Evaluating Curriculum Design in the Context of Active Teaching

Abstract

This study compared two curricula designed to teach ratio and proportion word problems. Both curricula were taught following principles of active teaching. The experimental curriculum, presented via an interactive videodisc program, incorporated empirically validated curriculum design principles. The comparison curriculum was derived from four math basals and was teacher taught. The curricula were matched for content and length. The subjects included 29 secondary students who qualified for remedial or special education services in math. Students were randomly assigned to one of the two treatments, resulting in 16 students in the active teaching with basals (ATB) group and 13 students in the active teaching with curriculum design (ATCD) group. On a 21-item, criterion-referenced posttest, students in the ATCD group performed significantly higher than students in the ATB group. On a parallel form maintenance test administered 2 weeks after the completion of the study, performance for students in the ATCD group was insignificantly higher than performance for students in the ATB group. Both groups made significant gains from pre- to posttest. Students' mean performance on cumulative tests administered every fifth lesson maintained a flat trend above 85% for the ATCD group, and dropped in a significant downward trend for the ATB group—from 90% to 69%.