1. CURRICULUM ASSIGNMENT 1
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
An assignment submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Masters Degree in Education
Assignment No. 1 ; Group 9- curriculum development and National development
Student details: Zulu Elias
Lecturer’s Name: Mr Yamba . L
Year: 2017

2. UNIT 9: CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT AND NATIONAL EXAMINATIONS

3. OUTLINE OF UNIT 9 Examination centred curriculum
Strengths and weaknesses of examination centred curriculum
Political influence in the curriculum development process
Recommendations

4. DFINITION OF CURRICULUM
Curriculum is defined in so many ways by different scholars:
According to Alberta (2014), curriculum is defined as what students are expected to know, understand, and be able to do in each subject and grade.
Some simply defines it as a course of study.

5. DEFINITION OF CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
It is defined as a planned, purposeful, progressive, systematic process to create positive improvement in the education system(simplyeducate.me)
In simplicity, curriculum development is the process of improving the curriculum.

6. continuation….
Every time there are changes or developments happening around the world, the school curricula are affected. There is a need, therefore, to update them in order to address the society’s needs. (Dr Alvior, 2015)
This entails that the process of curriculum development should be in consultation with other stakeholders i.e the learners, teachers, traditional leaders legal department and policy markers.

7. NATIONAL EXAMINATIONS
National Examinations are the standard evaluation system of primary and secondary education.
They are a tool for measuring the development of cognitive, literacy and numeracy skills for students in the nation.
According to ECZ (2014), national examinations are conducted to seek evidence of the understanding, teaching and learning of the curriculum.

8. EXAMINATION CENTRED CURRICULUM
What is an examination centred curriculum?
It is a curriculum in which learners are assessed at the end of the course of study.
This type of curriculum is summative and formative, is meant for progression.
In addition, examination centred curriculum is whereby learners are assessed based on the content of the curriculum.

9. STRENGTHS OF EXAMINATION CENTRED CURRICULUM
The following are the strengths:
Learners are subjected to the same exam.
No biasness in the assessment criteria.
Uniformity in the format and content of the examinations.
Gives the feedback which can be used to review the curriculum.
Helps to know the nature and abilities of learners.

10. cont…
They help in assessing entry level skills necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public from incompetent practice
They play a major role in the design, development and implementation of the curriculum

11. Strengths cont…
The national examinations test the major competencies that students should have acquired after completing their level of schooling.
They help in meeting international standards of education. “The national examinations are designed based on international standards and benchmarked against international qualifications.”

12. WEAKNESSES OF EXAMINATION CENTRED CURRICULUM
The following are weaknesses:
It is rigid, hence no modification can be done by a teacher
It does not regard coverage of the curriculum content.
It promotes regurgitation of the subject content, e.g.. Pupils just master the content without understanding for the sake of passing the examinations.
Furthermore, the purpose of education is to gain three aspect of education: cognitive, affective, and psychomotor, but the exams only concentrates on testing the cognitive aspect.

13. POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN THE CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
DEFINITION OF POLITICS
Politics can be defined as the process used by any society to determine how power, wealth, opportunity, statue and other social goods are distributed to the members of that society.(Joseph: 2015)
Politics are simply activities associated with government:
In other words, it is the theory and practice of government, especially the activities associated with governing, with obtaining legislative or executive power, or with forming and running organizations connected with government

14. POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN THE CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
Politics in relation to curriculum development and decision making is a combination of government policies and opinions from educators, students, professional organizations and other key stake holders.

15. POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN THE CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
When it comes to politics, the:
Philosophy of the ruling party has the influence on curriculum development e.g.
During the time of UNIP we hard Humanism
During the reign of MMD we had Liberalization
These philosophies had a great influence on curriculum development
Donor funders drive the government towards their own objectives in regard to the curriculum.
Politics determine and define the goals, content, learning experiences and evaluation strategies in education.
Curricular materials and their interpretation are usually heavily influenced by political considerations.

16. POLITICAL INFLUENCE IN THE CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
Political considerations may play a part in the hiring of personnel.
Funding of education is greatly influenced by politics.
Entry into educational institutions and the examination systems are heavily influenced by politics. E.g. at grade 9 and 7 level that, anyone with full certificate have qualified to next grade.

17. RECOMMENDATIONS Curriculum should stand a test of time
Examination should test not only the abilities but also skills.
Funders or donors should consult people at the grassroots.
There should be minimal intervention by politicians in the making process of curriculum

18. RECOMMENDATIONS
Revision of the curriculum to include more student centred approaches.
More cooperation between government and key stake holder in the development, implementation and evaluation of curriculum
Decentralization of examinations in order to meet the immediate needs of the societies.

19. END OF THE PRESENTATION
THANK YOU

20. GROUP MEMBERS
KASONDE BWALYA: SIN#: ,
ZULU ELIAS: SIN#: ,
CHOONYA STEWARD: SIN#: ,
MUTALE OLIPA
MUSONGOLE SMART: SIN#: ,
HARRIET NAMPOSYA: SIN#: ,
JERE PHILLIP: SIN#: ,
MINATA REDAS: SIN#: ,
RICHARD LUNGU: SIN#: ,
NATASHA CHIBOLEKA: SIN# ,