SED 524

Critical Analysis of Bruner Chapter 1 and 2

In chapter One, The introduction Bruner most important statement is that, the
scholars at the forefront of their discipline, those who might be able to make the greatest
contribution to the substantive reorganization of their fields were not involved in the
development of curricula for the elementary and secondary schools This explains why some
of the curriculum for subjects is not realistic and not adaptive to the classroom. Many of the
people who created the curriculum have never even set foot in a classroom. This creates a very
difficult task for the teachers who are in the classroom working with students. In many sciences
and mathematics classes, teachers have started to feel restrained in their teachings, because of
the curriculum that was set before them, which is also a curriculum that they had no part in
making.
Bruner also advocated structure in the classroom. Structure is a big part of education. A
teacher whose classroom is structured and organized can focus their time more on the students
and students can benefit. The introduction continues to introduce the themes of the following
chapter, which he says are all premised on central conviction.
In Chapter Two, The Importance of Structure, the main theme that the curriculum of
a subject should be determined by the most fundamental understanding that can be achieved
of the underlying principles that give structure to the subject (Bruner 31).Bruner discusses the
topic of fundamental principles. Bruner states, If the student knows there is a lag in the tidal

crest, he will usually not know why. The failure of this case comes from an inadequate picture
of how gravity acts upon a free moving elastic body Some educators have lowered
themselves top only teaching the basic minimum regarding the teaching material. This is
detrimental to students later, in life when students are asked to give in-depth thoughts in
higher education. This brings up the distinction between doing and understanding. A
student can always do the work, but understanding is an entirely different matter. All
educators need to focus on the understanding aspect of learning and teaching. Organization
is also another theme that is mentioned in this chapter several times as well, the teachers
unorganized way of teaching a subject in a students earlier life, can have a negative effect on
the students attitude toward the subject during his/her later years. It is important that the
educator, from the beginning, teaches the basic fundamental principles of specific subjects, so
that it is not vague, but rather, very specific and organized.