CHAPTER 4 CURRICULUM AND PLANNING
LESSON 1 Planning and Management of the Teaching and Learning Process
Using developmentally appropriate learning principles and strategies is one of the
instructional demands for the implementation of the K to 12 curriculum as stated in Republic Act
10533, otherwise known as the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2012. Developmentally
appropriate learning principles and strategies are based on the philosophy of learner-centered
education that focuses on responding to the nature, needs, and interests of the learners.
In the first model of curriculum development, Ralph Tyler (1949) emphasizes that
understanding the learners is one of the important sources of curriculum. Since learning is
designed for the learners, it is imperative for teachers to examine their needs, interests, learning
styles, thinking styles, abilities, exceptionalities, cultural background, socio-economic status,
and other factors. Copple and Bredekamp (2006) identify two things that teachers need to do to
successfully engage in developmentally appropriate practice in their classes: (1) meet learners
where they are, as individuals and as a group; and (2) help learners attain challenging and
achievable goals that contribute to their ongoing development and learning.
For Filipino children, the following principles of developmentally appropriate learning
may be considered by the teacher when planning and implementing instruction:
each learner has different learning styles, thinking preferences, abilities, strengths,
and weaknesses;
experiences have profound influence in learning;
learning should address all areas of development;
learning must be holistic;
earning happens when the learner feels emotionally and physically secured and
mentally engagèd;
the cultural background and the family and social values of the learner influence
learning; and
affective learning and motivation are important in promoting effective learning.
Lesson 2 Aligning Learning Outcomes with Learning Competencies
The K to 12 basic education curriculum is a standards-based curriculum. This means that
it includes content standards, performance standards, and learning competencies. The DepEd
defines this set of curriculum standards as:
1. Content standards - identify and set the essential knowledge and understanding that
students should learn.
2. Performance standards - describe the abilities and skills that students are expected to
demonstrate in relation to the content standards and integration of 21st century skills.
3. Learning competencies - refer to the knowledge, understanding, skills, and attitudes that
the learners need to demonstrate in every lesson.
Curriculum alignment is important to ensure an efficient and effective implementation of the
curriculum. Alignment is done at two levels;
1. At the macro level, curriculum alignment ensures that the curriculum standards are
relevant and responsive to the needs of the students, demands and needs of the
society, and the nature of the discipline.
2. At the micro level, curriculum alignment ensures that the learning outcomes are aligned
with learning competencies prescribed in the curriculum. Learning competencies are the
basis of the teachers in developing learning outcomes, selecting topics and strategies,
and designing assessment tools.
Learning outcomes are specific knowledge, skills, and values that each student needs to master
or demonstrate as a result of learning. Learning outcomes are traditionally known as learning
objectives or instructional objectives.
LESSON 3 Relevance and Responsiveness of Learning Programs
Learning programs are designed to help the students reach the desired curriculum goal, and
objectives. Each learning program is planned and implemented within the framework learner-
centered philosophy in education. Learner-centered education is one of the promising, products
of the progressive movement in education (Ornstein and Hunkins 1993). It refers to kind of
education that considers the knowledge, skills, abilities, attitudes, interests, and belief that
learners bring into the classroom (Curtis and Carter 1996, Ornstein and Hunkins 1993, It also
pays attention to the needs, concerns, expectations, and the natural environment of the learners
(Dewey 2001, Gandini 1997).
Since its inception in 2012, the K to 12 basic education curriculúm myriad of curricula and
instructional programs were introduced to the whole education system. These learning
programs aim to support the implementation of the curriculum toward the development of
functionally literate and holistically developed Filipinos. The following are learning programs
planned and implemented by the DepEd:
Special Program for the Arts and Sports
Special Program for Foreign Language
Special Science Education Project
Curriculum for the Gifted
Transition Curriculum for Learners with Special Education Needs
Special Education Program
Indigenous Peoples' Education
Inclusion Program
Homeroom Guidance Program
Private schools are encouraged to implement these learning programs of DepEd. In many
cases, private schools also have various programs that reflect the philosophy, mission, and
goals of the school. Some examples are
Service learning
Project-based learning
Literacy Program
Robotics and ICT Programs
Performing Arts Programs
Lesson 4 Enriching Teaching Practices through Professional Collaboration
Teachers need to reflect on their teaching practices (Danielson 2007). They need to
commit themselves to continuous improvement that requires professional collaboration with
colleagues. Implementing a curriculum is a collaborative task of the whole school. It is never an
individual task. Teachers need to share their experiences and expertise to improve the
implementation of the curriculum.
In ensuring the proper implementation of the K to 12 basic education curriculum, based
on RA10533, the following instructional approaches need to be applied by the teachers:
learner-centered, inclusive, and developmentally appropriate;
relevant, responsive, and research-based;
culture-sensitive;
contextualized and global and
constructivist, inquiry-based, reflective, collaborative, and integrative pedagogical
approaches.
These approaches demand greater collaboration and cooperation among teachers and
stakeholders. There are so many things that a teacher needs to learn for the K to 12 curriculum.
Lesson 5 Utilizing Teaching and Learning Resources and ICT
Teaching and learning resources are materials used by teachers to support the
implementation of curriculum and instruction. These teaching and learning resources are in the
form of print, audio-visual materials, databases, online resources, visual aids, real-objects, ICT
tools, and other educational materials available. Teaching and learning resources are important
because they can significantly improve the learning of the students and enhance the teaching
and learning process. Teaching and learning resources support the implementation of specific
learning objectives in the lesson plan.
Since the millennial students are born into the Information Age, they have wide access
to different technologies. Thru technology particularly the Internet, they gather, learn, and
analyze information. This means that education should take advantage of ICT tools to provide
more meaningful and relevant teaching and learning experiences for the learners.
Some important features of an excellent teaching and learning resources are the
following:
1. Learner-centered - addresses the needs, interests, learning styles, and thinking styles of
the learners;
2. Values-oriented - enforces the importance of learning, sharing, and creating
knowledge to improve peoples' lives and develop communities;
3. Process and outcomes-driven -contains activities that engage students in meaningful
and challenging learning;
4. Differentiated learning - addresses different learning needs, learning styles, and thinking
styles;
5. ICT-integrated - allows the learners to utilize technology as a learning tool (blended
learning); and
6. Excellent content - provides valid and updated content (this is for print materials like
textbooks and other references).
