We have a lot of valuable information in
our society that our forerunner discovered or invented. These piles of
information are the common intellectual property of humans. The curriculum
review process was to ensure that the curriculum is responsive to the needs of
the learner, society and labor market. This necessitates shifting from
objective and knowledge-based learning to competency-based learning.
Knowledge-based curriculum (KBC)
relatively focuses on the knowledge delivery from our ancestors to next
generations. It rather looks back on the past and selects the valuable basic
knowledge in subjects. Learners in KBC are expected to hand over the knowledge
accurately to others and thus they are keen to memorize the subject matter knowledge
(SMK). In this norm, the teacher’s main role is simply telling SMK to learners
and checking if learners remember exactly what teacher told. KBC prefers
tractable intelligent persons.
Competence-based Curriculum (CBC) on the
other hand, requires learners not only to remember the valuable knowledge but
also to use and apply it for solving problems, discovering new theories and
inventing useful tools or methods. It foresees the future more than the past.
Learners in CBC are encouraged to actively work on learning tasks. Learners
themselves apply prior knowledge to create solutions, monitor the progress of
the task and evaluate their achievements. Therefore, CBC stipulates competence
standards for skills and attitude & values in addition to SMK standards. The
role of a teacher in CBC is setting meaningful tasks for learners to use Higher
Order Thinking (HOT) skills. CBC produces competent persons who are autonomous,
self-reliant, self-directed and motivated.
