COMPETENCE-BASED CURRICULA AND CURRICULA PLANNING

Ritva Mäntylä, Leila Nisula

HAMK University of Applied Sciences
Professional Teacher Education Unit

The primary aim of the Competence-based Curricula Development in Higher

Education project (2012-2014) was to improve the competence-based approach
taken to the development and planning of curricula in universities and universities
of applied sciences. In addition to the authors, the following people were involved in
the project in advisory roles: Jaana Kullaslahti (HAMK University of Applied
Sciences) and Kirsti Haihu, Timo Halttunen, and Ari Koski (University of Turku).
Owing to the autonomous way in which HE institutes develop curricula, the project
focussed on the management and support of the development process in six
universities of applied sciences and in five universities. The project advisers
utilised various working groups and fora to support the development of curricula in
consultation with those persons responsible for curriculum development at the
respective institute. Seminars, thematic training sessions, and workshops were
organised at the HE institutes, and these were used to work on, edit, and write
curricula. All of the HE institutes were assessed and given feedback on their
curricula. The collaborative efforts of the HE institutes and stakeholders from
working life were supported through various discussion forums, workshops, and
seminars; these explored shared expertise, the content of the curricula, and student
mobility between undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. Although university
degrees and those awarded by universities of applied sciences have different
objectives and contents, they still need to be shaped into a coherent entity.
Keywords: competence-based approach, work life relevance, curriculum, curriculum planning,
management.

1 INTRODUCTION: COMPETENCE-BASED CURRICULUM

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the dimensions of successful management when developing
competence-based curriculum in higher education. The dimensions of management are based on the
development work of a national ESF project in Finland (Competency-based Curricula Development in Higher
Education Project 2012-2014, ESF) organized in partnership with the University of Turku and HAMK
University of Applied Sciences. Six universities of Applied Sciences as well as five Academic Universities
were involved in this project. The project team produced a set of criteria for competence-based curricula and
curriculum planning in collaboration with the project advisers. Many structural changes in society have
affected this development process. These changes are, for example, local and sectoral needs and the
unification of higher education in Europe. In addition, a comprehensive strategy can be seen to pervade
higher education as a whole i.e. large competence-based learning areas are to be planned and collaborative
and team teaching methods are to be developed. It is interesting to bring up to the discussion how crucial
these criteria are seen globally.

2 CRITERIA OF COMPETENCE-BASED CURRICULUM IN HIGHER EDUCATION

A clear understanding of the criteria on which a competence-based curriculum is grounded is required in

order to successfully manage the curriculum development process. In the Competency-based Curricula
Development in Higher Education project (ESFproject 2012-2014) we developed certain criteria and tools to
improve our ability to evaluate whether a curriculum is competence-based or not in a national context. The
criteria were identified from the joint discussions and interviews held during the workshops, consultations,
and curriculum development processes during the 2012-2014.

Higher education institutes take an autonomous approach to curriculum planning. Therefore, each university
and university of applied sciences can develop its own curriculum both in terms of the content and structural
elements. Work on the curriculum development and planning is increasingly carried out in cooperation with a
HE institute's partner organisations and other relevant stakeholders and less often as a solitary exercise. A
curriculum must be clear and informative for students, teaching staff, stakeholders, and HE management
teams alike. The main conclusions of the development process taking place in higher education are that, in
order for a curriculum to be defined as competence-based, it needs to include certain criteria, which are
introduced in the next section.

2.1 A study programme's primary goal (Mission)

There are many expectations, needs, and questions related to the basic mission of education at the
institutional level. The curriculum should address these questions in its general overview. The general
overview of the curriculum should introduce how the curriculum answer the needs of the local area, how the
study programme is profiled, and how external stakeholders have been involved in this development
process. The general owerviev also includes the HE institute's basic mission. National and international
partners are introduced in the general overview as well as the strategy of the whole university. The overview
should also state how the learning path highlights lifelong learning and how individual and flexible learning
paths should take place (e.g recognition of previous learning experiences) The (applied science level)
renewal process that took place in the Finnish HE sector during 2013 forced universities to crystallize their
basic tasks and justify their existence at the same time. This can be seen in the curriculum planning work, for
example, in the form of a change in the direction or as a prerequisite. And institute's profile and areas of
emphasis are presented to students as specialisms, alternative pathways or, for example, as special subject
studies that are available to every student at the institute in question.

Student mobility and multidisciplinarity can be promoted by harmonizing the structure of a curriculum. In
practice, a template can be shared across degrees or, alternatively, it can be completely different for all of
the degrees on offer within a single HE institute. The best way to ensure that a HE institute functions as a
promoter of employability within its surrounding region is to organise the contents of its degrees, including
the subject weighting or areas of emphasis, in accordance with the choices made by the institute itself. The
general and subject-specific competences and areas of expertise are succinctly described in the general
programme description. This description also outlines the ways in which the knowledge and expertise the
programme seeks to develop connect to work life tasks and proficiencies. Any elective options that the
programme may contain are described in the general outline in an informative way and with the potential
choices of the students in mind. The options to pursue further studies at other HE institutes, both during and
upon completion of the programme in question, are also clearly described.

2.2 Work life relevance

In this context, the concept of work life relevance means that studies in higher education should correspond
to the demands of non-academic work. In other words, the competencies developed during a study
programme are relevant to the needs of work life. The curriculum should disclose what a student is capable
of doing after finishing the study programme. This demands close cooperation with the employers.
Furthermore, the future demands of society and its changes should be foreseen and predicted in
collaboration with stakeholders from world of work. In a competence-based curriculum, both the general and
subject-specific competences and areas of expertise directly relate to the current and predicted future
demands of working life. A student's transition into employment in a field specific to or related to his or her
education is viewed as a good metric by which to measure the work life relevance of the expertise
developed. Knowledge and expertise, as well as the ways in which these are deepened and developed
further, are described as comprehensively as possible, to enable the student to understand and utilise what
he or she is learning both upon entry into employment and while studying.

General professional competences must be connected to subject-specific competences alongside the overall
competence area and the learning objectives of the programme, courses or modules in question. The
cooperation between the worlds of work and education in different projects and initiatives is crystallised
through the specific ways in which the overall learning experience is realised, the choice of learning
environments, and during study counselling. Project-based cooperation and learning in authentic work
settings are facilitated and made apparent in the description of the curriculum at various levels from the first
year of study onwards. Multi-disciplinary supervision and peer learning conducted in a genuinely
collaborative way naturally support and foster relationships with professional-level experts interested in multi-
professional activities.

Thanks to the work life relevancy, it is also possible for teachers and students alike to develop connections
with the world of work during their own teaching or studies. As such, the implementation of the curriculum
should enable students to have a job and learn things that directly connect to this work. Carrying out their
own teaching work, as well as participating in research and development projects, provides teachers with
valuable insight into changes in the world of work and new demands placed on students and graduates in
relation to knowledge and expertise.

2.3 A comprehensive and cohesive curriculum (Alignment)

A comprehensive and cohesive curriculum means that all its parts, i.e. its comptencies, learning modules,
pedagogical methods and models, assessment tools, and assesment criteria are aligned. The overarching
alignment of all aspects of a curriculum means that all stakeholders are able to support each other and
function in a consistent way. The key factors contributing to the substantive alignment of the curriculum are
the study programme as a whole, its target competencies, modules relating to core areas of expertise and
stand-alone modules, and the learning objectives and coherent theme of the courses and programme. The
further harmonisation of the curriculum across various levels appears in such a way that the objectives,
teaching and learning methods, learning environments, and modes of assessment support each other. In
practice, the competence-based learning objectives associated with the course(s) or modules are directed by
the areas of expertise and goals of the degree programme in question.

The various competence-based learning objectives and associated modes of assessment for a degree
programme are drawn up in accordance with the European (EQF) and national (NQF) frameworks of
reference for qualifications. The competence-based learning objectives describe what the students is
expected to know, understand, and is able to do upon completion of the course(s) in question. The
references for the competence-based learning objectives are grounded in learning outcomes that are
described in terms of knowledge, skills, and competences. The deepening of a competence can be seen in
the requirement level and assessment criteria set for the learning objectives. In this way, teaching is seen as
a comprehensive package, involving preparation and pedagogic practice, which is affected by all of the
aforementioned competence areas.

There is often a focus on the objectives and contents of individual modules, courses, or even whole
programmes. However, in order to achieve a comprehensive and consistent thread that pervades a HE
insitute and ties everything together, as well as a dynamic concept of learning, the learning objectives,
teaching methods, and mode(s) of assessment must also be examined in terms of the whole package of
competences, including modules, themes, and degree qualifications.

2.4 The use of relevant pedagogical methods

Any pedagogical choices and solutions are at their most apparent during the implementation of a curriculum
and during the planning phase of this implementation. HE institutes utilise a range of policy papers or
pedagogic strategies intended to safeguard the study promises made to students, which are, in turn, the
bases for the student applying to the institute in the first place. HE institutes usually offer a wide range of
programmes and this often manifests in the multi-faceted nature of their operations and subject specialisms.
Thanks to their weighting, these pedagogic strategies give the teaching staff a lot of leeway to find their own
solutions. During the management of the planning of curricula at universities of applied sciences it has
become apparent that courses independently produced by teachers tend to follow previous iterations. In
other words, it can be hard to notice any changes. When the planning process involves more than one party,
they have more courage to question previous iterations of course curricula, which then results in more
pedagogically complete courses.

The expertise and skill sets demanded by work settings are acknowledged in the selection of teaching and
supervision methods. Teachers should employ the kinds of methods that promote the realisation of learning
objectives and as closely as possible comply with actual working practices or even develop and renew them.
Selective content choices make it possible to meet individual learning needs. Individual learning needs and
cooperative actions can then be neatly combined together. The aim is that multi-professionals implement the
curriculum across disciplinary boundaries in accordance with the different stages of the learning process.
This supports the work of multi-professionals in working groups and networks while the study programme is
active.

2.5 Student guidance is part of the curriculum

Student guidance needs to be organised as a coherent whole that supports the realisation of learning
objectives and the overall wellbeing of students for the full duration of their studies. To this end, the different
modes that student guidance takes and its remit must be clearly described and the students must be made
aware of these accordingly. Many HE institutes use a student guidance manual that outlines the various
roles that supervisors and study counsellors take, as well as their duties and responsibilities at different
stages of learning process. The various forms that the professional development guidance takes in the
curriculum can be seen in the general description or specific courses, themes, or programmes in which
guidance is carried out in different years of study. Guidance and counselling must be student-oriented and
adapt to the different stages of the study process.

The guidance provided during work placements and projects need to be systematic and be based on
learning objectives and the associated multi-faceted assessment. As part of the process of learning and
developing their competences, a student in higher education can take on the role of project supervisor for
students at earlier stages of their studies than themselves. A multi-faceted approach utilising the
opportunities afforded by the learning environment in question is taken when assessing the desired
competence. In this way, attention can be paid to both academic competencies and those areas of expertise
that are typical to the working practices and values of the profession or field of work that relates to the
subject being studied.

2.6 Assessment criteria are based on learning outcomes and competencies

The competence-based philosophy is still relatively new in higher education and the assessment of
competency is often enacted in a performance-orientated context such as examinations in which students
are tested on their knowledge of the course contents. Such assessment is rarely connected to the
observations made at the curriculum level and is, for the most part, left to individ ual teachers to carry out
alone. The assessment plan contains the principles on which the evaluation of each competence is based.
These principles direct the use of the mode(s) of assessment in question much in the same was as the
description of learning objectives at the beginning and end of a course. Learning objectives must be
achievable and described in such a way that students are able to reflect upon their own competences.
Assessment criteria are described clearly and in relation to the learning objectives and are transparent for
both the student and teacher, thus helping them in their respective learning and teaching activities. Teachers
must work together to plan which feedback and assessment methods are to be used at the various stages of
the degree programme (areas of expertise, overall competency, modules, and courses) in order to support
the learning process and work out how to best make the competence areas visible. In addition to the overall
course assessment, there also needs to be continuous assessment at regular intervals. The planning of
these assessment principles and strategies takes into account the stage of the studies, the desired
qualification standard for the competency, and the parties involved in the assessment process. At the
university level, these standards are defined in terms of the the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) process.
The RPL process includes guidances towards a flexible learning pathway that enables students to graduate
more quickly than normal.
Assessment methods must be multi-faceted and capable of assessing the various dimensions of a
competence or set of competences. Competence consists of knowledge, skills, competence, and learning
outcomes. Therefore, any assessment must accommodate these dimensions. According to their networked
model, the dimensions of expertise are theoretical, practical, self-regulation, and socio-cultural knowledge.
The cornerstones of the assessment of a multidimensional curriculum are knowing, doing, and being. When
we assess the various dimensions of a competence in the relevant field, we should consider the concrete
means by which it becomes visible and, therefore, capable of being assessed. It is even possible to think
that a competence is always in some way grounded in evidence. This concrete evidence is at the same time
also a method of assessment. It is important to recognise that a competence can be demonstrated with the
use of a previously-selected assessment method. Best practice at many universities of applied sciences
consists of the use of existing institute-specific common assessment criteria that describe a competency and
its various dimensions at different levels, both in words and numerically (1, 3, 5). These descriptions assist
teachers when preparing assessment criteria for courses or programmes.
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