Participatory Curriculum Development Research Articles

Utilizing a participatory curriculum development approach for multidisciplinary training on the forensic medical evaluation of asylum seekers

BackgroundClinicians play an important role in asylum applications through the forensic medical evaluation (FME). The lack of adequately trained and knowledgeable clinicians limits access to FME. Participatory curriculum development is a powerful tool that elevates voices of multiple stakeholders to generate innovation in FME education. The objective of this study was to conduct an interview-based curricular needs assessment of the core skills needed to perform safe and effective FME and the most effective teaching methods targeting multidisciplinary learners. MethodsIn accordance with a participatory curriculum development framework, we conducted semi-structured interviews of individuals in four key stakeholder groups that play an important role in FME: asylees, experienced educators, prospective learners, and attorneys. We used grounded theory, an inductive approach to the thematic coding of interview transcripts. ResultsInterview participants described the most important skills for performing FME and approaches to teaching these skills. Thematic saturation was reached at 13 interviews. Four major themes central to an FME curriculum were identified: (1) Core knowledge and technical skills to perform effective FME, (2) Practical skills in a trauma-informed approach to FME, (3) Mitigating secondary trauma and building resilience, and (4) Teaching approaches for multi-disciplinary learners. ConclusionWe conducted an interview-based study utilizing participatory curriculum development principles to investigate the most important skills to conduct safe and effective FME of asylum seekers. We found that experiential training that emphasizes the practice of skills in a multi-disciplinary environment is more aligned with stakeholder needs than existing frameworks built around one-way knowledge transfer.

Developing an Evaluation Training Program for Community-Based Organizations: A Participatory Curriculum Development Approach

Community-based organizations increasingly recognize the value of evaluative insights in informing decision-making and improving their services. However, these organizations often lack the capacity to conduct and use evaluations, and traditional evaluation capacity building (ECB) activities are not always adapted to their particular contexts. This practice note introduces an innovative evaluation training program for small grassroots community-based organizations. Employing a participatory curriculum development approach, the training program was tailored to meet the specific needs and realities of the community sector. The authors first outline the collaborative process used to involve community and academic stakeholders in the program’s development. They then present the resulting training plan, consisting of seven self-directed online learning modules with chosen activities to foster learning and knowledge transfer into practice. The potential implications for designing, researching, and evaluating similar initiatives are explored and discussed.

The curriculum design in design education: An inquiry of challenges and implications in Hong Kong

The prime purpose of design education is to nurture young people and develop their artistic and scientific personalities, skills and talents. By its very nature, professional training in design is fully committed to the education and training of the creative workforce required by creative industries. It is crucial for design educators to devise and formulate relevant, responsive and quality programmes with an emphasis on sustainability at all levels of design education. It is notable that the world economy has become increasingly sophisticated. Design is a value-added component in various sectors. Design students equipped with multiple skills and capable of managing simultaneous tasks are crucial to the creative industries in this challenging world economy. This research is going to trigger further discussion and reflection among design curriculum developers, academics and policy-makers. It can also discuss the use of a total curriculum and participatory curriculum development approach to design education to provide our new design generations with a broader curriculum and learning approach for the knowledge-based economy.

Participatory curriculum development: The case of EUTOPIA, a European university alliance

AbstractThis paper reports on a model for participatory curriculum development that builds on a ‘connected learning communities’ (CLC) approach. We describe and analyse the trajectory of six CLC‐cases using a framework informed by Social Practice Theory (SPT). The activities we report on took place during the first pilot year (2020–2021) of a transnational University Alliance involving six European universities. Data were drawn from document analysis, direct observations and ongoing dialogue with students and staff involved in the CLCs. Our findings illustrate the affordances of building on existing practice for curriculum development in international contexts and point out the importance of well‐equipped collaborative environments that encourage critical analysis and active experimentation. We found that the CLC model and SPT framework are helpful contributions in the field of curriculum development and argue that connected curriculum‐making approaches help shape versatile environments that can effectively transform and enhance educational provisions, experiences and outcomes.

Manajemen Kurikulum Merdeka untuk PIAUD

This article discusses independent curriculum management in the context of early childhood Islamic education (PIAUD). The purpose of this research is to identify the concepts and principles of independent curriculum management and their implementation in PIAUD. The methodology used is a literature study with a descriptive-analytical approach. Based on the results of the research, the independent curriculum management concept emphasizes student empowerment as learning subjects and curriculum development that is tailored to the needs and potential of students. The principles of independent curriculum management include student participation in decision making, curriculum linkages with real life, flexibility in implementation, and competency development. The implementation of the independent curriculum in PIAUD requires a participatory curriculum development process that involves stakeholders, the use of active learning methods, and periodic evaluations to optimize the learning process. In conclusion, independent curriculum management can be an alternative for developing a student-centred PIAUD curriculum and developing their potential in a holistic and integrated manner.

Participatory curriculum development for health and independent living for disabled people: a qualitative study of participant experiences

Participatory curriculum development is an approach that draws on participatory research philosophy by engaging members of intended audiences in the curriculum development process. This is a fairly new approach to curriculum development, which has seldom been applied in health promotion and, to our knowledge, has not previously been used to develop curriculum with disabled people. In this project, participatory curriculum development was used to both develop a new curriculum and revise an existing curriculum for in-person, web-based delivery. We engaged in this process with Center for Independent Living staff members, twelve of whom we interviewed post-engagement. We assessed the development process for equitable engagement and sharing of power and identified three relevant main themes: learning, collaborating, and empowering. Our project partners engaged collaboratively in project development and believed the curriculums would empower their intended end-users. However, they desired greater sharing of power during the process to create an equitable experience.

Participatory Development of Demand-Driven Curriculum for Career-Ready E-Extension Services in Nigeria

This paper described and contextualized participatory development of demand-driven curriculum for career-ready e-extension services in Nigeria as introduced by the Sasakawa Africa Fund for Extension Education. The stages of participatory development were participatory need assessment, participatory stakeholders’ workshop and validation among 124 stakeholders selected as key informants in relation to agricultural extension training, delivery, end users and policy makers. The stakeholders were grouped as follows: community leaders and policy makers; extension agencies / organisations / institutions / employers; farmers; input suppliers / marketers / agro-based traders / other value actors; and potential candidate groups. Stakeholder meetings were held separately with different groups three times, and then a combined meeting took place. The aggregated major decisions/consensus were subjected to content analysis using ATLAS.ti. The validation process included reading of each agreed decision to all participants, then participants indicated their agreement or otherwise, which led to either rejection or acceptance of the decision. This paper concludes that participatory curriculum development has enhanced the stakeholders to identify areas of demand-driven training in response to community needs. The stakeholders preferred more online than face-to-face training. The major perceived advantages of e-extension were reduced risk, time and cost effectiveness while infrastructural and human challenges were the perceived challenges that could possibly hinder the smooth running of e extension.

Participation in Higher Education Curricula Development in Armenia and Possible Effects for the Labour Market—The Case of an “Organic Agriculture” Master’s Program

Weak or unstructured stakeholder participation in higher education curricula development still remains a problem in Armenia. Change in outdated curricula development processes is needed, as they often do not meet students’ needs; do not adopt innovative teaching methods or tools; and do not fit the labour market’s demand. This paper traces the evolution of the participatory curriculum development process of the Organic Agriculture Master’s program at the Armenian National Agrarian University (ANAU). Prioritizing mainly qualitative methods of research, five relevant stakeholder groups with approximately 10–12 members each at varying levels were involved in this action research. Additionally, paper-based and online surveys were conducted with 290 ANAU students. The results focus on the conceptual mapping of the process of participatory action research, bridging its relevance to the Armenian labour market’s needs. Moreover, the results highlight lessons learned from the process—shaping them around significant theories for participatory action research—and underline the possibilities of the Organic Agriculture Master’s development process as a model program at ANAU and perhaps elsewhere.

Sustainable Shift from Centralized to Participatory Higher Education in Post-Soviet Countries: A Systematic Literature Review

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, higher education (HE) in post-Soviet reality continues to face complex challenges, including hierarchical structures, antiquated teaching methods, and lack of international standards. In the meantime, in the US and in Europe, HE has recently focused on participatory curriculum development (PCD) and programs that seek to directly connect student learning to “real-world” problems, accelerating positive change in curricula and through their contributions to regional communities. Accepted into the Bologna Process—the standardization of European HE—Armenian HE institutions struggle to satisfy requirements and related sustainable development goals with centralized standards, inhibiting them from being internationally competitive and regional sustainability change agents. In this article, we examine post-Soviet HE development since 1991 and challenges, with a particular focus on Armenia; what participatory curriculum building may offer; and how it contributes to HE and regional sustainability transitions. A systematic literature review was applied, using specific combinations of important terms restricting the search with criteria such as language, year of publication, and descriptive or critical in nature. The results illustrate the status quo of post-Soviet HE, synthesize current barriers of HE as potential change agents, and highlight PCD as a way to overcome these barriers.

Students as advocates of global health goals: the case of medical education in Germany

Abstract Background Germany has started to take on greater responsibility in global health policy. Furthermore, new threats, such as climate change, have increased sensitivity. However, health professionals are not well prepared to respond to the new tasks and the changing needs of the population. Global health is still largely missing from the education and training programmes of the vast majority of professional groups in Germany. This paper aims to illustrate how students can become advocates of global health education and enhance institutional change, when health policy fails to act effectively. Methods An elective programme introduced in September 2019 in the undergraduate medical curriculum at Hannover Medical School, Germany, serves as a case study to explore the tools and substance of the programme, as well as the stakeholders involved. Results The new global health programme utilises a window of opportunity in the curriculum, which includes a small number of mandatory seminars which students can chose from. It builds on five major pillars: collaboration between students and the programme coordinator and participatory curriculum development; the SDGs as framework and guidance of the curriculum; a multiprofessional and transsectoral teaching team; collaboration with NGOs; strong networks through collaboration with the national German medical students' association. Sustainability remains a major challenge, yet there is now institutional and financial support at Hannover Medical School and the new German National Competence Based Catalogue of Learning Objectives for Undergraduate Medical Education also includes global health issues. Conclusions Students as advocates for global health can make a difference and enhance institutional change through transsectoral, participatory teaching programmes.

Developing sustainability learning in business school curricula – productive boundary objects and participatory processes

Sustainability learning is holistic and complex as it draws on diverse disciplines and can be interpreted differently within individual pedagogies. Embedding sustainability across and within business schools relies on developing suitable boundary objects. These may include representations such as models, frameworks or classificatory schemes that are malleable enough to be adapted for use within the disparate disciplines and pedagogies, yet durable enough to be recognisable and to maintain consistency across them. Boundary objects thus allow the sharing of ways of knowing or practice across various social boundaries. This paper outlines how participatory curriculum development processes can enable sustainability to be embedded in a business school curriculum. Distinct phases of the process were marked by different ways of knowing, as disciplinary-specific academics developed and embedded sustainability into and across curricula. Boundary objects were both outcomes and productive facilitators of this process. They acted as catalysts and attracted ongoing processes of dialogue, debate and meaning-making between these academics. The institutional context provided enabling conditions to legitimize outcomes from the participatory process. The process may be replicable in other business schools by the use of boundary objects.

Sources of complexity in participatory curriculum development: an activity system and stakeholder analysis approach to the analyses of tensions and contradictions

The purpose of this article is to contribute to a better understanding of the nature of participatory curriculum development in higher education institutions. We conducted a longitudinal case study that scrutinized an international participatory curriculum development process. Our research spanned six universities across four countries in Africa. We used cultural-historical activity theory as a theoretical lens to identify the critical tensions underlying the curriculum development activity. Six primary contradictions and four secondary contradictions were identified. These tensions were mainly rooted in issues concerning stakeholder relations, rule rigidity, and resource availability. We integrate a stakeholder perspective and discuss how practitioners who seek to design and implement effective participatory curriculum development processes can benefit from applying a combination of activity system and stakeholder analyses during planning as well as implementation stages.

Midwifery participatory curriculum development: Transformation through active partnership.

Evolving knowledge and professional practice combined with advances in pedagogy and learning technology create challenges for accredited professional programs. Internationally a sparsity of literature exists around curriculum development for professional programs responsive to regulatory and societal drivers. This paper evaluates a participatory curriculum development framework, adapted from the community development sector, to determine its applicability to promote engagement and ownership during the development of a Bachelor of Midwifery curriculum at an Australian University. The structures, processes and resulting curriculum development framework are described. A representative sample of key curriculum development team members were interviewed in relation to their participation. Qualitative analysis of transcribed interviews occurred through inductive, essentialist thematic analysis. Two main themes emerged: (1) 'it is a transformative journey' and (2) focused 'partnership in action'. Results confirmed the participatory curriculum development process provides symbiotic benefits to participants leading to individual and organisational growth and the perception of a shared curriculum. A final operational model using a participatory curriculum development process to guide the development of accredited health programs emerged. The model provides an appropriate structure to create meaningful collaboration with multiple stakeholders to produce a curriculum that is contemporary, underpinned by evidence and reflective of 'real world' practice.

Nurturing global collaboration and networked learning in higher education

We consider the principles of communities of practice (CoP) and networked learning in higher education, illustrated with a case study. iCollab has grown from an international community of practice connecting students and lecturers in seven modules across seven higher education institutions in six countries, to a global network supporting the exploration and evaluation of mobile web tools to engage in participatory curriculum development and supporting students in developing international collaboration and cooperation skills. This article explores the interplay of collaboration and cooperation, CoP and networked learning; describes how this interplay has operated in iCollab; and highlights opportunities and challenges of learning, teaching and interacting with students in networked publics in higher education. Keywords: communities of practice; networked learning; collaboration; cooperation; social media; mobile social media (Published: 1 March 2016) Citation: Research in Learning Technology 2016, 24 : 26497 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/rlt.v24.26497

Negotiating learner–teacher boundaries in medical education

During a third year medical student seminar on renal failure, Dr. Sara Ender is facilitating a group discussion. One of the medical students, James, puts up his hand. ‘‘Sara, I have a question’’, he says. She is immediately aware that other students may be wondering why James used her first name. Was it intentional? Should she address it? We write this personal view from the perspective of both faculty and learners recently involved in a participatory curriculum development process. While the experience was rewarding on many levels, it has prompted our reflection on some of the unintended, perhaps challenging, outcomes related to more actively involving learners in these processes. Learner engagement is widely recognized as key to their achievement in higher education. Actively involving learners in the co-creation of curriculum offers one way to facilitate this engagement (Bovill 2013). Offering learners the opportunity to contribute their knowledge and experience to curricula in an authentic participatory process has many potential benefits, including: increasing learner responsibility for their own learning; engaging learners in critical exploration of teaching processes; enhancing learner performance; and improving faculty satisfaction (Huppatz 1996). While the argument for learner involvement in curricular design is not new within education and critical pedagogy literature (Rudduck & Fielding 2006), it remains an emerging idea within the higher education and medical education literature. Often, learner engagement in this context is reduced to gathering learner feedback through standard evaluation method, while greater more in-depth attention is paid to the opinions of faculty as ‘experts’ in faculty-led curricular design (Coates 2005). In an attempt to move beyond faculty-led curriculum design and in response to calls at our institution for learner involvement, we recently engaged in a participatory curriculum development process. Our team, consisting of faculty, postgraduate and undergraduate learners, aimed to develop an innovative faculty development program for teachers. The knowledge, perspectives, and experiences of each team member informed all aspects of the curriculum design process. The boundaries of the participatory process evolved organically. From the outset, faculty engaged in a deliberate sharing of roles and encouraged informality with the learners. Ownership and empowerment were fostered through co-creation of the program’s vision and decision-making by consensus. Learners’ opinions and real-life experiences informed and guided the development of the curriculum, resulting in a more relevant and authentic tool for clinical teachers. Reflecting on this experience, the faculty described an enriched understanding of the learner learning experience. Learners felt that the partnership afforded them opportunities to explore educational processes and theory while under the guidance of faculty role models, thus enhancing their current experiences as learners and creating a foundation for their future roles as teachers. Throughout the process, as relationships grew and trust was established, the traditional power differential between faculty and learners (Lempp & Seale 2004) was ‘flattened’. We no longer felt like experts (faculty) and novices (learners) but rather like colleagues working together towards a common goal. Indeed, our involvement in participatory curriculum development changed the nature and boundaries of our relationships. Although these changes furthered the curricular development agenda, they also produced unintended outcomes related to the manner in which we navigated between our different roles within the medical education system. Faculty were faced with feelings of vulnerability when they acknowledged that learners from the project would be present during their clinical teaching sessions, and thus evaluating their roles as effective teachers. Similarly, learners perceived a heightened expectation from faculty and felt increased pressure to perform in the clinical context when faculty from the project were present. Both faculty and learners shared concern that our previous experience working together may be construed as favoritism, and struggled with how to interact with each other in front of peers and colleagues. Learners who were on first name basis with faculty during the co-creation of

Changing minds, changing lives from the top down: an investigation of the dissemination and adoption of a Canada-wide educational intervention to enhance health care professionals' intentions to prescribe physical activity.

The purposes of the current study were to (1) describe the restructuring and dissemination of a Canada-wide intervention curriculum designed to enhance health care professionals' prescription of physical activity to patients with physical disabilities, and (2) examine interventionists' social cognitions for, and their acceptance and adoption of, the new curriculum. A participatory curriculum development process was utilized, resulting in a theory- and evidence-based curriculum. Interventionists (N = 28) were trained in curriculum delivery and most (n = 22) completed measures of Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) constructs assessing their cognitions for delivering the new curriculum at pre- and post-training and at 6-month follow-up. Interventionists also completed a Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) measure assessing their opinion of whether the new curriculum met characteristics that would facilitate its adoption and use. Interventionists reported strong TPB cognitions for curriculum use before training. Significant increases emerged for some TPB constructs (ps ≤ 0.025) from pre- to post-training, and significant decreases were seen in some TPB constructs (ps ≤ 0.024) between post-training and 6-month follow-up. The interventionists rated the new curriculum as high on all the DOI characteristics. The theory-driven, participatory development process facilitated interventionists' social cognitions towards and adoption of the new curriculum. Positive increases in TPB cognitions from pre- to post-training were not maintained at follow-up. Further research is needed to determine if these changes in cognitions are indicative of a curriculum "reinvention" process that facilitates long-term curriculum use. Understanding curriculum adoption and implementation is a crucial step to determining the potential population impact of the intervention.

Tools for Iina (Life): The Journey of the Iina Curriculum to the Glittering World

This article presents the participatory curriculum development process and foundational Diné (Navajo) concepts that inform the Tools for Iina (Life) curriculum, designed for grades 4-6 by a group of Diné educators to strengthen resiliency by addressing children's health, relationships, identity, and sense of the future, utilizing core concepts from Diné oral tradition. Rather than develop a curriculum relying only on experts, and rather than utilize existing American Indian curricula addressing specific risk behaviors or diseases, we facilitated a dialogue with a range of community members to identify core concepts from Diné oral tradition that could provide young people with a perspective on life and its conflicts and challenges, tools for building respectful and supportive relationships, and stories to inform their sense of themselves, the Diné People, and their shared future. The Ways of Life: Iina Project will make the curriculum available in 2012. We offer reflections for other tribes interested in adopting a similar curriculum development process.

Core Curriculum Analysis: A Tool for Educational Design

This paper examines the outcome of a dimensional core curriculum analysis. The analysis process was an integral part of an educational development project, which aimed to compact and clarify the curricula of the degree programmes. The task was also in line with the harmonising of the degree structures as part of the Bologna process within higher education in Europe. An electronic core curriculum analysis matrix was designed for describing scientific and professional knowledge and skills. The generation of the descriptions was supported by the application of a participatory working process. The resulting descriptions were stored in a database and available for all the teachers to redesign the curricula. The descriptions were analysed in order to assess their usefulness in curriculum design. The teachers had described their courses in qualitatively different ways. The emerging description categories were named as implicit, explicit, brief and extensive. Our study emphasises the benefits of core curriculum analysis and of a course description database as a tool for curriculum design. The study also points out the importance of teachers’ description strategies and the challenges arising during the process. The regularly updated electronic database of the core curriculum of courses is a very useful means for curriculum design, as well as student guidance, mobility support and the orientation of new staff. The analysis process enhances educational design on all levels of education. It offers support for documentation and participatory curriculum development.

Participatory approaches in developing farmer education and community ownership of training in Kyrgyzstan

Education is one of the main driving forces of community development. This article argues that in transition countries, community participation in developing rural vocational education systems is a prerequisite for bringing about change at local level. The reform of vocational education and training (VET) for farmers in Kyrgyzstan shows that pragmatic approaches to participation yield best results in terms of financial and operational sustainability of a training system. Following a brief description of the challenges faced by communities in transition countries, the article lists factors making participatory approaches indispensable for adapting the existing vocational education system to the realities of a market economy. Two examples demonstrate how the Agricultural and Rural Vocational Education Project of the Swiss NGO Helvetas uses participatory curriculum development processes in order to empower the communities to develop locally adapted training courses and how self-governance and co-financing of VET can be strengthened through the creation of Local Vocational Training Funds. The article ends with lessons learnt on the use of participatory approaches in VET for both Kyrgyzstan and other transition countries.

Introducing Participatory Curriculum Development in China's Higher Education: The Case of Community-Based Natural Resource Management

This article describes and reflects on a novel course developed at China Agricultural University to introduce Community-Based Natural Resource Management at the postgraduate level. This course, part of a larger educational renewal initiative addressing the current reform of China's higher education system, was developed through a participatory curriculum development methodology bringing together teachers and researchers from five different organizations, as well as a dynamic group of MSc and PhD students. The course development process and the actual delivery in the classroom and in the field were guided by insights from adult teaching and learning theory. These were adapted to the Chinese reality. Results assessed to date from the experimentation with this completely new approach in China encompass conceptual, attitudinal, methodological, and practical changes. The experiences and insights accumulated so far serve as entry points for the expansion of participatory curriculum development practice in China. They also provide a ground for deepening learning theory.