Improving curriculum development practices in a technical vocational community college: examining effects of a professional development arrangement for middle managers

Abstract

Learning about curriculum development is critical for middle managers of technical vocational institutions in order to assume curriculum leadership in maintaining and enhancing the quality and relevance of their educational programs. This case study reports on the design and effects of a professional development arrangement (PDA), with such a focus, for 13 middle managers of a technical vocational community college in a developing country. The findings indicate that the middle managers appreciated the relevance of the PDA for curriculum development at the community college and gained substantial learning about systematic curriculum development. However, the middle managers' post-PDA curriculum development improvement efforts were minimal and characterised by individual initiatives, due to a lack of senior management support, unfavourable work conditions, and a high rate of middle manager attrition. The conclusion drawn is that for trained middle managers to lead systematic curriculum development practices, contextual and organisational barriers germane to technical vocational education in developing contexts need to be considered.

Keywords:

• middle management
• curriculum leadership
• curriculum development
• professional development
• TVET
• developing countries

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Nabeel M. Albashiry

Nabeel M. Albashiry is a lecturer at Sana'a Community College and currently a PhD candidate at the University of Twente. His research interests include curriculum development and teacher professional development in tertiary contexts.

Joke M. Voogt

Joke Voogt is Professor of Curriculum, Information, and Communication Technologies at the University of Amsterdam and Windesheim University. Her research interests include teacher involvement and teacher learning through collaborative design to foster sustainable implementation of curriculum innovations in national and international settings, often related to the integration of information and communication technologies.

Jules M. Pieters

Jules Pieters is Professor-emeritus of Applied Psychology at the University of Twente. He was involved in research projects on inquiry and collaboration in professional knowledge development of teachers, on co-designing of curriculum materials and learning environments by teachers in teacher development teams, on psychological design, and on knowledge dissemination.