I had honestly not given a lot of thought to curriculum, other than as a guideline set out by the ministry to guide teachers in their course; that was it. Having worked through these readings it has given an almost overwhelming amount of information to process and work through. I had not thought for a moment that there were concepts in curriculum, or even arguments, and conflicts within the different camps.

Having gone through the information I observed point within the concepts of the curriculum. One of the most prevailing trends is academic rationalism, as Eisner and Vallance explain, ‘The most traditional and prevailing' (p.12). Or as Schiro explains, scholar academic ideology that places importance on the accumulated knowledge of society, and is organized into academic disciplines (p.4). This is the curriculum concept I am most familiar with, that I was taught, and the one that when I began teaching I believed to be the most prevalent concept. The literature seems to argue this as well, that the idea of academic rationalism is enduring, but why?

Arguably I think it endures because academic rationalism relates most closely to that of universities. Schiro points out that scholar academic ideology is ‘…to construct the curriculum in such a way that it reflects the essence of their discipline (p.4). The reasoning for its continued presence, as well as it’s enduringness and it will no doubt continue to endure as long as there is a similar post-secondary experience to move into.

I also get why the social reconstruction-relevance has fallen by the wayside as well, at one time there was, as Eisner and Vallance argue, the idea that education should focus on society and how the youth can reform it (p.10). Looking at the time, 60's-70's there was a strong push for this idea of the youth were going to change the world, but the mentality of that has someone fallen off. It's sad to think, but I agree more with Vallance and her second look at the newer concept of a curriculum; ‘emphasis on personal success as the goal of education' (p.27).

In terms of my own practice, I would argue that the concept of personal success, as well as technology, are the most resonate within the teaching profession today. Vallance points to this in her Second Look, that technology has come so prevalent, that this technology perspective is impossible to ignore (p.26). I use technology in my class regularly and find myself often spoiled as my students all have laptops, phones, and tablets, and I have access to a projector. Gone are the days of chalkboard notes and writing; or those dreaded overhead transparencies.

The idea of personal success if one that seems to be a common theme in today's classroom. How can we tailor the student to allow them to be as successful as they possibly can be? Using this particular curriculum concept as a base, I this it is possible to pull in from the concepts; no teacher has to fit into one specific area only. I hope through further exploration and understanding I can expand my understanding work towards a more thoughtful and comprehensive idea of my own classroom and relation to the curriculum.

Al Mousa, N. (2013). An examination of cad use in two interior design programs from the perspectives of curriculum and instructors, pp. 21-37 (Master’s Thesis)

Brown, G. T. L. (2006). Conceptions of curriculum: A framework for understanding New Zealand’s Curriculum Framework and teachers’ opinions. Curriculum Matters, 2, 164-181

Eisner, E., & Vallance, E. (Eds.). (1974). Five conceptions of the curriculum: Their roots and implications for curriculum planning.In E. Eisner & E. Vallance (Eds.), Conflicting conceptions of curriculum (pp. 1-18). Berkeley, CA: McCutchan Publishing.

McNeil, J. D. (2009). Contemporary curriculum in thought and action (7^th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley. Pages 1, 3-14, 27-39, 52-60, 71-74.

Ornstein, A. C., & Hunkins, F. P. (2013). Curriculum: Foundations, principles, and issues (6^th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson. Read part of Chapter 1, pp. 1-8.

Schiro, M. S. (2013). Introduction to the curriculum ideologies. In M. S. Schiro, Curriculum theory: Conflicting visions and enduring concerns (2^nd ed., pp. 1-13). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Sowell, E. J. (2005). Curriculum: An integrative introduction (3rd ed., pp. 37-51). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Vallance. (1986). A second look at conflicting conceptions of the curriculum. Theory into Practice, 25(1), 24-30.