EDUC871-REPLIES-Discussion Thread: Future Oriented Curriculum
Write a two responses from 2 different people uploaded to the files. The response needs its own response of at least 150 words and its own citations and references.
Discussion Post:Brandi C.
Before investigating further, I assumed that future planning just meant looking ahead at how the curriculum changes. The authors expand on this and show that there is much more to this. The authors state that there are ten major trends and issues to consider when making sure a curriculum is future oriented. These include: diversity, environmental changes, changes in values/morals, family stress, technological revolutions, the nature of work, equal rights, crime/violence, lack of purpose, and global independence. The authors instruct that all of these factors should be considered when planning (Parkey et all, 2014). After recently experiencing the pandemic, I think it is beyond important to consider the future when developing and planing a curriculum. Many teachers struggled when transitioning into a technology based education scenario as their curriculum was not conducive to that type of platform.
I am most experienced teaching instrument music (band) at the middle school level. As mentioned above, I think technology incorporation is one of the most important objectives to consider when looking at this curriculum. As a curriculum is developed for middle school band, there should be considerations for technology. I believe including a “back up plan” or “suggestions for technology implementation” would be a good idea to include in any future curriculum that is developed. I think another important learning objective to consider is students having ownership over their own education. Recently I have experienced my students have poor problem solving skills and poor management skills. I believe including opportunities for self reflection and self assessment is important when viewing a curriculum. In my classroom this might look like students taking ownership of their learning by being able to self diagnose problems when playing. Having students follow a specific rubric so that they know what to listen for and how to fix it would be a great thing to include in a curriculum. Developing these skills to self diagnose and fix self assess would be beneficial to all students in and out of the classroom.
Discussion Post:Corey G.
When first hearing about futures planning, I initially thought that this type of curriculum development concept dealt with the future, as it was projected to be by experts. This, of course, is not the case. Futures planning, according to Parkey et al. (2014), is “the process of conceptualizing the future as a set of possibilities and then taking steps to create the future we want” (p. 56). Creating the futures we want is not easy because what we want must lie between the realm of probable and possible futures: creating futures means creating the preferable (Parkay et al., 2014, pp. 56-57).
With this in mind, I must think of ways to incorporate futures planning into my existing curriculum and seek ways to sculpt the preferable futures for students and society as a whole. I am an adjunct professor for Tulane University and Southern New Hampshire University, teaching in their graphic design programs. This field of study is steeped in technology, which changes quite often. Parkay et al. (2014) state that a “critical form of literacy for the future is the ability to use technology for learning and solving problems,” which also happens to be a necessary form of literacy for those practicing graphic design (p. 57).
Learning objectives currently incorporated into the curriculum that address some concerns of futures planning are the use of design technology and software. Our programs are very good at training students to be fluent in current technology and its appropriate use. One area that could be fortified would be a course or module on ways to stay ahead of new, emerging technology. This could include ways to identify technological trends that are likely to stay and those which are fads and lack longevity in the field of graphic design. Along the lines of identification of new technology and its use, critical thinking skills are essential to teaching, especially in an ever-evolving area such as graphic design. I believe that teaching these valuable problem-solving skills could start with a statement as an objective but would be put into action through project-based, scaffolded instruction. This would allow students to develop these skills while actively learning by doing, creating a more remarkable synthesis overall. This would help to address potential futures. Parkay et al. (2014) state that it must be part of the curriculum and are necessary to prepare students, especially when considering “local, national, and global forces and trends in terms of alternative futures and consequences” (p. 57). The two curriculum goals mentioned above are ways to help students navigate undetermined and unpredictable futures within the realm of graphic design as a profession.
