Curriculum Design Process Research Articles

University-Business Cooperation to design a transnational curriculum for energy efficiency operations

ABSTRACT In this paper, we propose a methodology to support the Curriculum Design and Development (CDD) process with the aim of aligning competences provided by Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) with the ones required by companies. The proposed methodology stems from the identification of companies’ training needs and aims at classifying a set of specific competences that are derived through a desk analysis of the existing academic offer. The novelty of the proposed methodology is represented by the introduction of quantitative indicators used for competences’ classification which may support decision-makers in the individuation of the expected learning objectives of the curriculum. The proposed approach has been developed and tested in the context of a European Project (TrainERGY – Training for Energy Efficient Operations) involving four European countries (Italy, Poland, UK and Greece), whose objective was the definition of a transnational curriculum oriented to qualify better practitioners involved in energy efficiency operations in SMEs.

Preparing the 21<SUP>st</SUP> Century Teacher for the Implementation of Outcomes-Based Education: The Practical Reality

Teaching and learning in contemporary education systems are experiencing a paradigm shift. There is a move from the traditional teacher-centred teaching, to student-centred education. Outcome-based education is a process of curriculum design that starts with a clear picture of what is important for students to be able to do, then organizing curriculum, instruction, and assessment to make sure that learning ultimately takes place. At the centre of outcome-based education is the learner. How best can the learner learn? What is the role of the teacher in making sure that learning takes place? How do we prepare teachers for the successful implementation of outcome-based education? How do we take care of every learner’s needs? These are pertinent questions that this paper addresses. The study was carried out in Botswana using a qualitative research approach. Semi-structured interview questions were adopted to collect data from twelve teachers purposively selected from three technical colleges in Botswana. Relevant documentary analysis was used to augment the data that was collected through semi-structured interviews. Findings of the study revealed that different stakeholders understand the role of teachers in the implementation of outcome-based education differently and that teachers should be adequately prepared if outcomes-based education is to be implemented successfully in Botswana. The study concludes that the teacher recruitment exercise in the 21st century should be geared towards hiring teachers who are equipped with the necessary skills needed for teaching 21st century learners.

Thoughts on the Future of Teaching

Top school systems select and educate their teaching staff carefully, they provide an environment in which teachers work together to frame good practice, they encourage teachers to grow in their careers; and they have moved on from administrative control and accountability to professional forms of work organisation. Still, the laws, regulations, structures and institutions on which education policy tends to focus are just like the small visible tip of an iceberg. The reason why it is so hard to move school systems is that there is a much larger invisible part under the waterline. This invisible part is about the interests, beliefs, motivations and fears of the people who are involved in education, parents and teachers included. This is where unexpected collisions occur, because this part of educational reform tends to evade the radar screen of public policy. That is why educational leaders are rarely successful with reform unless they build a shared understanding and collective ownership for change, and unless they build teacher capacity and create the right policy climate, with accountability measures designed to encourage innovation rather than compliance. The most essential reason why teachers’ ownership of the profession is a must-have rather than an optional extra lies in the pace of change in 21st century school systems. Even the most effective attempts to translate a central curriculum into local classroom practice will drag out over a decade, because it takes so much time to communicate the goals and methods through the different layers of the system and to build them into traditional methods of teacher education. In a fast-changing world, when what and how students need to learn changes so rapidly, such a slow process leads to a widening gap between what students need to learn and what and how teachers teach. The only way to shorten that pipeline is to professionalise teaching, that is to ensure that teachers not only have a deep understanding of the curriculum as a product, but equally with the process of curriculum and instructional design and the pedagogies to enact and enable the ideas behind the curriculum. The challenge is to build on the expertise of the teachers and school leaders and to enlist them in the design of superior policies and practices. Where systems fail to engage teachers in the design of change, teachers will rarely help systems in the implementation of change.

Enabling Curriculum Re-design Through Asynchronous Learning Networks

This paper considers existing processes in Higher Education and the opportunity for using Asynchronous Learning Networks (ALNs) to re-design the curriculum. A curriculum model based upon experiential learning, that explicitly links theory and practice, is promoted as the basis for considering the application of technology. The Computer Supported Experiential Learning project at the University of Central England is explained, and appropriate technologies considered at each stage of the learning cycle. Fundamental to this paper is the view that technology should be used to add value to the learning process, and not to simply automate existing processes. The opportunities for experiential learning to take place are considered a priority in the curriculum design process, and the starting point in deciding upon the use of technology.

Curriculum Gaps of Bachelor’s Business Education in Universities of Bangladesh: An Analysis

This study investigates about how does a bachelor’s business education curriculum experience different gaps which arise in different phases of curriculum design, development, and implementation process in some selected universities of Bangladesh. This study also proposes a curriculum gap model by defining the different types of curriculum and real-life curriculum gaps. This study conducts a sample questionnaire survey on 155 respondents selected from alumni, employers from different sectors, university faculty members, and students from Jagannath University, ASA University Bangladesh, Jahangirnagar University, University of Dhaka, Dhaka International University through personal contact and interview. Secondary data have been used for this study from different articles, publications, books, speeches in conferences and seminar classes, and from existing master’s and bachelor’s business education curriculum and websites of some selected universities including South China University of Technology, and The University of British Columbia, Canada. This study lists the top most important reasons, such as industry needs are different from university graduation curriculum, there is no connection among university, government, and industry, etc. In Bangladesh, there are no big research projects on industry development and/or business development funded by the companies, conducted by the university, and cooperated by the government. The curriculum gaps also arise while addressing the lessons in the class, there remains a lack of proper sources of information about real life job demand in the context of globalization. This study also lists the top most alternative solutions to minimize curriculum gaps, such as, there should be a thorough study about world-class standard curriculum of different top ranked universities in the world, and employment assessment tests format as per industry needs should be linked with the lessons of university graduation business curriculum, there should be connection among university, government, and industry, etc. This study also proposes a theory by mapping curriculum gap model. These findings and some general comments for improvement have implications to the users of curriculum and decision makers in education sector.

Flipped Classroom for Finance Students: Participative Learning and Flexible Assessment

Flipped classrooms are all about flexible teaching and learning in higher education and require flexible assessment components along with flexible teaching. The study aimed at understanding the effect of student interaction, engagement in flipped classroom on student knowledge, skill and attitude towards the subject finance, topic business valuation. Accounting and finance subjects require a sharp focus on pedagogy and learning approaches. Finance is a core fundamental subject in higher education like MBA that creates base for further advance learning and knowledge application. A pre-test and post-test design were carried out with sample t-test and linear regression model. The study created two groups flipped and non-flipped classroom using 2 E-learning cycles in a Finance class of MBA first trimester students. The result showed that learning was better in flipped classroom. The student satisfaction level was also better. Both classrooms showed good learning with active learning approach and active instructor participation. Outside the classroom students shared that had engaging experience with teaching as well as flexible assessment through more choices and preferences. The limiting factor was that flipped classroom teaching lacked institution support and confidence. Both flipped classroom and flexible evaluation are missing from curriculum design and evaluation process. The aim of this paper was to provide quantitative and controlled data about the effectiveness of flipped classroom learning.

Curriculum Reform in Big Data Education at Applied Technical Colleges and Universities in China

With the boom in data science, big data education has received increasing attention from all kinds of colleges and universities in China, and many of them are in a rush to offer big data education. This paper first analyzes the major areas of big data capability training and the Chinese market needs for various kinds of data science talent. Then, it discusses the curriculum design process for the “Data Science & Big Data Technology” bachelor's degree program, and summarizes some detailed approaches to improving teaching experiments. Finally, this paper proposes a graduating student profile for big data education at applied technical colleges and universities in China. The authors' main ideas include that, at the applied technical colleges and universities, a) a suitable graduating student orientation should be determined as the big data talent needs are hierarchical; b) the redesigned curriculum in big data education should provide students more practical capabilities and knowledge; c) the teaching of the existing mainstream big data technologies and tools should be significant components in the syllabi of big data education.

Validation of Curriculum Design Information System Model

<p>Information system (IS) is important to institution of higher learning (IHL) especially in the domain of curriculum design. Without the support of IS, curriculum design in IHL is time-consuming, error-prone and much effort need to put in by curriculum designers. Although there are numerous IS developed in curriculum design domain for the past few years, there is still lack of specific IS curriculum design model found in IHL. This study aims to propose an IS model which provide guidance during curriculum design process. Model validation phase begin with development of prototype which explains the process of creating a prototype according to the proposed model. The study collected 80 responses from the survey and the study resulted that the IS model is useful and able to reduce time, error and effort during curriculum design process.</p>

PERCEIVING THE BINARY: AN ATTITUDINAL ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL CURRICULA BY NATIVE AND NON-NATIVE ENGLISH TEACHERS

The purpose of this study was to ascertain and describe the nature of the professional binary between Native Englishspeaking instructors (NESTs) and non-Native English-speaking instructors (non-NESTs) within the context of English educational programs in Turkey. Additionally, this research explores the relation between the expression of the NEST/non-NEST binary at a Turkish EFL program through the role of using Native Speaking Models (NSMs) as well as the principles of English as an International Language (EIL). Data was collected from 82 teachers and department heads from 9 foundation (non-profit, private) university-based English preparatory programs in Istanbul, Turkey, via two online surveys, implementing Likert-type-scale and open-ended questions to compare how institutions explain and instructors experience this professional dichotomy. Findings revealed that schools have interpreted EIL principles to varying degrees, resulting in a spectrum of their curriculum. Meanwhile, results from the Teacher Survey displayed that teachers, who strongly believe in EIL principles, play a major part in the curriculum design process for each program. These findings indicated that, although it appears that while EIL principles are becoming more popular amongst Turkish EFL Programs, the programs often neglect the personnel aspect of their curriculum design when applying EIL principles to their programs.

An Iterative Participatory Approach to Developing an Early Childhood Problem-based STEM Curriculum

This paper describes an iterative participatory curriculum design approach to developing a problem-based STEM curriculum for preschool children. The curriculum aims to teach young children problem-solving using an adapted version of the engineering design process (EDP). Despite evidence showing that a rigorous, integrated STEM curriculum promotes cognitive development and curiosity, very little STEM or engineering instruction occurs in classrooms for three- to five-year-old children, and few studies include teachers in the curriculum design process. Research has shown that, when children experience an engineering curriculum, they show an increase in engagement, in the number of engineering behaviors displayed, and in persistence in completing activities. As well, when teachers are involved in designing curriculum, they are more likely to feel empowered and sustain implementation. Qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with 13 preschool teachers after the development process showed that teachers who participated in the process perceived increased knowledge and self-efficacy in teaching STEM in their classrooms. These reflections support using a participatory curriculum design approach for empowering teachers and enhancing self-efficacy in teaching STEM to young children. High teacher self-efficacy has been associated with positive classroom outcomes and teacher retention in the profession.

Curriculum Intervention Research as a Source of Knowledge of Most Worth

A major portion of Catherine Ennis’s scholarship and career was devoted to developing culturally relevant physical education curricula for K–12 students. She held a strong conviction that the efficacy of a curriculum lies in its ability to enhance students’ knowledge and skills of most worth for their lives. The approach she adopted for curriculum development is an evidence-supported curriculum-design process through which a curriculum is put to the rigorous process of intervention research to determine its efficacy. In this article the authors reflect on the experiences they had with her in these curriculum interventions, share the ideas and practices in the research as Ennis envisioned, and discuss challenges and solutions in conducting large-scale, school-based curriculum intervention studies.

Internationalising higher tourism education: the case of curriculum design in the Central Baltic Area

ABSTRACTThe aim of this article is to increase understanding of the process of curriculum design when incorporating an international dimension into a curriculum in higher tourism education. The process of the internationalisation of the curriculum design is investigated against a theoretical basis and described from a practical perspective by presenting a case from the Central Baltic Area. In this case, the purpose of the internationalisation of the curriculum is to provide an aligned skillset and knowledge necessary to support the development of the Central Baltic Area as a common tourism destination. First, a relevant and mutual skillset was identified by reviewing the existing curricula (N = 17) and national tourism strategies and plans (N = 3) as well as by interviewing representatives of tourism organisations (N = 103). Then, the identified skills and knowledge were translated into a joint curriculum and teaching processes.

I-DIGEST framework: towards authentic learning for indigenous learners

There is a distinct lack of authentic and relevant learning opportunities for Indigenous learners in formalized educational settings. This is due to multiple factors including the lack of incorporation of Indigenous knowledge into educational curriculum. A significant portion of Indigenous knowledge is in relation to the land and is experientially grounded. Therefore, any knowledge system used by Indigenous learners must take into account that learning is contextual to a place and should include a significant experiential learning component within the curriculum. Digital storytelling has emerged as a methodology for incorporating Indigenous knowledge into learning and with the literature identifying the lack of a formal curriculum design process, a framework is presented for incorporating digital storytelling into learning curriculum, allowing for authentic and relevant learning opportunities for Indigenous learners. To test the efficacy of our framework approach, prototype tools have been created to generate learning objects to be used in a case study course. Experts in the field of education and Indigenous knowledge were then asked to provide feedback on the efficacy of the framework. Strengths identified include the inclusion of knowledge holders and community members in the design process as well as providing a visual and oral alternative to the standard written method of expression. Weaknesses identified include possible lack of knowledge and support from educators as well as a lack of protocol to determining valid, relevant knowledge. Additional benefits identified include using this approach beyond the physical boundaries of a community, to allow, for remote community members to contribute to the knowledgebase.

By Design. Engaging Graphic Design Students in Curriculum Development

To achieve this, we aimed to develop a new first-year module. As part of our continuing student collaboration process, we sought to take a partnership approach to the design of the module by inviting students to participate in a focus group to share their ideas about what a new module needed to cover and what forms of assessment they thought would be appropriate. Their ideas were then either adopted and built into the new module from the outset or applied , as relevant to other modules within the curriculum. The information shifted the emphasis and level of detail we built into the module planning. It also provided helpful guidance to early career colleagues involved in developing learning resources and assessment tasks for the module. The case study is being used to encourage colleagues across different disciplines to embed student engagement initiatives within the curriculum design process.

Aims for Learning 21st Century Competencies in National Primary Science Curricula in China and Finland

Incorporation of aims for learning 21st century competencies in subject-specific curricula and education has been an important issue worldwide. This study explored the integration of aims for learning such competencies into the National Primary Science Curricula in China and Finland. Both Curricula showed an emphasis on aims related to science education, such as inquiry and information literacy. Yet the density of appearance of competencies for the 21st century in the Chinese Curriculum is lower than in the Finnish Curriculum. Additionally, the Chinese Curriculum illustrates the shortage of aims in the Living in the World category. The significant differences between the Curricula have to do with the educational theories underpinning each national curriculum. The Chinese Curriculum has a tendency to align with the Anglo-American curriculum tradition, whereas the Finnish Curriculum is more closely aligned with the German Bildung-Didaktik tradition. A national curriculum in different subject areas could be designed whose central purpose would be cultivating holistic individuals and targeting goals for disciplinary knowledge and skills. Merits of the different educational traditions need to be examined and considered in the curriculum design process.

Curriculum Design and Implementation of the Emergency Medicine Chief Resident Incubator.

BackgroundChief residents receive minimal formal training in preparation for their administrative responsibilities. There is a lack of professional development programs specifically designed for chief residents.ObjectiveIn 2015, Academic Life in Emergency Medicine designed and implemented an annual, year-long, training program and virtual community of practice for chief residents in emergency medicine (EM). This study describes the curriculum design process and reports measures of learner engagement during the first two cycles of the curriculum.MethodsKern’s Six-Step Approach for curriculum development informed key decisions in the design and implementation of the Chief Resident Incubator. The resultant curriculum was created using constructivist social learning theory, with specific objectives that emphasized the needs for a virtual community of practice, longitudinal content delivery, mentorship for participants, and the facilitation of multicenter digital scholarship. The 12-month curriculum included 11 key administrative or professional development domains, delivered using a combination of digital communications platforms. Primary outcomes measures included markers of learner engagement with the online curriculum, recognized as modified Kirkpatrick Level One outcomes for digital learning.ResultsAn average of 206 chief residents annually enrolled in the first two years of the curriculum, with an overall participation by 33% (75/227) of the allopathic EM residency programs in the United States (U.S.). There was a high level of learner engagement, with an average 13,414 messages posted per year. There were also 42 small group teaching sessions held online, which included 39 faculty and 149 chief residents. The monthly e-newsletter had a 50.7% open rate. Digital scholarship totaled 23 online publications in two years, with 67 chief resident co-authors and 21 faculty co-authors.ConclusionsThe Chief Resident Incubator is a virtual community of practice that provides longitudinal training and mentorship for EM chief residents. This incubator conceptual framework may be used to design similar professional development curricula across various health professions using an online digital platform.

The Necessity of Physical Activity in Kinesiology Degree Programs

The term “the practice of physical activity” was recently introduced as one of the four elements of the American Kinesiology Association undergraduate core curriculum. The purpose of this article is to articulate the nature of the term by offering a philosophical justification (other than health) for including physical activity coursework and/or experiences in kinesiology degree programs, specifying a definition of physical activity, and examining what it means to “practice” physical activity. Using three major themes from the relevant literature and a clarified meaning of the term, it is concluded that to practice physical activity means to participate in dance, exercise, games, play or sport regularly with the intent to maintain or improve fitness or skill proficiency. Two approaches — (1) physical activity for fitness and health and (2) physical activity for skillful performance — are presented to guide the curriculum design process in kinesiology.

Sciences Teacher Education Curriculum Re-alignment: Science Education Lecturers’ Perspectives of Knowledge Integration at South African Universities

A qualitative case study was conducted at six purposively sampled universities; out of a population of approximately23 universities. This sampling strategy was based on selecting some universities that became Universities ofTechnology during the process of merging Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) while other universities kept theiridentity; currently being referred to as Traditional Universities. In-depth interviews and analysis of curriculumdocuments were used as sources of data acquisition to address the aim and questions explored by this study explored;necessitated by the need to implement Minimum Requirements for Teaching Education Qualification (MRTEQ)policy guidelines. The sampled universities’ identities were concealed and pseudonyms were assigned to participantsfor ethical reasons. Qualitative methods were applied for data analysis. Findings revealed that for some institutions’integration of sub-disciples of science curriculum led to contestations and debates resulting from differentphilosophical perceptions held by subject specialists in the curriculum design process. Knowledge integrationcontinues to be a contested field in universities that typifies resistance to change. Some participants demonstrated apositive disposition towards knowledge integration models which they used in curriculum development. This studyconcludes that a collaborative and collegial deliberation among science education lecturers and experts in variousknowledge domains could be a way to find common ground on issues highlighted in this study. Re-thinking andre-conceptualising knowledge organisation for science academic knowledge are appropriate to the needs of schoolcurriculum and benefit science teachers with knowledge and competences for knowledge impartation, skills andvalues in the subject.

The Design of Curriculum, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education with Constructive Alignment

In higher education, the principle of constructive alignment for devising teaching, learning activities and assessment tasks is the underpinning concept in curriculum design and development to achieve intended learning outcomes. Student’s deep learning is critical and it is the responsibility of the curriculum developer to make sure that synergy between formative and summative assessment is achieved. Also, the needs for special education must be addressed and diversity must be achieved through multiple channels throughout the process of learning, teaching and assessment. Constructive alignment is considered as a key element in education design. However, this requires time and effort in designing teaching and assessment. Due to the importance of constructive alignment, the research in this paper discusses issues relevant to the process of curriculum design and development with the emphasis on students with special needs. Conclusion is drawn based on the literature review.

The CONEAU and its Influences on the Process of Curriculum Design in Argentine Universities

The creation of The Comision Nacional de Evaluacion y Acreditacion Universitaria (CONEAU) in 1995 opens a chapter about the evaluation processes that, 20 years from its functioning, allows to move along in the study and analysis from an evaluation perspective and accreditation that does not base its developments, or its evolution, or the increasing levels of quality achieved in the system, in the elaboration of university rankings, or in the taking of exams for teachers and students. The history of institutionalization of this process can be related from the initial political decision, the first times of rejection, going through the thoroughness of the organization and the development of tools and procedures, the self-assessment processes to the present where it is possible to raise achievements and pending issues. It is in the context of a story about this experience that the question about the curricular changes that these processes may have generated taking the idea of perspective raised by Alicia de Alba in his text Curriculum: crisis, myth and perspective (1995) and thus return to think about how to express curricularly the common and the diverse in the processes of university education.