Education authority staff Essay

By you consistently adhering to the writing guidelines By meeting agreed timescales and deadlines Through regular monitoring of output by your team leader. Through joint meetings with other writers to set and maintain the standard Through feedback from the engagement process Finally, sign off for outputs will be agreed by the Program Director following advice from a final validation panel comprising members of all four partner organisations. A checklist for writing outcomes Does the outcome conform to the following criteria? 1. Is it written in clear English, appropriate as far as possible to the level? 2. Does the outcome: Specify what may be: i. learned – knowledge, understanding or skill? ii. Experienced? iii. Indicate or direct the selection of learning activities? iv. Allow evaluation of the outcome: v. By the young person? vi. By the teacher? vii. Does the outcome include an appropriate ‘action verb’? viii. Does the outcome demand more of the young person than consider features of outcomes at the earlier level? Technology in K-12 education [8] Generation Y is an innovative curriculum and resource solution for grades 3-12 that promotes school wide technology infusion. It is a technology program with a twist. Gen Y students develop technological fluency while learning how to share their knowledge with others. Each student is paired with a classroom teacher who needs help integrating technology into their practice. Each student/teacher team decides on a curriculum component or lesson to enhance with technology. Students learn about pedagogy and lesson plan design while developing their communication, planning and project management skills. The partner teacher receives support for their technology projects when and where they need it – in their classroom. The result is authentic project-based learning for the students and sustainable technology professional development for the teachers. This powerful model has been refined and proven in real classrooms around the world. The students are empowered to see themselves as valuable members of the educational community. They take this responsibility very seriously, becoming invaluable resources and helping teachers and their schools throughout their school career. For six years, Generation Y has been delivered in almost any conceivable school setting. From Native American villages in Alaska and Washington to all secondary schools in the Virgin Islands, to remote towns in Wyoming to urban schools in empowerment zones in Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Seattle, Los Angeles and Washington DC. â€Å"Through this technology infusion, participating educators receive individualized support as they strengthen their use and integration of new technologies. Students learn technology, communication, collaboration, and project management skills in an authentic, personally meaningful context, and many go on to further extend their skills through advanced school or community service projects. † Generation Y is one of most researched educational technology programs in the United States. Since the start of the Technology Innovation Challenge Grant (TICG) program, the Northwest Regional Education Laboratory (NWREL) has served as an independent external evaluator. Feedback from every stakeholder group was woven back into the curriculum materials, the online support tools and the assessment design. The resulting program is a strong model that supports a wide variety of uses and classroom profiles. Test for the effectiveness of curriculum towards meeting its aims and objectives [6] Is it possible to anticipate whether or not the curriculum meets its aims? One simple test to apply makes use of the set of guiding principles of good education proposed by the American Association of Higher Education. According to these a good curriculum should: Encourage staff/student contact Encourage co-operation between students Encourage active learning Provide prompt feedback on performance of both teacher and taught Emphasise `time on the task’ Respect the diverse talents and ways of learning brought to the course by the students Evaluate itself Display a clarity of aims and objectives. Make use of the educational literature Conclusion One telling criticism that can continue to be made of any approach is that there is no social vision or program to guide the process of curriculum construction. Designing a curriculum not a simple matter and there is no single ‘best’ answer either in the form of the curriculum or even the methodology adopted for its design. A final question we might ask is whether or not it is possible to determine if the result is any good. One way is by always including a careful student of the course once it has been given. Evaluation of this sort is essential and should always be treated seriously, allowing sufficient time in class for any survey questionnaire to be filled out and with the results carefully summarised. It is good practice to post a notice giving the results of the evaluation and providing an instructor’s commentary. References 1. p 10, Kelly 1983, Kelly 1999 2. v50 n6 p488-496 Mar 2007, Stansberry, Susan L. ; Kymes, Angel D. , Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 3. p 23, Blenkin et al 1992: 23 4. p 11, Grundy 1987, Curriculum: Product or Praxis, Lewes 5.77, Stenhouse 1974. 6. David J. Unwin, (1997). Curriculum Design for GIS, NCGIA Core Curriculum in GIScience, 7. http://www. ncgia. ucsb. edu/giscc/units/u159/u159. html, posted January 08, 1998. 8. http://www. newhorizons. org/strategies/technology/martinez. htm 9. Generation Y Evaluation Studies http://www. genyes. org/products/geny/genyresearch 10. Tyler, R. W. (1949) Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction, Chicago 11. Wragg, T. (1997) The Cubic Curriculum, London 12. Aristotle (1976) The Nicomachean Ethics (‘Ethics’), Harmondsworth: Penguin. 13. Barnes, J. (1976) ‘Introduction’ to Aristotle The Nicomachean Ethics (‘Ethics’), Harmondsworth: Penguin. 14. Barrow, R. (1984) Giving Teaching back to Teachers. A critical introduction to curriculum theory, Brighton: Wheatsheaf Books. 15. Blenkin, G. M. et al (1992) Change and the Curricula, London: Paul Chapman. 16. Bobbitt, F. (1918) The Curriculum, Boston: Houghton Mifflin 17. Bobbitt, F. (1928) How to Make a Curriculum, Boston: Houghton Mifflin 18. Carr, W. & Kemmis, S. (1986) Becoming Critical. Education, knowledge and action research, Lewes: Falmer Press 19. Cornbleth, C. (1990) Curriculum in Context, Basingstoke: Falmer Press. 20. Curzon, L. B. (1985) Teaching in Further Education. An outline of principles and practice 3e, London: Cassell. 21. Dewey, J. (1902) The Child and the Curriculum, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 22. Dewey, J. (1938) Experience and Education, New York: Macmillan. 23. Eisner, E. W. (1985) The Art of Educational Evaluation, Lewes: Falmer Press. 24. Foreman, A. (1990) ‘Personality and curriculum’ in T. Jeffs. & M. Smith (eds. ) (1990) Using Informal Education. An alternative to casework, teaching and control? Milton Keynes: Open University Press. Freire, P. (1972) Pedagogy of the Oppressed, Harmondsworth: Penguin. 25. Grundy, S. (1987) Curriculum: product or praxis? Lewes: Falmer Press. 26. Jackson, P. W. (1968) Life in Classrooms, New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston. 27. Jeffs, T. & Smith, M. (eds. ) (1990) Using Informal Education. An alternative to casework, teaching and control? Milton Keynes: Open University Press. 28. Jeffs, T. J. and Smith, M. K. (1999) Informal Education. Conversation, democracy and learning, Ticknall: Education Now. 29. Kelly, A. V. (1983; 1999) The Curriculum. Theory and practice 4e, London: Paul Chapman. 30. Stenhouse, L. (1975) An introduction to Curriculum Research and Development, London: Heineman. 31. Newman, E. & G. Ingram (1989) The Youth Work Curriculum, London: Further Education Unit (FEU). 32. Taba, H. (1962) Curriculum Development: Theory and practice, New York: Harcourt Brace and World. 33. Tyler, R. W. (1949) Basic Principles of Curriculum and Instruction, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 34. Usher, R. & I. Bryant (1989) Adult Education as Theory, Practice and Research. The captive triangle, London: Routledge.