Syed Ahsan Ali and Syed Maratib Ali School of Education (SOE) arranged a seminar on curriculum for the undergraduate course, ‘Curriculum, Teaching and Learning’ on October 26, 2018 to create awareness of curriculum development and implementation practices in multiple local contexts. This discussion was very valuable for students as they work on their final project to prepare a sample curriculum document for a local school. These students already have knowledge of curriculum design dimensions and the procedures of curriculum development.
A diverse body of schools was invited to participate in this discussion. The participating schools had different philosophies of education, pedagogical approaches and they cater to students from different socio-economic backgrounds.
Two of the participating schools (Lahore Grammar School and Lahore College of Arts and Sciences) have specialised curriculum teams to prepare the curriculum for different grade levels. Scholastic Islamiah has modified Oxford curriculum to inculcate the principles of Islamic education. Light of Hope school is innovating with different technologies and The County School is a low cost private school. A representative from Punjab Textbook Board also shared the curriculum development process of books for public schools in Punjab. This diversity of schools will help to develop a holistic understanding of curriculum development.
The session was moderated by Dr. Yasira Waqar, Assistant Professor at Syed Ahsan Ali and Syed Maratib Ali School of Education (SOE). Discussion of each school is focused on the following questions:
1) What factors are considered in designing the curriculum?
2) How are books decided for each grade level?
3) What challenges are faced in curriculum implementation?
4) How do teachers overcome these challenges?
5) How is the effectiveness of the implemented curriculum evaluated?
After each school had shared its curriculum design, development and implementation process, the floor was open for questions by students.
Representatives from participating schools would be invited at the end of the semester to review curriculum documents prepared by the students enrolled in the course.
