(c) The broad-sensed curriculum.At the beginning of the 20th century,some American people were dissatisfied with the school subjects,subject education and subject curriculum,and they consequently defined the curriculum as the total (real) experience that students obtained under the guidance of the school.Hence,the concepts of curriculum have been broadened.
(d) Two controversial points from the broad-sensed concept of curriculum.The broad-sensed concept of curriculum began to appear in the 1930s,when a dispute arose in the educational circle in the United States.Their dispute centered around two points:value and course.a) The value dispute refers to such a dispute as the one directed to Dewey when some scholars criticized him for his metaphor of education with growth that could spread in a wrong direction.Thus the broad-sensed concept of curriculum has been attacked for its inclusion of negative learning.After all,students go to school to learn something good,not something bad.b) The course dispute was brought about by the view of education and philosophy that emphasized activity and the course of experience.Curriculum contained not only the content of teaching,but also activity and methods.The concept of curriculum was broadened to include the activity and methods of teaching.The scholars in favor of this broadened concept of curriculum would believe that it was progressive and could solve many problems caused by the narrow-sensed curriculum.Those in favor of the narrow-sensed concept of curriculum would take it as “offside”and “generalization”.
(e) The different views between the curriculum academia and the public.Since the 1930s,curriculum has been defined in the American curriculum academia as the result of real learning experience and school.Scholars who accept the view of progressive education,open education,hidden curriculum,and reconceptualism,and who are critical of subject curricula,are all inclined to welcome the broad-sensed concept of curriculum.They stress the meaning of “currere” as a verb and reject the meaning of “curriculum” as a noun.On the contrary,people who accept Tyler's notion and the pubic are in favor of the narrow-sensed concept of curriculum.The differences between the two are shown in the following table.