instructional content and learning materials in competency ... · pdf fileinstructional...

Instructional Content and Learning Materials in

Competency-Based Education

Part I

for

TAB Lab

Dr. Heidi Wilkes, Sr. Director, CAD

Kaitlin LeMoine, Assistant Director, CAD

February 19, 2016

© 2014 Southern New Hampshire University. All rights reserved.

Session Roadmap

Part I • SNHU and College for America • Our Students • Our Academic Model • Our Academic Programs • Our Curriculum Development Process • A Project Example Part II • CfA approach to Project Design • Competencies • Authentic Scenarios • Workplace Deliverables • Resources – created and curated • New Frontiers for CfA


Southern New Hampshire University

• Private, nonprofit

• Regionally accredited

• Second largest

private, nonprofit

online higher ed

provider

Southern New Hampshire University

Traditional Residential

Campus (1932)

College of Online Continuing

Education (2007)

College for America (2012)

• Competency-based

• Focused on workforce

development


College for America Mission

College for America is radically

expanding access and

improving the quality of higher

education through low cost,

competency-based college

degrees and credentials,

designed to drive success in the

workplace.


College for America Student Population

Approximately 3,000 students

Of CfA Students Reporting (AA):

• Average age: 37 years old

• 77% female

• 55% single

• 61% at least one dependent

• 46 states and District of Columbia

• 28% have some college


CBE at College for America

• Project-based learning • 100% online • Flexible pace • Authentic assessments set in

workplace contexts • Mastery, not grades (or seat

time) • Dedicated experts – Learning

Coaches, Reviewers, SMEs, CADs • Students earn SNHU degrees


Informed by Workforce Development Research

• What the industry-specific current challenges and skill needs are

• How specific skills are applied in the

workplace—help us to develop realistic and relevant curriculum content/contexts

• What stands in the way of students having

access to the education they need for the job

Curriculum developers learn about industry needs and the people who are in or entering jobs (potential students) to inform design:


Academic Offerings

• Certificate in Healthcare Management Fundamentals (currently in pilot) • AA in General Studies • AA in Healthcare Management • BA in Healthcare Management with concentrations in Communications and Global

Perspectives

• BA in Communications with concentrations in Healthcare Management and Business

• BA in Management with concentrations in Operations and Logistics; Insurance

Services; and Public Administration

Baseline Components of a Degree Program

• Meets general education requirements for SNHU programs

• 120 unique competencies • 9 clusters of competencies • 20 goals • Sets of 3 – 5 projects in any given

goal • Each Project includes:

• Overview • Directions • Deliverable • Resources • Rubric

Curriculum and Assessment Development Process


Part A



Part B



Part C



Sample Project – Competencies and Overview


Sample Project – Directions and Deliverable


Sample Project – Resources


Sample Project – Rubric

Instructional Content and Learning Materials in

Competency-Based Education

Part II

for

TAB Lab

Dr. Heidi Wilkes, Sr. Director, CAD

Kaitlin LeMoine, Assistant Director, CAD

February 19, 2016


Session Roadmap

• CfA approach to Project Design

• Competencies

• Authentic Context

• Workplace Deliverables

• Resources – created and curated

• New Frontiers for CfA


Everything builds from the Competencies

Goal Project

Resources Assessment

Competencies


What do we mean by a “competency”?

• Claim we wish to make about what graduates can do with knowledge and skills

• Agnostic as to how student acquired them (or how long it took) • Measureable and observable • Expressed as “can do” statements

Examples: BA Level • Can develop a marketing plan for a

specific product or service • Can evaluate the strengths and

weaknesses of different management styles

• Can support or refute an argument using quantitative evidence

Examples: AA Level • Can negotiate with others to

resolve conflicts and settle disputes

• Can speak effectively in order to persuade or motivate

• Can convey information by creating charts and graphs


Competencies in Practice

A strong competency statement:

• Reflects skills needed by employers

• Requires students to apply and demonstrate learning in a way that can be assessed

• Is created along with detailed rubric criteria that indicate what is required for mastery

• Is clear and accessible to students and employers, as well as instructors

• Acts as a building block to overall program mastery


Relationship Between Project Elements

Competency

Deliverable

Context


Start with the Competency


Consider the Context

• In what types of workplace setting would these competencies be utilized or exemplified?

• In what types of roles would

students actualize those competencies?

• How might competencies

realistically build on one another?


Drip & Dry


Define Your Deliverables

• How will the project design enable the student to demonstrate what he/she knows?

• What evidence do we need to see from the student in order to know that the competency has been mastered?

• What is a workplace relevant deliverable?


Curate Resources

• Purpose • To cover content

critical to the goal • To support the student

in the creation of project deliverables

• SNHU Library materials • Open Educational

Resources


Develop Additional Resources

• Project Materials specific to the created context and/or deliverable

• May include: o Company mission statement o Background on a company o Survey Data o Logos or other brand materials


Drip & Dry Resource


Consider a Competency in Context…

Working in small groups, write a competency statement that:

▪ Reflects skills needed by employers ▪ Requires students to apply and demonstrate learning in a way that

can be assessed ▪ Is clear and accessible to students and employers, as well as

instructors ▪ Acts as a building block to overall program mastery

THEN…consider the context

▪ In what type of setting might students be practically engaged with this work? What does the workplace look like?

▪ What type of deliverable would students need to produce to demonstrate that they successfully mastered that competency?


CfA New Frontiers

• Guided practice

• Adaptive learning (JUICE)

• Video content

• Elements of game design

• New models:

– Micro-credentials

– Certificates


CfA New Frontiers

We are continually

evolving...


Thank You!

Please feel free to reach out with any questions.

Dr. Heidi Wilkes, Sr. Director CAD

[email protected]

Kaitlin LeMoine, Assistant Director CAD

[email protected]

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