Conceptualising a New Qualification
Conceptualising a new qualification
Version 2- November 2016
A series of templates to course designers to sequentially develop the bones for a new qualification.
Progression through this sequence of templates will enable course designers to produce:
A statement of curriculum philosophy
A series of course learning outcomeswhich are:
- informed by various sources of stakeholder feedback
- informed by professional competencies/standards
- written in response to Australian Qualification Standards descriptors
- complemented by year level learning outcomes
A sequence of threshold knowledge and skillsfor each course learning outcome that can be:
- clustered to inform unit designs
- expressed as unit level intended learning outcomes
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Course Design Contributors
Background: This document has been compiled as an enabler to assist teaching teams to conduct and document their conception of a new or significantly revised qualification. It is presented in an editable word document to reflect the inherent purpose of it as a design process that can be adapted to fit a variety of qualification types.
Course planning is often performed using a variety of ad-hoc processes which are documented on butchers paper. This working out is often disregarded once the course designers have the capacity to submit the required documentation for the course approval process. This document can hopefully serve a longer term function by being available to the course team at the point of course evaluation, external audit and eventual re-design. For this reason, it is important to document who has directly and indirectly contributed to the course conceptualisation.
Course Design Team / Course Advisory Committee Membership / Any additional Stakeholders who have informed the designThis Template is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
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Who is the Current Graduate
Purpose: This template enables prospective course developers to succinctly define what they believe their current graduate is required to do, know and how these knowledge and skills need to be applied.
The intention is for the course developers to briefly disregard the current course learning outcomes and provide a series of responses which draw out their current understanding. You may elect to use the course description as a reference point to kick start the process.
Insert Course Description
Dissecting the Course Description
After looking at the course description above and reflecting on your current practice; use the table below to define what the current graduate is expected to know or do + how + and in what context
Do / Know / How / Context
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Drafting a Curriculum Philosophy Statement
One way of thinking about the statement of curriculum, is to consider it as a design brief for the development of the course curriculum and teaching. It is a document which can be iteratively developed in parallel with the course curriculum.
These sample questions (listed below) are provided as a starting point for a teaching team to articulate their vision for the proposed curriculum design and the provision of student learning experiences. You may start by entering tentative responses which solidify as you progress through the design process.
Note: Please feel free to modify the questions as these are simply a starting point.
To access a deconstructed example please access guide to writing a statement of curriculum philosophy at:
☐ Course Description that reflects the relevant AQF level criteria (knowledge, skills, application of knowledge and skills).
☐ Articulates any overarching values or perspectives that this program has been designed to engender.
☐ States the level or areas of engagement expected of students to enable their development into graduates.
☐ Describes any generic graduate qualities (formerly attributes) which are most assessed (or emphasised) in the curriculum and/or list the level, modes or type of cognition expected of graduates.
☐ Lists any specific streams or majors which students have a choice to specialise in.
☐ Explains the major simulated or workplace based opportunities built into the program for students to develop into work ready graduates.
☐ Outlines the forces which have influenced the creation of the course learning outcomes for this program.
☐ Explains how the program provides opportunities for students to extend their learning beyond any regulatory and/or accrediting requirements?
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Getting started with the AQF
The Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) contains a series of descriptors for each qualification type. These descriptors provide course designers with a broad description of the standard of knowledge, skills and their application, that a student must be able to demonstrate in order to graduate from the respective qualification. The AQF descriptors should inform the drafting of course learning outcomes and year level learning outcomes.
Course learning outcomes - define the application of knowledge and skills that a student must achieve in order to graduate with the stated qualification.
Year level learning outcomes - articulate the required application of knowledge and skills for a student to:
a)nominally achieve at the end of each year within a qualification that is longer than a year – for e.g. AQF 5 descriptors are used to construct end of first year learning outcomes for a three year AQF 7 bachelors degree
b)achieve in order to be awarded a qualification that is nested within a higher level qualification – for e.g. an associate degree at the end of a second year of a three-year bachelor’s degree.
Purpose - It can be difficult to apply the descriptors from one individual AQF level in isolation. As a means of mitigating this difficulty, the following template requires you to copy and paste the descriptors for the qualification type you intend to conceptualise, accompanied by the subordinate level descriptors which could be used to inform year level learning outcomes. The template is currently populated for a bachelors degree AQF 7, accompanied by descriptors for a diploma (AQF 5 – year 1) and an associate degree (AQF 6 – year 2).
Using the template - Compare the differences between the descriptors at each level in order for you and your colleagues to develop a shared understanding of the graduate you are needing to articulate in the course learning outcomes. Once you have completed this template, you will refer to it at numerous points through the process of conceptualising the qualification.
AQF 5 / Diploma / Key Differences between 5 and 6 / AQF 6 / Associate Degree / Key Differences between 6 and 7 / AQF 7 / Bachelors degree / Key Differences between 7 and 8 / AQF 8 / HonoursPurpose / Qualifies individuals who apply integrated technical and theoretical concepts in a broad range of contexts to undertake advanced skilled or paraprofessional work and as a pathway for further learning / Qualifies individuals who apply underpinning technical and theoretical knowledge in a range of contexts to undertake paraprofessional work and as a pathway for further learning / Qualifies individuals who apply a broad and coherent body of knowledge in a range of contexts to undertake professional work and as a pathway for further learning / Qualifies individuals who apply a body of knowledge in a specific context to
undertake professional work and as a pathway for research and further learning
Knowledge / Graduates will have technical and theoretical knowledge and concepts, with depth in some areas within a field of work and learning / Graduates will have broad theoretical and technical knowledge with some depth in the underlying principles and concepts in one or more disciplines / Graduates will have a broad and coherent body of knowledge, with depth in the underlying principles and concepts in one or more disciplines as a basis for independent lifelong learning / Graduates will have coherent and advanced knowledge of the underlying
principles and concepts in one or more disciplines and knowledge of research principles and methods
Skills / Graduates will have:
• cognitive and communication skills to identify, analyse, synthesise and act on information from a range of sources
• cognitive, technical and communication skills to analyse, plan, design and evaluate approaches to unpredictable problems and/or management requirements
• specialist technical and creative skills to express ideas and perspectives
• communication skills to transfer knowledge and specialised skills to others and demonstrate understanding of knowledge / Graduates will have:
• cognitive skills to identify, analyse and evaluate information and concepts from a range of sources
• cognitive, technical and creative thinking skills to demonstrate a broad understanding of knowledge and ideas with some depth in a discipline
• cognitive, communication and analytical skills to interpret and transmit responses to sometimes complex problems
• communication skills to make a clear and coherent presentation of knowledge and ideas with some intellectual independence / Graduates will have:
• cognitive skills to review critically, analyse, consolidate and synthesise knowledge
• cognitive and technical skills to demonstrate a broad understanding of knowledge with depth in some areas
• cognitive and creative skills to exercise critical thinking and judgement in identifying and solving problems with intellectual independence
• communication skills to present a clear, coherent and independent exposition of knowledge and ideas / Graduates will have:
• cognitive skills to review, analyse, consolidate and synthesise knowledge to identify and provide
solutions to complex problems with intellectual independence
• cognitive and technical skills to demonstrate a broad understanding of a body of knowledge and
theoretical concepts with advanced understanding in some areas
• cognitive skills to exercise critical thinking and judgement in developing new understanding
• technical skills to design and use research in a project
• communication skills to present a clear and coherent exposition of knowledge and ideas to a variety of
Audiences
Application of
Knowledge and Skills / Graduates will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills:
• with depth in some areas of specialisation, in known or changing contexts and skills
• to transfer and apply theoretical concepts and/or technical and/or creative skills in a range of situations
• with personal responsibility and autonomy in performing complex technical operations with responsibility for own outputs in relation to broad parameters for quantity and quality
• with initiative and judgement to organise the work of self and others and plan, coordinate and evaluate the work of teams within broad but generally well-defined parameters / Graduates will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills:
• with initiative and judgement in planning, problem solving and decision making in paraprofessional practice and skills
• to adapt knowledge and skills in a range of contexts and/or for further studies in one or more disciplines
• to adapt fundamental principles, concepts and techniques to known and unknown situations
• with responsibility and accountability for own learning and work and in collaboration with others within broad parameters / Graduates will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills:
• with initiative and judgement in planning, problem solving and decision making in professional practice and skills and/or scholarship
• to adapt knowledge and skills in diverse contexts
• with responsibility and accountability for own learning and professional practice and in collaboration with others within broad parameters / Graduates will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills:
• with initiative and judgement in professional practice and/or scholarship
• to adapt knowledge and skills in diverse contexts
• with responsibility and accountability for own learning and practice and in collaboration with others
within broad parameters
• to plan and execute project work and/or a piece of research and scholarship with some independence
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Template Creators - Stephen Linquist and Rachael Phegan /
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Defining the Graduate Persona
Purpose – For course designers to define a graduate persona based on various sources of feedback (or input) and their previously stated description of the current graduate.
Step 1 – List the major pieces of feedback (or input) that you have received from various stakeholders who:
-have requested the proposed qualification
-will be developing or teaching into the proposed qualification
-will be accrediting the qualification
Step 2 – In response to this feedback, outline what a graduate in the proposed qualification will need to do, know and how these skills and knowledge will need to be applied. Please consider the ‘do’, ‘know’, ‘how’ and ‘context’ in relation to one another as a string of text that can be later utilised in the writing of course learning outcomes.
Step 3 – Move down to the ‘Graduate Persona’ section of the template and outline a summary of the required skills, knowledge and application for the proposed graduate (graduate persona).
Sources of Input (Step 1) / Defining the proposed graduate(step 2)Use the table below to define what the current graduate is expected to know or do + how + and in what context
Indicate in first column whether it is a core or specialist knowledge / skill.
Accrediting Bodies
The overarching competencies or standards
List below / C/S / Do / Know / How / Context
Insert here
Employers or industry bodies
List below / C/S / Do / Know / How / Context
Insert here
Students
List below / C/S / Do / Know / How / Context
Insert here
Academic / Teaching
List below / C/S / Do / Know / How / Context
Insert here
Graduate Persona(step 3)
Define what the graduate will be able to know or do + how + and in what contextby referencing your dissection of the current graduate description (on separate page) in parallel with your responses to each category of feedback (above)
Indicate in first column whether it is a core or specialist knowledge / skill
C/S / Do / Know / How / Context
Insert here
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Applying the Graduate Persona within the AQF
Purpose – To prepare a set of draft course learning outcomes referencing both the appropriate AQF descriptors and your graduate persona (from the previous section of this process).
Step 1. Have your graduate persona(s) to use as a reference point
Step 2. Refer to the qualification descriptors in the AQF for the relevant qualification type and replace those which are currently sitting in the respective ‘knowledge’, ‘skills’ and ‘application of knowledge and skills’ sections of the template below. Please note: This template has been pre-populated with descriptors for an AQF 8 Bachelor Honours, however these would need to be replaced for the relevant qualification type for any other qualification.
Step3. Refer to you graduate persona in order to complete the ‘knowledge’ and ‘skills’ sections of the template. You will need to simply insert a new row for each new response and indicate whether it is a core or specialist knowledge/skill.Please note: Whilst it is tempting to copy and paste appropriate responses from the previous template, try and resist doing this as the primary purpose is to define required knowledge, skills and their application, in direct response to the AQF descriptors. Your responses from the previous template will enable to promptly do this so that you don’t get caught relying too heavily on the language of the AQF descriptors.
Step4. Utilise the responses you have entered into the ‘knowledge’ and ‘skills’ sections of the template in parallel with your graduate persona, in order to define the ‘application of knowledge and skills’ for your proposed graduate.
Step5. Read the explanatory notes on constructing a course learning outcome that are located in the top cell of the right column of the table.
Step6. Refer to your responses in the ‘Application of Knowledge and Skills’ section of the template in order to commence drafting a sequence of course learning outcomes.
Step7. Finalise your draft sequence of course learning outcomes by numbering each learning outcome and placing them in a logical hierarchy.
Bachelor Honours / Draft Course Learning OutcomesPurpose / The Bachelor Honours Degree qualifies individuals who apply a body of knowledge in a specific context to undertake professional work and as a pathway for research and further learning / Learning outcome = Stem + active verb + focus + condition
The stem: The opening part of the learning outcome
e.g. - On completion of this course, you will be able to:
The active verb: The verb which states what you want students to know, consider or do.
e.g. - Choose, identify, distinguish, assess, construct etc.
Focus: The process, product or outcome of the action (active verb).
Process example – “methods of passage planning”
Outcome example – “limitations of electronic systems”
Product example – “a passage plan”
Condition (optional): Conditions that are applied to the ‘active verb’ and ‘focus’, to provide a scope for the learning outcome.
e.g.: “appropriate for search and rescue operations”, “to ensure navigation safety”, “to implement Bridge Resource Management”
Knowledge / Graduates of a Bachelor Honours Degree will have coherent and advanced knowledge of:
the underlying principles and concepts in one or more disciplines
C/S / Know
Add a new description of knowledge on a single/new row
knowledge of research principles and methods
C/S / Know
Add a new description of knowledge on a single/new row
Skills / Graduates of a Bachelor Honours Degree will have:
• cognitive skills to review, analyse, consolidate and synthesise knowledge to identify and provide solutions to complex problems with intellectual independence
C/S / Do / Know / Condition
Problem-solving / What do you mean by ‘intellectual independence’
• cognitive and technical skills to demonstrate a broad understanding of a body of knowledge and theoretical concepts with advanced understanding in some areas
C/S / Do / Know - Body of Knowledge / Know - Advanced Knowledge
• cognitive skills to exercise critical thinking and judgement in developing new understanding
C/S / Do / Know - knowledge of / How
• technical skills to design and use research in a project
C/S / Do / Know – the field or areas / How
• communication skills to present a clear and coherent exposition of knowledge and ideas to a variety of audiences
C/S / Do / Know - knowledge of the field or areas / How
Application of Knowledge and Skills / Graduates of a Bachelor Honours Degree will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills:
• with initiative and judgement in professional practice and/or scholarship
C/S / Do / Know - knowledge of the field or areas / How / Context
• to adapt knowledge and skills in diverse contexts
C/S / Do / Know - knowledge of the field or areas / How / Context
• with responsibility and accountability for own learning and practice and in collaboration with others within broad parameters
C/S / Do / Know - knowledge of the field or areas / How / Context
• to plan and execute project work and/or a piece of research and scholarship with some independence
C/S / Do / Know - knowledge of the field or areas / How / Context
/ Use this space to start drafting prospective course learning outcomes
Finalising a sequence of draft course learning outcomes
On completion of this course, you will be able to:
ID / C / S / Active Verb / Focus / Condition
1.0
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Expanding Course Learning Outcomes
Purpose:To define the threshold knowledge and skills that a student will need to be assessed against in relation to each course learning outcome.