Core Curriculum Development: Problems and Practices. Bulletin, 1952, No. 5
Author: Wright, Grace S.
Date: 1952-00-00
Type: Historical Materials
Subjects: Curriculum Development,Questionnaires,Principals,Heterogeneous Grouping,Teacher Attitudes,High Schools,Core Curriculum,Scheduling,Secondary School Curriculum,Sampling,Surveys,Enrollment,Administrator Attitudes,Inservice Teacher Education,Educational Planning,Program Evaluation,Geographic Regions

This bulletin brings together from several sources information on the &quot;what&quot; and the &quot;how&quot; of core curriculum practice. Many articles and brochures are in print describing aspects of the core in individual schools and school systems. Information about characteristics of the core curriculum is readily available in the literature. No comprehensive study has been made, however, to discover to what extent several of the commonly discussed characteristics actually are found in practice. Accordingly it was thought that the Office of Education could make a contribution through presenting the results of a survey of practice, with illustrations of how it is done gathered from widely scattered schools. In general, then, this bulletin attempts to answer two questions. 1. &quot;What is the core program like as it is being developed in the secondary schools of the United States?&quot;--A study of status by the Office of Education in 1949 reported on 545 public high schools of an estimated 833 which a Nation-wide sampling survey revealed were using core-type programs. The questionnaire used asked for information about subjects included, time allotted, grades in which utilized, and number of pupils enrolled. After the completion of the 1949 study, another questionnaire was prepared to obtain information about the nature of the core curriculum and the extent to which certain features, generally recognized as being characteristics of core programs, are actually found in practice. 2. &quot;How have high schools which have achieved fairly successful core programs attacked the problems which principals report as major concerns?&quot;--Illustrations of practice obtained during visits to selected schools, through correspondence, or from the literature are provided. These illustrations cover teacher preparation and in-service education, scheduling to provide conference periods, materials and equipment in the classroom, provision of resource units, introducing teacher-pupil planning in the core class, establishing sound public and staff relationships, and evaluating the outcomes of core programs. This bulletin consists of two parts: Part I, a report of status and practice as revealed by the questionnaire, by visits, through a survey of the literature, and through correspondence, covers the extent of the use of different types of programs--those which are true core and those which are variations or core-type in nature. It considers the extent to which certain characteristics, such as heterogeneous grouping, extraclass activities, homeroom and guidance, and use of a single mark for &quot;core,&quot; are found in practice. It deals with other matters of status, such as geographic areas of development, grades in which it is found, and total or partial enrollment of pupils within a given grade. Finally, it describes core class procedures in several actual situations. Part II first enumerates the problems which high-school principals reported on the questionnaire as being the chief roadblocks in the operation or further enrichment of their core programs, then gives information about the extent of those problems for which the questionnaire gathered data, and, finally, attempts to show how some forward-looking high schools are tackling the major problems. Appended is the inquiry on the operation of core programs in secondary schools. An index of authors and places is also included. (Contains 4 tables and 59 footnotes.) [Best copy available has been provided.]