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Final Reflection
The Curriculum in Higher Education course has presented me with various ways to
enhance the learning experience of students and has also aided in the reflection of my own ways
of learning. Through this course I have developed a personal philosophy of curriculum
development through a combination of course readings, projects, and a multitude of reflection in
regards to long-term and short-term professional goals. Finally, I am able to apply course
concepts including the creation of learning outcomes and how they connect to integrated course
design in my current and future work as a graduate assistant and in other courses throughout the
semester, particularly ones related to student development theory. Ultimately, being present in
the Curriculum in Higher Education course has enhanced my graduate school experience for the
better.
Personal Philosophy
Before the Curriculum in Higher Education course began, I had a very basic and
somewhat inaccurate idea of how the curriculum development process worked. I came to the
first day of class with the assumption that I would create a syllabus throughout the entire
semester that I may or may not use depending on if I wanted to obtain my PhD and become a
professor. Instead, I learned how to create significant learning experiences in all aspects of
higher education, not just in the classroom. Through this realization, I developed a personal
philosophy of curriculum development: Curriculum development should be intentional and
integrated, a collaborative effort, and a learning experience created by all who are involved.
I believe, with the help of Fink (2003), that curriculum development should be intentional
at all points of the process while integrating learning outcomes and goals along the way. Fink
(2003) in his extensive research on integrative course design, stated that of the educators
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surveyed who adopted this integrated method of curriculum design, 100 percent of surveyed
educators noticed that the level of student engagement and the quality of student learning both
went up substantially (p.165). In addition to the student benefits, educators also benefitted from
integrated course design, stating that this approach to teaching returned the joy of teaching to
their lives as teachers (Fink, 2003, p. 165). Alongside Finks (2003) published benefits of
integrating learning outcomes throughout curriculum design, I have learned to appreciate and
respect the intentionality that comes with a well-crafted learning experience. Every activity,
question, assignment, reading, and discussion selected by Patrick Green was done so in a way
that connected to course content and the overall learning experience that he intended for our
class.
Second, I believe in the value of collaboration during the curriculum design process. Not
only did our collaborative reflection module project with Marquette University illustrate these
values, but class conversations about the potential for collaboration on resources and support
needed for faculty on curriculum development did so as well. The collaboration project for
reflection module development with Marquette University was a refreshing glimpse into all of
the time and commitment educators give to ensure students have a positive learning experience.
Not only did our contacts at Marquette speak frequently with Patrick Green months before our
course began, but the amount of time and thought our group put into our reflection module was
outstanding. These cross collaboration modules show the mutual benefit of these partnerships, as
Marquettes Center for Teaching and Learning, Marquettes faculty, Patrick Green as a professor,
and our class as Loyola students all received something from this learning experience.
The mutual benefits from the collaborative learning experience leads me to the last
component of my curriculum philosophy: learning should be an experience created by all who
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are involved. Patrick Green did an excellent job of including us, as students, throughout the
learning process, and at times allowed for us to dictate what the second half of the semester
would look like. Additionally, when creating my syllabus for a first year experience course, I left
room for flexibility during the second half of the semester to allow students to identify addition
things they would like to learn. To support this philosophy, Nilson (2010) states that creating a
living syllabus is a great way to engage students in their personal learning process, by leaving
parts of the document to evolve as the class evolves.
Self-Assessment and Connections
At the beginning of the semester, the class filled out notecards on what we wanted and
expected to get out of the Curriculum course. Looking back, though I accomplished most of
what was on that last, there are many things I learned that I never thought of until the semester
wrapped up, in addition to various areas of improvement that I have identified. The first goal I
had written down pertained to developing effective learning outcomes specifically for programs
outside of the typical classroom setting. With my current graduate assistantship in orientation
services, working mainly with the training and development of the summer orientation leaders,
and my future graduate assistantship in leadership development and community engagement,
learning outcomes are a part of my everyday work experience. With the assistance of Fink
(2003), I not only learned out to create six different types of learning outcomes, but I learned
how to integrate those learning outcomes throughout the entire learning process in order to create
the most significant learning experience possible.
Another goal I had for the Curriculum course was to learn of other professional areas in
higher education that I could pursue after graduation next year. Through the site visit and
Marquette, various class discussions, and resources or information provided by Patrick Green, I
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was not only able to see what other types of positions are out there, but I was able to secure a
graduate assistantship in leadership and community engagement, a type of experiential education
mentioned in many course resources.
One thing I learned throughout this semester that I was not expecting to was the
definition and meaning of a true service-learning experience. In all transparency, I came to the
Curriculum course with little to no knowledge on what a service-learning experience, and an
incorrect assumption that service-learning was equivalent to a community service project. Furco
(1996) aided in my learning by distinguishing service-learning experiences from other
experiential learning by the intention to equally benefit the provider and the recipient of the
service as well as to ensure equal focus on both the service being provided and the learning that
is occurring (n.p.). Furcos (1996) focus on the reciprocity of service-learning helped me to
completely grasp what a true service-learning experience should entail.
Through all of the course assignments, attention to detail is an area in which I saw
personal improvement, but is also an area I can continue to develop. The assignment rubrics
placed a heavy emphasis on proofreading, and attention to detail was assessed at a high level.
This emphasis forced me to pay thorough attention to all of the work I turned in, resulting in
more proofreading and editing than I have ever done before. However, there is room for growth
in this area, as I received feedback on a few assignments with small, detailed errors that I should
not have missed. Attention to detail is important for any curriculum development process in
order to produce the most intentional and impactful learning experience possible.
Taking the Curriculum in Higher Education course simultaneously with a course on
student development theory provided for many a-ha! moments in class. For example, the
session where we discussed student development theories, Nilson (2010) highlighted many
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theorists that created cognitive development theories of which we learned about in more detail in
other courses. This connection was the first time I have seen direct overlap in course material in
my graduate school experiences, allowing me to make broader connections from my course work
to application in higher education and student affairs.
Final Themes and Conclusion
The ability to have honest and candid conversations in class in combination with the
support of peers from all different levels of education were two central themes that helped me
articulate my learning throughout the Curriculum course. I appreciated the honest and thoughtful
conversations we had in class about the learning process, and I gained insight on curriculum
development from everyone who shared. I felt as though our classroom was a space where
nobody dominated the conversation and, consequently, nobody felt left out of the conversation.
This positive learning atmosphere could be attributed to the excellent mix of students from all
different levels of education.
The combination of PhD students, Masters students of different levels, and an
undergraduate student made for a class full of diverse experiences and perspectives that only
enhanced the learning process for me. This group of students also served as a support network
for the times throughout the course where we were experiencing heavier amounts of
assignments. We also leaned on each other throughout the group collaboration project with
Marquette, especially during the feedback process, where I, personally, was not prepared for the
communication we received from our partners at Marquette. The learning community we built
as peers along with Patrick Green as our professor, facilitator, co-educator, and co-learner,
proved to be a safe and effective space for all of us to grow together as professionals, and I am
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very happy to add the Curriculum in Higher Education course to my graduate school transcript as
well as my overall professional and personal story.
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References