What does curriculum mean?
Curriculum refers to the complete set of subjects, content, and experiences that make up a program of study at a school, college, university, or training institution. It encompasses not only individual lessons but the overall design of what learners are expected to know and be able to do by the end of their studies. The word carries a formal, institutional tone: educators speak of revising the curriculum, aligning it with standards, or distinguishing its core components from optional ones. A closely related term, syllabus, describes the plan for a single course, whereas curriculum applies to the whole educational program. The term derives from Latin, where it originally denoted a racecourse, reflecting the idea of a structured path a learner follows. Common collocations include 'national curriculum,' 'core curriculum,' and 'curriculum vitae,' the latter being a detailed résumé used in job applications. Because education systems worldwide differ in structure, the exact meaning of curriculum can vary between countries and institutions, but its core sense remains consistent: it is the organized plan governing what is taught and learned.
nounThe subjects comprising a course of study in a school, college, or other educational institution; more broadly, the overall content and structure of what is taught.
- The full range of subjects and content taught at a school, college, or other educational institution.
- A particular planned sequence or set of courses within that broader program (e.g., the mathematics curriculum).
"The school revised its science curriculum to include hands-on laboratory work every week."
"The national curriculum sets out which subjects every state school must teach."
"Her graduate curriculum focused on applied statistics and data analysis."
Curricula is the standard Latin-derived plural. The anglicized 'curriculums' also occurs, particularly in informal American English, but curricula is preferred in formal writing.
"Several universities have updated their curricula to reflect new developments in digital media."
Curriculum comes from a Latin word for a running track or racecourse — education was imagined as a race students had to run from start to finish.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of curriculum
Curriculum comes directly from Latin, where it meant a running, racecourse, or chariot track — literally something on which one runs. The word entered English in the early seventeenth century, initially retaining the sense of a course or lap to be run before being applied figuratively to a structured program of study. It shares its root with other Latin-derived words connected to movement and running, including current, currency, and courier. The plural curricula preserves the original Latin form, and the adjective extracurricular extends the same root to activities outside the formal course of study.
Related word forms
How curriculum is actually used
Curriculum is a formal word used mainly in educational and professional contexts. In everyday speech it often appears as part of fixed phrases like 'the national curriculum' or 'curriculum vitae.' Its plural, curricula, is standard but sometimes replaced by the informal 'curriculums,' especially in American usage. The related adjective extracurricular describes activities outside the formal program of study.
Easily confused with curriculum
A syllabus is an outline of topics and requirements for a single specific course, while a curriculum is the complete set of courses and learning goals across a whole program or institution.
A curriculum vitae (CV) is a detailed written summary of a person's professional and academic history, not the plan of study itself — though it borrows the same Latin phrase.