QUESTIONS TO ASK BEFORE SELECTING
A CURRICULUM DESIGN COURSE
INTRO
Designing curriculum to engage and
inspire your students is an essential
part of the teaching experience, one
that also represents an opportunity to
bring advanced skill and creativity to
your craft.
If you are reading this, chances are you’re interested
in taking a curriculum design course to broaden your
understanding of this fundamental discipline and discover
new techniques and strategies that make a difference in the
education of your students. Ideally, you’ll also gain some
inspiration of your own along the way.
This checklist is designed to provide helpful insights to
keep in mind when selecting the curriculum design course
that is right for you.
1
Is the course work theoretical
or will you work on the actual
curriculum that you wish to
design?
Ideally, the course you select will instruct you to come prepared to work on an
actual curriculum project of your choosing. The work that is ultimately created
and submitted for credit should be a viable curriculum that you can use right
away in your classroom work.
Many students leverage their
experience in a curriculum design
course to create entirely new
curriculum for their upcoming school
year or to revitalize an existing
curriculum. Others may need a new
curriculum because they are preparing
to teach a new grade level or subject
area. Curriculum design courses can
also be extremely valuable to educators
who are new to the teaching profession.
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2
Will you complete the course
with a finished curriculum?
You’ll want make sure that the
course you choose is one that
engages you in hands-on work that
results in a finished product. Some
curriculum design programs will
assign you a final project that involves
coordinating all of the components
you have been working on into a
completed curriculum that you can
take right into a classroom and
use. Your finished curriculum will
include worksheets, lesson plans,
activities and course instructions —
everything you’ll need to engage your
students throughout an inspiring and
productive school year.
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3
Does the program you are
considering offer a choice of
instructors?
Some curriculum design course programs offer participants the opportunity
to choose from among a number of different instructors. The advantage
here is that this enables you to look for an instructor whose experience and
subject matter expertise best align with your own interests and career goals
(for example, arts and humanities vs. mathematics or educational technology;
different grade levels).
By reviewing instructor bios, you can also get an idea of how long the
instructors have been teaching curriculum design and whether they have
advanced training such as a master’s degree in education, perhaps with a
specialization like curriculum design or curriculum and instruction.
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4
Does the program offer a
choice in how many credit units
students will earn?
There are several reasons why it can
be helpful to have some options in
terms of the number of credit units
that you sign up for. For example,
some course participants may simply
wish to freshen up some existing
coursework, others may be looking to
create a course plan, while others may
be intent on designing and building
an entirely new curriculum from
scratch.
The number of credit units typically is connected to a specified number of hours
spent on the coursework. For example, in the online curriculum design course
offered through the University of San Diego, 25 hours is the expectation for a
2-unit course, 50 hours for a 4-unit course or 75 hours for a 6-unit course.
6
5
Does the course include the
creation of a portfolio?
There are advantages to participating in a program that requires you to put
together an entire “portfolio” that details all of your curriculum planning and
preparation. For example, imagine that you are
applying for a new teaching job, or perhaps
even your first one. However, in this case, you
have a potential edge over the competition.
That’s because you are able to present the
administrators who are hiring for the position
with a curriculum design portfolio that
not only includes a polished, well-thoughtout curriculum, but one that demonstrates
you have devoted significant professional
development hours to advancing your
understanding of effective techniques and
strategies to inspire student learning.
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6
Is the program offered in a
flexible, online format designed
for busy working educators?
You will likely want to consider curriculum design programs offered in an
online or virtual format for several very important reasons. First, online degree
programs build in great flexibility to enable you to complete your academic
work on your own time while balancing your studies with work and family life.
You’ll need to hit a few deadlines along the way, then complete all of your work
and submit your final project by the course’s designated end date. But many
online curriculum design courses also offer you the opportunity to fast-track
your studies and finish ahead of time. Of course, choosing an online format
means that you’ll also save on time and money spent commuting to and from
campus.
Additionally, the COVID-19 public health crisis has drawn added attention to
online learning opportunities across the board. However, all online programs
are not created equal. So when choosing an online course, it is important to
confirm that the program has an effective, well-established online learning
infrastructure.
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7
Does the learning institution
have in-depth experience and a
strong reputation?
Reputation and experience tend to be reliable predictors of quality, so it’s wise
to do a little homework to ensure that the program has a proven track record of
teaching curriculum design.
Reviewing the instructors bios is one helpful way
to get a sense for how much instructor experience
and knowledge you’ll have access to when taking
the course. Also, enrollment personnel should be
happy to answer any specific questions you may
have about the course or the institution.
The reputation factor also connects to the fact
that you’ll likely want to tout your successful
completion of a curriculum design course on your
resume, so the name and stature of the institution
is highly relevant in this context.
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WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO
We would be remiss if we concluded this exercise without inviting you
to check out the University of San Diego’s innovative, online curriculum
design course — Creating Curriculum for a Positive School Year.
The course is taught by a talented group of experienced, master’seducated curriculum design instructors who possess a broad range of
subject matter expertise. Offered through our nationally respected
university’s Professional and Continuing Education Department for
over two decades, it is integrated with USD’s robust online learning
infrastructure.
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Please contact us today if you have any questions or would like
to discuss how this University of San Diego curriculum design
course can help you achieve your career goals as an educator.
( 619 ) 349-7169
Sources:
1. https://blog.linkedin.com/2019/january/10/linkedins-most-promising-jobs-of-2019
2. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/computer-and-information-research-scientists.htm#tab-5
3. https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/entry-level-data-scientist-salary-SRCH_KO0,26.htm