B.Sc. Curriculum Mapping
B.Sc. Curriculum Mapping Project
In Fall 2016 and Winter 2017 the BSc Degree programs will undertake a large-scale curriculum mapping initiative. The goal of this initiative is to collect information on how each course, within the various majors contributes to the B.Sc. program learning outcomes and the associated majors.
Message from the Associate Dean Academic
As the Associate Dean Academic for the College of Biological Science, I am writing to tell you about the B.Sc. Curriculum Mapping Project. This initiative has been in the planning stage for some time. I would like to briefly explain its purpose and how you can assist us in completing it.
In 2013, the B.Sc. became the first degree program on campus to have a complete set of learning outcomes, which articulate the desired skills, knowledge and values of a B.Sc. graduate. Outcomes serve as aspirational goals that guide revisions and improvements to our majors. As such they are an essential element of the Institutional Quality Assurance Process (IQAP), which all departments undertake on a cyclical basis.
For Learning Outcomes to be useful, we need to ask how our current majors stack up against these outcomes – a kind of gap analysis – so as to reveal our strengths and areas needing further review in our curriculum. The Curriculum Mapping Project aims to accomplish this very goal by mapping each course against the learning outcomes, documenting the modes of instruction, assessment, and degree of mastery expected of students. With learning outcomes in place for the degree and for individual majors, the time is now right to undertake this project.
The mapping project has multiple benefits. It will provide a clear sense of the progression of skills and knowledge developed within any given major. It will highlight outcomes that are under-represented, poorly times or over-represented, and will generate useful discussion about what the majors ought to achieve and how. It can also assist departments making decisions about course needs and redundancy, and allocation of resources.
How will you complete the survey?
The mapping project will be accomplished through a survey, which will be sent to one instructor for each core and restricted elective course in the B.Sc.. This will occur either at the end of fall 2016 or early winter 2017, depending on when the course is offered. If you are the designated person, you will need to complete the survey (with assistance of your teaching team). Because of its comprehensive nature, the survey will take a bit of time to complete (30-45 minutes) but will be worth the investment compared to the alternative of running a separate survey for each major. Over the next few months we will be identifying the designated instructors and would greatly appreciate your support for this project.
The curriculum mapping process will happen via a Qualtrics survey. Each survey will be customized using logic to ensure that questions will only be asked that apply to the majors that courses support.
Each instructor teaching during these semesters will be asked to complete the survey by following this link:
If you are teaching more than one course, you will be asked to complete the survey more than once. You can access the survey multiple times using the same link above.
Timeline to complete the survey
During the fall semester the survey will be open from November 1 – December 16.
In the winter semester the survey will be open from January 16 – February 17.
Drop-in Hours
As the survey is web-based, you may complete the survey on your own time at any location, however we will also be offering drop-in hours in Room 1306 to complete the survey. Please note you do not need to attend the entire drop-in session, just come to fill out your survey or ask a question!
The drop-in offered during the fall semester will be:
* Friday November 4th @ 10:30am – 11:20am
* Tuesday November 8th @ 1:00pm – 2:20pm
* Monday November 21st @ 3:30pm – 4:20pm
* Thursday December 1st @ 8:30am – 9:50am
* Wednesday December 7th @ 11:00am – 1:00pm
FAQs
Q: How long will the survey take?
A: It depends!
Q: Can I stop and return to the survey?
A: Yes! But, you will need to return to the survey using the same browser on the same computer you first accessed the survey.
Q: How do I complete multiple surveys?
A: Since a global link is being used, you will need to complete one survey before starting another within the same browser. Once you have completed the survey for your first course, return back to the link on this page to start your next course.
Q: What are the benefits of curriculum mapping?
A: See above for BSc specifics. In general, mapping curriculum provides data which can drive discussions that support curriculum decision making processes. It opens up conversations about how courses work together throughout a program and across individual years to identify gaps and redundancies that can be addressed through curriculum committees. As part of this process, each curriculum committee within the BSc will receive a customized report detailing the instructional methods, assessment methods, learning outcome sequencing, and high impact practices within the program.
Q: What happens after curriculum mapping?
A: Curriculum mapping is often used as part of ongoing continuous improvement initiatives. The Educational Development team within Open Learning and Educational Support will be available to offer support to departments after the data collection phase to help identify and implement changes that the departments wish to make.
Q: Is my course being evaluated?
A: No! Curriculum mapping processes understand that each course plays a unique role within a curricula and looks to identify how all the courses and work together to best suit student learning.
Q: Who will have access to the course data?
A: The Educational Development team supporting this process will have access to the data on a secure server to develop reports for curriculum committees and the BSc AVPAs office. All information will be used for continuous improvement process and none will be shared
publically with student, parents, or other faculty members outside of the relevant majors / curriculum committees.
Q: What does term x mean?
A: If you are unsure of a term when working through the survey, please feel free to contact Clarke or Jenn (see the bottom of the page for their contact information).
Q: What if I am using an innovative instructional method not included in the list provided in the survey?
A: (a) That’s awesome! (b) Capture that information using the other selections within the instructional method or assessment section. A catch-all text box is also provided at the end of the survey for you to write in anything else that is relevant about your course.
Contact Us
If you have any questions about the survey itself please feel free to contact Jennifer Reniers or Clarke Mathany