At SIT, the curriculum design process is guided by two main approaches. The first is the outcomes-based approach using John Biggs’ constructive alignment principle (Biggs, 2003¹). Complementing this is the backward design process (Mctighe & Wiggins, 2012²).

Our curriculum is developed to enable effective applied learning and creates opportunities to nurture students to embody the SITizen-DNA. The SIT curriculum follows standards by accreditation bodies while constantly evolving from active, close, and sustained partnerships with industry in applied learning and applied research projects. The module profile documents in every programme include essential information that captures these aspects of curriculum.

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¹Biggs, J. (2003). Aligning teaching for constructing learning. Higher Education Academy, 1(4). https://www.heacademy.ac.uk/sites/default/files/resources/id477_aligning_teaching_for_constructing_learning.pdf

²Mctighe, J., & Wiggins, G. (2012). Understanding by Design® Framework [White paper]. ASCD. https://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/publications/UbD_WhitePaper0312.pdf

Learning objectives (or learning outcomes), teaching approach and assessment are key components of outcomes-based curriculum. They must be aligned and should not conflict or be mismatched.

When designing your curriculum, you should ensure:

• Learning objectives or learning outcomes clearly describe what students are expected to demonstrate through appropriate types of assessment 
• Learning activities influence what students learn from the formal curriculum 
• Assessment activities support and direct student learning  

To illustrate: Our students learn how to think, perform, and conduct themselves appropriately in professional contexts through rich learning experiences that are designed, facilitated, and scaffolded by faculty, professional officers, and industry partners. They incorporate activities such as self-reflection and peer and/or tutor feedback.

These not only contribute to students’ development of evaluative judgment (Tai, 2018³), but also to reflective learning and practices that are integral to their development as confident and competent professionals. This is part of student-centred teaching.

A key point to highlight: Rubrics in our assessments guide students in understanding the expectations of their performance tasks. The rubrics necessarily map to learning outcomes, the differentiating levels of performance quality, and broadly, to desired graduate attributes such as the SITizen-DNA. At the programme level, the SITizen-DNA are imbued throughout the curriculum.

³Tai, T. (2018). Developing evaluative judgement: enabling students to make decisions about the quality of work. Higher Education, 76(3), 467–481. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-017-0220-3

Available on xSiTe (LMS):

• Outcomes-based curriculum design video
• Video guide (15 minutes) on developing module profiles

Available on SharePoint:

• Module development document
• Guidelines & procedures on making curriculum changes
• Approval paper template for curriculum changes

Available on SIT:

• Module Profile Documentation System