Master of Program Competencies

In completing a curriculum map, I have showcased two of the program competencies set out by the Kaplan University curriculum designers. Depending on which phase of the mapping process a teacher is in, a curriculum map requires that a teacher know the content to be taught, commit to making creating the best possible learning environment for the students, and to reflect over what has been successful and unsuccessful. In showcasing competency #1, as dictated from the Kaplan University Conceptual Framework, the curriculum map requires that a teacher study their content standards very carefully. One method that forces teachers to look carefully and create a strong map is by using the backward design model. They must find how different standards in different content areaa fit together and they must discover the essential questions that will lead the students into a greater understanding of the content material (McTigue and Thomas). An appropriate, successful map cannot be created by a teacher that is not committed to his or her students' learning.
Another way that a curriculum map showcases the competencies in the framework through competency #2. This dictates that the teacher must know the content that is being taught. Without knowledge of the content, a teacher would not be able to create a map that would lead to success in the classroom. The essential ideas and key questions that McTigue and Thomas suggest are based on the idea that the map developer knows how the standards of the content fit together. If there is no connective tissue between standards, students will not be able make the learning connections rendering the map useless.