Societal Influences on Curricula

The readings in Curriculum Leadership have made me aware of the number of societal forces that influence school curricula, particularly those of the federal government and state.  I have never taken much of an interest politics; however, in the past couple years, I have started to realize the importance of my involvement as an educator.  With recent budget cuts and teacher slander, it is obvious that political leaders, without previous experience in the educational field, enter office with their own agendas and ideas for reform. Tom Corbett, Governor of Pennsylvania, is on a mission to promote school vouchers and teacher accountability tied to high-stakes testing.  According to Glatthorn, Boschee, and Whitehead (2009), the Governor is one of the strongest political influences in education along with the chief state school officer, state legislature and education interest groups.  Policies that mandate or reallocate money directly affect curricula because two of the greatest things that effective teachers require are professional development and materials and resources.

The evolution of curriculum over the past century is fascinating to compare to developments in curriculum over the past couple decades.  The first five periods of curriculum history lasted 27 years, 24 years, 16 years, 11 years and 7 years, respectively (Glatthorn et al., 2009).  The sixth and seventh periods, taking place in the 80’s and 90’s, lasted approximately a decade each. The trend illustrates that the future will bring a rapid pace of change, which means that teachers and students will need to be flexible and adaptable to new ideas.  I think the pendulum analogy is important to point out because it’s such a commonly used term in education.   Those who have been in the field of education for decades constantly refer to the pendulum that swings back and forth and represents the current trend.  Glatthorn, Boschee, and Whitehead say, “…it might be more appropriate and more insightful to speak of separate streams that continue to flow – at times swollen, at times almost dry; at times separate, at times almost joining”  (2009).  This makes more sense in my mind because we always integrate new knowledge with old knowledge; it’s just that one idea always takes precedence over the others.  It is also important to align with best practices than to move away (like a pendulum) and forget about things that are already proven to be effective.

A school leader can be proactive in helping teachers cope with new curricular influences by modeling a positive attitude and bridging the gap between the old and new knowledge.  It is important for teachers to make connections to things they are already doing in the classroom so they have a strong knowledge base off of which to build.  School leaders can assist teachers in making these connections while being open about why the change is occurring.  Inspiring a shared vision is a practice of exemplary leadership that is described by Kouzes and Posner in The Jossey-Bass Reader on Educational Leadership.  When change occurs, it is important for the leader to inspire others and help them see the big picture, for if the leader only sees the big picture, change will be difficult.  At all times, student success must remain the main priority.

Glatthorn, A. A., Boschee, F., & Whitehead, B. M. (2009).  Curriculum leadership: Strategies for development and implementation (2^nd ed).  Los Angeles, CA:  SAGE Publications.

Kouzes, J.M., & Posner, B.Z. (2007).  The five practices of exemplary leadership. In The Jossey-Bass Reader on Educational Leadership (pp. 63-74). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.