“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”
-African proverb
Ready to get your team together and organize your curriculum? When multi-disciplinary teams get together to work on cross-functional projects, wonderful overlaps, insights, and innovations can emerge from the mix of minds and experiences. In an effort to encourage productivity, collaboration, and engagement we’ve created this resource for better discussions when working through your curriculum alignment projects.
Here are 5 tips for better curriculum discussions with your team.
1.Use Backwards Design as a Framework for Priorities
When this work is new, it can be a challenge knowing where to begin these types of conversations. CourseTune's structure (Levels and Layers) is informed by backwards design. This design model encourages you to start with the end in mind, asking "What do students need to get out of this course when they finish it?" Teams find great value in using backwards design to prioritize reviewing and building curriculum. The order of these items and how they relate to CourseTune are as follows.
1. Start with the end goal. What do students need to get out of this by the end of the course? These are typically course outcomes, course goals, competencies, etc. |
In CourseTune, this is represented by the C-Layer on Levels 3 and 4. Evaluate this and discuss individual courses and how those courses fit within a collection/program/discipline sequence. |
2. Discuss how the course is being delivered. What is the sequence of teaching? These are typically weeks, modules, sessions, etc. Do you want all courses to be standardized? Do you want to create variations for different modalities? |
In CourseTune, these are called "Bundles" for bundles of learning. They are the sequence that the student will experience. Review these on Level 3 or 4 on the Bundle Layer. |
3. Start breaking down the course goals into enabling learning objectives. Learning objectives are the statements that describe the skills that build up into the larger course goals. What learning scale do you want to use? What does the scaffolding look like for the course difficulty? |
In CourseTune, the learning objectives, or LOs, are the link between the C-layer and the Bundle Layer. |
4. Discuss your activities and assessments that will be used for covering your learning objectives. Consider the diversity of the types you use, how frequently they are covered, and how many learning objectives are addressed in each activity or assessment. |
Activities and assessments must be linked to one or more learning objectives. Use the activity panel in CourseTune to add these items. Here's an interactive tutorial.
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5. Collect and sort the types of outcomes you have to report on. These are typically standards, benchmarks, or institutional goals that need to be tracked and reported on. |
In CourseTune, mapping is an essential way to show that courses are designed to meet internal and external standards of any kind. You'll want to think about each level and how you will need to show evidence of outcomes. Here's an article about the different outcome sets for each level. |
2. Add a Discussion Tool to Encourage Participation
There are many tools that you can add to your discussions to make them more effective. The “Six Thinking Hats” from Edward de Bono provides a framework for group work where everyone can contribute meaningfully. Each colored hat can be used to describe distinct models of human thought. Our brains are wired to look for Black Hat comments like judgments and criticisms. This research-based tool encourages productive ways to make decisions as a team. Encourage teammates to use each hat in a meeting.
When your teams meet to discuss program alignment, curriculum design, or learning outcomes, encourage each team member to preface their contribution with one of the following:
HAT COLOR |
TYPE OF CONTRIBUTION |
EXAMPLE |
Blue Hat |
The Conductor's Hat= Thinking about and managing the thinking process The blue hat is the control hat. It is used for thinking about thinking. The blue hat sets the agenda, focus, and sequence ensures the guidelines are observed, and asks for summaries, conclusions, decisions, and plans action. |
“Here’s a Blue Hat comment- This work will take two weeks to create and we’ll need a week to review with everyone.” |
White Hat |
The Factual Hat= Information The white hat is all about information. What information you have, what information you need, and where to get it. |
“I’m using the White Hat- The data we’ve collected from student enrollment shows that we need to update this program to reduce credit hours.” |
Red Hat |
The Hat For The Heart= Intuition and feelings The red hat is about feelings, intuitions, and instincts. The red hat invites feelings without justification. |
“Speaking with a Red Hat, I can share that I’m excited to document my course objectives and I feel really good about getting rid of course bloat!” |
Black Hat |
The Judge's Hat= Caution The black hat identifies risk. It is used for critical judgment and must give logical reasons for concerns. It is one of the most powerful hats. |
“I’ve got a Black Hat comment. There is a risk that faculty will feel this is not beneficial for them.” We’ve met resistance to implementing new technology before, so we need to make sure they are involved when the time is right.” |
Yellow Hat |
The Optimist's Hat= Benefits and values The yellow hat is for a positive view of things. It looks for benefits and values. |
“I’ll put on a Yellow Hat and say that I think the students are really going to benefit from an aligned program!” |
Green Hat |
The Creative Hat= Generating ideas The green hat is for creative thinking and generating new ideas, alternatives, possibilities, and new concepts. |
“I’m wearing a Green Hat- This could be a great opportunity to revise our catalog listing and make the website changes we’ve wanted.” |
3. Use Meeting Recipes for Different Stages of Progress
Once you understand how each hat can be used as a way to frame your contribution, you can start sequencing the contributions into recipes. Each recipe in this chart describes the sequence of feedback to give for the desired outcome.
MEETING TYPE |
HAT SEQUENCE |
Initial Ideas |
Blue, White, Green, Blue |
Choosing between alternatives |
Blue, White, (Green), Yellow, Black, Red, Blue |
Identifying Solutions |
Blue, White, Black, Green, Blue |
Quick Feedback |
Blue, Black, Green, Blue |
Strategic Planning |
Blue, Yellow, Black, White, Blue, Green, Blue |
Process Improvement |
Blue, White, White (Other People's Views), Yellow, Black, Green, Red, Blue |
Solving Problems |
Blue, White, Green, Red, Yellow, Black, Green, Blue |
4. Use a “Parking Lot” for Off-Topic Ideas
Another technique to help facilitate big meetings is to have a “parking lot” for ideas, comments, and questions that are important but won’t be addressed in the current meeting you are in. If you are facilitating a meeting, make an announcement at the very beginning where the parking lot is located- on a whiteboard, in a google doc, in a chat box- so that it’s known to participants. You get bonus points for personalizing the parking lot, so name it something that makes sense to your team. Draw a box, make a blank space, and encourage people to move ideas there when they don’t fit the current agenda. Add those items to future agendas to be discussed!
5. Add Boundaries to Increase Psychological Safety
Adding structure may seem counterintuitive when you are organizing people to collaborate. However, by creating boundaries, you can give people a sense of security, increase the ability to accurately plan, and create clarity in expectations. Here are some ideas for adding more structure to your meetings.
- Time-box your meetings. Only allow certain amounts of time for the whole meeting or for certain sections. For example, "This meeting will be time-boxed for 30 mins, which includes 5 minutes at the end to wrap up and plan for next time."
- Create an agenda for the next meeting at the end of the current meeting.
- Document and share who is doing what, what resources they need, and when it is expected to be complete. For example, "Now, each person says what action items they have and what resources or support they need to accomplish their goal. When do you expect to have something to share with the team?"
- Assign a meeting guide who is in charge of these items. Rotate this role and make sure everyone has a chance to do these tasks.
Thinking Hats Resources and Research:
Edward de Bono's own website has a compilation of research: https://www.debono.com/research
Here’s a video of de Bono introducing the concept: https://youtu.be/o3ew6h5nHcc
Research article on using the 6 Hats method to teach critical thinking and problem solving: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273658852_Using_De_Bono%27s_Six_Thinking_Hats_Model_to_Teach_Critical_Thinking_and_Problem_Solving_Skills_Essential_for_Success_in_the_21st_Century_Economy
A slideshow about lateral thinking and the 6 hats- each in deep detail: https://www.miun.se/siteassets/fakulteter/nmt/summer-university/bonopdf
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