Primary School Curriculum Curaclam na Bunscoile - NCCA

Classroom planning
The curriculum envisages the school as a continuously developing teaching
and learning organisation that is alive to the changing personal, social and
educational needs of children. A continuing process of reflection, selfevaluation,
review and innovation will enable the school to realise the
optimum learning experience for the children in its care. This is best
achieved through regular formal and informal consultation among the
principal, the staff, and the school community. Collective insights,
experiences, reflections and ideas can be pooled in a structured way and
directed towards strategic planning for school improvement. This generates
a shared commitment in achieving the planning goals of the school and in
the successful implementation of the curriculum.
In the overall context of school planning, individual teachers will plan for
the implementation of the curriculum in the classroom. This planning will
be based on a concern for the needs and abilities of the children in the
class. A clear perception of the aims, broad objectives and essential nature
of the content in each curriculum area will guide the teacher in the
planning process and enable him or her to provide the children with a
relevant and effective learning experience appropriate to their stages
of development.
Classroom planning will have both a short-term and a long-term dimension.
Planning for a week, a term, a year or indeed other periods provides the
means by which the teacher can ensure that all the principal elements of
the curriculum are covered adequately in a way that is relevant to the needs
of the different individuals in the class. Initially, this will involve the teacher
liaising with other teachers and consulting class and assessment records in
order to establish the children’s learning experience. The particular
experiences, capabilities and achievements of individual children will
provide the necessary basis for the organisation and construction of new
areas of learning that will be of the greatest benefit to children. It is important,
too, that the teacher continues to consult the children’s previous class
teachers. This can be of great value in addressing particular learning
difficulties of individual children.
Primary School Curriculum Introduction
65
Curriculum implementation