curriculum expectations, mastery of learning and the role of teachers in achieving expected standards

The development of a curriculum involves more than simply deciding the academics of student learning. I agree with Natasha and Katrina that social, cultural, and environmental influences must be taken into consideration in the development and implementation of a curriculum. As important as the development of a curriculum is however, I believe that curriculum expectations are most strongly affected by the implementation of curriculum, because it is my belief that in life the most important thing is not what we are given, but what we do with what we are given. The ways that we teach a curriculum will change depending on the students we have in our class. The lessons that work for one group of students will not necessarily work for another and it is important to be aware of the social, cultural, and environmental factors that affect students' lives and attitudes as well as their personality types and learning styles. By understanding these different factors we can determine and meet curriculum expectations by tailoring lessonplans to the student and not the curriculum.

I do not believe that mastery of learning exists. Learning is a lifelong process and a constantly evolving skill. we can never be masters at it because with every new piece of information we discover or skill we develop we open doors to new frontiers of further learning. It isn't possible to know everything there is to know about a subject , and it is constantly necessary to update our knowledge through examinations of new research and studies. We also gain insight through personal experience and thus we do not stop being "learners" just because we become teachers.

The teacher plays a large role in the achievement of expected standards, but this role is similar to their role in meeting curriculum expectations. It is the teachers responsibility to use flexibility and creativity to use their knowledge of social, cultural, and environmental influences as well as personality types, internal motivations for behaviour (particularly misbehaviour), and learning styles to formulate lesson plans that support students of diverse needs. By utilizing this knowledge to adjust the instruction of subjects to suit each student you are supporting and deepening the learning process and therefore its outcomes. By supporting and deepening a student's learning experience you will also support and deepen their achievement of expected standards.