Editing Curriculum (section)

=== Professional interpretations ===
There is no generally agreed upon definition of curriculum.{{sfn|Wiles|2008|p=2}}  There various definitions that describe the term.

Through the readings of Smith,<ref name="smithmk">{{cite web|url=http://infed.org/mobi/curriculum-theory-and-practice|title=What is curriculum? Exploring theory and practice|last=Smith|first=Mark|date=2000|website=infed}}</ref> Dewey,<ref name="deweychild">{{Cite book|first=John|last=Dewey|author-link=John Dewey|title=The child and the curriculum|year=1902|url=http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/29259}}</ref> and Kelly,{{sfn|Kelly|2009}} four types of curricula could be defined as:

* Explicit curriculum: subjects that will be taught, the identified "mission" of the school, and the knowledge and skills that the school expects successful students to acquire.
* Implicit curriculum: lessons that arise from the culture of the school and the behaviors, attitudes, and expectations that characterize that culture, the unintended curriculum.
* Hidden curriculum: things which students learn, 'because of the way in which the work of the school is planned and organized but which are not in themselves overtly included in the planning or even in the consciousness of those responsible for the school arrangements (Kelly, 2009).  The term itself is attributed to [[Philip W. Jackson]] and is not always meant to be a negative.  Hidden curriculum, if its potential is realized, could benefit students and learners in all educational systems.  Also, it does not just include the physical environment of the school, but the relationships formed or not formed between students and other students or even students and teachers (Jackson, 1986<ref>{{cite book|last1=Jackson|first1=Philip|title=Life in Classrooms|date=1986|publisher=Holt, Rinehart, and Winston|location=New York|isbn=0-8077-3034-3|pages=33–35}}</ref>).
* Excluded curriculum: topics or perspectives that are specifically excluded from the curriculum.

It may also come in the form of extracurricular activities. This may include school-sponsored programs, which are intended to supplement the academic aspect of the school experience or community-based programs and activities. Examples of school-sponsored extracurricular programs include [[sport]]s, academic clubs, and [[performing arts]]. Community-based programs and activities may take place at a school after hours but are not linked directly to the school. Community-based programs frequently expand on the curriculum that was introduced in the classroom. For instance, students may be introduced to environmental conservation in the classroom. This knowledge is further developed through a community-based program.  Participants then act on what they know with a conservation project. Community-based extracurricular activities may include "environmental clubs, 4-H, boy/girl scouts, and religious groups" (Hancock, Dyk, & Jones, 2012).<ref>Hancock, D., Dyk, P. H., & Jones, K. (2012). Adolescent Involvement in Extracurricular Activities. Journal of Leadership Education, 11(1), 84–101.</ref>

Kerr defines curriculum as "all the learning which is planned and guided by the school, whether it is carried on in groups or individually, inside or outside of school."<ref name="Kelly, A. V. 2009 pp. 1–55" />

Braslavsky states that curriculum is an agreement among communities, educational professionals, and the State on what learners should take on during specific periods of their lives. Furthermore, the curriculum defines "why, what, when, where, how, and with whom to learn."<ref name="Braslavsky, C. 2003" />

Smith (1996, 2000) says that, "[a] syllabus will not generally indicate the relative importance of its topics or the order in which they are to be studied. Where people still equate curriculum with a syllabus they are likely to limit their planning to a consideration of the content or the body of knowledge that they wish to transmit."

According to Smith, a curriculum can be ordered into a procedure:<ref name="smithmk"/>
:Step 1: Diagnosis of needs.
:Step 2: Formulation of objectives.
:Step 3: Selection of content.
:Step 4: Organization of content.
:Step 5: Selection of learning experiences.
:Step 6: Organization of learning experiences.
:Step 7: Determination of what to evaluate and of the ways and means of doing it.