Naar curriculaire samenhang in de onderbouw van het voortgezet onderwijs

The majority of schools for junior secondary education in the Netherlands have been working towards curriculum coherence. This study focused on how schools were engaged in these curriculum change processes (which were new to many of the schools). What kind of curriculum coherence did they pursue, who were involved in this process and what coherence-making activities did they perform? Using a case study approach, the work of five teacher teams was unraveled. Cross-case analyses showed a range of patterns. School leadership primarily delegated redesign tasks to teams accompanied with only few guidelines. Teams put effort in the horizontal coherence of their curriculum. Prior to the innovation process, teams lacked a view of the coherence in their current curriculum and needed support when analyzing their current curriculum and designing future plans. The need for assistance depended on the task maturity of teacher design teams and their experience with curriculum discussions. The contribution concludes with a close consideration of the results and provides advice for future curriculum development activities within schools.