Agenda - 04-10-1990 - Laserfiche WebLink

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II. THE CURRICULUM Purposes of the Basic Curriculum The primary purposes of the basic curriculum are (1) to help students become responsible, productive citizens and (2) to help students achieve a sense of personal fulfillment. While it is sometimes difficult to separate which specific competencies a student must develop to become a responsible, productive citizen from those competencies a student must develop to achieve a sense of personal fulfillment, it is clear that there are competencies which a student must develop in order to meet both of these purposes. Students must develop the specific competencies needed to gain employment or continue their education. These competencies include thinking and reasoning skills, library /media and computer skills, and the basic content knowledge provided within a core curriculum (arts education, communication skills, healthful living, mathematics, science, second langua e studies, social studies, and vocational education). g To succeed in an ever - changing society, our children will need to develop the ability to maintain a positive attitude toward oneself, a sense of independence and responsibility for oneself, a positive attitude toward others including those who come from different cultures, a respect for the rights of others, a sensitivity to others' needs and feelings a sense of responsibil ity to others, a willingness to cooperate with others in working towar a� common goal, and the - ability to understand and cope with a constantly changing society. In order to help students develop these competencies and become responsible, productive citizens who have a sense of personal fulfillment, the basic curriculum must rest on commonly accepted principles of learning. First among these principles is the importance of integrating the curriculum —of emphasizing the understanding of concepts and processes over the mere acquisition of isolated facts. Stressing the mastery of integrated knowledge helps students to move from what is known to an understanding of the unknown, to see relationships and patterns and to begin to make generalizations, to understand the interrelatedness of the subject areas and skills areas, and to succeed in learning. An integrated curriculum helps students learn how to learn. s p A second principle considered in the development of the basic curriculum is that learners are more likely to attempt those tasks at which they feel they can succeed, and which are relevant to their lives. If students are to be successful in school and if they are to pursue life- long learning, they must see learning as fulfilling and worthwhile. The basic curriculum therefore, a program of continuous learning based upon the ' individual student's n �s, interests, and stages of development. The curriculum provides o eels, develop self- expression, to learn to communicate effectively, toopmaintain nd develop to physical and emotional health, to choose among curriculum electives, and to become an active participant in the learning process. The basic e personalizing the curriculum and helping each student program to for her max=imum Potential. The basic curriculum represents the program which should be provided for all North Carolina. The following subject area descriptions are summaries of a detailed Standn in rd Course of Study and competency -based curriculum directed toward helping students to achieve responsible, productive citizenship and personal fulfillment. As the curriculum itself changes to meet the needs of a changing world, the State Board of Education will modif expand, as necessary, the Basic Education Program. Unless noted otherwise, the a y or class size in grades K -3 is 23; in grades 4 -12, 26. ppropriate *For a full description of the curriculum, see the North Carolina Standard Course o f Study.