Addressing academics and process objectives

In the Brilliant Star framework, I propose 3 core elements and 10 domains that should be the focus of education and schooling. Based on this framework, I propose there are 4 different curricula that are needed in schools. These often overlap; in fact, the more they overlap the more likely specific objectives in these curricula will be the included in instructional activities.

The first set is the academic curriculum, with a focus on reading/language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. A variety of curricula objectives and standards have been developed which serve to provide guidelines to what should be taught in those areas. For Georgia public schools, these are available at http://www.georgiastandards.org/.

A second set is the process curriculum, with a focus on cognitive, affective, volitional, and social processes. Some work has been done in this area, but there is much discussion regarding objectives. Several papers produced by me and colleagues address these issues:

A third set is the spirituality and moral character curriculum, with a focus on exploring, thinking, relating, choosing, and behaving in meaningful relationships. Spirituality is more focused on exploring those relationships, while moral character is more concerned with how those relationships impact moral and ethical behavior.

A fourth set of curricula focuses one's functioning in certain social roles such as marriage and family, career, finances, and citizenship.

You are to develop a 5-lesson unit that focuses on one or more process objectives while simultaneously addressing core academic content objectives. Use the events of instruction included in the reading on Direct Instruction that you will read as part of Week 14.The following are some suggestions of process objectives you might want to consider:

Thinking & Reasoning	Seeing associations Cause & effect Metacognitive skills Critical thinking skills Creative thinking skills
Affect & Emotions	Understanding one's own emotions Appropriate expression of emotions Emotional self-regulation (getting pumped up; relaxing)
Volition & Conation	Developing aspirations, dreams, and goals Developing action plans Implementing plans and reflection/evaluation
Socialization & Making Friends	Introducing oneself Finding common interests Working on a team Conflict resolution skills

Be sure and include instructional objectives and assessment procedures for both the academic and process objectives of the lesson.