Democratic education by design: putting Beane’s curriculum integration into practice in a New Zealand classroom

Democratic education by design: putting Beane’s curriculum integration into practice in a New Zealand classroom

This presentation examines American educator James Beane’s (1997, 2005) model of student-centred curriculum integration (CI) which is designed to enhance students’ learning experiences by dissolving traditional subject boundaries to create authentic learning experiences and, in the process, meet diverse learning needs and foster democratic citizenship. In particular, this presentation discusses the design and implementation of Beane’s model through the professional narrative of a primary school teacher who instigated the model in her classroom on a number of different sites and occasions in Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ). The democratic design of Beane’s model allows issues of diversity, inclusion, social justice and multiculturalism to be explored and, typically, actively engages the interest of curriculum stakeholders from beyond the classroom walls such as parents, friends, media representatives and members of the wider community. The findings show that implementing student-centred CI in contexts that are meaningful and relevant to students has the capacity to significantly enhance the value and impact of students’ learning, even in the case of young children (Years 1 & 2).

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