2nd+presentation+Group+4

by Ruben C. Rodriguez, Muhammed Ozturk, Hana Alturki, Eyup Bayram Guzel  Curriculum Analysis Curriculum guides are created to provide a framework for districts and teachers to use in order to plan on what needs to be covered and when it should be covered throughout the course of any given subject. Hlebowitsh (2005) stated that, “when we design the school curriculum, we help determine what knowledge, experiences, and values are most worthwhile in the education of youth over a schedule of time and place” (Hlebowitsh, 2005, p. 3). In this analysis we will be comparing a 2010-2011 scope & sequence curriculum guide that was taken from Northside ISD’s website on elementary social studies and will compare it along side one that was taken from the country of Turkey. The Turkish social studies curriculum guide that we will be analyzing was provided by Erdal Guzel who is the headmaster (principal) of Cankaya Ilkogretim Okulu (Cankaya Elementary School), which is located in Ankara, Turkey. Although both guides present the scope & sequence of elementary social studies for grades K-5th we will be exclusively analyzing and comparing the fifth grade social studies curriculum throughout this paper. During this analysis we will examine the philosophies, design, clarity, and learning objectives that make-up both of these curriculum guides. We will also explore their uniqueness’s and compare their similarities that would either bind them together or set them apart in an educational environment. **Underlying philosophy ** The Turkish fifth grade social studies curriculum that was provided by Mr. Guzel has been implemented in all of the Turkish elementary schools since 2005, as where the NISD social studies guide only outlines the current 2010-2011 school year. The Turkish curriculum was designed around the topics of cognition and constructivist philosophy along with new teaching materials that were developed by the Minister of National Education in 2005. During the time of this curricular development, all elementary fifth grade social studies curriculums were compared with a large of number of international curriculums from around the world. The NISD elementary social studies curriculum was developed by an in-house division of curriculum & instruction specialists that design for the entire school district and to meet the standards of the TAKS test. Northside ISD’s underlying philosophy utilizes perenialism and social efficiency, which ties this document directly to what’s on the test. On the other hand, the underlying Turkish philosophy includes program, teaching how to learn, active learning, child-centered teaching, lifelong learning, democratic culture and economic sensitivity, which are all based on an integrated approach. It was also interesting to notice the governmental ties in the Turkish social studies curriculum as where NISD’s was actually tailored for the district. After comparing the two curriculum guides it was quiet clear that the only two of the seven philosophies that were evidently present within them both were perenialism and social efficiency. **Design format ** It was clear after comparing both documents that the formats of the two were quite different. Besides the fact that one was written in Turkish and the other in English, NISD’s curriculum was formatted according to quarters covering no more than three main content standards per quarter. However, the Turkish curriculum document was designed according to a nine-month format, while covering no more than two main content areas per month. The Turkish curriculum guide is also more detailed than NISD’s because it includes relationships with other disciplines and classes, along with different activities, which include a script for the teachers, evaluation procedures, and explanations of the content to be taught. One major design similarity between them both is the way they categorized their content standards. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Clarity and usability ** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Both curriculum guides are pretty clear on displaying their subject content and in laying out the exact sequential order that it should be taught in. Although, after comparing them both the Turkish guide is apparently designed more flexible and overall provides greater detail into the content than Northside’s charted social studies scope and sequence. The Turkish guide does have an advantage over NISD’s because it provides some flexibility for the teachers to modify and follow the script that best fits the needs of the situation at hand, where NISD’s cannot be modified at all by the teacher. One other advantage that the Turkish curriculum has is that it is very user friendly especially for new teachers because it presents every step clearly and very detailed, as where NISD’s provides only content standards and bulleted teks with no explanations. In both cases, it is apparent that there is definitely a usable scope and sequence for the teachers to utilize and follow throughout the year. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Coverage of standards and learning objectives and their relevance ** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The fifth grade portion of the NISD elementary social studies 2010-2011 scope & sequence guide breaks up its curriculum into four quarters covering the following in each.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">1<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">st Quarter: // **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">covers Americans //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">(regions, resources, and geography) //, New Beginnings //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">(colonization, economics, and government) //, Conflict and Cha//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">nge (significant “individuals/events, Declaration of Independence”, causes, effects/results) //.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">2<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">nd Quarter: // **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> focuses on We The People //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">(contributions of individuals, U.S. Constitution “Preamble & Bill of Rights”, checks and balances, three branches) //, The American Frontier //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">(struggles of a new nation, Louisiana Purchase “Lewis & Clark”, Battle of 1812, Reason why people west “motivations, adaptation, Gold Rush, wagon trails”, challenges/struggles “Trail of Tears”) //.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">3<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">rd Quarter: // **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> focuses on the Civil War, Expansion & Change //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">(Industrial Revolution, Transcontinental Railroad, conflict, immigration/cultural diversity, State of Liberty) //.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">4<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">th Quarter: // **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> concentrates on Science, Technology, and Big //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Business (discoveries and innovation, economic development, effects on environment) //, The 20<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">th Century and Beyond //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">(Research: notable Americans of the 20<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">th century, the Great Depression, World Wars, Women’s/Civil Rights, urbanization, space) //.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">The Turkish fifth grade social studies scope & sequence document, which was developed by the Turkish National Minister of Education designed and implemented in 2005 is currently still in use, breaks up its curriculum focuses into a monthly basis.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 1: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> focused on regions, resources, and neighbors
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 2: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> covers geography and climate
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 3: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">focuses mainly on natural disasters and their preventions
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 4: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> stresses on economic activities
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 5: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> concentrates on technology and the sciences
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 6: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> focuses on rules (cultural & moral) of living in society
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 7: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> covers World War I
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 8: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;"> focuses on the revolutionary history, Ataturk
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Month 9: **<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">emphasizes on democracy and civil rights

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Both the NISD and Turkish curriculum guides seem to focus on subjects that pertain to their specific regions of the world, which tie into their significant social and cultural histories. An example of this would be that NISD social studies curriculum covers significant events about the American Civil War as where the Turkish focus more on World War I. Another major difference between the two is that the Turkish curriculum guide breaks its specific focuses into to nine monthly segments as opposed to the four quarterly segments that NISD currently uses. After comparing both documents side-by-side it was clear that both were not bias free, but they both did contain subject content that would help the fifth graders build a conceptual understanding of the foundations of a democratic society. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Summary ** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-left: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Both curriculum documents clearly presented a framework of the content standards and teks that are required by Northside Independent School District and the respective Turkish government. Even though there were some differences as far as content and over who initially designed each curriculum (NISD’s “developed in-house”, Turkish “Minister of National Education”), along with the time frame in which they will be used. They both commonly included fifth grade social studies content that specifically pertained to their unique cultures and histories about their countries. One of the main limitations not previously mentioned about the Turkish guide is that it is used all over Turkey regardless of differences between cultures, regions, and socio-economic situations of the society. The main limitations of NISD’s guide is that it can only be used within the districts elementary schools and can change yearly depending on what’s required for the TAKS test. Finally, the difference that set them apart is that NISD’s content concern lies with what’s on the test, as where the overall focus of the Turkish curriculum is democratically student-centered.

NISD and Turkish elementary social studies scope & sequence guides




Group Power Point Presentation


<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">**References** <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Cankaya Ilkogretim Okulu elementary social studies curriculum guide //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">, was provided by Erdal Guzel on May 18<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">th, 2011. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Hlebowitsh, P. S. (2005). //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">Designing the school curriculum //. Boston, MA: Pearson. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in;">//<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">NISD elementary social studies 2010-2011 scope & sequence guide //<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">, taken from <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #0066cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; vertical-align: auto;">__[|www.nisd.edu]__, retrieved on May 17<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">th , 2011.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: -0.5in;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0pt; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: auto;">This paper was equally composed by: Ruben C. Rodriguez, Muhammed Ozturk, Hana Alturki, and Eyup Bayram Guzel