Increased external quality assurance and institutional differentiation requirements, as well as the ongoing challenges of resource management, have made program development and renewal more challenging over the last decade. Demographic changes mean that we have to attract and also retain students more than ever. Growing interest in interdisciplinary programming requires solutions to inter-departmental and inter-Faculty collaboration and opportunities for partnership. Increased provincial emphasis on high-impact practices, experiential and work-integrated learning, and flexible educational pathways for students increases the complexity of the process.
With the announcement of the Curriculum Development Fund, the University is seeking to provide systematic support for some of the “heavy lifting” involved in program renewal. The CDF is intended to:
- inspire and support effective development practice
- enable strategic curricular decision-making
- mitigate the costs of launching new programs, and
- make substantive innovations in existing programs.
In order to optimize the impact of the CDF, we propose a staged development funding model.
Phase 1: Groundwork. Up to $15,000 per funded proposal
Data gathering by the Faculty or unit to determine
- why current students chose their program, what their experience has been in the program, and where they wish to use the degree following graduation
- how alumni of the program found their degree useful, and where alumni are vocationally engaged
- how employers and the community regard our graduates and how they meet employment needs
- enrolment patterns at the course and program level to identify factors such as significant attrition, student perceptions of courses, and course demand
- existing faculty members’ areas of expertise, or areas in which faculty members may wish to teach
- curriculum mapping alignment between courses and intended program outcomes, to find bottlenecks and overlaps, examine program overlap, and clarify the characteristics and strengths of existing programs
- where the promising new trends in the discipline exist elsewhere. Up to 20% can be used for travel to visit effective programs or to bring experts from effective programs to campus.
Phase 2: Enrolment planning and development. Up to $10,000 per funded proposal
These funds can be used to work with consultants and to organize a planning retreat to develop an enrolment growth strategy based on the data gathered above, with assistance from campus units. Such a plan could involve a range of strategies, such as rebranding, program repackaging, changed delivery pathways, program re-design, interdisciplinary initiatives, systematic retention initiatives, or new programs – everything from a new coat of paint on a course to the next big thing in program innovation.
Curriculum renewal proposals will be reviewed by a cross-functional team chaired by the Provost. They may be approved outright, undergo iterative revisions to enhance chances of success, or be declined.
Phase 3: Implementation. Up to $50,000 in development funding for approved renewal plans
These funds can be used for assistance in making program changes and developing new course or program proposals, developing online resources for critical course renewal projects, and training in new pedagogies or educational practices. Funds can also be allocated for program marketing.
Units working on these projects will also be offered support through a series of working sessions offered by various campus units with expertise in data analysis, curriculum mapping, survey design and implementation, curriculum development, learning technologies, and so on. They will also have the option to work collaboratively with other project teams for information and resource exchange if they wish to do so.
Units can also pool funds to hire shared program development support personnel.
Submission Process:
The CDF is now open to all Faculties and departments and prioritizes strategic, evidence-based thinking.
Units wishing to undertake this process should submit a one-page letter of intent, based on a consideration of their current situation and ideas for change, which might include, for example, new program development, course or program re-design, and innovative approaches to retention and student engagement. The letter of intent should include:
- The overall context: A summary of strengths, challenges, and opportunities the unit would like to address through program innovation and renewal.
- Ideas for improvement: A preliminary statement of possible directions for program renewal. This can include potential new programs, program and critical course re-design, and interdisciplinary, inter-departmental, and inter-Faculty program collaborations. These preliminary suggestions are intended to clarify current thinking, priorities, and principles; actual initiatives may evolve or change, based on data gathering in Phases 1 & 2 above.
- Consultation: A statement indicating that the CDF process has been reviewed with the Dean and the unit, and indicating their support for engaging in a program renewal project.
It should be noted that the CDF is intended for program renewal, and not for funding new positions to launch programs.
Submissions will be assessed based on:
- Alignment of the plan with identified challenges and opportunities
- Promise of preliminary ideas suggested
- Commitment to high-impact practices, experiential and active learning, and other approaches that are associated with strong student learning and engagement
- Feasibility of proposal based on current resource allocations and expertise, and
- Overall scope of proposal impact, and fit with current units’ program profile.