After years of generating divergent approaches to scholarship, cast mostly as reactions against a historical orthodoxy, the curriculum studies community is now looking at a new dialectic--one marked by a physics that pull ideas inward toward some centripetal center. The tension between looking for unifying ideas as they articulate with a…

Examination of the theory of knowledge implicit in a discipline merits consideration for its necessary impact on curriculum, both in content selection and presentation. A conceptual change theory reveals the integral ties between knowing and learning and the examination of these issues must be subject-matter specific. (Author/MLF)

Epistemological analysis is used to further conceptions of the practical in curriculum endeavors. Employing a broad conception of knowledge, the practical is seen as having rich possibilities for dealing with significant curriculum issues. (Author/MLF)

A framework for generating curriculum research is proposed from a synthesis of Dunkin and Biddle's model of teaching variables with Beauchamp's "curriculum system" planning functions. The framework systematically defines variables that delineate curriculum planning processes. (CJH)

Describes an eight-year study in curriculum development at the University of Chicago, involving 30 school systems and featuring summer workshops in curriculum planning and evaluation. Shows how the experience validates observations made by Joseph Schwab in "The Practical 4: Something for Curriculum Professors to Do" (Curriculum Inquiry…

Describes the development, implementation, and initial evaluation of a program that aims to foster an expanded understanding of career options for women. This program, developed specifically for use in rural areas, was designed for adolescents of both sexes and is currently used in several regions of the United States. (Author/MLF)

Use of a critical approach in a curriculum design course for preservice teachers, by a five-phase process, would offer a beneficial shift away from the dominant "objectives first" models. This approach allows most teachers to reevaluate the processes and perspectives involved in educating children. (86 references) (CJH)