Competency-Based Education at Sinclair College Christi Amato, Program Manager October 24, 2017

Program Strategy & Planning Getting Started with CBE

Changing Paradigms in Higher Education

What Does it all Mean? What’s the Difference, Anyway?   Traditional Model CBE CURRICULUM Arranged by topics, organized to accommodate weeks in a semester Bundled into units for acceleration INSTRUCTION Instruction is standardized Instruction is customized ADVANCEMENT Students advance based on time Students advance based on mastery PACING Students move at pre-determined, standardized pace. Even if they do not master course content, the classroom moves on. Students progress at different paces in different areas of the course. TIME Fixed entry and exit into courses; standardized weekly assignments and deadlines Entry and exit are flexible, and learning time is flexible and designed to support students' needs SUPPORT Student initiates support Faculty and academic coach proactively collaborate to customize the classroom experience

What Type of CBE? Course Based vs. Direct Assessment Direct assessment Students demonstrate achievement of competencies without regard to courses or credit hours. They demonstrate mastery of individual competencies through summative assessments such as exams and portfolios. Course (Credit)-based Students demonstrate mastery of skills and knowledge at a course or module-level. Competencies, defined at the program level, are translated into topics that are packaged into the courses or modules.

Implementation Models Example Areas of focus CBE University Western Governors University Education IT Business Healthcare CBE Campus Southern New Hampshire University College for America AA Liberal Arts Statewide Degree Washington State Community and Technical College system AS Business Administration Central Oversight Sinclair Community College IT (networking and software) Department Austin Community College Broward College IT (programming and user support) Faculty Bellevue College Office applications

External Forces Federal Current CBE climate State ODHE Steering Committee work Institutional Policies Faculty structure and governance Institutional reaction to change initiatives

Financial Models What are the costs? Can the CBE development model be integrated into existing program development processes? Tuition models

Sinclair’s CBE Model

Sinclair’s CBE Programs 40+ courses Continuous enrollment and completion Specialized, data-driven academic and career coaching, from admissions to graduation CBE programs deployed first use of faculty-coach partnership in the classroom, for teaching and student support

Sinclair’s CBE Outcomes 1,000 students educated, 2,000+ CBE courses completed successfully 68% of CBE students are adult learners Course success rates average 15% higher in CBE sections Average time to completion in courses is 35% faster than a traditional semester Students credential at twice the rate of non-CBE students in the same programs CBE students are ten times as likely to take an internship—and internship-to-hire rates are 90%

Remember… CBE is not a course development project. It’s building a “college within a college.” If you’ve seen one CBE model…you’ve seen one CBE model. CBE development typically requires executive sponsorship, a champion, and faculty buy-in.

CBE Curriculum & Course Development

About the eLearning Division 300+ online and CBE courses by end of 2017 including 36 degree programs/certificates and 7 CBE programs 40% of college’s enrollment in 2016-17 Support the design, development, delivery, and maintenance of Online/CBE/Hybrid modalities Use D2L Learning Management System (eLearn)

About eCourse Design & Development Develop 50-55 new and major revision eCourses per year 6 month development cycles (Jan-June; June-Nov) Templates for consistency, scalability, and student success Media development to support courses Quality Matters (QM™) internal review on all courses Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0) Provide on-going support for eCourses Develop online faculty trainings Staff of 11 Manager; 4 Instructional Designers; 4 Instructional Technologists (application developers and graphic designers); 2 Web Assistants 3Ds – Design, Develop, and Deliver (required, facilitated) Teaching Online Training eLearn Training Teaching CBE Training

CBE Faculty Support CBE Faculty Community (includes self-paced Teaching CBE course) CBE program meetings (during and after development) CBE Drop-ins (for all programs) eLearning Division Intranet One-on-one meetings with faculty

Sinclair’s eCourse Model We use a Master Course/Repository model for development – BRIEF OVERVIEW HERE

CBE Course Development

Know Your Vocabulary Vocabulary Meaning Objective specific and measurable knowledge, skills, attributes, and habits learners are expected to achieve and demonstrate (statement) Outcome demonstration of the attainment of the expected knowledge, skills, attributes, and habits (action) Competency demonstrated mastery of a particular set of knowledge and/or skills (action)

Know Your Delivery Modalities Modality Course Materials and Activities Course Assessments Educational Technologies Delivery Timeframe Classroom Delivered in a face-to-face setting (often referred to as “traditional”) Delivered in a face-to-face setting or proctored May or may not utilize institution’s learning management system (LMS) and other educational technologies Follows institutional terms (typically 16, 12, 8 week) Online Delivered via LMS Delivered via LMS and/or proctored May or may not utilize other educational technologies Hybrid Mixed delivery (classroom and online) – split based on institutional policies (e.g., 60/40) Mixed – via LMS, face-to-face, proctored CBE Primarily delivered via LMS; may or may not include classroom components Flexible based on institutional policies (e.g. may allow rolling starts and accelerated completion)

Consider these Questions Regardless of delivery modality, course development starts with the Objectives: what do my students need to know? What do my students need to learn that knowledge and skills? (materials, activities, additional resources) What supports will my students need as they learn? How will my students’ learning be assessed? (getting away from “one and done”) How will my students and I know they have met those objectives? What defines “Mastery?” (For Sinclair – 80%+)

Options for Course Structure Unit – group layout of content to meet objectives BIS course groups three word processing topics into a “Word” unit MAN course groups several related topics into a “Planning” unit Topic – singular layout of content to meet objectives CIS course contains 11 individual topics UAS course contains 14 individual topics

CBE for Your Institution: Questions to Ask Curriculum & Course Development What is your institution’s vocabulary? How will you manage course structure? Can you deploy a Master Course model? How will you manage course assessments? What constitute “Mastery?” Training & Support How will you support faculty in the CBE modality? Curriculum & Course Development What is your institution’s vocabulary (objectives/outcomes/competencies)? How will you manage course structure (topic vs. unit based)? Can you deploy a Master Course model? How will you manage course assessments (Pre/Post; summative; retakes)? What constitute “Mastery?” Training & Support How will you support faculty in the CBE modality?

Delivering CBE Programs

Key Considerations Hybrid vs. Online Flexible Delivery: Planning and Implementation Incorporation of PLA

Hybrid vs. Online Will your programs have in-person requirements of any kind? Labs Assessments How will you communicate in-person program requirements to students?

Flexible Delivery Flexible delivery refers to both flex-pacing in the classroom, and a more open entry/open exit system of finishing classes Bring stakeholders to the conversation very early Registrar, Bursar, IT, Financial Aid, Learning Management experts, Institutional Research Look for examples of “alternative” or flex scheduling already in place for help and cues Remember transcripts!

Sinclair’s Delivery Model

PLA and Delivery What are PLA options already at your institution, and how can you leverage them? Consider PLA inside and outside the CBE classroom

Supporting Students in CBE Programs

Coaching Model Foundation Case Management ADMIT ENROLL RETAIN COMPLETE Intake Assistance Caseload Assignment to a Coach via SSP Routine Outreach Referral/ Resource Liaison Enrollment Steps How to Succeed Goal Setting MAP Monitor MAP Check-ins Career Services Transfer Connections

CBE Student Support Model: The Big Picture

CBE Student Support Model: Learner Phases

CBE Orientation Delivered online in Sinclair’s LMS Non-credit requirement for enrollment in CBE courses Purpose: Screening and preparation What is CBE? Are CBE courses right for me? Expectations in CBE courses Intake info and remedial pathways

CBE Student Intake Collected from Orientation via a series of self-assessments and questionnaires Retrieved automatically upon completion and sent to CBE Academic Coach Stored in Caseload Management System, Student Success Plan (SSP)

Progress Monitoring and Interventions

Integrated Career Development Career Level Pre-Assessment Phase I: Getting to Know Yourself Phase II: Exploring and Choosing Options Phase III: Gaining Knowledge and Experience Phase IV: Putting it all Together Action Plan: Goals Examine career(s) and Assess Right Fit Identify career readiness gaps Job search or Transfer preparation Placement, Promotion, or Transfer Action Plan: Tools Focus 2® Career Coach® Career Info (OCIS)® Interview Tips Resume Tips Linkedin® Salary info InterviewStream® Business Etiquette Cover Letter Tips Transferology® Top 20 Job Sites JobLink® Department Resources NSEC, Advising/Coaching, Student and Community Engagement Advising/Coaching, Student and Community Engagement, Faculty experts Advising/Coaching, Student and Community Engagement, Faculty experts, Internship office Transfer Advisors, Advising/Coaching, Student and Community Engagement

Takeaways for CBE Student Support CBE students require support beyond traditional Academic Advising Who will own the task of supporting students in CBE programs? How will you orient new students to the CBE classroom? Will you enforce screening requirements for admission to CBE courses? What is your strategy for monitoring progress and motivating CBE students? How will you deal with disengaged or underperforming students in flex-paced courses? Will you offer career and transfer preparation for CBE students? What current college processes need to be modified to accommodate the CBE student?

Growth and Sustainability

General Thoughts on Growth & Sustainability Create a mechanism to capture lessons learned from the beginning Track program outcomes As each component of the CBE classroom and first program is built, consider how it might apply to other programs Create opportunities for program review with faculty, staff and students Know who your students are, and check assumptions Training for faculty and staff

Christi Amato Christina.amato@Sinclair.edu Thank you! Christi Amato Christina.amato@Sinclair.edu