Revisiting ‘curriculum crisis’ dialogue: in search of an antidote

Abstract

This article builds upon the international dialogue around 'curriculum crisis' initiated by Michael Young in Journal of Curriculum Studies (JCS) in 2013 and followed up in JCS in 2015. It seeks to expand the dialogue in three avenues. First, when considered from a sociological perspective, Young is correct to declare 'curriculum crisis'; however, his position is limited only to the conflict theory. Second, from educational perspectives, the curriculum crisis as such is self-inflicted and it has been more of a battle among different curriculum ideologies in the Anglo-Saxon world and resistance to Bildung-centred Didaktik tradition in the Western world more broadly. Third, it points to the fourth industrial revolution as an inevitable phase. It concludes that 'curriculum crisis' is only partially about bringing knowledge back in, and the article suggests 'the prepared mind' as a metaphor to bridge knowledge and learning outcome perspectives. Specialized knowledge in curricula will become even more relevant in the innovation age, and a prepared mind adaptable to the changing world and open to continued learning can assist individuals navigate life and career creatively, meaningfully and constructively.

Trazabilidad de los discursos sobre tecnología educativa: los caminos de la influencia

“…La tecnología educativa es un campo de investigación y de práctica en el que confluyen actores e intereses diversos (Castañeda & Williamson, 2021;Livingston, 2018;Tahirsylaj, 2019) Cada uno de ellos persigue sus intereses promoviendo diversos tipos de DTE.…”

From Content- to Competence-Based Curricula – An Educational Account of Curriculum Policy in Kosovo

“…The multitude of frameworks in studying education phenomena has been attributed to the lack of education as a discipline on its own in Anglo-American contexts as opposed to education as a discipline on its own in Continental and Nordic Europe (Biesta, 2011). As a result, the scholarship on educational phenomena emerging from English speaking contexts is situated within such disciplines as sociology, psychology, philosophy, history, economics, political science and so forth (Biesta, 2011;Tahirsylaj, 2019). The rationale for the inter-disciplinary approach to education phenomena across Anglo-American contexts relies on the claim that educational theories cannot generate new understanding of education issues beyond what is generated through 'fundamental' disciplines such as sociology or psychology (Hirst, 1966).…”

“…The German concept Bildung does not have a direct translation into English, however, it is often referred to mean 'being educated', and in other cases it has been referred to as 'self-formation', 'cultivation', 'self-development' and 'cultural process' (Siljander & Sutinen, 2012). Bildung is the outcome of the encounter of the student with the content facilitated by the teacher (Tahirsylaj, 2019), thus depicting a formal education process taking place in formal educational institutions and relying on the three cornerstones of didaktik triangle: students, teachers, and content (Hopmann, 2007). Out of various didaktik models, critical-constructive didaktik advanced by Wolfgang Klafki has been the most dominant in Continental and Nordic Europe.…”

“…The five questions primarily focus on the choice of content and its significance for students' present and future. The five questions drive the design of teaching and learning activities for mastering Bildung dimensions of self-determination, co-determination, and solidarity (Tahirsylaj, 2019).…”

The Conceptual and Methodological Construction of a ‘Global’ Teacher Identity through TALIS

“…Continental/Nordic didaktik, on the other hand, focuses on teachers' work in designing teaching and learning directed by the concept of Bildung and by the selection of content that has significance for the present and future of students through didaktik analysis (Deng & Luke, 2008;Klafki, 2000;Tahirsylaj, 2019). Although the German concept Bildung does not have a direct translation in English, it is often referred to in the sense of 'being educated' , while in other cases it is referred to as 'self-formation' , 'cultivation' , 'self-development' and 'cultural process' (Siljander & Sutinen, 2012).…”