Abstract:
HKIEd was moving into the 334/335 curriculum and a more student-centered and outcomes-based approach. Research into students’ perceptions of outcomes would significantly contribute to outcomes construction, review, and refinement, and increase alignment of teaching, learning, and assessment with student-centered institutional quality enhancement. The current trend in outcomes-based teaching, learning, and assessment focused on a curriculum design model that was learner-centered. However, course outcomes were typically designed by instructors or faculty committees with little or no student input. If higher education served the professional practice of our students and graduates in the workplace, the “outcomes of teaching” should consider students’ perceptions of the outcomes imbedded in their learning. This raised the question, to what degree could the intended outcomes in a course be identified by students? Further, were there differences between instructors’ and students’ perceptions of the appropriateness and utility of the course outcomes?
The project addressed these questions through a sample of students and teachers involved in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) core module, “Curriculum and Assessment.” Data collection consists of two stages: survey and focus groups. Qualitative and quantitative analysis resulted in a hierarchical coding family of outcomes categories. Reporting of results focused on understanding the meaning behind respondents’ choices, and examining variations that would be related to students’ background, learning attitude, ability and professional experience. This project produced findings that informed course outcomes construction across the institute, enriched the research and knowledge about Outcome Based Learning (OBL) and student-centered learning in professional practice, and contributed to the Hong Kong and international context of outcomes-based higher education.
Code:
T0072
Principal Project Supervisors:
Subjects:
Start Date:
08 Feb 2010
End Date:
07 Aug 2011
Status:
Completed
Result:
The survey of student perceived outcomes for the course Curriculum and Assessment provided some interesting results. First, the outcomes identified by students could be easily classified into the intended thematic curriculum of the course. This suggested that students were accurately sensitive to the priorities of the enacted classroom curriculum. Second, the difference in importance rankings given by students in the English Medium of Instruction (EMI) and Chinese Medium of Instruction (CMI) groups of the course suggested that on the whole there was very little difference in their evaluation of the content. This suggested that medium on instruction played little part in shaping student perceptions of their course experiences. This should come as little surprise given that 100% of the EMI students were actually ethnic Chinese. Third, the results pointed to the very strong preference for curriculum content that was focused on the local context but which was NOT theory-free.
Impact:
Two implications arose from this study. First, some changes in the course content of Curriculum and Assessment would be appropriate. Specifically, reducing emphasis on international comparisons on favor of greater time on practice and implementation of curriculum and assessment theories in the Hong Kong context. This was not to say that the international comparisons were not important but given the role of the Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) it may make more sense to place such materials in a master of education level course. Certainly, though there was no need to remove theoretical knowledge from the course, though it would be useful to reduce focus on learning theory in favor of a clearer focus on curriculum and assessment proper. The instructors should meet the student expectations by designing classroom level learning activities that help PGDE students grasping the practical implications of the theories and philosophies, rather than extending the range of materials presented.
Second, there appeared to be considerable virtue in terms of institutional or departmental quality improvement in obtaining feedback from students about the effectiveness of courses in achieving their intended outcomes. The results of this study reinforced the importance of obtaining insights from students.
Deliverables:
Deneen, C. C., Brown, G. T. L., Lam, B. H., Tsui, K. T. (2011). Student perspectives on outcomes: Insights for course development within OBL and 335 frameworks. (Teaching Development Grant Technical Report no. 1), The Hong Kong Institute of Education.https://repository.eduhk.hk/en/publications/2f968aab-2465-48c4-9d52-672e...
Deneen, C. C., Lam, B. H., Tsui, K. T. (2010, June). Student perspectives on outcomes: Insights for course development within OBL and 335 Frameworks. Presentation at C&I Departmental Annual Conference, Best Western Hotel, Taipa, Macau.https://repository.eduhk.hk/en/publications/79491344-9b04-4375-9f18-cd79...
Deneen, C. C., Brown, G. T. L., Lam, B. H., Tsui, K. T. (2011, June). Student evaluation of curriculum content for effective beginning teaching. Presentation at C&I Departmental Conference 2010-2011, The Hong Kong Institute of Education.
Deneen, C. C., Brown, G. T. L., Lam, B. H., Tsui, K. T. (2010, December). Student perspectives on outcomes: Insights for course development within OBL and 335 frameworks. Paper presentation at The 2nd East Asian International Conference on Teacher Education Research, The Hong Kong Institute of Education.
Financial Year:
2009-10
Type:
TDG