The Politics of Curriculum Decision-Making

Issues in Centralizing the Curriculum

Edited by M. Frances Klein

Subjects: Education
Series: SUNY series in Curriculum Issues and Inquiries
Paperback : 9780791404881, 236 pages, January 1991
Hardcover : 9780791404874, 236 pages, January 1991

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Table of contents

Introduction
M. Frances Klein

Part I. Current Trends and History of Curriculum Decision Making

1. Curriculum Making as a Sociopolitical Process
John I. Goodlad

2. A Conceptual Framework for Curriculum Decision Making
M. Frances Klein

3. Two Visions of Federalism and the Control of the Curriculum
Tyll van Geel

4. Centralizing Curriculum at the State Level
Chris Pipho

5. Historical Perspective on Centralizing Curriculum
William H. Schubert

Part II. Perspectives on the Centralization of Curriculum Decision Making

6. Teacher Education and Curriculum Decision Making: The Issue of Teacher Professionalism
Gary A. Griffin

7. Centralized Curriculum: Effects on the Local School Level
Martin G. Brooks

8. Organizational Metaphors, Curriculum Reform, and Local School and District Change
Audrey James Schwartz

9. Centralized Curriculum Decision Making: The View from the Organized Teaching Profession
Robert M. McClure

10. Issues from Curriculum Theory in the Centralization of Curriculum
M. Frances Klein

Index

Description

Recent proposals for school reform have involved a significant shift in how curriculum decisions are made, particularly at the state level. In response to these proposals, actions taken by educators have underscored the critical nature of the issue regarding who makes curriculum decisions. This book examines the issues involved in how this pivotal concern has been addressed in the past and how it is being handled now.

Each chapter contributes to a more complete understanding of the complexities involved in the recent trend toward the centralization of curriculum decision-making. The book will assist both researchers and practitioners in better understanding the issues involved as well as the impact of the movement.

M. Frances Klein is Eminent Scholar Visiting Professor at Jacksonville State University, Alabama.

Reviews

"This book addresses a major issue in the curriculum field that has not been addressed adequately in other sources. Well-documented chapters go beyond presentation of new materials and also offer provocative insights to and frameworks for analyzing the material." — Dorothy Huenecke, Georgia State University