studying respectively (Anderson, 1995, p. 34).
In their article titled "From School Choice to Student Voice," Paul E. Heckman and Viki L. Montera (2001) discriminated between the types of curricula that are offered in mass and niche markets. Contrary to the public schools that offer a standardized curriculum that caters to the mass market, Heckman and Montera (2001) explained that schools such as the Boston Renaissance Charter School provide a customized curriculum to the niche market. Essentially, this type of curriculum is customized to the interests of the students.
In my opinion, this article is pertinent to the topic of curriculum development by emphasizing the need for classroom teachers to understand the students' interests and their level of knowledge acquired from other settings. Moreover, it indicated that conventional teachers' over-reliance on the textbook in the development of their curriculum does not tap into the students' pre-existing knowledge and undermines their desire to learn. Based on these beliefs, the development of the curriculum must incorporate the choices of the students, their interests and their previous knowledge. By following the students' choices and interests, classroom teachers will be able to ensure that the students will be engaged in their learning. Furthermore, acknowledging the importance of thei
...