Office of Catholic Education-Diocese of Cleveland

What is Curriculum?

Definitions of curriculum focus on those aspects of the curriculum that were planned in contrast to those that simply focus on the general experiences of students. In this light, we define curriculum as all student learning experiences that are planned by and directed by the school/teacher to attain educational goals.

The term “curriculum” actually has its origins in the running/chariot tracks of Greece. It was, literally, a course. In Latin, curriculum was a racing chariot; currere was to run. John Kerr defines curriculum as, “all the learning that is planned and guided by the school, whether it is carried on in groups or individually, inside or outside the school (Kerr, 1999).

In professional education, the term “curriculum” first came into existence in the early 1900’s. The traditional definition of a school curriculum is a course of study. In reality, there is no one definition for the term. Depending on its use, it has different meanings for different individuals or groups. Taking the broadest definition, we might say that the curriculum is “composed of all of the experiences children have under the guidance of the school.” This definition, then, would include the written curriculum (course of study, lesson plans, etc.), the taught curriculum (that which is actually taught in the classroom), the tested curriculum (that which is assessed), and the hidden curriculum (everything else in the school environment that leads to some type of learning).

The Office of Catholic Education develops the written curriculum for all diocesan elementary schools. The Office of Catholic Education also works with the secondary schools to develop their courses of study – written curriculum.