| home |
| COMMUNICATION |
| INCLUSION |
| CURRICULUM |
| RESEARCH |
| RESOURCE BASED LEARNING |
I will consider the theoretical concepts of what is meant by curriculum and try to relate this to the practical experiences I have encompassed. I will analyse a design model and relate it to a course I deliver. The curriculum I am involved with is information and technology for the visually impaired. This is achieved via a screen reader and synthesiser that reads the contents of a computer screen. There are two categories of visual impairments, these are partially sighted and blind. The partially sighted students are usually print users, but may require special equipment and materials. The definition of a person who is registered blind covers a broad spectrum of visual impairments. While my department does not offer accreditation, I still put an emphasis on the construction of learning opportunities to support individual students development, acquisition of knowledge, and motivation. The content is relevant to the students. In addition the work I s set at an appropriate level.
Model:Lamms curriculum process model (1966) is the model I would use because I can relate it to my own curriculum, it is also understandable. He uses 3 intersecting circles, the commonly shared area in the centre being the curriculum. Oliver and Boyd (1971) p163. The purpose of curriculum planning, he tells us, is to indicate the means whereby the pupils, the teacher and an aspect of culture, the 3 dynamic elements of the curriculum, can be brought together so that in the end the pupil himself or herself may inhabit a territory of culture. This is a very simplistic view and in my opinion many factors affect the quality of a learning experience. These include ensuring clearly defined educational objectives, and taking into account the user's characteristics, experience, age, ability, special need, learning styles, pre-experience, skills, and knowledge. The model I use could be seen to be a little flat and does not take into consideration outside factors. In my opinion if a circle was to be added it could be improved.
Course Level:This is a basic computer course for the blind. This course embodies a commitment to the four key principles of: Independence Empowerment Self-Actualisation Self-Advocacy Etheridge et al argues that “sometimes described as a transitional stage, further
education is very much more than this, offering students opportunities for study,
practice and personal growth appropriate to their own levels of maturity. It may
coincide with increased independence or with a return to learning to update skills.”
Etheridge, D.T. (1994) p4.
Teacher:We are referred to as instructors rather than teachers or lecturers. The philosophy that I hold is to provide equal opportunities, for all students at almost any level. It is important that the tutor and the Blind student communicate and work together as effectively as possible. In my opinion the students that I teach require a teacher that understands, and uses the major concepts. I share Freire’s philosophy, “That teachers and students who are engaged in training which empowers people, need to focus on communicating with each other in an honest and open way.” Freire, P. (1973) p119. The advantage I have over the sighted instructors at the centre is that the students are unable to say to me “you do not know what it is like to be blind”. It is my belief that teachers recognise their limits as well as their capabilities. Lamm designates a circle to the teacher, these would be my skills along with my personal philosophy. I would have to agree with Lamm that the teacher is a vital factor and could not envisage a curriculum model without this factor.
Student Number and duration:The students are taught one on one or in a small group of 2, this is as long as they are at the same level and ability. This is due to the intensity and level being taught. This is because the Student and myself being blind rely heavily on audible feedback from the specialised equipment. They are given a 2 hour lesson once a week. the demand for information and technology. There is a waiting list for my particular course. The Green Paper that was published lately by Valerie Bayliss argues, "The RSA curriculum which we are developing is built around an explicit philosophy, that a prime aid of education should be to help every individual develop the competences they need to become a successful, active citizen." The approach Lamm takes in my opinion is to tailor the curriculum to the needs of individuals, this coincides with my own curriculum. It could be argued that teaching one to one is not cost affective. In my opinion my curriculum could be improved if I was to teach my students twice a week. This would cut down on the revision tasks, and the students would complete my course a lot quicker.
Student Group:The individuals who attend my course are of mixed gender, age, ability, and socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds. They all have one thing in common, they are all visually impaired with some students having additional disabilities. This could faze some teachers, personally it would not affect me being blind and holding a certificate in training people with special needs. It maybe true that some visually impaired students has a lower level in communication, mobility and self-care than sighted learning people. In my opinion when my students have been properly trained and had better opportunity, blindness will only be a physical nuisance. This philosophy is also shared by the RNIB and there is a list of resources that can be found at The fact that Lamm designates a circle to the student would be a strong factor within my own curriculum. The way I plan my curriculum takes into consideration the specific needs of each individual student. I asked myself if Lamm takes into consideration the ethical implications. e.g. enabling my student’s access to printed material, it could make them feel that they had been denied access to this valuable source of information.
Age:The students I have targeted for this particular course would be over 60 years of age. The reason why I have targeted this age group is the majority of them fall into this category. The reason is that eyesight deteriorates later on in life. The younger students usually come in at a higher level. The fact my learners are over 60 years of age, contributed to how I design my curriculum. Curzon argues that older students are likely to experience some deterioration in short-term memory. To accommodate my learner's specific needs, the course is designed to give regular revision tasks to aid the recall of previous learning. Curzon, L.B (1991) p263.
Aims:The aim of the course is to instruct the students on how to use a computer with specialist equipment. This should give them some form of independence, with the intention that the students should be able to deal with their own correspondence. It is suggested by Etheridge et al that the development of a successful partnership must involve agreement and co-operation to facilitate joint planning. The student and myself would negotiate aims, teaching methods, contents and resources. Etheridge, D.T. (1994) p37. Theoretically this should be prior to commencement of the course.
Outcomes:The outcome of the course will be by the end of 5 sections, students will have a basic understanding on how to use a computer with a screen reader. They will be able to open, save, format and manually edit a document. Etheridge et al suggests the outcome of a course should be to improve the student’s own performance in reaching mutually agreed objectives. Etheridge, D.T. (1994) p25.
my curriculum allows the student to develop, his or her own learning experiences in accordance with the WAES Mission statement, Print explains curriculum design and development in the following way “Curriculum development is defined as the process of implementing and evaluating learning opportunities intended to produce desired changes in learners.” Print, M. (1993) p24. The national Rehabilitation board suggests that teachers should familiarise them selves with the organisation's objectives, working philosophy and strategic plans. Although I have tried to be sensitive to their history and its relationship to the community, it has been difficult because of new management. Funding comes from the Local Authority and fundraising collection points and the lottery etc. We have a full time fundraiser and plenty of volunteers. This is supervised by a board of trustees and is reviewed annually. The funding arrangements do not require the students to have achieved an overall outcome. The Centres curriculum and its content are planned and put into practice by management, and tutors without outside influences. Until this year students arrived and were ’integrated’ into areas that concentrated on skill development/objective learning, with their progress reviewed annually. This year has seen a change with the new mission statement. The students have an entry assessment report compiled by social services and community organisations. This develops into an action plan outlining the needs and strengths of each student. In my opinion this is a weakness within my curriculum, excluding the teacher in the learning process is disadvantageous. Its execution is still ongoing, but the logic is to encourage each student to decide on those learning experiences that will enable them ‘to develop into a fully functioning person, enhancing positive self-concepts, independence, Self-Actualisation, empowerment and self-advocacy.
Schedule:The course will consist of 5 sections without time restrictions. This is because I believe blind people should not be constrained. The humanistic educator Paulo Freire shared this philosophy. He believed, “that people with disabilities should be free from restrictions, which limit their potential.” Freire, P. (1973) p119.
Skills:The only stipulation I make is that the student possesses keyboard skills. This skill is relevant to the visually impaired, the reason being we access everything via the keyboard. In my experience I have found that a number of learners have additional literacy problems, because we tend to focus on visual memory as a strategy for reading and spelling. That is why it is vital to build regular access to technology into the curriculum, as experience has shown that without continuity of contact, it is difficult for students to retain a mental map of the system. It will be apparent reading this assignment the absence of Braille material, this is because very few of my students are skilled in this medium. We all live in the real world and the world revolves around printed material, every one needs access to it because of its universal language. Etheridge et al would disagree with me stating that, “Approximately half of the 3000 registered blind who are in paid employment, use Braille at work, so clearly for many of those with the severest visual disabilities, Braille is an essential skill.” Etheridge, D.t. (1994) p100.
2.2 Hidden curriculum:In addition to the curriculum, the students will access a hidden curriculum. Print argues, “The hidden curriculum refers to the outcomes of education and/or processes leading to those outcomes, which are not explicitly intended by educators. These outcomes are generally not explicitly intended because they are not stated by teachers in their oral or written lists of objectives, nor are they included in educational statements of intent such as syllabuses, school policy documents or curriculum projects”. Print, M. (1993) p10. In my opinion the effects can be beneficial. A major element of this is promoting self-esteem and providing an environment that allows for equal opportunities. It seems that my students have benefited from being in settings where some minor environmental adaptations at little or no cost have been made, such as changes in floor Surfaces, sound clues and tactile labels. Herzberg referred to these as hygiene factors Curzon LB (1990) p197.
Implementation:Etheridge et al tells us” students may need adaptations in materials, in methods or in the use of technical equipment, they may require environmental modifications if they are to have realistic access to the curriculum” Etheridge, D.T. (1994) p4. There is a description below that explains how I deliver this short course, including: methods, topics, activities, skills, assessment and resources. Each lesson starts with me checking that the student is comfortable through dialogue. I would check that the volume and rate of speech on the computer was set at an appropriate level. In addition I would make sure that the student was aware of all facilities in the centre, toilets etc. Maslow believed that human needs could be organised in a progressive hierarchy. The first section within my course is an introduction and outline. The student would experience navigating and using screen reader commands. This will allow the student to experience new mediums. Experiential learning theory is based on the premise that people learn most effectively through experience. The theory is commonly credited to David A Kolb, who believed that, having had a actual experience, the individual subsequently reflected upon it, came to a general conclusion, and decided upon how to act in similar situations in the future. The lesson would be recorded in order to provide the learner access to information long after the lesson is finished. Reece and Walker state that one of the easiest methods of collecting data is to audio-record, “say, a question part of a lesson, or an introduction to a lesson or a conclusion.” Reece, I Walker, S. (1997) p176 The activities were considered in terms of those that the blind pupil could be in control of through hearing, this is done through direct observation. It is interactive teaching, providing immediate feedback. Cronjé (1997) gives the following explanation of interactivity: "Interactivity has to do with simulating the interchange between two people who are communicating meaningfully. When this interactivity is mediated by technology, two factors come into play. The first is the level or intensity of the interaction, which might be measured in terms of the interdependence of the participants. The second is the mode in which the interactivity takes place that is the number of participants, the time frame and the level of technological sophistication." The student would be provided with a demonstration, this would be beneficial according to Petty, “The computer students will benefit from seeing demonstrations of practical uses of the application they are learning, or learning some general background to the equipment they are using.” Petty, G 1990 p141 The first section would wind down with a question and answer session to establish understanding. The most appropriate method of assessment in my experience is to record questions on tape and let the student record their answers. The student would be given the taped lesson to go over at home providing them with valuable feedback. The tape would give me the opportunity to go over in order to evaluate the methods and make appropriate changes. The 2nd section starts by recapping on the previous section. The student would be introduced to Word on tape giving them the opportunity to explore the following sections. This would give me the opportunity to establish prior knowledge. ‘Advance organisers’ cue the learner’s prior knowledge and make the learning meaningful. This is important as “The link with the previous lesson allows the learner to perceive the continuity of instruction and create interest” Curzon, L.B (1991) p269. The learning activities intend giving the student the experience of saving and opening of documents. The activities will be repeated and become progressively harder accessing higher domains of learning. Taba refers to this as “cumulative learning” Print p185) We wind down with a question and answer session to establish understanding. The student would be given the taped lesson to study at home. The 3rd section would begin with a review and recap on the previous lesson. The Student would be asked if they had listened to the previous lesson on tape, I would do this to assess how committed the student is. The student would be given another demonstration to reinforce the learning. Then I would allow the student to discover activities for themselves. There is value in the discovery method according to Petty, he believes that “it involves the students in high-order thinking: evaluation, creative thinking, problem-solving, analysis, synthesis etc” Petty, g. (1990) p46. In my opinion commenting on a student’s work, giving verbal encouragement and positive reinforcement, provides valuable support. Skinner referred to this as conditioning. The 4th and 5th sections would begin by reviewing previous sections. We would look at formatting and manually editing text. The emphasis is on encouraging and planning independent work. Audible information and discussion is encouraged. Using the Psychomotor Domain-The initial experiences are designed for practise so that the learner’s skill is improved. They will then move to assimilate knowledge within the Cognitive domain, I would hope to see some progress to analysis. Dewey tells us it is important for the instruction to “be organized so as to pace development (but not outstrip it)” Curzon, L.B (1991) p84. These 2 domains overlap naturally with the Affective domain. The student start to appreciate and value the learning experience, encouraging motivation. “By adopting a holistic approach towards the curriculum, humanistic educators effect an integration of the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains”. The method of assessment is formative and ongoing due to the fact we offer accreditation. This process occurs during feedback and through discussion. I concur with Black when he says ‘Assessment should not inhibit the humanistic enterprise of education, it enables problems to be overcome, interacts with the learning, reflects and supports the learning aims’ Black p3.
Evaluation:The programme needs to demonstrate development, to function it must be realistic with the available resources and time. We are unable to accommodate all the students who would like to join my course so this needs to be addressed. One of the main purposes of evaluation is to identify its strengths and weaknesses. This can be achieved due to the fact I record the lesson enabling me to evaluate the outcomes, methods, attitude, timing, knowledge, skills, etc. Files are formally maintained on all students and progress, and evaluation is reviewed every several months In addition there is formative assessment which is ongoing. Effective initial and ongoing ILP's. assessment will help provide programmes of study, and support which will consequently allow the individual to fulfil their potential. Students are encouraged through taping the lesson to evaluate their own learning. Etheridge argues, “Clients were also encouraged to record any difficulties experienced in order that the process itself could be qualitatively evaluated.” Etheridge, D. (1994) p79. Etheridge believes that this ‘assessment process which advocates a self assessment system is qualitatively speaking most valuable.’ (p65).
Conclusion:In my opinion I have created a Humanistic environment, creating an open and reflective atmosphere as seen by Paulo Freire. The facilitative classroom techniques supported the student and allowed for discovery learning through a holistic program. We need to take a more formative approach to the evaluation of technology because of the rate of change in technologies |
Link to my Curriculum Vitae.