ABSTRACT
The complementary curriculum is defined as the ‘embedded and often unconscious expression of a teacher’s beliefs’ that may emerge in various classroom practices and curricula (Moroye, 2009:805). In the same vein as the hidden, null, or shadow, attention to various types of curriculum can help researchers and practitioners see and respond to what may otherwise go unnoticed. The complementary curriculum, in particular, encourages an exploration and understanding of how the teacher’s personally held beliefs, whether they be ecological or artistic or political or other, influence the experiences of students. The complementary curriculum may be explored and understood through observations, interviews, and personal reflections by teachers. The exploration of the complementary curriculum has the potential to bring congruence and meaning to teachers’ work while providing other stakeholders a way to see and understand how personally held beliefs influence the educational enterprise.
