To understand the concept of theory, it is essential to understand the nature of theory in general. Historically, the Received View holds that a theory is a formalized, deductively connected bundle of laws that are applicable in specifiable ways to their observable manifestations. In the Received View, a small number of concepts are selected as bases for the theory; axioms are introduced that specify the fundamental relationships among those concepts; and definitions are provided, specifying the remaining concepts of the theory in terms of the basic ones.

1. Curriculum Theory
By
Dr. Aroona Hashmi
IER. University of the Punjab

2. The Meaning of Theory
“A theory is a way of making sense of a
disturbing situation so as to allow us most
effectively to bring to bear our repertoire of
habits, and even more important, to modify
habits or discard them altogether, replacing
new ones as the situation demands…”
Abraham Kaplan

3. Theory comes from the Greek word
theoria connoting “wakefulness of
mind.” It is a type of “pure viewing”
of truth. Theory explains reality; it
makes people aware of their world
and its interactions.

4. Curriculum Theory in the view of
Curriculuarists
To understand the concept of theory, it is essential
to understand the nature of theory in general.
Historically, the Received View holds that a theory is
a formalized, deductively connected bundle of laws
that are applicable in specifiable ways to their
observable manifestations. In the Received View, a
small number of concepts are selected as bases for
the theory; axioms are introduced that specify the
fundamental relationships among those concepts;
and definitions are provided, specifying the
remaining concepts of the theory in terms of the
basic ones.

5. Curriculum Theory in the view of
Curriculuarists
in the view of realists, theory is a description of those
structures that generate observable phenomena. In
addition, the primary feature of scientific theory is the
explanation of how underlying structures and
mechanisms work to generate the phenomena being
studied (Keat & Urry,
• 1975)

6. Curriculum Theory in the view of
Curriculuarists
Instrumentalists, on the other hand,
concentrate on the function the theory
performs:
• In this view, a theory is a tool of inquiry, rather
than a picture or map of the world. In this
sense, then, a theory is not judged in terms of
its truth or falsity; instead, it is assessed on
the basis of the quality of predictions it
demonstrates (Kaplan, 1964).

7. • In many ways, theory is an expression of belief.
• George Beauchamp has asserted that all theories are
derived from three broad categories of knowledge: (1) the
humanities; (2) the natural sciences; and (3) the social
sciences. These divisions of knowledge are well
established as the basic realms of knowledge.

8. • There are two major categories of curriculum
theories – design theories and engineering
theories.
• Design theories address the basic organization of the
curriculum plan. For this, curricularists draw on
philosophy as well as on social and psychology theory.
• Engineering theories explain, describe, predict, or even
guide curriculum-development activities. They involve
specific plans, principles, and/or methods or procedures.
Engineering theories of curriculum are also partially
based on principles of measurement and statistics.

9. Most curricularists do seem to agree on two points.
• First, curricularists agree that curriculum is of fundamental
importance to our teachers and students, and to the nature of
teaching and learning.
• Second, curriculum development is greatly influenced by the values
we bring to the process.

10. The Functions of Theory
• Educators may ask, “Why do we need theory at
all?” Often, they do not wait for a reply and
state, “I do not need your damn theory.”

11. Many writers have ascribed four functions to
theory:
• Description
• Prediction
• Explanation
• Guidance

12. • Description provides a narrative classification of
knowledge in a particular theoretical field. It furnished
a structure through which individuals’ interpretations
of complex activities can be verified. It organizes and
summarizes knowledge.

13. • Prediction – A theory can predict the occurrence of as
yet unobserved events on the basis of explanatory
principles embedded in it. Perhaps this is the ultimate
function of theory.

14. • Explanation addresses “why.” It not only points out
the relationships between phenomena, but suggests
either explicitly or implicitly the reasons for the
relationships.

15. • Guidance. Theory also acts as a guide. It helps
researchers choose data for analysis and make
economical summaries of the data. The theory
generated promotes further investigation.

16. Curriculum Theory
The challenge to curricularists is to make
sense out of the complexity of the field of
curriculum and to determine whether they
should create their own curriculum theory or
theories, borrow theories from other
disciplines – such as psychology, sociology,
anthropology, and philosophy – or do both.

17. definition of curriculum theory
A curriculum theory is a set of related educational concepts
that affords a systematic and illuminating perspective of
curricular phenomena.

18. To create a single curriculum theory that would
describe, and more importantly explain, curriculum
is perhaps an unrealistic goal; curriculum covers too
many aspects of education.

19. CLASSIFYING CURRICULUM
THEORIES

20. • Classifying. The second activity in theory building is
classification. Theorists attempt to organize and
integrate what they know about the areas being
theorized. They begin summarizing discovered
uniformities of relationships between two or more
variables or concepts.

21. CLASSIFYING CURRICULUM
THEORIES
It seems most useful to divide curriculum theories into the
following four categories, based upon their domains of
inquiry.
• Structure-oriented theories are concerned primarily with
analyzing the components of the curriculum and their
interrelationships. Structure-oriented theories tend to be
descriptive and explanatory in intent.

22. CLASSIFYING CURRICULUM
THEORIES
• Value-oriented theories are concerned primarily with
analyzing the values and assumptions of curriculum
makers and their products. Value-oriented theories tend
to be critical in nature.
• Content-oriented theories are concerned primarily with
determining the content of the curriculum. Content-
oriented theories tend to be prescriptive in nature.

23. CLASSIFYING CURRICULUM
THEORIES
• Process-oriented theories are concerned primarily with
describing how curricula are developed or recommending
how they should be developed. Some process-oriented
theories are descriptive in nature; others are more
prescriptive.

24. STRUCTURE-ORIENTED THEORIES
Structure-oriented theories examine questions
such as the following.
1. What are the essential concepts of the
curriculum field and how may they most usefully
be defined? For example, what does the term
curriculum mean?
2. What are the levels of curriculum decision
making and what forces seem to operate at each
of those levels? For example, how do classroom
teachers make decisions about the curriculum

25. STRUCTURE-ORIENTED THEORIES
3. How may the curriculum field be most validly analyzed
into its component parts? For example, how does a
program of study differ from a field of study?
4. What principles seem to govern issues of content
selection, organization, and sequencing? For example,
how can curricular elements be articulated?

26. VALUE-ORIENTED THEORIES
• Value-oriented theorists seem to be primarily
engaged in what might be termed “educational
consciousness-raising,” attempting to sensitize
educators to the values issues that lie at the
hearts of both the hidden and the stated curricula.
Their intent is primarily a critical one; thus they
sometimes have been identified as “critical
theorists.” Since many have argued the need for
reconceptualizing the field of curriculum, they
often are labeled as reconceptualists.

27. VALUE-ORIENTED THEORIES
In their inquiries, value-oriented theorists tend to
examine issues such as the following:
1. In what ways do the schools replicate the power
differentials in the larger society?
2. What is the nature of a truly liberated individual,
and how does schooling inhibit such liberation?
3. How do schools consciously or unwittingly mold
children and youth to fit into societal roles
predetermined by race and class?

28. VALUE-ORIENTED THEORIES
4. As curriculum leaders determine what constitutes
legitimate knowledge, how do such decisions reflect their
class biases and serve to inhibit the full development of
children and youth?
5. In what ways does the schools’ treatment of
controversial issues tend to minimize and conceal the
conflicts endemic to the society?
In examining these issues, most value-oriented theorists
draw eclectically from several inquiry methodologies, such
as psychoanalysis, philosophical inquiry, historical
analysis, and political theory.

29. The Major Value-Oriented Theorists
Macdonald’s Theory
• Macdonald defines curriculum as the social system
that actually produces a plan for instruction, which
he in turn defines as another social system within
which formal teaching and learning take place.
• Teaching is different from instruction and is defined as a
personality system–the teacher–acting in a particular
manner to facilitate learning.
• Learning is defined as a personality system too; the
student becomes involved in specialized task-related
behaviors.

30. Michael Apple
• Michael Apple is a critical theorist who seems to be
concerned primarily with the relationship between the
society and the school. Central to Apple’s critique of the
society and its schools is his use of the concept of
hegemony.

31. CONTENT-ORIENTED THEORIES
Content-oriented theorists are concerned primarily with specifying
the major sources that should influence the selection and
organization of the curriculum content. For the most part, their
theories can be classified in terms of their views as to which
source should predominate:
• child-centered theories,
• knowledge-centered theories, or
• society-centered theories.

32. child-centered theories
• Affective Education
• Open Education
• Developmental Education

33. knowledge-centered theories
• Structures of the disciplines
• Ways of Knowing

34. Society centered Curriculum
• The conformists
• The reformers
• The futurists
• The Radicals

35. PROCESS-ORIENTED THEORIES
• Over the past two decades, when curriculum
theory seems to have reached its maturity as a
systematic field of inquiry, several attempts have
been made to develop conceptual systems for
classifying curricular processes and products
(Eisner & Vallance, 1974) (see, e.g., Eisner &
Vallance, 1974; Schiro, 1978; Gay, 1980).
• A System for Examining Curricular Processes

36. Other Curriculum Theories and theorists
Maccias’ Theory
Consequently, they organized theory as formal theory, event
theory, valuational theory, and praxiological theory.
1. Formal theory. This theory deals with speculation
about the structure of the disciplines that comprise
the curriculum.

37. 2. Event theory. This theory, very similar to
what we have been discussing as scientific theory,
refers to speculation about occurrences. It attempts
to predict what will occur given certain
circumstances.
3. Valuational theory. This theory involves
speculation about the appropriate means to attain
the objectives most desired and to include the
content judged to be the best.

38. 4. Praxiological theory. Such theory refers
to speculation about appropriate means to attain what
is considered valuable. It is about practices.

39. Johnson’s Theory
• Johnson’s definition of curriculum – an intended series of
learning outcomes – they should realize the usefulness of
distinguishing between theorizing about curriculum as a
plan and theorizing about the means by which such plans
are generated.