Mapping social studies teachers' implementation behaviour on an innovation configuration

Abstract

Many large-scale studies (Berman and McLaughlin 1975; Emrick and Peterson, 1978) and reviews (Fullan and Pomfret, ,1977) have indicated the need for curriculum developers to pay more attention to the process of implementing new curriculum materials. This study draws upon the tools of the Concerns-based Adoption Model developed by Hall and Loucks to gather information about teacher implementation behaviour in relation to the Curriculum Development Institute of Singapore (CDIS) Social Studies curriculum package. The Innovation Configurations checklist and an openended teacher-concerns questionnaire were ad~qinistered to 725 teachers from 70 primary schools .during two survey periods, March to May 1986 and July to September 1986. Analysis of the data provided understanding of teachers' actual use of the various components of the curriculum and their main concerns. Unacceptable and weak teacher practices were revealed in the fieldtrips, project work, testing and the teaching of concepts components of the curriculum package. In addition, teachers seemed more concerned about the content area of Social Studies rather than the skills which the curriculum package advocated. The data forms a basis for the development of more effective implementation-facilitating activities.