EDLDR551:

Lesson 2: Concepts of Curriculum

Schwab's Four Commonplaces

According to Schwab (1973), the following four bodies of experience must be represented in any group engaged in curriculum work.

1. Subject matter: There must be someone who is familiar with the nature of the subject matter in the instructional materials under consideration. For example, in a group undertaking the task of revising science education curriculum, there must be a member in the group who knows the science content in the instructional materials as well as what it means to be engaged in scientific inquiry.
2. Learners: There must be someone who is familiar with the children (students) as beneficiaries of the curriculum under consideration. For example, there must be a member in the group who understands how children learn, their developmental and motivational needs, etc.
3. Milieu: There must be someone who is familiar with the various milieu (classroom, school, family, community) in which learning will take place. For example, there must a member in the group who understands the family culture, parental attitudes, and parenting styles of the community in which curriculum may be implemented.
4. Teachers: There must be some who is familiar with the characteristics of teachers, their knowledge of the subject matter and instructional pedagogy and the attributes of teachers as adopters of curricular innovation. For example, there must be a member in the group who understands what teachers are likely to know and how flexible they are and likely to learn new curricular approaches and methods of teaching.

According to Schwab (1973), it is vital for curriculum workers is to remember that each of the four bodies of experience is important to the curriculum making enterprise as a whole. "Coordination, not super-ordination-subordination, is the proper relation of these four commonplace" (p. 509).