Discussion Forum 5

Admin · Admin Posts: 51 Join date: 2007-11-15

Dear Students,

For our next forum:

Help Without Giving Advice
-Lopez, Sonia
-Silva, Joel

This time, please relate discussion to the three dimensions of instructional planning:
1. teaching in the classroom and clinical area
2. supervising new and inexperienced teachers
3. curriculum or instructional design

Old guidelines still apply. Deadline is August 20, 6 AM.

P.S. Online class (synchronous) will be moved on FRIDAY.

Good luck!

Jesson

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

The paper is about Pinar’s call for curriculum conceptualized as a course of life. This paper also gave emphasis that curriculum studies as a distinctive interdisciplinary field in education.

Curriculum theory is the interdisciplinary study of educational experience. Not every interdisciplinary study of educational experience is curriculum theory, of course; nor is every instance of curriculum theory interdisciplinary. Curriculum theory is a
distinctive field of study, with a unique history, a complex present, an uncer
tain future. Discernible in this distinctive field are influences from disciplines
across the humanities and the arts, and, to a lesser extent, from the social sci
ences (primarily social theory).(Pinar, 2004)

As I have understand, this interdisciplinary structure of this field with the strong influence of the humanities and the arts makes the curriculum theory a very distinct specialization within the broad field of education, it is a fragmented field within the modeled after the social and behavioral sciences. It is an interdisciplinary field. It is said that curriculum studies may be the only academic discipline within the broad field of education.

This tells us about educational experience, He says that curriculum theory is critical of contemporary school “reform. ” Indeed, “educational experience” seems precisely what politicians do not want, as they insist we focus on test scores, the “bottom line. ” By linking the curriculum tostudent performance on standardized examinations, politicians have, in effect, taken control of what is to be taught: the curriculum. Examination
driven curricula demote teachers from scholars and intellectuals to techni
cians in service to the state.

Pinar’s aim is to awaken us to the “nightmare” that has become a reality in public education, and to engage us in the battle to take back teaching and teacher education from those forces that have taken it over. He invites us to become “temporal” subjects of history, living simultaneously in the past, present, and future – aware of the historical conditions that have shaped the current situation, engaged in the present battles being waged over the course and direction of public education, and committed to re-building a democratic public sphere.

Pinar is skeptical of computer technologies, for they generally serve to turn us into disembodied and alienated subjects, he does not dismiss computer technologies as much as the instrumental use of computers, for example, in drilling students to pass standardized tests. Such use of computers is not only alienating for students, but it also turns teachers into technical managers of a programmed process.

He also wants emphasis is upon the active running of a course, one that is always circling back over the past, bringing the past into the present, and heading out into the future. This will make curriculum as an active process, and as such it does not separate curriculum from pedagogy or learning, or either from the historical situatedness of the educative process and teaching act. In this sense, the curriculum is pedagogy, and vice versa. Curriculum is the coming together of teacher, student, and text within a situated moment in space and time, in which we are called upon to produce (or co-produce) both themselves and culture. This requires, according to Pinar, that the curriculum be autobiographical and self-reflexive.

Pinar argues, teachers and education faculty will need to reassert the centrality of intellectual work. They must find time in their schedules each day to read, take notes, and write, and to keep up with the latest scholarship; and they must engage their students in serious intellectual engagements with texts, pressing them beyond their intellectual stuck points.

resource:

Pinar, W F. What is Curriculum Theory. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2004

Guide questions still to follow, please wait...

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

if your material is hazy, please refer to this site

http://books.google.com.ph/books?id=ttLUi1MDiPcC&pg=PA185&lpg=PA185&dq=Terrance+R.+Carson,+Help+without+giving+advice&source=web&ots=X--8Sr2IeV&sig=w6z3adACOjCa9EBll07LEd1ASJg&hl=tl&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result#PPA191,M1

thanks!

sdlopez02 · Posts: 16 Join date: 2008-08-12 Location: philippines

Curriculum, dervided from the latin word currere (meaning race course), is the regular or a particular course of study in a school, college, etc.

This blog might help us understand what the concept currere is (http://currerepaper.blogspot.com/) and could shed light in some of the concepts included in our topic today. The author of this blog, Barbara Schroeder, is an adjunct professor at BSU. She has a master's degree in Educational Technology and an undergraduate degree is English Teaching. It has a discussion regarding the concept of curarre.

Reference:
Schroeder, B. (2004), Currere: Reconceptualizing Curriculum. Retrieved August 19,2008 from http://currerepaper.blogspot.com/

Josh · Posts: 41 Join date: 2008-08-11

The article of Pinar, if I had construed it correctly, is an exposition of the phenomena of educational curriculum in the U.S. History had prove to show how educational system evolved into a dynamic process heading towards a noble quest but is now leading to degradation. The term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavor.

The focus of Pinar’s is an attempt to provide a curriculum theory that seek to offer help by mere exposition of the problem but offers to suggestion on how to solve the problem.

He also added that educational approach in classroom or even in clinical practice are so much influenced with the cultural background of instructor or political system, and He offers a theory of reconceptualization of curriculum or currere, or an instructor should go beyond from past experiences.

In the Philippines, I believed that it is happening. Not to mention the looming rates of tuition fee increase (commercialization of education), the cultural biases and discrimination.

Currere is a political and social reconstruction of curriculum. As if bringing back the glory of the old times where the search for knowledge for ghe sake of wisdom and learning is the primary concern. Therefore, currere, the “kernel of a reconceived and revitalized curriculum theory field,” might provide the kindling for a new and exciting discourse, one that is based upon lived experiences that naturally coincide with others,' that involves a change of consciousness and a deeper and richer understanding of learning and teaching. This route, this currere, might be the indispensable link that allows our “complicated conversations” to begin and grow.
Pinar, W. F. (1975). Currere: Toward reconceptualization. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), Curriculum Theorizing: The Reconconceptualists (pp. 396-414). Berkeley: McCutchan Publishing.
The issue raised by Pinar, I think affects both teaching in classroom and clinical area. In the Philippines there are some, if not all, basically submit to requirements of educational body by mere compliance but not really for the sake of learning (e.g. 5 OR exposure…). And in classroom learning contents are more directed to answer question for exam competency but not really professional competency.

Instructional design should be reconceptualized and this therefore, will lead to scaffolding a better curriculum design.

silva731 wrote:

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

In addition to what he had said, Pinar's work is a manifesto which is meant to shake which is meant to shake, us, educators. With this awakening I still we cannto achive this in an instant but mobilization of all secto is still a factor. we need to reassert to gain more knowledge.

Josh wrote:

The article of Pinar, if I had construed it correctly, is an exposition of the phenomena of educational curriculum in the U.S. History had prove to show how educational system evolved into a dynamic process heading towards a noble quest but is now leading to degradation. The term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavor.

The focus of Pinar’s is an attempt to provide a curriculum theory that seek to offer help by mere exposition of the problem but offers to suggestion on how to solve the problem.

He also added that educational approach in classroom or even in clinical practice are so much influenced with the cultural background of instructor or political system, and He offers a theory of reconceptualization of curriculum or currere, or an instructor should go beyond from past experiences.

In the Philippines, I believed that it is happening. Not to mention the looming rates of tuition fee increase (commercialization of education), the cultural biases and discrimination.

Currere is a political and social reconstruction of curriculum. As if bringing back the glory of the old times where the search for knowledge for ghe sake of wisdom and learning is the primary concern. Therefore, currere, the “kernel of a reconceived and revitalized curriculum theory field,” might provide the kindling for a new and exciting discourse, one that is based upon lived experiences that naturally coincide with others,' that involves a change of consciousness and a deeper and richer understanding of learning and teaching. This route, this currere, might be the indispensable link that allows our “complicated conversations” to begin and grow.
Pinar, W. F. (1975). Currere: Toward reconceptualization. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), Curriculum Theorizing: The Reconconceptualists (pp. 396-414). Berkeley: McCutchan Publishing.
The issue raised by Pinar, I think affects both teaching in classroom and clinical area. In the Philippines there are some, if not all, basically submit to requirements of educational body by mere compliance but not really for the sake of learning (e.g. 5 OR exposure…). And in classroom learning contents are more directed to answer question for exam competency but not really professional competency.

Instructional design should be reconceptualized and this therefore, will lead to scaffolding a better curriculum design.

silva731 wrote:

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

sdlopez02 · Posts: 16 Join date: 2008-08-12 Location: philippines

I agree with joshua. The big business interests and the big business groups appear to influence the American curriculum. They should help like providing funds in curriculum development but without expecting them to influence or control the contents of the curriculum.

However i may disagree with your view that classroom learning is focused on the answer question competency. To address the professional competency development, undergraduates are required to go through RLE's. It is here where they hone their SKA in the road to becoming professionals in their respective field.

Josh wrote:

[size=18]The article of Pinar, if I had construed it correctly, is an exposition of the phenomena of educational curriculum in the U.S. History had prove to show how educational system evolved into a dynamic process heading towards a noble quest but is now leading to degradation. The term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavor.

The focus of Pinar’s is an attempt to provide a curriculum theory that seek to offer help by mere exposition of the problem but offers to suggestion on how to solve the problem.

He also added that educational approach in classroom or even in clinical practice are so much influenced with the cultural background of instructor or political system, and He offers a theory of reconceptualization of curriculum or currere, or an instructor should go beyond from past experiences.

In the Philippines, I believed that it is happening. Not to mention the looming rates of tuition fee increase (commercialization of education), the cultural biases and discrimination.

Currere is a political and social reconstruction of curriculum. As if bringing back the glory of the old times where the search for knowledge for ghe sake of wisdom and learning is the primary concern. Therefore, currere, the “kernel of a reconceived and revitalized curriculum theory field,” might provide the kindling for a new and exciting discourse, one that is based upon lived experiences that naturally coincide with others,' that involves a change of consciousness and a deeper and richer understanding of learning and teaching. This route, this currere, might be the indispensable link that allows our “complicated conversations” to begin and grow.
Pinar, W. F. (1975). Currere: Toward reconceptualization. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), Curriculum Theorizing: The Reconconceptualists (pp. 396-414). Berkeley: McCutchan Publishing.
The issue raised by Pinar, I think affects both teaching in classroom and clinical area. In the Philippines there are some, if not all, basically submit to requirements of educational body by mere compliance but not really for the sake of learning (e.g. 5 OR exposure…). And in classroom learning contents are more directed to answer question for exam competency but not really professional competency.

Instructional design should be reconceptualized and this therefore, will lead to scaffolding a better curriculum design.

patmarban · Subject: Re: Discussion Forum 5 Tue 19 Aug 2008, 10:00 pm

In UERM, I believe the principles of Pinar are evident. With this institution having a collegial-type culture, instructors are assumed and trusted to be doing what is expected of them, if not more. Also, coming from the Human Anatomy and Physiology department, my colleagues and I have an agreement with our coordinator as to having autonomy over our way of teaching. For instance, we only have a simple course outline to follow, but each instructor is allowed to decide their own pace and style of teaching. In this light, I believe Pinar’s principles are very positive knowing that each student has a different need and each class has a different character, thus instructors must be allowed to individualize learning. On the other hand, strict rules for compliance coming from the coordinator would mean having lesser room for adjustments for individualized learning.

However, I do disagree with the “nightmare” pertaining to the use of computers. Instructional design courses, for example, are partly meant to train teachers utilize technology and making pedagogy more efficient. Indeed, Pinar’s claim has two sides of the coin. Instructors being either educators or merely providers of educational services depend on how effective they incorporate pedagogical treatment into technology.

silva731 wrote:

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

well pinar just want to emphasize that we are not only moderators or facilitators. He does not believe that teachers are mere technical managers when it comes to the use of computers in givng standardized tests. Still he also reiterated the importance of continued growth on the part of the educator to be effective teachers.

patmarban wrote:

In UERM, I believe the principles of Pinar are evident. With this institution having a collegial-type culture, instructors are assumed and trusted to be doing what is expected of them, if not more. Also, coming from the Human Anatomy and Physiology department, my colleagues and I have an agreement with our coordinator as to having autonomy over our way of teaching. For instance, we only have a simple course outline to follow, but each instructor is allowed to decide their own pace and style of teaching. In this light, I believe Pinar’s principles are very positive knowing that each student has a different need and each class has a different character, thus instructors must be allowed to individualize learning. On the other hand, strict rules for compliance coming from the coordinator would mean having lesser room for adjustments for individualized learning.

However, I do disagree with the “nightmare” pertaining to the use of computers. Instructional design courses, for example, are partly meant to train teachers utilize technology and making pedagogy more efficient. Indeed, Pinar’s claim has two sides of the coin. Instructors being either educators or merely providers of educational services depend on how effective they incorporate pedagogical treatment into technology.

silva731 wrote:

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

gary.orosa · Posts: 19 Join date: 2008-08-12

Josh wrote:

The article of Pinar, if I had construed it correctly, is an exposition of the phenomena of educational curriculum in the U.S. History had prove to show how educational system evolved into a dynamic process heading towards a noble quest but is now leading to degradation. The term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavor.

The focus of Pinar’s is an attempt to provide a curriculum theory that seek to offer help by mere exposition of the problem but offers to suggestion on how to solve the problem.

He also added that educational approach in classroom or even in clinical practice are so much influenced with the cultural background of instructor or political system, and He offers a theory of reconceptualization of curriculum or currere, or an instructor should go beyond from past experiences.

In the Philippines, I believed that it is happening. Not to mention the looming rates of tuition fee increase (commercialization of education), the cultural biases and discrimination.

Currere is a political and social reconstruction of curriculum. As if bringing back the glory of the old times where the search for knowledge for ghe sake of wisdom and learning is the primary concern. Therefore, currere, the “kernel of a reconceived and revitalized curriculum theory field,” might provide the kindling for a new and exciting discourse, one that is based upon lived experiences that naturally coincide with others,' that involves a change of consciousness and a deeper and richer understanding of learning and teaching. This route, this currere, might be the indispensable link that allows our “complicated conversations” to begin and grow.
Pinar, W. F. (1975). Currere: Toward reconceptualization. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), Curriculum Theorizing: The Reconconceptualists (pp. 396-414). Berkeley: McCutchan Publishing.
The issue raised by Pinar, I think affects both teaching in classroom and clinical area. In the Philippines there are some, if not all, basically submit to requirements of educational body by mere compliance but not really for the sake of learning (e.g. 5 OR exposure…). And in classroom learning contents are more directed to answer question for exam competency but not really professional competency.

Instructional design should be reconceptualized and this therefore, will lead to scaffolding a better curriculum design.

silva731 wrote:

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

If the term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavour, then here in the Philippines our nursing education standards are not only towards commercialization, but also towards human exportation.

The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said it is making changes to the College of Nursing Curriculum as well as ensure a better passing rate for the Filipino nursing graduates. "We will make changes in the curriculum for nursing to adopt to the international standards," Neri said.

As the thrust and long term goal of the government is in overseas employment as it is incompetent to provide the jobs here, schools have no choice but to comply with whatever curriculum the CHED wants. It must be remembered that the survival and permit of the nursing school lies on its ability to produce enough board passers. The government makes its own effort thru the PRC of publishing the passing statistical figures of each school including the percentile rank, number of examinees, repeaters, etc. perhaps as a warning to the public on which schools to patronize or not.

While a growing number of students graduate from nursing schools, not even 50 percent pass the licensure exams.

Throughout the country, nursing education is being retrofitted to meet the demands of the global market. A surge in demand for nurses among health institutions overseas—particularly in the United States and the United Kingdom—is fueling a boom in nursing schools. But as in any other boom, quality has suffered as the numbers increase, in large part because of skewed priorities.

In the 1970s there were 40 nursing schools in the country. Today there are about 350, including many that are focusing more on reaping profits from people dreaming of high-earning jobs overseas than on preparing students for an exacting profession that provides care for ailing patients and technical support for doctors.

Many of these schools lack up-to-date facilities, qualified faculty or affiliation with a hospital, all of which are supposed to be in place before these institutions are allowed to operate.

Yet instead of attending to these problems, many nursing schools have busied themselves adjusting their requirements to fit the needs of a new type of students: middle-age professionals seeking a new career. Called “second-coursers,” they include doctors as well as accountants, clerks, teachers, journalists, government employees and secretaries. All of them hope to become nurses, preferably in a foreign land. More often than not, such students enjoy a shorter term since their basic science subjects in their first course are credited.

But Rita Tamse of the Technical Committee on Nursing Education of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) urges students to first scrutinize a school’s credentials and past performance before parting with their often hefty tuition. She notes, for instance, that 23 of the current number of nursing schools have failed to meet the requirements set by the government for them to operate but they have appealed to CHED to let them continue. They have also sought the help of congressmen to avoid closure.

To help students avoid the duds among the schools, CHED has issued a list showing the performance of various schools in the Nursing Board Exam. CHED divided the schools into five categories, with those that have 90 percent or more of their examinees passing the Board in the last five years classifying as institutions that had “outstanding performance.” The bottom category is for “very low performing” schools, or those with 29 percent or below of their students passing the exams.

Under the law, a nursing school must have a passing rate of 5 percent to be able to continue operating. CHED wants to push the rate up to 30 percent, a level that could close down many of the nursing schools.

To certain schools, CHED might appear to be a villain. But the government and even recruiters know that in the end, having high-quality graduates is the best way the country could stay in the business of exporting nurses.

The overwhelming number of students wanting to become nurses obviously contributes to the desire of many schools to have as many graduates as they can. According to CHED, nursing schools had a total of 80,000 enrolees last year, among them “second coursers.” The steep cost of the course apparently did not faze them, perhaps because they expect a quick return in their investment once they land a job overseas.

“Passing all examinations does not make them competitive,” Dr. Rusty Francisco said. Not many Filipino nurses are familiar with the medical equipment being used in US hospitals, he points out. Neither do they know how to operate in an environment where patients are more assertive and aware of their rights.

Francisco argues that even a high-standard school may not be able to change the mindset of those already determined to earn dollars above anything else. “A school curriculum,” he says, “does not automatically turn a person into a caring, compassionate nurse with the ability to be assertive and articulate.”

Now, Nursing Education the Philippines will never be the same again. Nursing, as a course in college, may no longer be as attractive as before starting this school year. The Philippine Nursing Curriculum has dramatically changed since the Commission on Higher Education’s issuance of CHED Memorandum Order (MO) No. 5, series of 2008 otherwise known as “Policies and Standards for Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program”. This CHED Memo makes BSN a five-year course.

The new Nursing Curriculum in the Philippines will effect these changes:
• Instead of the usual 79 units taken up by first year nursing students, the new guidelines will require students to take up 93 units in 2,632 hours.
• Additional 357 hours for hospital training or Related Learning Experiences (RLEs) which will make RLEs 2,499 hours from the previous 2,142 hours
• 28 additional units or about three summers of schooling

Whatever the overt or covert objectives of the curriculum are, at the end of the day, it is still the caring and the competency that will count...

References:
CHED making changes to nursing curriculum to address low passing rate. Retrieved August 19, 2008 from: http://www.gmanews.tv/story/92437/

Nursing schools peddle dreams. By Chit Estella, Philippine Center of Investigative Journalism. Retrieved August 19, 2008 from:
http://www.manilatimes.net/others/special/2005/mar/22/20050322spe1.html

Nursing Education in the Philippines: Nursing Curriculum Now 5 Years. Retrieved August 19, 2008 from: http://www.jpsimbulan.com/2008/08/12/nursing-education-in-the-philippines-nursing-curriculum-now-5-years/

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

gary.orosa wrote:

Josh wrote:

The article of Pinar, if I had construed it correctly, is an exposition of the phenomena of educational curriculum in the U.S. History had prove to show how educational system evolved into a dynamic process heading towards a noble quest but is now leading to degradation. The term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavor.

The focus of Pinar’s is an attempt to provide a curriculum theory that seek to offer help by mere exposition of the problem but offers to suggestion on how to solve the problem.

He also added that educational approach in classroom or even in clinical practice are so much influenced with the cultural background of instructor or political system, and He offers a theory of reconceptualization of curriculum or currere, or an instructor should go beyond from past experiences.

In the Philippines, I believed that it is happening. Not to mention the looming rates of tuition fee increase (commercialization of education), the cultural biases and discrimination.

Currere is a political and social reconstruction of curriculum. As if bringing back the glory of the old times where the search for knowledge for ghe sake of wisdom and learning is the primary concern. Therefore, currere, the “kernel of a reconceived and revitalized curriculum theory field,” might provide the kindling for a new and exciting discourse, one that is based upon lived experiences that naturally coincide with others,' that involves a change of consciousness and a deeper and richer understanding of learning and teaching. This route, this currere, might be the indispensable link that allows our “complicated conversations” to begin and grow.
Pinar, W. F. (1975). Currere: Toward reconceptualization. In W. F. Pinar (Ed.), Curriculum Theorizing: The Reconconceptualists (pp. 396-414). Berkeley: McCutchan Publishing.
The issue raised by Pinar, I think affects both teaching in classroom and clinical area. In the Philippines there are some, if not all, basically submit to requirements of educational body by mere compliance but not really for the sake of learning (e.g. 5 OR exposure…). And in classroom learning contents are more directed to answer question for exam competency but not really professional competency.

Instructional design should be reconceptualized and this therefore, will lead to scaffolding a better curriculum design.

silva731 wrote:

Guide Questions:

1. The article is titled “Help without giving advice.” What does this mean and how is it related in the situation of Western education?

2. What is your opinion about Pinar’s statement that “We must make clear,” he writes, “that education coursework is intellectual work, not simply the sharing of personal experiences in the classroom and popular prejudices about ‘effective’ teaching”

3. In the Philippine context, do you think that this “nightmare” is also happening because we are a country with great western influence?

4. What do we mean by curriculum as currere?

5. Then number four is: Having identified the “nightmare/s” of Philippine education, how can we as educators address the problem by the context of currere?

6. Please relate your discussions to the three dimensions of instructional planning.

If the term used by Pinar is “nightmare” as U.S. educational standards slide into a more business oriented endeavour, then here in the Philippines our nursing education standards are not only towards commercialization, but also towards human exportation.

The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said it is making changes to the College of Nursing Curriculum as well as ensure a better passing rate for the Filipino nursing graduates. "We will make changes in the curriculum for nursing to adopt to the international standards," Neri said.

As the thrust and long term goal of the government is in overseas employment as it is incompetent to provide the jobs here, schools have no choice but to comply with whatever curriculum the CHED wants. It must be remembered that the survival and permit of the nursing school lies on its ability to produce enough board passers. The government makes its own effort thru the PRC of publishing the passing statistical figures of each school including the percentile rank, number of examinees, repeaters, etc. perhaps as a warning to the public on which schools to patronize or not.

While a growing number of students graduate from nursing schools, not even 50 percent pass the licensure exams.

Throughout the country, nursing education is being retrofitted to meet the demands of the global market. A surge in demand for nurses among health institutions overseas—particularly in the United States and the United Kingdom—is fueling a boom in nursing schools. But as in any other boom, quality has suffered as the numbers increase, in large part because of skewed priorities.

In the 1970s there were 40 nursing schools in the country. Today there are about 350, including many that are focusing more on reaping profits from people dreaming of high-earning jobs overseas than on preparing students for an exacting profession that provides care for ailing patients and technical support for doctors.

Many of these schools lack up-to-date facilities, qualified faculty or affiliation with a hospital, all of which are supposed to be in place before these institutions are allowed to operate.

Yet instead of attending to these problems, many nursing schools have busied themselves adjusting their requirements to fit the needs of a new type of students: middle-age professionals seeking a new career. Called “second-coursers,” they include doctors as well as accountants, clerks, teachers, journalists, government employees and secretaries. All of them hope to become nurses, preferably in a foreign land. More often than not, such students enjoy a shorter term since their basic science subjects in their first course are credited.

But Rita Tamse of the Technical Committee on Nursing Education of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) urges students to first scrutinize a school’s credentials and past performance before parting with their often hefty tuition. She notes, for instance, that 23 of the current number of nursing schools have failed to meet the requirements set by the government for them to operate but they have appealed to CHED to let them continue. They have also sought the help of congressmen to avoid closure.

To help students avoid the duds among the schools, CHED has issued a list showing the performance of various schools in the Nursing Board Exam. CHED divided the schools into five categories, with those that have 90 percent or more of their examinees passing the Board in the last five years classifying as institutions that had “outstanding performance.” The bottom category is for “very low performing” schools, or those with 29 percent or below of their students passing the exams.

Under the law, a nursing school must have a passing rate of 5 percent to be able to continue operating. CHED wants to push the rate up to 30 percent, a level that could close down many of the nursing schools.

To certain schools, CHED might appear to be a villain. But the government and even recruiters know that in the end, having high-quality graduates is the best way the country could stay in the business of exporting nurses.

The overwhelming number of students wanting to become nurses obviously contributes to the desire of many schools to have as many graduates as they can. According to CHED, nursing schools had a total of 80,000 enrolees last year, among them “second coursers.” The steep cost of the course apparently did not faze them, perhaps because they expect a quick return in their investment once they land a job overseas.

“Passing all examinations does not make them competitive,” Dr. Rusty Francisco said. Not many Filipino nurses are familiar with the medical equipment being used in US hospitals, he points out. Neither do they know how to operate in an environment where patients are more assertive and aware of their rights.

Francisco argues that even a high-standard school may not be able to change the mindset of those already determined to earn dollars above anything else. “A school curriculum,” he says, “does not automatically turn a person into a caring, compassionate nurse with the ability to be assertive and articulate.”

Now, Nursing Education the Philippines will never be the same again. Nursing, as a course in college, may no longer be as attractive as before starting this school year. The Philippine Nursing Curriculum has dramatically changed since the Commission on Higher Education’s issuance of CHED Memorandum Order (MO) No. 5, series of 2008 otherwise known as “Policies and Standards for Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program”. This CHED Memo makes BSN a five-year course.

The new Nursing Curriculum in the Philippines will effect these changes:
• Instead of the usual 79 units taken up by first year nursing students, the new guidelines will require students to take up 93 units in 2,632 hours.
• Additional 357 hours for hospital training or Related Learning Experiences (RLEs) which will make RLEs 2,499 hours from the previous 2,142 hours
• 28 additional units or about three summers of schooling

Whatever the overt or covert objectives of the curriculum are, at the end of the day, it is still the caring and the competency that will count...

References:
CHED making changes to nursing curriculum to address low passing rate. Retrieved August 19, 2008 from: http://www.gmanews.tv/story/92437/

Nursing schools peddle dreams. By Chit Estella, Philippine Center of Investigative Journalism. Retrieved August 19, 2008 from:
http://www.manilatimes.net/others/special/2005/mar/22/20050322spe1.html

Nursing Education in the Philippines: Nursing Curriculum Now 5 Years. Retrieved August 19, 2008 from: http://www.jpsimbulan.com/2008/08/12/nursing-education-in-the-philippines-nursing-curriculum-now-5-years/

I have to agree with sir gary, especially about the commercialization of nursing education, making it a profit oriented education system and not primarily on providing quality education thus, unable to produce globally competitive students. but still its not only the concern pf pinar, still, our our curriculum on nursing is designed to pass exams, as stated by CHED. I quote Pinar saying

"In its interest in and commitment to the study of educational experience,
curriculum theory is critical of contemporary school “reform. ” Indeed, “edu
cational experience” seems precisely what politicians do not want, as they in
sist we focus on test scores, the “bottom line. ” By linking the curriculum to
student performance on standardized examinations, politicians have, in ef
fect, taken control of what is to be taught: the curriculum. Examination
driven curricula demote teachers from scholars and intellectuals to techni
cians in service to the state. The cultivation of self-reflexive, interdisciplinary erudition and intellectuality disappears. Rationalized as “accountability, ”
political socialization replaces education."

Thus, the problem with our curriculum today and with our education system in nursing, is only about it being business oriented corporation but also it demotes our education system.

Kriselda Manzano · Posts: 36 Join date: 2008-08-12

As I understand the article it focuses on Pinar’s effort to present the nagging reality of education in western countries, however he didn’t stop presenting the problem he provided a way to resolve it.

Now a days, most of the schools in our country are also making a market capitalism out of education thus affecting the landscape of our learning. Carson (2006) states in his article that the students and parents become the “clients” of the “business” at the same time the teachers are the “service providers”. This is happening in the Philippines
maybe because western countries colonized us, thus influencing every aspect of our lives including our education system.

REFERENCE:

Carson, T. (2006). "Help Without Giving Advice". Proquest Education Journals.

silva731 · Posts: 35 Join date: 2008-08-12

can you site ways on how to resolve? as stated by Pinar? thanx

Kriselda Manzano wrote:

As I understand the article it focuses on Pinar’s effort to present the nagging reality of education in western countries, however he didn’t stop presenting the problem he provided a way to resolve it.

Now a days, most of the schools in our country are also making a market capitalism out of education thus affecting the landscape of our learning. Pinar (2004) states in his article that the students and parents become the “clients” of the “business” at the same time the teachers are the “service providers”. This is happening in the Philippines
maybe because western countries colonized us, thus influencing every aspect of our lives including our education system.

Reference:
Pinar, W F. What is Curriculum Theory. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2004

Divinia Joy Tuzon · Posts: 65 Join date: 2008-08-12

According to my understanding, the article is basically about curriculum theory, emphasizing the Canadian curriculum in particular. I think one of the issues the author wanted to point out in the beginning is that though Canada and US seem to be the closest among all the nations, they are in fact two historically and culturally diverse countries, and their curriculum history would prove this. According to the author, the concept of public education is still being greatly supported in Canada. And I have to agree on this one. I have cousins there who are studying and though they are not enrolled at public schools, their parents would really attest that children there aren’t embarrassed to say that they study at public schools. Education there is well subsidized by the government. On the other hand, the article mentions that the No Child Left Behind policy of the US “punishes the nonperforming schools” and pressures the educators to comply with the political agenda in US. This is something vague to me as I consider the No Child Left Behind policy a constructive idea rather than a negative one.

The article also stressed the role played by the politics in influencing our education nowadays. Market capitalism had been transforming schools as business where students and parents become clients while teachers take the role of service providers (Carson, 2006). This I think is one of the “nightmares” Pindar is referring too. And I must say I agree with this. I have observed for quite some time now the continuous increase in the tuition fee of students here in the Philippines particularly those taking up Nursing.

The article was entitled “help without giving advice” because it emphasizes that educators nowadays have been bombarded with so many “advices” on how they can teach their students better. However, instead of helping our educators, the exact opposite happens. My favorite lesson in this article is that “There is a fine line and often there is no line at all between advice and control.” The concept of “help without giving advice” is the best contribution we can offer to our educators because it leads to self-mobilization and social reconstruction.

REFERENCE:

Carson, T. (2006). "Help Without Giving Advice". Proquest Education Journals.