English Education Curriculum, History of

The English education curriculum is the body of knowledge and experience that comes to form in the teaching and learning of English. Its sources are multiple. Various groups in the history of English education have argued for the centrality and even the primacy of a particular element of the curriculum—grammar, literature, or student experience, for example. The fact remains, however, that what comes to form in English education is a complex intermingling of discourses, practices, texts, social forces, and subjective experiences. The history of this curriculum is revealed in the way it has been defined from various perspectives over time. The following account represents major trends in the conceptualization and institutionalization of the English education curriculum, highlighting key developments in theory and praxis as they ...