Curricula development

Advice on shaping the focus and content of programmes – looking at co-creation, future skills, decolonisation, embedding SDGs, inclusive learning, virtual and large-scale programmes

Students studying at individual desks

Crafting an inclusive curriculum: how to write programme learning outcomes

Crafting an inclusive curriculum involves aligning learning outcomes with graduate attributes and using inclusive design principles, active verbs and established frameworks

Lizzy Garner-Foy

The University of Edinburgh

Bitcoin

How to incorporate fintech and Web3 into university curricula

In bringing financial technology and cryptocurrency into university courses, educators must cover regulatory uncertainty, cybercrime risks and asset bubbles while keeping up with developments. Larisa Yarovaya provides insights

Larisa Yarovaya

University of Southampton

Hand holding three gold medals

Going for gold: how to craft a winning TEF submission

Teaching excellence rests on clear principles and agile strategy, collaboration with students and a frank approach to educational gain, write Emily Pollinger and Julian Chaudhuri. Here, they share tips for maintaining and evidencing success

Emily Pollinger , Julian Chaudhuri

University of Bath

Accounting student working on a laptop

How to distinguish sustainability in your accounting and business teaching

In this resource, Nick Rowbottom offers ways to help students distinguish and evaluate how sustainability is translated within different international reporting standards

Nick Rowbottom

University of Birmingham

A group of students gather round a laptop

Make EDI in higher education a reality by building it into your course design

When designing a new course, equality, diversity and inclusion should be among the first things to consider. Gareth Morris and Joy Edmonson show how

Gareth Morris, Joy Edmonson

University of Nottingham Ningbo China

Student writing in a notepad

How to use student evaluation of teaching to improve learning

Effective SET is the start, not the end, of a conversation about student learning, writes Saranne Weller

Saranne Weller

St George’s, University of London

multiracial university students sitting outside

Curriculum reform to boost under-represented students’ success in higher education

Large-scale transition from traditional curricula to a block model can have a positive impact on student achievement. Here, Thomas Roche, Erica Wilson and Liz Goode describe five steps to implement whole-institution reform, based on a study of a regional public university in Australia

Thomas Roche, Erica Wilson, Liz Goode

Southern Cross University

Student analysing graphs and data sets on a large screen

Four things to prioritise when teaching students data literacy

Successful data science education requires a holistic approach that involves modifications in how we teach data sciences and reinforcement of lessons throughout the course, writes Ellen Bell

Ellen Bell

University of East Anglia

An illustration of an open book with a lightbulb and several figures working

How can we imagine a new university?

In this existential moment for higher education, the corporate university is not the only end point possible – we can imagine so much more. David J. Staley offers 10 new ways of thinking about universities, in this excerpt from his book ‘Alternative Universities: Speculative Design for Innovation in Higher Education’

David J. Staley

Ohio State University

A runner starts a race, pushing out from blocks

Sprinting into blocks: what computing, AI and gaming academics learned

Introducing block delivery using Sprint methodology to design academic programmes saw computing, AI and gaming academics rise to the challenge. De Montfort University staff reflect on their experiences

Zoë Allman, Simon Coupland, Archie Khuman, Conor Fahy, Luke Attwood

De Montfort University

Dictionary definition of assets and accounting

Embrace broader definitions of accounting to help your students operate sustainably

Broader definitions of accounting help students redirect their energies and draw on broad-scope approaches to dealing with challenging issues to help shape a better world

Jennifer Rose, Garry Carnegie

University of Manchester, RMIT University

podcast graphic

THE podcast: an interview with James Purnell, president and vice-chancellor of the University of the Arts London

The president and vice-chancellor of the University of the Arts London talks about how AI will affect the creative sector, the connection between cities, commerce and creativity, and how UAL plans to pioneer online creative education

James Purnell

University of the Arts London

Students learn about vegetable growing in a community greenhouse

How service learning can help students create a positive change in the community

Service learning can help students develop a civic mindset, universities achieve their third mission and communities flourish as a result. Intan Azura Mokhtar shows how

Intan Azura Mokhtar

Singapore Institute of Technology

A sihouette of a woman raising her fist in the air

Gender equality is more than a box-ticking exercise – let’s champion it

The higher education sector is ideally placed to inspire talented women and improve the gender balance in the workplace. Kate Allum advocates for the power of self-belief

Kate Allum

University of the West of Scotland

Trainers and a water bottle lie abandoned on a beach

Sprinting in hindsight: what we learned from validating university programmes at pace

Having used a Design Sprint methodology for university-wide academic programme validation, has the dash to a photo finish improved quality processes? Zoë Allman and Leanne de Main share their experience

Zoë Allman, Leanne de Main

De Montfort University

A teacher writes English phrases on a whiteboard

Writing courses can be more enriching for international students than you think

For many international students, English writing courses are a requirement. While such courses can help them polish their definite articles, they can do so much more. Umasankar Patra suggests harnessing the diversity in your classroom

Umasankar Patra

Indian Institute of Technology Madras

Teacher giving a class to a room full of students

A framework for decolonising and diversifying science curricula

Actions you can take to make your science curriculum more inclusive and relevant to all students

Alice Robson , Bronwen Burton , Zafar Bashir, Ames Mosley, Caroline McKinnon , Lara Lalemi

University of Bristol

Group of multiracial mature computing students

What are the key components of an effective lifelong-learning culture?

Continuing engagement with education doesn’t just happen. Universities need to put the right elements in place to support a culture of lifelong learning, writes Cheong Fan

Cheong Fan

Macau University of Science and Technology

A group of young people put their hands together

The world isn’t sorted into modules, nor should authentic learning be

Faculty should combine their modules for an interdisciplinary, real-world based approach to learning, argues Angela Ng

Angela Ng

Singapore Institute of Technology

A power station

Moving beyond climate change to teach the climate crisis

Ways to scale up education relating to the climate crisis and the questions it must guide students to answer

Adam R. Aron

University of California San Diego

Female doctor checks a woman's thyroid

A checklist for advancing equity, diversity and inclusion in medical sciences and education, part two

Three questions that medical sciences lecturers should ask when revising curricula to promote ethical considerations, an understanding of health inequities and diverse perspectives

Musarrat Maisha Reza, Mia-Rose Gillison

University of Exeter

A diverse group of medics sitting through a seminar

A checklist for advancing equity, diversity and inclusion in medical sciences and education, part one

Three questions that lecturers in medical sciences should ask when revising their curricula to promote diverse representation and health equity

Musarrat Maisha Reza, Mia-Rose Gillison

University of Exeter

A robot teacher in front of a blackboard

ChatGPT and generative AI: 25 applications in teaching and assessment

In the second part of their series looking at 100 ways to use ChatGPT in higher education, Seb Dianati and Suman Laudari share 25 prompts for such AI tools to assist with teaching and assessment

Seb Dianati, Suman Laudari

Charles Darwin University

Couple planting a tree

Making sustainability part of university DNA

Meaningful change comes from embedding green practices into every aspect, and every member, of the institution, starting from induction training

Thomas Menkhoff, Kevin Cheong

Singapore Management University

An old map of Africa showing countries as former British and French colonies

Bring staff and students together to decolonise in seven steps

Seven stages to decolonising a curriculum, drawing lessons from a staff-student collaboration to decolonise the teaching of geography

Caitlin Kight, Eleanor Cook

University of Exeter

Female medical student examining slide

Unifying theoretical and clinical education in a medical curriculum

A focus on practical competences comes with the risk that theoretical knowledge will be sidelined during the clinical years. However, two-way vertical integration of medical training can provide a more balanced strategy for learning

László Köles

Semmelweis University

A group of medical students stand around a patient in bed

Social justice as part of medical education

Five strategies universities can adopt to aid medical students’ understanding of and engagement with social justice principles as part of healthcare training

Priya Harindranathan

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center

Illustration of two men in shirt and ties shaking hands over jigsaw speech bubble

How can we measure interdisciplinary learning?

A benchmark of success for interdisciplinary learning is graduates who have the flexibility to examine their areas of interest and develop attributes that deliver practical value to future employers

Elvin Lim , Daniel Seah

Singapore Management University

Australian aboriginal hands against red dirt road illustrating exchange of Indigenous wisdom

Steps to decolonise higher education: after yourself, change the curriculum

Opening the curriculum to First Nations’ histories and knowledge is a key part of decolonisation, as lisahunter and Karen Lambert explain in this second part of their series

lisahunter, Karen Lambert

Monash University

Four Asian students on a bench looking at a laptop

Design a student-centred curriculum for dynamic learning

Student-centred learning design promotes engagement, critical thinking and problem-solving, which leads to enhanced real-world skills. M. C. Zhang and Aliana Leong share their strategies

M. C. Zhang, Aliana Leong

Macau University of Science and Technology

Image of someone picking up a plastic bottle from a beach

From personal to professional: incorporating sustainability into your university work

Practical advice for embedding sustainability issues into broader professional practice, taking lessons from teaching English language that are applicable across other disciplines

Peter Buckley

The University of Edinburgh

Blocks in the air with a yellow one in the middle

New views on the block: schedule or philosophy?

Colorado College founded its Block Plan in the heady, revolutionary late 1960s. What can a look back over 50 years teach us about the future of compressed and modular modes of curriculum delivery?

Steven Hayward

Colorado College

Primary source materials

Primary sources as a tool for greater diversity

Primary sources can be used to diversify curricula and bring in marginalised voices. Jade G. Winn and Michaela Ullmann explain what library teams can do to support faculty and students in finding and assessing diverse materials

Jade G. Winn , Michaela Ullmann

University of Southern California

Illustration of giant mortarboard with students

If I redesigned UK higher education, I would…

Pay-as-you-go modules? Choose-your-own first year? Glenn Fosbraey looks to the blue sky for (sometimes radical) ideas for improving the HE experience

Glenn Fosbraey

University of Winchester

Skip song button in neon

Full circle: using the cycle of teaching, module design and research

How research, module design and classroom delivery in creative fields inform one another in circular and essential practices. Glenn Fosbraey shares his own teaching as a case study

Glenn Fosbraey

University of Winchester

Image representing global perspectives

Decolonising the curriculum through collaboration, partnership and dissemination

Tips on how to decolonise curricula through collaboration, partnership and dissemination, from four university educators

Multiple authors

University of Reading

Image showing a human and AI writing together

ChatGPT and the rise of AI writers: how should higher education respond?

The proliferation of AI text generators such as ChatGPT has major implications for higher education. Nancy Gleason explores how educators should respond to these tools which can write essays in seconds

Nancy Gleason

New York University Abu Dhabi

Students are disconnected because of higher ed discipline silos

Students are disengaged – and it’s due to how higher ed is structured

Academic structures, such as disciplines, too often silo and limit possibilities for engagement and connection, says JT Torres

JT Torres

Quinnipiac University

Students working on a project together

The secrets of supporting successful student start-ups

Guidance to how universities can support student entrepreneurship and successful business creation, shared by John Lonsdale

John Lonsdale

The University of Edinburgh

trail runner

Sprint to the finish: redesigning university programme validation

Sprint methodology can compress university-wide validation of academic programmes into an intense, hierarchy-free three-day process

Leanne de Main, Sarah Jones

De Montfort University, University of Gloucestershire

Image of a sustainable city

Transformative not transmissive education for sustainability

The teaching of sustainability and the SDGs needs to equip graduates with the skills to bring about transformative change for a better future. Jen Dollin, Brittany Hardiman and Susan Germein explore what this means for universities

Jen Dollin, Brittany Vermeulen , Susan Germein

Western Sydney University

AI writing

Eight ways to engage with AI writers in higher education

Just as spelling checks and predictive text have become accepted, so too will AI writers, so educators should help students responsibly engage with and understand the potential and limitations of these text generators, writes Lucinda McKnight

Lucinda McKnight

Deakin University

Student exploring a city using a map

Counter-mapping as a pedagogical tool

Engaging students with urban spaces can contextualise and deepen learning and bring in inclusive perspectives. Daniel Gutiérrez-Ujaque and Dharman Jeyasingham explain how counter-mapping can be used as a pedagogical tool

Daniel Gutiérrez-Ujaque , Dharman Jeyasingham

Brunel University London , University of Manchester

Building a course around target 'customers'

Why higher education must serve students as the customer and the product

An effective university programme should continually adapt in order to add value for and to the students so that they can meet future workplace demands, Haksin Chan and Roy Ying explain

Haksin Chan, Roy Ying

The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong

Green shoots

For the common good: why we need ecological universities

Higher education has become too aligned to specific economic interests and needs to be redirected to focus on regenerative values for the common good, argue Richard Hil, Kristen Lyons and Fern Thompsett

Richard Hil, Kristen Lyons, Fern Thompsett

Griffith University, Southern Cross University, The University of Queensland , Columbia University

Pyramid of people-shaped blocks

Blocks for building a stronger student community

Block teaching can help rapidly establish bonds among students, and with their lecturers, which in turn maximises learning potential. Here, Sarah Jones offers insights from the 50-year history of block scheduling

Sarah Jones

De Montfort University

Image of builders laying foundations

Threshold concepts: what they are and how they help students learn

Threshold concepts are themes that underpin an academic discipline and can provide a framework for students to build knowledge. But teachers must be mindful of students’ capacity to understand them, as Becky Lewis explains

Becky Lewis

University of East Anglia

Black female student takes notes

Is it possible to decolonise the business curriculum?

Untangling business studies from the discipline’s imperial origins might seem an insurmountable task, but it’s up to university leaders to take the lead on this complex challenge, reflects Bobby Banerjee

Bobby Banerjee

City, University of London

Metronome

Rhythm of a class: lesson-planning and assessment in block teaching

Block scheduling rethinks curriculum design, lesson-planning, assessment and feedback. Tom Clark outlines how this shift, as well as blended learning resources, helped Victoria University meet students’ need for clear and reliable rhythms of study

Tom Clark

Victoria University

Young female scientist examining a sample through a microscrope

Curriculum design in biosciences: setting up first-year students for success

Transferable skills and employability are more important than ever, and students arrive at university with a widening diversity of backgrounds. So, how should we prioritise what to teach in the first year of a biosciences degree?

Audrey Heppleston

University of East Anglia