The quality of educational institutions and the outcomes they produce can be directly linked to effective implementation of learning, teaching, curriculum design, and assessment.

By integrating learning theory into the course design process, curricula can be created which support Process Education approaches, thereby creating learning environments which challenge students to develop essential learning skills as well as master content. Curriculum design is an extremely important process because the type of curriculum used, along with its quality, significantly influences the way students learn and the way faculty teach.

Traditional curricula are written to support traditional methods of instruction. Using these materials make it more difficult for faculty who utilize student-centered as well as active learning approaches to achieve the process outcomes they desire. The Course Design Institute offers practical strategies, techniques, and tips for creating learning activities as well as a framework for designing courses and programs which support process-oriented approaches to teaching and learning.

Participants will…

1. learn to structure and write quality process-oriented materials for use in their own courses

2. practice integrating a learning process methodology and learning theory into the design of their content-specific curriculum

3. set criteria for assessing the quality of curricula

4. link assessment strategies to specific activity types for improving student success

5. identify and assess key learning skills students must develop to meet general education guidelines

6. learn to write quality critical thinking questions

7. explore how reflective practices/portfolios can be integrated in the design of curriculum

8. receive real-time feedback while working through the design process

9. discover key design features which increase student success

10. define appropriate learning objectives, learning outcomes, and performance criteria for activities within a course

11. write critical thinking questions that support different levels of cognitive development

12. create skill exercises and problems that are meaningful, challenging, and effective in raising the level of student learning

Day One

• Overview of the curriculum design process

• Determining goals and institute outcomes

• Activity One: Construct long-term behaviors/course intentions/learning outcomes/ knowledge table

• Activity Two: Identifying methodologies for the course and align with themes

• Activity Three: Creating an Activities Table

• Activity Four: Aligning Performance Criteria, Performance Measures, assessment and evaluation process

Day Two

• Sharing learning from the first day

• Activity Five: Types of activities

• Activity Six: Identification of learning skills

• Activity Seven: Writing effective critical thinking questions

• Activity Eight Design an activity

• Activity Nine: Designed Activity is Peer assessed

Day Three

• Sharing learning from the second day

• Activity Ten: Constructing engaging interactive models

• Activity Eleven: Designing your second Activity

• Activity Twelve Creating effective skill exercises and problems

• Activity Thirteen Writing Activity 3

• Activity Fourteen Assessing an activity

• Closure to the institute