In Search of the Practical--Perspectives. [Draft].

This speech explores the gap between curriculum theory and curriculum practice. It begins with a discussion of Joseph Schwab's pursuit of "the practical" in curriculum theory and then searches for a basis for "the practical." Schwab's theory involves two parts: "deliberation" as the process of dealing with a problem before taking action and "the eclectic" linking of theory to practice by consideration of the "whole" of what may be involved in any particular curriculum problem. Schwab's theory is seen as a means for resolving epistomological problems. Schwab is likened to a film maker who pursues an unrealistic goal but creates a fascinating film. In the second portion of the speech a teacher's daily curriculum activities are the starting point in the search for Schwab's "the practical." Curriculum theory has a difficult entry at this practical level, while deliberation appears to be an academic procedure. This is because everyday curriculum decisions are typically unreflective and based largely on routine and taken-for-granted expectancies, such as the teacher's, not the students', opening class each day. Scientific method takes the back seat to unreflective thinking. The gap between theory and the practical is isolated as the rift between the language of theory where deliberation reaches logical ends and the language of the practice where decisions result from myriad and often nonlogical causes. (JH)