Relationship between Curriculum, Syllabus and TextbookThere is a close and interrelated relationship between Curriculum, Syllabus and Textbooks because these three are essential component of an academic session. Let’s understand this relationship in further detail:
Curriculum defines the intricate structure of how the syllabus, teaching periods and prescribed study materials would be, syllabus includes all the chapters and topics in detail along with the reference books, study guides and further academic instructions and then textbook follows all the essentials mentioned in both curriculum and syllabus for an academic semester or year.
Lesson plans for a certain subject are part of the curriculum, but detailed in terms of chapters and topics in a syllabus while further studied through textbooks.
The more structured a curriculum is, the syllabus will be more simpler and easy to cover with the help of textbooks.
When it comes to formulation of these three, the curriculum and syllabus are constituted by the education board and teachers while textbooks are created by academic authors and publishers as per the curriculum and syllabus.
The curriculum is provided for a whole year, the syllabus is for a certain academic session like a semester and textbooks differ as per the syllabus for each session as well as the curriculum for each year.
What is the difference between syllabus and curriculum?
Syllabus and curriculum both are important terms used in reference to an educational program but they have different meanings. A curriculum is a combination of topics, subjects or activities that are to be included in an educational program. Whereas, the syllabus covers portions of topics in a particular subject.
• Syllabus refers to the program or outline of a course of study. Curriculum, on the other hand, is a word that refers to the subjects that are studied or prescribed for study in a school or in a college. This is the main difference between syllabus and curriculum.
• Syllabus is the portions of study that should be covered in a subject. This subject can be a part of a course. What the whole course should cover, including different subjects and their relevant study areas are all included in the curriculum. So, syllabus is a subset of the curriculum.
• The plural of syllabus can be syllabi or syllabuses. The plural of curriculum can be curricula or curriculums.
• A syllabus is descriptive. This is because the syllabus is formed to create an understanding between the teacher and the student. A syllabus, therefore, explicitly describes what areas will be covered in a subject. A curriculum is prescriptive or specific. It is a guide the institution follows for the course as long as the course lasts.
• A syllabus is usually for a year. A curriculum can be as long as the course lasts. For example, think about a three year degree program. The syllabus will be for each subject that is covered throughout the period of three years. Let us say English is one subject. So, there will be different syllabuses that are followed for different sub-units under the subject called English for the three year period. American English will have one syllabus. Shakespeare will have one syllabus. However, when it comes to curriculum, it is the whole degree experience. That means it includes all the subjects that are covered in the three year period. This will contain all the objectives of the whole degree course.
• Syllabus is for a subject while curriculum is for a course.
This is the difference between syllabus and curriculum.