7th LEARNING UNIT: Course curriculum design

The term curriculum refers to the set of knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that students should learn, develop and adopt in the teaching-learning process.

This includes:

• learning objectives and outcomes, 
• learning content, 
• learning activities and assignments, 
• learning materials, 
• learning space, 
• ways of checking and evaluating knowledge, etc. 

Curriculum is a broader concept than curriculum. The curriculum contains the learning objectives/outcomes, content, teaching and assessment methods of the course in the study program.

The approach to the planning and design of course curricula and study programs in modern higher education is based on outcomes. According to this approach, learning goals and outcomes serve as the basis in the curriculum design process, and the methods of teaching and testing and evaluating knowledge are adapted to this. 

The course curriculum design process includes:

1. determining learning outcomes 
2. choosing teaching strategies and learning activities 
3. selecting assessment tasks 

It is of key importance here that all three components (supporting elements of the curriculum) are "aligned" with each other and lead to a common goal - the model of constructive alignment, which today is considered the most widespread approach to higher education curriculum design.

The learning outcomes in the curriculum of the course determine the key knowledge that the students should achieve in the course. They tell students what is expected of them and what they can expect from the course, and they serve as a basis for teachers to design teaching materials, choose teaching strategies and learning activities, and choose ways to test and assess knowledge.