Improving Curriculum Implementation, Advantages And Disadvantages Of Recruitment, Dealing With Teacher's Behavior In Classroom

Factors affecting Curriculum Implementation

1.  How can curriculum implementation be improved in your institution? AS a leader how will you involve teachers and students if at all in curriculum making? What criteria for selecting content do you feel are important?

2. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of internal and external recruiting. What techniques can administrators use to improve their recruiting and selection practices?

3. Pete is the lead teacher of a five- teacher school teaching team. Recently he has noticed that Sarah, a teacher from across the hall has been dropping in in Linda, the reading teacher in Pete’s team, almost every fifth period to borrow something and chat a few minutes. It’s only for a short time, but class noise and attention appear to be worsening. Others on the team seem to have some resentment of the minor intrusion. If you were Pete what would you have done?

1. Curriculum implementation is a holistic process in which teachers designs the course material in such a way that students gets an effective learning experience in an educational institution. Curriculum is considered to be the core element in the organization because it is beyond the scope of books and classrooms (Cambridge, 2017). It helps to shape a personality of an individual who will in future contribute in the society. Curriculum implementation requires a large funding capacity. The developing and under developing economy face a lot of funding issues as the number of teachers and students are more in comparison to the government aid provided. Also the major hindrance in curriculum implementation is lack of basic infrastructural facilities such as classrooms, library etc. Another problem in implementing the curriculum is the limited knowledge and training provided to the teachers because at the end they are the one who will adopt and teach the designed curriculum (Rusman, 2015). Even if the teachers are qualified lack of motivation in terms of providing low salary, poor working condition also affects the curriculum implementation.  The content chosen for curriculum should follow a pragmatic approach so that it enables the learner to implement in their daily lives. The content selected should also enhance the skills of an individual and it should be designed in a dynamic way so that coming from different cultural background can relate to it. Also the topics which are included in the curriculum should be reviewed and updated on timely basis. It should also interest the students and they should not take learning experience as a burden. In order to improve the curriculum implementation all these factors are need to be addressed. Teachers are the one who understands the psychology of students so they should be asked about their suggestions that can be implemented and asking the students what all activities should be included in the school program (Alsubaie, 2016). Taking the student’s feedback is very necessary as they are the ones who will be benefiting from these programs. It is not possible to hear every student’s vie so the educational institution should form students council who will hear the demands of the students and each representative will convey the demands of the students to be included in designing of the curriculum. Curriculum implementation should be a two way process because it will ultimately provide the benefit to the students and the teachers who are teaching the content (Jagersma, 2010).

Importance of Content Selection in Curriculum

2. Internal recruitment refers to the hiring process for the deserving candidate is been done within the organization. The major advantage of hiring internally is that it saves both time and money. In any educational institution the staff turnover is very high and recruiting can be a very costly process because it requires advertising on print and digital media and then selecting the right candidate whereas in internal recruitment the position for hiring can be posted on notice boards or on intranet server of the schools. It also reduces the training time because hiring someone within the organization knows the vision and mission of the institution and they are familiar with the teaching environment of the school. It also improves productivity of teachers as they work hard to move on promoted to a higher position. Also, rewarding and promoting internal staffs will boost their morale and ensure loyalty towards the organization. The disadvantage is that it limits the size if the candidates for the position and they not necessarily be the deserving one for that position. Hiring from outside will open the doors for more skilled and qualified individuals in the organization (Ufoma, Ikeije & Ekwoaba, 2015).

External recruitment refers to a situation where deserving individuals are hired for the position in the organization. The major benefit of recruiting from outside give an institution an advantage of selecting the best from the large number of applicants. It also increase healthy competition among other teachers to perform effectively in comparison to the new hired individuals. The disadvantage being that it requires large resources to advertise, screen, interview and train the new individuals. It may also reduces the morale of other teachers as they feel that the institution doesn’t believe in their capabilities and rely on outside sources for the position (Karthiga, Karthi & Balaaishwarya, 2015).

A poor recruitment and selection process often cost organization much in terms of resources and there are chances that the individual hired does not belongs to that situation. It can been seen many a times that the interviewer does not ask the right set of questions which can judge the capabilities of the interviewee. Designing and asking right set of question will help the interviewer to analyze whether the person fits on the position or not. The requirements of the position and criteria for selection should be clearly defined and candidates are shortlisted strictly in that basis. Apart from interviewing the management should test the teaching style of the candidate by asking them to give demo class of their subjects. The selection process should not include a handful of people because teaching is a very important profession and it molds the future of the individual (Yaseen, 2015). Students should also be allowed to judge the teaching style of the candidates because at the end they are the ones who will be learning. Also by including more professional and experienced teachers will help in hiring the deserving candidate for the position. There are many benefits of adapting right hiring and recruiting process as it will help to save time and resources and also allow management to hire the right candidate for the position.

Involving Teachers and Students in Curriculum Making

3. The case discusses about the two teachers Sarah and Linda who has been involved in a casual chit chat in between the class. This results into disturbance among students and the discipline of the class also gets affected. Other teachers have also shown some serious concern regarding the behavior of these teachers. Being a teacher is a job of a great responsibility. They have the burden to shape the personality and future of the students by giving them a valuable learning experience. They have always been considered as an ideal example of “Practice what you preach”, which clearly highlights the importance of teachers behavior in the class room.

Lead teachers are known for their level of skill and qualification they hold based on there and knowledge and experience. The role of a lead teacher has been defined as of the mentor and a guide who head or manage other teachers in order to be a catalyst for change in the institution.

As a lead teacher it is my responsibility to keep a watch on the behavior and performance of my team teachers in front of the class, In case teachers are involved in any type of practices which are violating discipline of the class and is being a barrier in the learning experiences of the children should be taken care of immediately. But there are not always the impulsive or negative way to deal with such situations. The core purpose of taking actions against the teachers is not to insult or embarrass them but to change and improve their behavior. I will engage in one on one conversation with Linda. The thing which is to be kept in mind is that the discussion with Linda should happen in a confidential place where nobody overhear us and advice her to engage in the conversations in some free periods and not in the middle of the class. I’ll be explaining the impact of her behavior on the staff and mainly students. The other step that can be taken is to address this issue in front of the entire team without naming Linda and Sarah because by revealing their identity the will feel guilty and insulted in front of the team. As a team leader I will be explaining the consequences of practicing such behavior. Along with this I will take the help of Sarah’s team leader, who will make her understand the consequences of her inappropriate behavior. The main cause of concern is that the behavior of students are getting affected and they are not able to concentrate on their studies. This will not only affect the class of Linda and Sarah but other teachers classes will also get disturbed. The above mentioned two steps will give a warning to both of the teachers and they will be more alert and conscious for the next time. Even after this the teachers don’t stop talking in the middle of the class, this should be reported to a higher authority. Though the mistake that have been made by both of the teachers are not very serious but still they can have have a significant impact on the students. This issue can create a rift between Linda, Sarah and other teachers and may affect the learning environment. Students and teachers loose respect for the teachers who are involved in gossiping and wasting time of the class. It highlights the discipline issues faced by the students due to the careless and casual behavior of the teachers. The exchange of words between teachers should be related to exchange of ideas and practices related to improving of teaching experiences. As mentioned in the case study the chit chat results into noise in the class and there are chances to stop the noise and disturbance in the class the teachers will yell at the students (Quast, 2013).  Most of the times Yelling has been seen as an effective way of maintaining disciplines of the class but it shows the ignorant attitude of teachers towards their students. It is an ineffective way in the long run, for stop these issues. Finding a solution of the problem is the most effective way to deal with classroom issues and the problem are teachers themselves. I would enlighten teachers with the fact that their behavior can cause a significant impact on the learning behavior of the students and it can affect their future (Karkami & Rahimi, 2015). After my continuous warning if they don’t stop then I have to raise this issue in front of the principal and other team heads which will affect their teaching careers (Quast, 2012).

Advantages of Internal Recruitment

There is no harm in talking and exchange of ideas but sharing personal lives over workplace is. As a lead teacher it is my responsibility to encourage positive and meaningful conversations. Which will not only be beneficial and informative for all the teachers but also address the need for human communication. I would also ask Sarah and Linda the reason and basis of their conversation, if they have some serious issues and suggestions then it should be brought in the knowledge of management and so that timely actions can be taken to resolve the issues. The last thing is in order to discourage such activities among the teachers it is very important that I should set example by not practicing such behavior in front of the others, because teachers will look up to the head teachers for what behaviors are acceptable or not. As a head teacher I am responsible for motivating and promoting a healthy working environment for teachers, blaming the teachers will reflect the authoritative style of me which will increase negativity. In order to promote a positive work culture and learning environment it is very important that teachers should see me as an understanding colleague even then only they can listen to my concern and will act accordingly (LaCaze, McCormick & Meyer, 2012).

References

Alsubaie, A.M. (2016) Curriculum Development: Teacher Involvement in Curriculum Development. Journal of Education and Practice. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1095725.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Cambridge (2017) Implementing the curriculum with Cambridge A guide for school leaders. Cambridge International School, Cambridge. Retrieved from https://www.cie.org.uk/images/134557-implementing-the-curriculum-with-cambridge.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Ekwoaba, O.J, Ikeije, U.U. & Ufoma, N. (2015) The impact of recruitment and selection criteria on organization performance. Global Journal of Human Resource Management. Retrieved from https://www.eajournals.org/wp-content/uploads/The-Impact-of-Recruitment-and-Selection-Criteria-on-Organizational-Performance.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Jagersma, J. (2010) Empowering Students as Active Participants in Curriculum Design and Implementation. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED514196.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Karkami, H.F. & Rahimi, M. (2015) The role of teachers’ classroom discipline in their teaching effectiveness and students’ language learning motivation and achievement: A path method. Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research. Retrieved from https://www.urmia.ac.ir/sites/www.urmia.ac.ir/files/Article4.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Karthiga, G., Karthi, R. & Balaishwarya, P. (2015) Recruitment and Selection Process. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications. Retrieved from https://www.ijsrp.org/research-paper-0415/ijsrp-p40133.pdf on 9 February 2017.

LaCaze, O.D., McCormick, M.C. & Meyer, L. (2012) Classroom Behavior and Management for Teachers. National Forum of Teacher Educationa; Journal. Retrieved from https://www.nationalforum.com/Electronic%20Journal%20Volumes/LaCaze%20Donna%20Odom,%20Classroom%20Behavior%20and%20Management%20for%20Teachers%20V22%20N2%202012.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Myatt, M. (2012) 5 Keys of Dealing with Workplace Conflict. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemyatt/2012/02/22/5-keys-to-dealing-with-workplace-conflict/#7da0ce2e15a0 on 9 February 2017.

Quast, L. (2012) 4 Ways To Improve Your Hiring Process. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2012/12/17/4-ways-to-improve-your-hiring-process/#73e40dbc2c5f on 9 February 2017.

Quast, L. (2013) New Managers: 5 Ways To Stop Negative Office Gossip. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2013/10/14/new-managers-5-ways-to-stop-negative-office-gossip/#6bc2d2c1228d on 9 February 2017.

Rusman, M. (2015) Curriculum Implementation at Elementary Schools A Study on “Best Practices” Done by Elementary School Teachers in Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating the Curriculum. Journal of Education and Practice. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1079108.pdf on 9 February 2017.

Yaseen, A. (2015) Recruitment and Selection Process of Higher Education Sector and Its Impact on Organizational Outcomes. International Journal of Human Resource Studies. Retrieved from www.macrothink.org/journal/index.php/ijhrs/article/download/.../7248 on 9 February 2017.