1. Specifications & Curriculum Customization Barry McNeill Vice Chair Mechanical Engineering and Lynn Bellamy and Veronica Burrows Chemical Engineering Arizona State University

2. 2 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Overview of Presentation  Four Questions To Answer When Defining a Curriculum  The Role of Specifications Relative to the Four Questions  Taxonomies of Learning  Specifying a Curriculum Using an Articulation Matrix  Specifying a Course (Learning Module) Using a Competency Matrix

3. 3 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Four Questions in Defining a Curriculum (Ralph Tyler)  What educational purposes should the school/program seek to attain?  What educational experiences can be provided that are likely to attain these purposes?  How can these educational experiences be effectively organized?  How can we determine whether these purposes are being attained?

4. 4 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Specifications and Educational Purpose (Question 1)  In design a specification is a performance metric with an assigned value  In curriculum design a specification is a program outcome with a desired level of mastery (e.g., solve first order ODE’s)  A set of specifications quantify (define) a Program’s Purpose

5. 5 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Program Graduates Students leave demonstrating mastery of all required outcomes Desired State

6. 6 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Specifications and Educational Experiences (Question 2)  If you know the desired state (a program specification)  and  If you know a student’s present state (current or initial level of mastery for the metric)  It is possible to define a set of learning experiences that will move the student from the present state to the desired state  The set of experiences defines a program curriculum

7. 7 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 The Impact of a Curriculum Students arrive with a variety of skills and attitudes Present State Students leave demonstrating mastery of all required outcomes Desired State Curriculum The Path...

8. 8 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Specifications and Experience Organization (Question 3)  There are many ways to bundle the learning experiences together  A set of bundled experiences defines a course  It often happens that the movement from the present state to the desired state takes several courses  When several courses are involved in achieving the desired state it is important to know the specifications for each course

9. 9 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Traditional Education Process Present StateDesired StateThe Path Every student takes the same path Students arrive with a variety of skills and attitudes Students leave demonstrating mastery of all required outcomes

10. 10 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Specifications and Assessment (Question 4)  Assessment is possible when you have specifications  A program specification sets a measurable standard for benchmarking a student’s performance  The benchmarking can be done by the student, the faculty, or an independent assessor

11. 11 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Customized Education Process Present StateDesired StateThe Path Each student takes a customized path Students arrive with a variety of skills and attitudes Students leave demonstrating mastery of all required outcomes

12. 12 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Customized Education Process Present StateDesired StateThe Path Each student takes a customized path Students arrive with a variety of skills and attitudes Students leave demonstrating mastery of all required outcomes

13. 13 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Specifications Some Sources  Educational Metrics  ABET’s a through k  Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences  Special constituency needs  Educational Value  Bloom’s Taxonomy  Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy  SOLO Taxonomy (Biggs & Collis)  Program Defined Taxonomy

14. 14 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences  Linguistic  Logical- Mathematical  Spatial  Bodily-Kinesthetic  Musical  Interpersonal  Intrapersonal  Naturalist  (Existential, possible candidate)

15. 15 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Bloom’s Levels of Learning Original Taxonomy  Knowledge  Comprehension  Application  Analysis  Synthesis  Evaluation Revised Taxonomy  Cognitive Processes  Remember  Understand  Apply  Analyze  Evaluate  Create  Knowledge Types  Factual  Conceptual  Procedural  Meta-cognitive

16. Sample Program Articulation Matrix 16 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002

17. Sample Articulation Matrix 17 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002

18. 18 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Summary of Presentation  Four questions to answer when defining a curriculum were presented  The impact of specifications relative to the four questions was presented  Several taxonomies of learning including Bloom’s taxonomy were presented  Two examples showed how to define a program/course using specifications

19. 19 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Education Process Student can demonstrate mastery of all required outcomes Students cannot demonstrate mastery of all required outcomes Present StateDesired StateThe Path

20. 20 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Customized Education Process All student can demonstrate mastery of all required outcomes Every student has a different slate of skills Present StateDesired StateThe Path Each student takes a customized path

21. 21 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Educational Purpose  Defined Program Goals and Outcomes (the program educational metrics)  Defined Program mastery levels for the Program Goals and Outcomes (the program educational specifications)  For example  able to create model when asked to do so  able to create an appropriate model  able to explain how created model works

22. 22 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Defining a Program (Course)  Program (course) outcomes (competencies)  First Law (remember, analyze,...)  Control volume  Stress  Uncertainty  Bernoulli’s Equation  Shape Factor  Constraint  Ethical Decisions .

23. 23 McNeill ASU - ASME Clearwater Beach April 2002 Selection Granularity  Program  mechanical engineering  thermal systems  Course  thermodynamics  strength of materials  Competency  First Law (remember to apply)  First Law (understand to analyze)