An International Comparative Study of Curriculum Document Formats: Focusing on South Korea, Australia, and Singapore

[Purpose] This study aims to explore ways to improve South Korea's curriculum document format by comparing and analyzing the document formats of South Korea, Australia, and Singapore. [Methods]For this purpose, the curriculum documents of social studies, science, mathematics, and music in Korea, Australia, and Singapore were selected as the subjects of comparison and analysis, and the organization of curriculum documents and the presentation of major components in each country were set as the analysis items. [Results] First, The findings of the study are as follows. First, the organizational structure analysis showed that the curriculum documents in the three countries contained similar components, but differed in whether or not they set out subject competencies. Within the countries, the order of the curriculum’s broad areas was generally similar, but the order of the sub-components that make up the areas varied significantly across subjects. Next, we analyzed how the major components were presented, and found that unlike Korea, Singapore and Australia presented 'subject competencies' and 'connections to the general guidelines curriculum' very directly and specifically, and the organization and design principles of 'areas' varied by subject. In addition, the hierarchy, presentation, and terminology of 'core ideas' varied across subjects. Finally, in the case of 'content elements' and 'achievement standards', 'content elements' and 'achievement standards' tended to be presented in an integrated manner. [Conclusion] Based on the study's results, it was suggested that to improve curriculum documents in South Korea, it is necessary to refine and diversify the general direction of the curriculum documents, reflect the actual reflection of competencies, develop a system that reflects the characteristics of each subject, and explore reader-friendly improvement methods.