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=Group 5= Roulah Aljudaibi, Jennifer Bishop, Hanife Ece Ugurlu, Mucahit Kocak, Onur Emre Kocaoz Peter Hlebowitsh, in his book //Designing the School Curriculum//, discusses the many intricacies that must be considered when designing curriculum. One of the most important goals of curriculum that he presents deals with the purpose of curriculum itself. Hlebowitsh suggests that the curriculum should be designed in a manner that establishes an overall guideline of the aims and goals while at the same time providing enough flexibility that the teacher feels empowered to make decisions based on the student population they serve (2005). In addition, social studies is a crucial learning experience for children so that they become active and effective citizens in today's society and thereby propagate democratic values. With this in mind, in order to evaluate this eighth grade United States history curriculum document, it is necessary to analyze the philosophy, design, and content of the curriculum.
 * Introduction **

To know and understand the past of a society through the social studies makes it easier to deal with present and future issues existing in the society as well as making students more responsible participants in the community. Additionally, the skills gained from social studies in the school years are essential to understand social changes and adopt them (Alleman, Knighton, Brophy, 2007). This concept-based curriculum achieves all these goals because it provides a deep understanding of the content. According to experimentalism, the school curriculum should be integrated to reflect the society and its changes. This philosophy claims that an individual can learn only through what is experienced (Witty, 1933; Hlebowitsh, 2005; Hlebowitsh, 2006). This curriculum guide for the US History is grounded on an experimental approach. In terms of learners, this curriculum aims to educate students as problem-solvers and responsible citizens. Subject matter consists of personal and socio-civic experiences. When the skill objectives of curriculum are analyzed, it is clearly seen that students will reconstruct their experience, as the experimentalist view suggests. Moreover, the learners’ experiences gained throughout the class activity provide a basis for creating a democratically conscious generation since the learners derived a deep social understanding from these experiences. Hence, this curriculum is based on the progressive approach. The constructivist theory is supported by activities, which requires problem solving, critical thinking, analyzing, creating, etc. In addition, this curriculum includes using technology along with other materials to create an educational environment in which the students will find out their own learning style. For instance, in the curriculum, it is stated that students should use ‘computer software’; it also suggests students should “create oral, and visual presentations of social studies information” (NISD, p. 3, 2011). In this curriculum, there are some postmodernist influences. The curriculum intends to activate students’ interpretation and inquiry. Therefore, students will be able to create an authentic meaning. The learners also have the opportunity to find their identity. The curriculum strongly supports experimentalism, whereas it rejects conservative views of perennialism. The curriculum does not support a strict educational environment. Moreover, mental discipline is not its intended purpose. According to this curriculum guide, each student should reconstruct their knowledge, and this goal provides a flexible environment in the school. This curriculum aims to teach problem-solving and higher-level thinking skills. This goal fits academic intellectual element of a mission statement. Since the curriculum ensures to make individuals as independent learners, it comprises the purpose of personal individual development. The activities in this curriculum consist of developing skills that could be helpful to obtain experiences for being responsible and engaged citizens in the public life. This aim serves to socio-civic development purpose in the mission statement. Nevertheless, the curriculum ignores vocational development; however, vocational development a purpose at the high school level, and not at the middle school level.
 * Philosophy **

In analyzing the design of the curriculum, it is necessary to examine the format, clarity, and usability of the curriculum guide relative to the degree of flexibility the guide offers to the teacher. The curriculum guide has a simple design with four main categories and 8 main topics. The main categories are “Enduring Understanding”, “Critical Content and Key Facts”, “skill objectives” and “big questions” (NISD, p. 1, 2011). Under each section is listed a clear description of the goals of the students. For example, what the eighth-grade student should know, understand, and be able to do is clearly stated and the guide is formatted in sections allowing the teachers ease of reading and application. The curriculum guide provides spiraled information beginning with topics that may be extended at future levels. This helps the teacher to promote the objectives of student generalization, knowledge, ability and questioning. This also allows for both vertical and horizontal articulation. One improvement might be to list the skills as a section for daily planning that is just as detailed, so it can be clear to the teacher which column of the document they should follow. The Skill Objectives guide is full of information, but the TEKS notations do not provide the teacher with information as to where the information is located in the chapter. The guide was written and formatted for the experienced teacher. It could be compressed into a guide that suggests a weekly time schedule of instruction from the teacher; however, this would be instruction rather than curriculum. The guide does not specify where the topics are located in chapter, for example, the specific page numbers. These numbers might save time because the teacher would not have to look them up or identify them. However, this would also require the curriculum to change each time a new text book was adopted. This curriculum guide is useful, but depends on teacher interpretation to review, discuss, and question in a manner that reinforces student learning. For example, if the teacher does not have experience, then this curriculum may not be useful, because in this curriculum there is a great deal of generalization rather than specific explaining of what kind of information or skills should be taught. If there are resources and details, that will help a new teacher to improve her skills in teaching, this could be listed as an additional resource. On the other hand, these suggestions may not be as valuable to a teacher with more experience because it would limit their control over creating instruction that would meet the needs of their specific students or might increase the amount of time necessary to implement the suggested activities. A criticism of this document is its lack of assessment. According to Columbia University, a teacher should use  “both informal and formal assessments to gauge her students progress as a part of her own ‘cycle of inquiry’ to determine how her initial plans are working and to shape her instruction for the future” ( Multiple Means ). Although there is a section that provides questions for students, it still does not provide clear instructions as to assessment tools for the teacher to evaluate in an informal manner so the multiple means of assessments are not adequately integrated with instruction in the curriculum. However, this is a curriculum guide that is meant to provide a framework for curriculum and it would be possible for a teacher to utilize the objectives and “Big Questions” in a manner that would assess students both formally and informally. Another area of evaluation is the clarity of instruction and materials. The curriculum design is very brief and understandable. Goals, content, and directions clearly show the teacher what he/she needs to emphasize or what he/she needs to focus on during the class. For instance, it is mentioned what students are going to understand, know, be able to identify, and what kinds of questions will be answered after the class. Therefore, the teacher can easily understand the aims, and the objectives about the chapter. Also, in the TEKS and CCRS correlation section, the required materials necessary to implement the instruction of the unit is provided.
 * Curriculum Design (format, clarity, usability) **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The analysis of the content of this curriculum guide focuses on the appropriateness, accuracy, relevance and coverage of the document in question. Developmentally appropriateis one of the significant elements for curriculum content. According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the content of curriculum should consider that “ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">developmentally appropriate curriculum provides for all areas of a child's development: physical, emotional, social, linguistic, aesthetic, and cognitive”( <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Development Trends, n.d.). The NISD 8th grade social studies unit is developmentally appropriate and accurate. The content and activities are convenient to meet the needs of students. The curriculum states that students in eighth grade are able to “analyze information, to find the main idea, to make generalization, to support a point of view, to use standard grammar and to create written, oral, and visual presentations of social studies information” (NISD, p. 4, 2011). Sharing ideas with each other will help the student feel more comfortable and it will lead to an improvement in students’ interpersonal skills, and the abilities to make generalizations, and decisions. Creating written, oral and visual presentation will provide students the opportunity to increase their language skills. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">This document presents a logical explanation of the unit in a manner that will assist teachers in building conceptual understandings through multiple learning opportunities. The document first presents "Enduring Understandings" for the 2nd unit in 8th grade US History (NISD, p.1, 2011). "Enduring Understandings" are generalizations that demonstrate the spiral nature of this social studies curriculum. Throughout students' careers in this school district, they will encounter certain learning experiences that will build throughout this time period. Each time a student encounters one of these generalizations, it will be at a higher level of complexity. This is also providing a framework for teachers so that they will understand the vertical articulation from one level of social studies to the next. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The next step in the document is the "Critical Content." In this column, again, this document does an excellent job of establishing a framework on the Macrocurriculum level that allows the teacher in the classroom a great deal of flexibility. Here, the teacher sees that students should know significant political issues of the revolutionary era, but the teacher has the discretion to adapt these issues to the students he/she serves. Like the previously discussed generalizations, these content pieces are bigger ideas that spiral throughout the curriculum to be built upon throughout social studies courses. In this manner, it will again offer students multiple learning opportunities to acquire the skill. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The third step of the document are skills objectives that detail the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) as well as College and Career Readiness Standards(CCRS). This provides more specific options for teachers in the Microcurriculum at the basic state proficient levels as well as at a higher level. At this level, teachers are provided more concrete examples as to specific expectations for content in the classroom. Students at the eighth grade level will take a state "High Stakes" test (TAKS) that will determine grade placement for the following year. These guidelines assist teachers with specific content so that teachers may make instructional judgments that will assist students in successfully challenging this state exam. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">In Texas, curriculum is based on the required Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. This unit in the 8th grade US History curriculum covers all required TEKS and also establishes the framework to infuse the College and Career Readiness Standards. For this reason, the standards and learning objectives are stated clearly and according to state requirements. In addition, these standards and objectives are appropriate for grade eight according to the Texas Education Agency. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The materials presented in this curriculum guide are done in a manner that is free from bias and in a manner that promotes equity. The language used within the document is as gender neutral as possible for this time period and also presented in a manner that promotes open ended thinking and questioning. The "Big Questions" are posed in a manner that allows students to internalize information based on their own experiences and to respond to these questions in a manner that allows a personal connection with the information. Furthermore, the addition of the CCRS standards, as well as the English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS) are evidence that this curriculum offers modifications in the Macro Curriculum as well as in the classroom at the Micro Curriculum level. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">In relation to student engagement, this guide allows teachers the flexibility at the Micro Curricular level to create learning experiences in their classrooms that promote student engagement. The document, when viewed online, offers suggestions as to instruction in order to provide support to any teacher who may need it. On the other hand, it refrains from dictating teacher instruction in the classroom so that this guide remains a framework and thereby follows the guidelines suggested by Hlebowitsh.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Content (accuracy, relevance and coverage) **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">In conclusion, this curriculum guide is one that it effective. Its philosophy, design and content promote the goals and aims of the community, and also establish an adequate framework at the Macro Curriculum level. As it does so, it also allows for teachers to differentiate in the classroom and thereby promotes the flexibility necessary for teachers to meet the needs of the students.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Conclusion **

**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">References ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Alleman, J.; Knighton, B. & Brophy, J. (2007). Social Studies: Incorporating all children <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">using community and cultural universals as the centerpiece. //Journal of Learning// //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Disabilities, //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> //40//(2), 166-73. Retrieved May 21, 2011, from Research Library. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Development Trends, (n.d.). In Multiple education, Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Hlebowitsh, P. S. (2005). //Designing the school curriculum.// Boston: Pearson Education. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Hlebowitsh, P. S. (2006). John Dewey and the idea of experimentalism. //Education and// //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Culture, Vol. 22, //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Issue 1, 73-76. <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Multiple Means of Assesment.(n.d.). Retrieved from <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">[]

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Northside ISD Social Studies Concept-Based Curriculum Guide Grade 8 Social Studies, U.S. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">History to 1877 Unit 2, The Colonies Break Free (1675-1783), (2011). <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Witty, P. (1933). Educational philosophy and experimentalism. //Religious Education, Vol. 28,// <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Issue 4, 303-306.