.'ION FRASER UNIVERSITY 0

Spring Semester

1998

-

Philosophical Issues in Curriculum ?

Dr. T. Kazepides

Office: MPX 8642

E01.00

?

Tel: ?

291-4453

tasos_kazepides@sfu.ca

PREREQUISITE

60 credit hours

COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course deals with the most fundamental questions that lie behind any attempt to plan, evaluate or change an

education curriculum. The course should be valuable to educators and prospective teachers as well as to all those persons

who have a serious interest in the study of education.

TOPICS

1. Philosophizing about Curriculum.

2. Educational Curricula

a) The criteria of educational worthwhileness

b) The scope of educational activities

c) Educational pluralism (what reason demands and what reason allows)

3. Conflicting perspectives on curriculum or escapes from serious thinking (e.g., "survival", "citizenship", "potentiality",

"needs", etc..)

4. The logic of educational aims, goals and objectives and their relationship to the content of education.

5. What is meant by "multidisciplinary" and "integrated" curricula.

6. Non educational and miseducational activities

a) Socialization

b) Propaganda

c)

Indoctrination I and II

7. Learning and Teaching

8. Claims about the relativity of knowledge and standards of rationality.

9. Moral Education

a) moral acquisition

b)

moral learning

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

1. A short oral presentation in class.

2. A follow-up paper of about 15

typewritten

double-spaced pages on a topic approved by the instructor. The paper is due

one week before the last day of classes. Students are encouraged to submit the first draft of their paper to the instructor

for comments and then rewrite it for marking.

REQUIRED TEXT

No text required.

N.B.: Course cross-listed with Educ 836-5.