The Importance of Curriculum Design – 5 key steps

Every curriculum shares the same end goal, to help students learn and this starts with a solid plan. A good curriculum plan helps to make learning and teaching consistent, where a student can walk away from a lesson with the same skills learnt, whether they were taught by a major in the subject or by a teacher still learning themselves.

Curriculum planning can also offer an opportunity to bring teachers across different subject areas together to look at student learning, allowing them to plan a progression route of topics that build off previous topics.

Effective curriculum design is a very complex process but incorporating a few key steps into the curriculum design process can help to ensure a successful educational programme.

Step 1: Begin by establishing the curriculum principles.

These principles should align with the vision and values of the college or training provider. Consider what will give learners the best possible chance to succeed in their future learning or employment.

Step 2: Determine the curriculum content.

Make careful choices about what will be taught and when. Establish key subject areas and how this interconnects with other subjects to achieve effective learner outcomes.

Step 3: Plan the curriculum delivery.

Once a curriculum plan is in place, the next step is to deliver it. A plan for curriculum delivery should be sequenced and cohesive, showing a clear starting point and how the curriculum is going to develop. The planning needs to show how the subject knowledge outlined in the curriculum plan will be taught, revisited and built on.

Step 4: Resources.

For your curriculum plan to be successful it will need to be supported by good quality resources. High-quality resources will ensure that your staff have the support they need from planning through to assessment. Keeping a library of resources which can be used by all staff can help to ensure consistency in teaching across the organisation.

Step 5: Review and evaluate.

Once the curriculum plan has been created, the next step is to review the impact on teaching and learning regularly, making any further adaptions or changes that need to be made to continually improve it. The final stage in the process, is to identify CPD needs for staff because the knowledge of subject leaders might need improving to make sure that each part of the curriculum is supported.

It’s important to remember that the curriculum needs to work for everyone – that means the staff teaching the curriculum as well as learners.  It’s important to engage with everyone to provide a high-quality and inclusive experience for all learners.

Louise Allen – Group Director of Business Development, NOCN Group

NOCN Group Director of Sales and Business Development, Louise Allen has over 20 years’ experience in strategic business development. Louise has extensive knowledge of establishing new sales channels, creating new partnerships, and negotiating high-value contracts. For the past 10 years, Louise has worked in senior positions throughout the education sector managing and developing sales teams of various sizes.