1. The Tyler Curriculum Evaluation Model
TWU Nurs 5253 Elouise Ford, RN, BSN, MHEd
Curriculum Design
The curriculum represents the expression of
educational ideas
Must be in a form that communicates to those
association with the learning institution
Must be open to critique
Should be easily transformed into practice

2. Curriculum Design cont’d
Exist on three levels
What is planned for the student
What is delivered to the student
What the student experiences
Based on values and beliefs that students should
know
May be contested and/or problematic

3. Curriculum Design cont’d
Curriculum, health services and the community
should share mutually beneficial relationship
Curriculum values should enhance health service
provision
Must be responsive to changing values and
expectations in education

4. Curriculum Design cont’d
Two main types of curriculum models
1. Prescriptive Models- tell what curriculum
writer should do(intent) and how to create a
curriculum
2. Descriptive Models- provides information of
what curriculum writer actually do and
(content)what the curriculum covers
The Tyler Model first developed in 1949 is
Prescriptive (Prideaux, 2003)

5. Ralph Tyler
Ralph Tyler (1902-1994) published more than 700
articles and sixteen books
Best known for The Basic Principles of Curriculum and
Instruction (Ornstein and Hunkins, 1998) which is
based on an eight year study
Tyler posits the problem with education is that
educational programs lack unmistakably defined
purposes (“Ralph Tyler’s Little Book, ”n d)

6. A Classic Model: The Tyler Model
Often referred to as “objective model”
Emphasis on consistency among objectives,
learning experiences, and outcomes
Curriculum objectives indicate both behavior to
be developed and area of content to be applied
(Keating, 2006)

7. Tyler’s Four Principles of Teaching
Principle 1: Defining Appropriate Learning Objectives

8. Tyler’s Teaching Principles cont’d
Principle 2: Establishing Useful Learning Experiences

9. Tyler’s Teaching Principles cont’d
Principle 3: Organizing Learning Experiences to Have a
Maximum Cumulative Effect

10. Tyler’s Teaching Principles cont’d
Principle 4: Evaluating the Curriculum and Revising
Those Aspects That Did Not Prove to be Effective
(Keating, 2006)

11. Criticism of the Tyler Model
Narrowly interpreted objectives (acceptable verbs)
Difficult and time consuming construction of
behavioral objectives
Curriculum restricted to a constricted range of
student skills and knowledge
critical thinking, problem solving and value acquiring
processes cannot be plainly declared in behavioral
objectives (Prideaux, 2003)

12. Primary Strengths of Tyler’s Model
Clearly stated objectives a good place to begin
Involves the active participation of the learner
(Prideaux, 2003)
Simple linear approach to development of behavior
al objectives
(Billings & Halstead, 2009)

13. Implications for Nursing
Curriculum
Another Prescriptive Model has emerged –Outcomes
based education since
Focus on student behavior instead of staff , defines
outcomes obtained by student
Program designers will include statements of intent as
broad curriculum aims and specific objectives
(Prideaux, 2003)
NLN & CCNE include outcome assessment in their initial
accreditation
No one model can sufficiently guide the evaluation of
nursing curriculum ( Billings & Halstead, 2009)

14. Implications of Nursing Curriculum cont’d