Teachers' Voices: Curriculum Design and Change.

The role of collaborative research to support curriculum change is discussed, drawing on experiences with the Australian Adult Migrant English Program during a period of extensive change. The research undertaken was to assess the impact of competency-based curriculum on classroom practice and course design. The research project engaged 30 teacher-researchers with diverse perspectives in assessment of the changes' impact while, rather than after, they occurred. Because the researchers were in four territories, a network was established linking researchers, project organizers, and local coordinators. In the first phase, researchers documented their course planning and day-to-day decision-making in an ethnographic manner. In the second phase, themes were refined into four major research areas: selection and sequencing of content; integration of grammar teaching into task planning and classroom processes; conducting competency-based assessment; and documentation of learners' understanding of and responses to competency-based teaching. Researchers chose their research focus and data collection methods, and shared their findings in collaborative discussion. The method is found to contribute significantly to teacher-researchers' professional development. Anecdotal information and teacher comments illustrate the utility of the method. (MSE) (Adjunct ERIC Clearinghouse on Literacy Education)