6. Textbooks are able to decrease the teachers‟ role as technician in
presenting material; 7.
Textbooks are expensive that is hard for students to afford it.
45
D. The Curriculum
1. The Understanding of Curriculum
Curriculum can be defined in many different perspectives. Making a concept of curriculum is needed especially in education field. As Posner
states that “a curriculum is the content, standard, or objective for which schools hold students accountable.
”
46
It is also defined as “a set of instructional strategies teachers plan to use.
”
47
So, curriculum can be interpreted as a plan for a real educational program in a school.
In addition, according to Standard Board of National Education –
Badan Standar Nasional Pendidikan BSNP curriculum is “seperangkat
rencana dan pengaturan mengenai tujuan, isi, dan bahan pelajaran serta cara yang digunakan sebagai pedoman penyelenggaraan kegiatan
pembelajaran untuk mencapai tujuan pendidikan tertentu. ”
48
It means curriculum is a set of planning and rule that contain objective, content,
learning material and the way to use it as a guide to carry out teaching and learning activities to reach proper objective of education.
Besides, the curriculum that is used in Indonesia, School-Based Curriculum
–Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan KTSP is defined as “kurikulum operasional yang disusun oleh dan dilaksanakan di masing-
masing satuan pendidikan.”
49
In this case, teachers and schools are given the policy to arrange the curriculum in their school. However, the
arrangement of KTSP has to be guided by Content Standard –Standar Isi
that covers basic framework and curriculum structure.
45
Richards, op. cit., pp. 255-256.
46
Posner, op. cit., p. 5.
47
Ibid.
48
Panduan Penyusunan Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan Jenjang Pendidikan Dasar dan Menengah, Jakarta: BSNP, 2006, p. 5.
49
Ibid.
Furthermore, as Mulyasa states in his book, there are some points that have to be noticed in term of KTSP as follows:
1. Arranging KTSP refers to the guidance that is arranged by
BSNP; 2.
KTSP is developed based on educational unit, potential, regional characteristics, and social cultural of local society and
students; 3.
Schools and school committees develop KTSP and syllabus based on basic framework of curriculum and competent
standard of graduation.
50
In conclusion, curriculum is an instructional way in educational program to reach particular objective. The used curriculum, KTSP that is
enclosed in content standard, gives the schools and teachers to develop it based on BSNP
. Then, syllabus is as “predominantly concerned with the choices necessary to organize the language content of a course or
program. ”
51
It is as a lesson plan on certain subject that includes competent standard, basic competency, main material, learning activity, indicator,
scoring, time alocation, and learning sources.
50
Mulyasa, Implementasi Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan, Kemandirian Guru dan Kepala Sekolah, Jakarta: Bumi Aksara, 2009, Cet. 3, p. 24.
51
James Dean Brown, The Elements of Language Curriculum : A Systematic Approach to Program Development, Boston: Heinle Heinle Publishers, 1995, p. 141.
