Designing the Classroom Curriculum Designing the Classroom Curriculum | Page 21

Lynch, Smith, Howarth
In working towards such ends the teacher first establishes what the student already knows, by way of a series
of ‘pre-assessments’. It is from such pre-assessments that the teacher designs and then begins their teaching.
The goal of teaching in schools is to teach knowledge such that students transition such knowledge into long
term memory. Long term memory is commensurate to the strength of the synaptic connection and is
achieved by effective teaching.
1. One of the hallmarks of classrooms is the organisation of students into age-related
groupings (Year or Grades). This is an historic and traditional legacy of the past.
What are the implications of organising students into ‘age-related’ groupings? How
might students be organised for optimal teaching effect?
2. What is meant by the term pedagogic framework? In preparation for the following
chapters, do an internet search to explore this concept.
3. What does the term pedagogy mean? How is the term used in schooling?
4. What might the term ‘pedagogic void’ mean?
5. How does a pedagogic framework fit with a classroom curriculum?
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