A negotiated curriculum model

By Tim Danes

Allowing high levels of choice for students appears risky and without structure or sequence.

i.e.. It appears to be a “free for all” with high risks of students failing to learn.

I believe that if students are given high levels of choice, they need a

well thought out structure and sequence to be successful

Giving students reduced levels of choice appears safe due to it’s structure and sequence.

i.e.. You can teach the same thing year after year without too much change and with reduced risk with each year of experience.

ON THE FLIP SIDE

Using “sliding guidelines”, the structure and sequence used in current Teacher directed learning can be easily

transformed to negotiated learning.

Current models suggest that reduced level of choice is “teacher directed” and increased level of choice is “student directed”

I believe teacher direction is required on all levels of choice, sometimes more so when students have greater freedom.

IT MAY JUST BE SEMANTICS…

So… how do we structure and sequence negotiated curriculum?

The 1st Step of the Sequence:All curriculum written for classes in Victoria is

based on VELS Standards

THEREFORE…The VELS Standards are the only component of negotiated curriculum that cannot be negotiated.

Everything in negotiated curriculum should be based on VELS Standards.

The 2nd Step of the Sequence:Knowledge which can be broken into two components.

• WHAT needs to be learnt

• HOW is it going to be learnt

The 3rd Step of the Sequence:Projects, the student’s of their Knowledge

Projects can also be broken into two components.

• WHAT is the project

• HOW is it going to be developed

EVIDENCE

The Final Step of the Sequence:Assessment, the of the

student’s projects

Assessment’s two components are;• WHAT is being assessed

• HOW will it be assessed

ANALYSIS & EVALUATION

SUMMARY• Knowledge, Projects and Assessment must all fall within VELS

Standards

• Assessment are ANAYLSIS and EVALUATION of Project

• Projects are EVIDENCE of Knowledge

• All areas can be broken into WHAT & HOW

So… if that’s the sequence, how does negotiation fit into it?

I believe the answer lies in STUDENT CHOICE

The following slides give some examples of how choice can be implemented in each step of the

sequence.

Projects – What is the project

Very little student choice – Parameters are set by the teacherStudents must submit an essay of 400 words. It must include the following: An introduction that outlines… A body that discusses… A conclusion that summarises…

STUDENT CHOICE as a sliding scale

Little student choice – Most parameters are set by the teacherStudents must submit an essay of 400-500 words. It must include an introduction, a discussion, and a conclusion.

Projects – What is the project

More student choice – Some parameters are set by the teacherStudents may submit an essay or an A4 poster

Projects – What is the project

Highest level of student choice – All parameters are set by the studentStudents choose the format of their project. It can take whatever format the student decides upon, and can include any material the student decides to include. The role of the teacher is to make sure the project does what it is supposed to do… i.e. give EVIDENCE of the student’s Knowledge within the Standard guidelines.

Projects – What is the project

KNOWLEDGE - Low levels of choiceThe teacher defines what information needs to be learnt.Eg. For Humanities, year 8, it is decided that the students will be learning about Topographic Maps. Included in this area of study will be the following;

- Give a detailed explanation of what a topographic map is - Give a detailed explanation of how topographic maps are used in a variety of settings

KNOWLEDGE - Low levels of choice The teacher defines how the information needs to be learnt.Eg. Again, Humanities, year 8, Topographic Maps. It is decided that the students will learn what they need to learn by using the following resources;

- A handout followed by a few exercises - A textbook reading with a number of attached questions requiring a response - A “chalk & talk” session with teacher lead discussions based on whiteboard notes

PROJECTS - Low levels of choiceThe teacher defines what the project will be.Eg. Again, Humanities, year 8, Topographic Maps. It is decided that the students will complete the following project;

- An A4 poster showing a detailed topographic map with annotations.

PROJECTS - Low levels of choiceThe teacher decides how the students will create their project.Eg. Humanities, year 8, Topographic Maps.

It is decided that the A4 poster will be created in 2D with the inclusion of a pasted copy of an annotated map given to the students by the teacher.

Low levels of choiceThe teacher defines what will be assessed. Eg. HUM, Yr 8, Topographic Maps. Assessment will be based on the quality, layout, and clarity of information given on the A4 poster. (NOTE: Sometimes artistic skills can misrepresent knowledge levels)

Low levels of choiceThe teacher defines how the project will be assessed. Eg. HUM, Yr 8, Topographic Maps. The Assessment will be conducted by the teacher (in their own time) and the result will be written on the back of the poster and handed back to the student.

KNOWLEDGE - High levels of choice If the VELS Standards are understood by the students as the baseline, is it possible to give the students unlimited choice in the “What needs to be learnt” area?

What do you think it might look like?

Higher levels of choice Again, a sliding scale of choice can be used.

The student needs to choose how to learn the information

What could be the possible results?

PROJECTS - Higher levels of choiceSliding guideline. What could be some of the different levels on the sliding

guideline?

ASSESSMENT - Higher levels of choiceWhat would it look like for a student to be given choices relating to

assessment? Discuss…

Additional NOTES:• Negotiated curriculum must be teacher directed. Without direction and

guidance, students can easily wander away from VELS and lose connections between the components.

This PowerPoint was created by Tim Danes and may be freely distributed and used for non-commercial purposes.For further questions or clarifications, please contact me via email: danes.tim@gmail.com