Quality Curriculum: Sequencing and Delivery

Program administrators utilize three primary tools to ensure optimal program administration that supports student retention and timely completion of degrees: curriculum maps, major maps, and four-year course rotations. 

Curriculum Maps

Curriculum maps answer these questions: 

  • Do students get adequate practice in a skill before they are expected to demonstrate mastery?
  • Should faculty restructure one or more courses to improve the frequency and depth of practice that students encounter for some learning outcomes?
  • Are the learning outcomes addressed in a logical order that allows students to progress from novice to greater levels of expertise?
  • Do all required courses contribute to one or more program-level student learning outcomes?

How to create curriculum maps

Curriculum maps aren’t all created equal. To make a map that works, consider the following tips:
  • Identify program Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) that have enough investment and interest that you are willing to dedicate the time and effort to figure out how to address any gaps in student learning you might find.
  • Not every course is going to link to every outcome. It makes sense that capstone courses, final clinical courses, internships etc., might link to all outcomes — but otherwise, courses will typically link to a selection of the outcomes.
  • Introductory courses will likely have 100- or 200-level course numbers and have lower-order SLOs.
  • Every outcome needs to be linked to at least one course. If an outcome is not linked, how will students learn or master it?
  • More linking isn’t necessarily better. Linking everything, everywhere does very little to help you use the map to make decisions. Only link courses that the student will receive specific feedback regarding performance/progress on the SLO at the introductory, developing or mastery levels.
  • Include High Impact Practice (HIP) courses and co-curricular (optimally two or more) into the curriculum map to optimize the student experience.
  • Contact umkccatalog@umkc.edu if you would like to have a worksheet created for your program.

Major Maps — An Optimal Semester-By-Semester Plan to Degree Completion

Major Maps provide undergraduate students with a road map, from start to finish, to degree completion.

A major map outlines:

  • A major's critical requirements
  • Courses
  • Optimal course sequence
A map also aids students to remain on track to graduation. Additionally, maps identify “critical” courses that the faculty have deemed as predictors of students’ future success in their particular major. These important maps are published annually in the university's academic catalog.

4-Year Course Rotation — A Coursework Plan From Start to Finish 

A program’s four-year course rotation is updated annually (May 1) to include offerings over the next four-year cycle. Optimal course rotations include:

  • Annual offerings of all courses required by all students in the major/program.
  • Sequencing courses ensure that both incoming first-time college students and transfer students may complete the degree within a four-year or two-year cycle respectively.
Course rotation data is uploaded into the UMKC Degree Planner to allow students and advisors to track and target degree completion.