Curriculum development and its impact on EFL education in Ecuador.

Abstract

English is now considered the predominant language of international commerce. That is why Education Departments all around the world are working hard to improve English language learning in their schools (Lasagabaster & Sierra, 2009). However, it is not possible to improve instruction if we do not improve curricular planning as well. The need to plan effective curricula is indispensable to transform education because curriculum is the heart of schooling (Lunenburg, 2011). Although most people define curriculum as the subjects and academic content taught in a school or in a specific course or program, this term encompasses much more. According to Wilson (1990), curriculum is anything and everything that teaches a lesson. Students learn all the time through exposure and modeled behaviors, therefore, they learn important academic, social, and emotional lessons from every person and every experience they are exposed to, while at school. Therefore, the curriculum is not only the program of studies but rather all experiences gained as a result of schooling (Oliva, 2005). There are three important types of curriculum used in schools today: explicit, implicit, and null curriculum (Lunenburg, 2011). Most people are only aware of the explicit curriculum, which is the overt and publicly known document that explains the explicit goals, courses, and materials chosen for instruction at schools (Eisner, 2001). Nevertheless, not many are familiar with the implicit curriculum and the null curriculum although these also have an important influence on the educational process. The implicit curriculum refers to the ways in which the culture of both the classroom and the school socializes children to values that are important for these structures, such as punctuality or willingness to work hard (Longstreet and Shane, 1993). On the other hand, the null curriculum refers to what schools do not teach or neglect, giving students the idea that such content, knowledge, or skills are not important to be studied at school (Eisner, 2001). Therefore, school programs are based on values that are explicit and operational as well as those that are tacit and covert