curriculum renewal through embedding graduate attributes

Curriculum Renewal through Embedding Graduate Attributes

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Overview of Presentation

• Graduate Attributes at the University of Adelaide• Overview of the Curriculum Renewal Project• Faculty specific approaches

– ECMS– Professions– Sciences– Health Science– Humanities and Social Sciences

• Conclusion• Questions

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University of Adelaide Graduate Attributes

• Knowledge and understanding of the content and techniques of a chosen discipline at advanced levels that are internationally recognised.

• The ability to locate, analyse, evaluate and synthesise information from a wide variety of sources in a planned and timely manner.

• An ability to apply effective, creative and innovative solutions, both independently and cooperatively, to current and future problems.

• Skills of a high order in interpersonal understanding, teamwork and communication.

• A proficiency in the appropriate use of contemporary technologies. • A commitment to continuous learning and the capacity to maintain

intellectual curiosity throughout life. • A commitment to the highest standards of professional endeavour and

the ability to take a leadership role in the community. • An awareness of ethical, social and cultural issues within a global

context and their importance in the exercise of professional skills and responsibilities.

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Graduate Attributes

• broadly based -- beyond content – content: syllabus– transferable skills: communication, teamwork, thinking,

information literacy– contextual factors: personal, professional,

internationalisation, citizenship, employment

• outcomes oriented– for the individual: personal improvement– for society: fostering citizenship – for the economy: employment related

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Graduate Attributes at the University of Adelaide

• part of the University’s quality assurance framework– outcomes for students– validity of programs and courses– stakeholder interests

• focus for TEQSA• effective only if embedded in the curriculum

– given meaning by the discipline – systematic and defensible (incorporate standards and

stakeholder views)– intentional not aspirational (specified as learning

outcomes)– measured (through assessment)– supported directly through teaching and learning

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Curriculum Renewal Project• Dimensions of curriculum renewal:

– Graduate Attributes (learning outcomes, assessment, teaching and learning), capstones, SGDE, research skills, academic literacies, e-Experience

• 3 Curriculum Directors– ECMS and Professions (Stephanie Eglinton-Warner) – Science and Health Science (Suzy McKenna)– Humanities and Social Sciences (Rigmor George)

• focus on 1 program in each Faculty– ECMS: Bachelor of Engineering for the School of Electrical and

Electronic Engineering– Professions: Bachelor of Commerce– Science: Bachelor of Science – Health Science: 3 clinical programs – Medicine, Dentistry &

Nursing– HUMSS: Bachelor of Arts

• varying emphases and processes across the Faculties– accreditation/registration requirements

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Curriculum Renewal Project

• outcomes and outputs– curriculum renewal in one program for each Faculty– frameworks, processes, templates, proformas to

facilitate renewal in other programs– capacity building of staff– identification of resources and examples from other

universities– recommendations for further development

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Process

• What have we got now?– review of each course in the program/major – review of the program/major

• What do we want?– agreement on the preferred characteristics of the

program/major

• How are we going to get it?– identification of how these characteristics can be

delivered through the component courses– renewal of component courses

Professions (B Commerce) ProjectProfessional

Accreditation Standards

AQF

Program Learning Outcomes

Course Learning Outcomes

Learning Activities Assessment


ECMS (B Engineering (Electrical and Electronic Engineering) Project

Professional Competencies

AQF





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ECMS Whole of program relationships

University of Adelaide

TECH

Informs Systems ↑

SYSTEMS

Uses Tech ↓

PROFESSIONAL

Applies Systems and Tech ↔

1st Yr

2nd Yr

3rd Yr

4th Yr

Foundation Concepts, Principles, Theory and Practice

Capstone Application in and Experience of “real world”

Application/Reflection/Analysis in

increasingly less controlled and protected contexts

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ECMS Concepts and Themes


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ECMS Documentation


Course Title & Course Code

Units (3, 6, 9) Level (I, II, III, IV)

Core/Elective/Specialisation Contact Hours (Av Total Hrs per Week)

Pre-requisites Co-requisites

Assumed Knowledge Exclusions

Descriptor (no more than 4 sentences describing the main themes and objectives of the Course)

Content (list of topics to be covered in the Course)

Learning Outcomes At the end of this course the

students should be able to: Learning Activities Assessment Tasks


Engineers Australia

University Graduate Attributes

LO 1

LO 2

LO 3

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ECMS Advantages & Challenges

Advantages• Whole of program relationships explicit and mapped• Clear and articulated justifications for the final

structure • Capability building • Consistent with Engineering and design principles• Preparing graduates in line with GA from Day 1,

explicitly and consciously, in a whole of program approach

Challenges• Whole of Faculty capability building• Impacts on ongoing practice and processes


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Science project

• Ensuring coherence of the graduate outcomes of the Bachelor of Science– Use the major as the unit of insurance against the

Threshold Learning Outcomes (TLO)– Map TLO to graduate attributes – Map learning and assessment material in the Course

approval documents to TLO (and graduate attributes)• Identify gaps, good examples, improvements• Develop mapping tools, templates and process models

• Bachelor of Science has 17 majors - and there are countless ways a student can navigate the whole program.

• Assist development of a curriculum renewal framework for Science undergraduate programs.


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Science Curriculum Renewal Overview


Overview curriculum renewal framework – Science undergraduate degrees

General

Specific

University of Adelaide outcomes

University of Adelaide Graduate Attributes and strategic initiatives for learning and teaching are embedded in the qualification – the University’s

unique proposition to students

Program outcomes

align with the TEQSA Threshold Standards (AQF), Threshold Learning Outcomes for Science. Program design meets University policy for an undergraduate degree

align with cognate threshold learning outcomes or professional accreditation/competency indicators ( if they exist )

Major or final sequence outcomes

align with program outcomes and enable topic specific outcomes

Course aims and outcomes

contribute to program, sequence and topic outcomes/objectives

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3

Course learning and teaching design

contribute to and enable program, sequence and topic outcomes to be achieved

Assessment criteria and approach

confirm that the student has achieved, or is on the way to achieving, the course and program learning outcomes

The Graduate has achieved the program learning outcomes and University requirements and has had the unique University of Adelaide experience.

17University of Adelaide

Overview curriculum renewal framework – Science undergraduate degrees

General

Specific

University of Adelaide outcomes

University of Adelaide Graduate Attributes and strategic initiatives for learning and teaching are embedded in the qualification – the University’s

unique proposition to students

Program outcomes

align with the TEQSA Threshold Standards (AQF), Threshold Learning Outcomes for Science. Program design meets University policy for an undergraduate degree

align with cognate threshold learning outcomes or professional accreditation/competency indicators ( if they exist )

Major or final sequence outcomes

align with program outcomes and enable topic specific outcomes

Course aims and outcomes

contribute to program, sequence and topic outcomes/objectives

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3

Course learning and teaching design

contribute to and enable program, sequence and topic outcomes to be achieved

Assessment criteria and approach

confirm that the student has achieved, or is on the way to achieving, the course and program learning outcomes

The Graduate has achieved the program learning outcomes and University requirements and has had the unique University of Adelaide experience.

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Science TLO Domains

Upon completion of a Bachelor Degree in Science graduates will:• Understanding science

– Demonstrate a coherent understanding of science by:

• Science knowledge– Exhibit depth and breadth of science knowledge by:

• Inquiry and problem solving– Critically analyse and solve scientific problems by:

• Communication– Be effective communicators of science by:

• Personal and professional responsibility– Be accountable for their own learning and scientific work by:

• Chemistry TLOs have the same domains and have been mapped to the Science TLOs


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Science Example


AQF





Threshold Learning Outcomes for ScienceThreshold Learning Outcomes for Chemistry

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Health Science project

• Situated within learning and teaching for the future new clinical school

• Development of inter-professional understandings and capabilities – LTICS committee

• Identify commonalities across 4 programs, Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing, Oral Health, through mapping programs against the TLO for Health

• All 4 programs are accredited against professional standards – these have already been mapped to TLO

• Programs have different timeframes• Develop tools, templates, approaches for

replication


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Health TLO Domains

Upon completion of their program of study, healthcare graduates at professional entry-level will be able to:• Demonstrate professional behaviours• Assess individual and/or population health status and,

where necessary, formulate, implement and monitor management plans in consultation with patients/clients etc.

• Promote and optimise the health and welfare of individuals and/or populations

• Retrieve, critically evaluate and apply evidence in the performance of health related activities

• Deliver safe and effective collaborative healthcare• Reflect on current skills , knowledge and attitudes and

plan ongoing personal and professional development.


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Health Science Example


Professional Accreditation Standards X 4

AQF


Stream (course) Learning

Outcomes



Threshold Learning Outcomes for Health

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Humanities and Social Sciences Project


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Characteristics of HUMSS Project

• 19 Majors (within the Faculty) and 350 courses• Variations in the structure of majors

– history, politics have very little structure– languages are highly structured

• No external professional requirements• Timeframes tight--Review of BA requires

curriculum renewal to be completed by early 2014 for approval by PAEC

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Mapping Progression

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Developing Indicators

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GAs and their Indicators

1. Knowledge and understanding of the content and techniques of a chosen discipline at advanced levels that are internationally recognised.

a. understanding of a broad and coherent body of knowledge including concepts, theories and methodologies.

b. in-depth knowledge in one or more disciplines including major scholars, concepts, techniques, theories, relevant approaches to research, key resources, current debates and research issues

c. understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of scholarship

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GAs and their Indicators

4. Skills of a high order in interpersonal understanding, teamwork and communication.

a. appreciation of social, cultural and linguistic diversity and how this impacts on interpersonal transactions including communication styles

b. ability to communicate effectively within a discipline and professional context

c. capacity to contribute productively to team-based outcomes

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Developing Discipline-Specific Learning Outcomes (DSLOs)

U of A Graduate Attributes

Generic Indicators

Discipline Specific Learning

Outcomes

stakeholder perspectives

Australian Standards

International statements

other relevant resources

University priorities

AQF Learning Outcomes

EU SQF Social Science

EU SQF Humanities

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GAs, Indicators and Discipline-Specific Learning Outcomes

1. Knowledge and understanding of the content and techniques of a chosen discipline at advanced levels that are internationally recognised

Indicator DRAFT DSLOs for English

a. understanding of a broad and coherent body of knowledge including concepts, theories and methodologies

understanding of a broad knowledge of literary and other texts including visual representations and other forms of cultural production

understanding of the various genres of literary and other texts and visual representations including prose, poetry, drama and film

understanding of key terms and concepts in literary studies

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GAs, Indicators and Discipline-Specific Learning Outcomes

4. Skills of a high order in interpersonal understanding, teamwork and communication

Indicator DRAFT DSLOs for English

b. ability to communicate effectively within a discipline and professional context

advanced literacy skills including broad vocabulary, accurate spelling and use of grammar, clarity of expression, appropriate style

disciplined approach to the writing process including the drafting and redrafting of documents

ability to present sustained and persuasive written and oral arguments cogently and coherently and to engage in critical debate

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Process of Mapping and Development

• What do we understand by the Graduate Attributes?– development of Indicators

• What do these indicators mean within the disciplines? – development of Discipline-Specific Learning Outcomes (DSLOs)

for each major

• What have we got now?– review of each course in the major and development of course

summaries– review of the major by collating the individual course summaries

• What do we want?– agreement on the characteristics of the major

• How are we going to get it?– identification of how these characteristics can be delivered

through the component courses– changes to courses and course documentation.

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Advantages of the Approach

• ‘interprets’ the University’s GAs within disciplines• facilitates consistent outcomes across majors • major is a coherent and justifiable expression of the discipline

(not just an aggregation of courses)• incorporates discipline standards, stakeholder concerns,

international benchmarking • facilitates discussion and debate about strategic and

operational issues • students can track their own development of the GAs • students can provide evidence of GA development to

employers• compliance with AQF level 7 and TEQSA• validity--alignment between course learning outcomes and

assessment• incorporates other University priorities : academic literacies,

e-Experience, Small Group Discovery Experiences, capstones, and research skills development.

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Challenges

• components involve overlapping frameworks which do not always sit neatly together (GAs, research, SGDE, capstones, e-Experience, academic literacies)

• University’s Graduate Attributes have limitations• nature of the BA• size of the task 19 majors and 350 courses• timeframe for development very short

curriculum renewal through embedding graduate attributes

Documents

outputs curriculum renewal

learning outcomes

embedding graduate attributes

curriculum directors

bachelor of commerce

employment outcomes

faculty ecms

bachelor of engineering