Transformative curriculum : changing pedagogy and practice
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Date
2010
Authors
FIndlay, Craig MacPherson
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Lethbridge, Alta. : University of Lethbridge, Faculty of Education, c2010
Abstract
The new Alberta high school social studies curriculum has reached its final year of implementation. Many have characterized the new curriculum as transformative and this study presents qualitative research that begins to uncover the degree to which the new Alberta high school social studies program has promoted change in pedagogy and teaching practice. A semi-structured interview process was used to collect data from ten teachers from across Southern Alberta. In an attempt to build a sample representative of the learning environments of the region, six male and four female teachers with a range of teaching experience were selected. Six teachers came from large urban schools and four from small rural schools. This study provides evidence to support the contention that a new curriculum can be a catalyst for educational reform. As a result of the implementation of the new high school social studies curriculum, teacher participants reported a significant shift from a teacher-centered to a student-centered classroom. In doing so, they confirmed that a move from content-laden programs to an issues-based curriculum demands critical thinking and student engagement in the pursuit of active and responsible citizenship in ways that more readily address the demands of twenty-first century teaching and learning. Teacher participants revealed the need for more authentic performance-based student assessment as a result of the skills-focus of the new curriculum. They also acknowledged the multiple perspectives approach embedded in the new curriculum was a departure from the predominantly Eurocentric narrative found in previous curricula.
Description
xi, 157 leaves : ill. ; 29 cm
Keywords
Social sciences -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- Alberta , Student-centered learning -- Alberta , Educational change -- Alberta , Competency-based education -- Alberta , Curriculum evaluation -- Alberta