Beane (1995) uses the metaphor of a jigsaw puzzle to describe not only the experiences of many students in our schools but also our own confusion about the curriculum:
"Imagine that we are faced with a pile of jigsaw puzzle pieces and told to put them together. Our first reaction might well be to ask for the picture. When we put together a jigsaw puzzle, we usually have a picture to guide us. None of the pieces means anything taken alone; only when the pieces are put together do they really mean something. In the beginning, we hold each piece up to the picture to see roughly what space to place it in. Later on, after we have put some pieces together, we look for other pieces to attach to a partly completed section. Even as we put these large chunks together, we still look back at the picture to make sure we're on the right track. It is always the picture that guides us." (p. 1)
The jigsaw puzzle metaphor describes the manner in which students experience the curriculum in many schools. Moving from classroom to classroom, period to period, textbook to textbook, and teacher to teacher, students acquire fragmented pieces of information or skills without a "picture." Many mathematics teachers hear students ask questions such as "Why do we have to know this?" or "When will we ever have to use this?" and genuinely search for examples of "real life" applications. Other teachers respond with "It will be on the test" or "You will need it next year" or "You will need it later on in life." Beane's metaphor calls for a more "coherent" curriculum--one that holds together and makes sense as a whole.
Beane (1995) describes three guiding principles for moving toward a more coherent curriculum: 1) creating and maintaining visible connections between purposes and everyday learning experience; 2) creating contexts that organize and connect learning experiences; and 3) fully exploring how people make sense out of experiences.
References