Students and staff co-creating curricula: exploring practical ways of engaging students in designing their own learning & teaching

Dr Catherine Bovill,

Senior Lecturer, Academic Development Unit

University of Stirling 4th December 2012

Overview

Background and definitions Why co-create curricula? Possible and desirable levels of participation Examples of different types of participation Challenges and solutions Key design decisions influencing student

engagement

What is the curriculum?

Fraser & Bosanquet’s (2006) curriculum definitions

a) Structure and content of a unit

b) Structure and content of a programme of study

c) The students’ experience of learning

d) A dynamic and interactive process of teaching and learning (p272)

HE Lit supporting co-created curric

Students as co-creators/co-producers of their learning (Bovill et al, 2011& 2009; McCulloch, 2009; Neary, 2010; SFC, 2008)

Literature calling for student participation in curriculum design from critical pedagogy and popular education (Darder et al, 2003; Dewey, 1916; Fischer, 2005; Freire, 1993; Giroux, 1983; Rogers and Freiberg, 1969)

Specific student participation in curriculum design Breen & Littlejohn (2000) Language teaching Scandrett et al (2005) Environmental justice Fischer (2005); Delpish et al ( 2010) Education Bovill et al, (2011); Cook-Sather (2010) non-disciplinary specific

Why would you co-create curricula?

My course was broken My students are not engaged I want to make my classroom more democratic The benefits look worth exploring The university was going through a structural change There was a small amount of funding available

Student benefits

Enhanced meta-cognitive understanding of the learning process

collective and individual responsibilitygroup cohesionautonomy and self-directed learningconfidence and motivation

Enhanced student performance in assessments

Enhanced meta-cognitive understanding of the teaching process

(See for e.g. Bovill et al 2011; Delpish et al, 2011; Mihans et al, 2008)

Staff outcomes

Enhanced meta-cognitive understanding of the learning and teaching process

Nerve-wracking

Intense / demanded a lot

Rewarding experience from genuine dialogue with students and witnessing benefits for students

Transformatory

(See for e.g. Bovill et al 2011; Delpish et al, 2011; Mihans et al, 2008)

Ladder of student participation in curriculum design

Partnership - a negotiated curriculum Stu

dents increasingly active in

participation

Students in control

Student control of some areas of

choice

Students control of prescribed

areas

Wide choice from prescribed

choices

Limited choice from prescribed

choices

Dictated curriculum – no

interaction

Participation claimed, tutor in

control

Students control decision-making

and have substantial influence

Students have some choice and influence

Tutors control decision-making

informed by student

feedback

Tutors control decision-making

Gathering feedback from students…Depends what you do with the feedback

Students as full members of curriculum design team

Designing a VLE

Students designing their own learning outcome(s)

Bovill & Bulley, (2011)

Words of caution…

Higher up the ladder is not necessarily ‘better’

Beware of chasing the nirvana of total participation and totally equal participation

Different points on the ladder might be possible or desirable in different contexts

The ladder is simply a model to facilitate discussion

Examples of co-created curricula

Do you have any examples of co-created curricula?

Examples of student participation

• students choosing the topic for their research project• students co-designing marking criteria with staff• students and staff collaborate to choose a course text book• students influencing the content of the curriculum• students’ work forming the basis of the curriculum• students co-creating course resources• students co-designing the assessment

Some big questions…

We have a professional body that

constrains what we can do with our

curriculum…

I only teach these students for two

weeks and the course is co-ordinated by someone else…

We are all overstretched and this

sounds like more work…

I teach first years and they don’t have 20

years of experience like me to know what needs to be in the content of the first year chemistry

curriculum…

Challenges to the co-creation process

• What are the key challenges to you co-creating curricula in your context?

• How can these challenges be overcome?

Pre-design decisions

Tutors as gatekeepers…

• Which students? Retrospective, current or future design?

• Selecting students – if not all students by interview/criteria

• Do you reward your students?

• Course, programme or extra-curricular?

• Students involved in designing curriculum process or content? Bovill (forthcoming)

Any questions?

• What would be a good question for me to ask the group if I wanted to get some feedback on the session today?

• Choose 1 or 2 of the suggested questions and write a response to the question on the paper provided. Please leave these behind at the end of the session

Thank you

Evaluation