Contemporary Curriculum, Policy and Practice Landscapes

Abstract

This subject critically examines contemporary debates relevant to curriculum and policy networks and their influence on curriculum work in schools. Students will explore contemporary curriculum and policy trends and the international networks that shape them. Students will map education policy priorities relevant to their educational setting and analyse how these policies shape curriculum development and practice. From these investigations, students will critically engage with policy representations of educational ‘problems’ and propose alternative approaches to addressing contemporary educational challenges. This subject is foundational to understanding the complex networks of educational policy and politics from elsewhere that shape education in ‘the local’ today.

Syllabus

The syllabus is organised around three core modules, each containing four weekly topics, as follows: Contemporary policy landscapes The contemporary policy landscape: Locating cornerstone curriculum policy documents and prioritiesStakeholders in educational policy and curriculum development: interrogating power and histories of exclusion in curriculum and policy development, including implications for equity, … For more content click the Read More button below. Education policy networks and trends Supranational education trends and policy networks (the GERM)Local iterations of international policy trendsExamples of outliers and alternatives to conforming to international policy trends (eg. Finland)Interrogating the industrialised ‘one-size-fits-all' model of mass-education: Examples of place-based policy translation and curriculum enactment (First Nations focus from Australia, NZ, Hawai’i, Canada) Policy problems and curriculum solutions Datafication, accountability and performance: implications for teacher practice Interrogating the evidence base: evalutating and critiquing the data and evidence in so-called evidence-based practicesCase studies: critically analyse policy ‘problems’, the evidence base of the policy problems, and proposed curriculum solutions Evaluate a local policy ‘problem’, the evidence base of the problem, and its associated curriculum solution/s

The syllabus is organised around three core modules, each containing four weekly topics, as follows:

Contemporary policy landscapes

The contemporary policy landscape: Locating cornerstone curriculum policy documents and priorities
Stakeholders in educational policy and curriculum development: interrogating power and histories of exclusion in curriculum and policy development, including implications for equity, justice and First Nations reconciliation
Current social, political and economic trends shaping curriculum and policy development for school settings (discourse and ideology)
Tensions between aspirational policy goals, official curriculum outcomes, and assessment and reporting requirements: navigating standards-based reforms and questions of equity for diverse student needs

Education policy networks and trends

Supranational education trends and policy networks (the GERM)
Local iterations of international policy trends
Examples of outliers and alternatives to conforming to international policy trends (eg. Finland)
Interrogating the industrialised ‘one-size-fits-all' model of mass-education: Examples of place-based policy translation and curriculum enactment (First Nations focus from Australia, NZ, Hawai’i, Canada)

Policy problems and curriculum solutions

Datafication, accountability and performance: implications for teacher practice
Interrogating the evidence base: evalutating and critiquing the data and evidence in so-called evidence-based practices
Case studies: critically analyse policy ‘problems’, the evidence base of the policy problems, and proposed curriculum solutions
Evaluate a local policy ‘problem’, the evidence base of the problem, and its associated curriculum solution/s

Assessment items

1. Mapping local policy priorities and their influence on school-level curriculum enactments

2. Critical inquiry: what’s the problem represented to be?

3. Critical self-reflection

Assumed knowledge

It is assumed that students have completed an undergraduate teacher education degree and have some experience in primary and/or secondary schools.

Enrolment restrictions

Restricted to the Master of Education: Leading curriculum and pedagogic practice in schools

Learning resources

Additional resources required by students

Students will be required to: Access and use a range of interactive online elements. Engage with the online platform (BrightSpace). Access additional learning resources that support participation and engagement in the subject. Engage in reflection and evaluation https://www.edresearch.edu.au/using-evidence/research-reflection-guide

Handbook