Analysis of Curriculum for Science Education for Students with Special Needs in Vocational High Schools

Abstract

The curriculum is a tool to achieve national goals, making it as a reference in formulating goals in the learning process that must be achieved by each student. Each student has different needs in the learning process due to its different potentialities. Different from general students, students with special needs (SSNs) are students who need special education and services in the learning process especially in science learning. The science education curriculum for SSNs is important to be understood becauseall students need to get the same goal to achieve the national goals in the curriculum. However, SSNs had limitations and problems to achieve the goals, especially comparing to general students. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the curriculum in vocational high schools on science education for SSNs. Data on the national curriculumfor science subjectat the culinary vocational school were identified and investigated. Culinary Study was the main focus since most SSNs take this major. The results showed that the science education curriculum used for SSNs was the same as general students. From this perspective, this study can conclude that to achieve learning goalsin teaching SSNs, most educators must apply individual learning programs. The material in the curriculum taught is the same, but the approaches, strategies, methods, and media must be reconstructed and adapted to the needs of SSNs. Some teachers should make curriculum modifications, known as a differentiated curriculum. This research is expected to become knowledge for vocational schools that accept SSNs, and this study can be an alternative in making a differentiated curriculum for students, making it as one of the solutions in teaching general students and SSNs.