Educators are faced with more challenges today than ever before. Besides being interpreters and implementers of the curriculum, teachers need to understand curriculum design, curriculum approaches and models, legislation, and prescribed policies. They have to be able to analyse existing learning programmes and resource material in order to prepare instructional designs, with effective teaching, learning, and assessment in mind. Curriculum studies: Development, interpretation, plan and practice offers sound, detailed, and practical direction with reference to the CAPS, to help teachers to enhance teaching, learning, and assessment.

This book narrows the gap between the curriculum plan, instructional design, and teaching practice. The views of Tyler, Stenhouse, Freire and others serve as a theoretical grounding for a deeper understanding of the teacher’s role as interpreter of the curriculum. Reference is also made to the influence of contextual aspects, and practical guidance is provided in terms of curriculum innovation and teaching practice. The topics covered in this book include the following:

• The theoretical framing of curriculum design
• Understanding the curriculum in context
• Considering policy documents during curriculum interpretation and implementation
• Practical guidance for putting curriculum plans into practice: from the intended to the enacted and theassessed

Curriculum studies: Development, interpretation, plan and practice is aimed at teachers in the General Education and Training (GET) and Further Education and Training (FET) phases.

Prof. Elize du Plessis holds a DEd degree and has 28 years’ experience in distance teaching. She is currently an associate professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instructional Studies at Unisa, and is also involved in curriculum development in Unisa’s School of Teacher Education. She has made contributions to several books and a variety of journals, and has presented papers at both national and international conferences. She co-authored the first edition (The educator as learning programme developer) and second edition (Curriculum studies: Development, interpretation, plan and practice) of this book, with Dr Celia Booyse.

Dr Celia Booyse holds a DEd in didactics with further specialisation in instructional science and assessment practices. She is currently the Senior Manager for Statistical Information and Research at Umalusi, the Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education. Her expertise lies in research methodology; developing research tools, data analysis, curriculum and instructional studies, the application of typologies, and effective teaching, learning, and assessment practices. She worked for 21 years with a range of stakeholders in teacher development programmes which included the development of course material.