1. Curriculum Development
and
Course Design

2. Presentation Objectives
By the end of this presentation you should be
able to:
• define the terms curriculum and course
design;
• explain the components of a curriculum and
course;
• describe the process of curriculum and course
design.

3. Curriculum and Course Design
• Curriculum simply means `a course of study.'
• Curriculum development is the process of
designing a course of study according to a set
of requirements.

4. Curriculum and Course Design
• A course is a well planned sequence of
learning experiences occupying several
learning sessions and involving some form of
assessment of the learner’s work.
• Course design is the planning and writing of
a framework to guide the teaching and
learning process.
• Course design involves reflecting on and
making decisions about the teaching of the
entire course well before it begins.

5. Curriculum and Course Design
In designing a course, you need to ask yourself the
following questions:
– What should the students gain from this course?
– What can I select from the knowledge, skills and
attitudes embodied in my discipline in order to
achieve my purpose most effectively?
– What teaching and learning methods and media
will serve me best in what I am trying to do?
– How will I know that my students have learned
what I want them to learn?

6. Curriculum and Course Design
Answering such questions will enable you to:
• determine the objectives for the course;
• analyze the content to be taught and learned as
well as the appropriate methods and
instructional media to be used;
• identify background knowledge and pre-
requisites that learners will require to succeed in
the course;
• identify the central and unifying concepts of the
course;
• determine the kind of monitoring and evaluation
to be used.

7. Curriculum and Course Design
Curriculum development and course design
involves the following five major tasks:
• assessing learner needs and
characteristics;
• deciding on objectives to be achieved;
• selecting learning experiences that will
help to achieve objectives;
• determining appropriate methodologies
and resources;
• evaluating the course or curriculum.

8. Course Design Process
• Two schools of thought: Statement of purpose
(objectives) vs statement of content.
• Objectives approach to systematic course
design involves decision making and action in
five major steps:
– Step 1:Situation analysis
– Step 2:Objectives formulation
– Step 3:Content derivation
– Step 4:Selection of appropriate methods
and media
– Step 5:Determination of evaluation
procedures and timing

9. Assessing Learner Needs and
Characteristics
Instructional design should be based upon:
• Task analysis
• Learner analysis
• Analysis of the environment
An analysis helps us to understand the
characteristics of the learners and the
environment in which the learners
live/work.

10. Determining Objectives To Be Achieved
To inform the learner of what he/she should be able to do on
completing a task, exercise or assignment.
Learning objectives should be formulated in measurable terms
and should measure all of the following:
• content to be mastered
• skills to be mastered
• habits to be learned
• techniques to be acquired
• behaviour and attitudes to be developed.
Why?
To make tasks more manageable and remove ambiguity and
difficulties of interpretation.
To be better able to evaluate progress.

11. Determining Objectives to be Achieved
A learning objective is much more precise and
specific. It provides both the tutor/facilitator
and the learner with clear and concrete
direction as to where they are going.
A clear learning objective gives both the
tutors/facilitators and the learners direction
with regard to both the subject content and
the mental processes which the learner is
expected to develop.

12. General Principles in Selecting Learning
Experiences
For a given objective to be attained, a learner must have experiences
that give an opportunity to practice the kind of behaviour implied by
the objective.
Learning experiences must be such that the learner gets satisfaction
from carrying on the kind of behaviour implied by the objectives.
Learning experiences must begin where the learner is, that is starting
from the known and progressing to the unknown. This means
starting from the simple and advancing to the complex.
There may be many experiences that can be used to attain the same
educational objective. This means planning a number of different
learning experiences that will achieve that same objective.
The same learning experience will usually bring about several learning
outcomes.

13. Appropriate Instructional Methodologies
and Resources
• A variety of methods breaks the monotony and holds the
learners' interest.
• Determine opportunities to use different methods and
resources, combined appropriately, depending on the topic
to be taught.
• Select methods and learning experiences that give
opportunities to practise the behaviour implied in the
learning objective.
• Use a variety of experiences and methods that are less
tutor/facilitator centred and more learner centred.
• Ensure that the instructional media you choose will help to
achieve the objectives and facilitate the learning of new
content.

14. Appropriate Instructional Methodologies
and Resources
• Experiential Learning
– Visualization in Participatory Programmes
(VIPP)
– Lecturette
– Discussions
– Role-plays
– Case studies/Scenarios
– Brainstorming
– Guest Speakers

15. Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Curriculum
and Course in Achieving the Objectives
Curriculum and course evaluation is the process of determining the degree to which
these changes in behaviour are actually taking place.
It implies that it must involve more than a single appraisal.
The process of evaluation determines the degree to which changes in the learners’
behaviour are taking place.
Evaluation must appraise the behaviour of the learners at an early stage and other
appraisals at later points to identify changes that may be occurring. Without
knowing what the learners were like at the beginning it is not possible to tell how
far changes have taken place.
The most commonly used methods of evaluation include tests, attitude scales, data
gathering instruments such as interviews and observation schedules, and practicals.
These methods should be used either singly or in combination.
The method that is used must be appropriate to the objective that is being evaluated.