K-12 education. The article discusses absence of reflective action in school-based settings within contemporary…

Discusses controversy over language, clarity, and experience in educational theory, recommending a language theory that recognizes complexity and difference. Linguistic clarity suppresses differences and multiplicity and reproduces a populist elitism that disempowers educators. People need knowledge and skills to be able to govern and shape…