Comments on: A problem with learning outcomes… and mayby curriculum in general

By: jd webb

jd webb — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 05:28:26 +0000

Your blog is cool

By: Tysune

Tysune — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 23:58:23 +0000

Well, I think the learning outcomes work as they are at UBC right now (from what I’ve seen, at least). It ensures that everybody learns the same material for future courses/careers.

However, I agree that things should be customizable. But I think at that point students should do some extra studying of their own. I don’t know if it would be right to burden professors with having to mark/assess different material for each student.

By: Ernst

Ernst — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:31:37 +0000

wow! good post. I get the same eerie feeling. It’s not only a matter of choice. it’s a matter of intrinsic quality. the utility of a course is not the same for everyone (the number of options “when I grow up…” is increasing) the boundaries (and therefore the outcomes) of courses are dissipiating.

Thanks for your post. It has helped me in my own quest.

By: Andre Malan

Andre Malan — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 20:23:26 +0000

@Erwin wow, the Hanze University of Applied Science sounds like a great institution. I’m glad to see that these ideas have actually been put in practice and are working.

By: Erwin de Beet

Erwin de Beet — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 08:04:08 +0000

Oh, yes! Students should have at least some freedom in setting their own learning goals. At the Hanze University of Applied Science (Groningen, Netherlands) – where I work – all students are required to make their own personel development plan. Based upon this plan, which has to be approved by a coucellor, they add their own learning goals to the goals set by the currciculum.

The amount of freedom differs with education and experience. An art student generally has more freedom than e.g. a technology student and in the 1st year students hava less freedom then later on.

By: Andre Malan

Andre Malan — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 03:47:08 +0000

I agree Nicholas that there is value to learning things that do not interest us. I still think it is important that each course has a core of learning outcomes that everyone is assessed against. However, think of it as a micro version of your degree requirements. In my degree I have some courses that I have to take, some that I can choose between and then other courses that I can choose from whatever the university offers. I think individual courses would benefit from the same levels of granularity.

Also, as for not being an expert, while that may be true in 1st and 2nd year courses, by the time you reach courses that do not start with “introduction to” you should have enough knowledge to make some kind of a value judgment over what you think you should learn.

By: Nicholas FitzGerald

Nicholas FitzGerald — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 17:36:30 +0000

As much as we all hate it, there’s definite value to being forced to learn something which doesn’t interest you directly. I don’t care if you get your absolute dream job – there will be parts of it you won’t enjoy but will have to do anyways, and building the discipline to perform in these situations is important. Plus, how can an unexperienced student know exactly which information will be useful down the road and which will not? Presumably you’re not yet an expert in the field you are studying, and therefore can’t forsee exactly what will be necessary knowledge…