Collaborative curriculum development in teacher design terms

Abstract

After all is said and done, and the dissertation is as good as ready (although the work is never done), many doctoral candidates, feeling that they are no longer bound by the strict rules of academic writing, try on the literary shoe, striving to write a "creative" forward.Unfortunately, many of them, me included, were not blessed with the literary talents they would have liked to possess.Therefore I will try to keep my Thank-You's short and to the point:First and foremost, I wish to thank all the teachers and school-leaders who allowed me to observe their practice.They also took the extra time to explain to an outsider how they think and work in the context of curriculum reform.Jan van den Akker and Nienke Nieveen have created an atmosphere of critical academic discussion, which allowed me much space to spread my academic wings.Jan always had a welcome new insight to offer when I was at loss about various issues.Both in the professional and personal conversations Nienke and I have had during the process, she has proven to be a true reflective practitioner and a real friend.The colleagues in the department of Curriculum Design and Educational Innovation at the University of Twente offered me stimulating professional and social support.Sandra Schele, in her effortless ways, made sure that the collection of words, sentences and paragraphs I delivered has been made into a presentable book.Friends, both in Israel and in the Netherlands, have indulged me when I was complaining and offered a sometimes more than welcome distraction from the trials and tribulations of the research process.Rosemarie Frijda-Bouman and her family have made my landing in the Netherlands very soft indeed.They have been a surrogate family away from home, with all its implications.My family in Israel, despite the physical distance, was always there for me.My parents, Judith and Michael, have always provided me all the intellectual chances and stimulation, together with unconditional emotional support.If I prove to be half the parent they both are, I will die a happy man.My partner in life, Anne, your patience seems unlimited.I can be pretty unbearable sometimes and you always know how to handle it.Thank you for giving me the time and space in the past few months of hard work.In you I have found a life mate to explore the world and hope to grow very very old with.Noa and Tamar, you have enriched my life in so many ways.You offered welcome distraction after a long day at the computer.But more than all, you have put things in perspective for me when I was in danger of forgetting the right priorities.I look forward to our Mondays together.I probably forgot many others that have in one way or another contributed to the whole process.Please forgive me.At the close of this five year process I look back with much satisfaction, but also with a measure of critical reflection.I hope to apply the lessons I have learnt in the years to come, both in the academy and in the educational practice.

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