Designing Curriculum and Learning Materials for the Public Service: 8 days

Purpose

To build the capacity of curriculum  and learning materials designers within the public service. Curriculum designers will use critical thinking and reflection to challenge existing training and development paradigms in order to design curriculum  and develop learning materials that are outcomes based, contextualized for the public service and linked to the relevant Education, Training and Development  Quality Management System (ETD QMS). In addition, the design and development  of curriculum and programmes will take into account the transformation agenda and strategic objectives of the public service.

Target Group

Target  beneficiaries for  this course  are  public service staff and associates who are responsible for the design, development and/or customisation of curriculum  and learning materials for the public service.
More specifically, the programme is intended for practitioners whose roles include:

• Curriculum  planning and design.
• Learning materials development.
• Curriculum  and programme review.
• Management of curriculum projects.

NB: The 8 day course is intended  for learners with some background knowledge and experience  of the  public service training context  but have insufficient experience  in quality design and development.

Minimum Requirements for Enrolment

It is assumed that learners enrolling for this course:

• Have a working knowledge  of outcome-based education and training and are able to communicate in writing at NQF level 5, which is equivalent  to a post matric certificate.
• Are already competent in general analysis and design techniques.
• Are able to develop learning materials based on a given design.
• Will receive the necessary organisational  support for workplace learning  and performance.

Pre-course work:

In preparation for the course learners are required to complete the following actions, prior to attendance of the course.
Action 1: Essential Reading: Learners are required to read through the Pre-attendance Readings. The Pre-attendance readings will be sent (e-mailed) to accepted learners two (2) weeks prior to the commencement of the course. The information contained in these documents will form the basis of your learning throughout the course
Action 2: Pre-attendance Activity: Learners are required to complete the Pre-attendance Activity as part of their preparation for the course. The Pre-attendance   Readings and Activity will be sent (e-mailed) to accepted learners two (2) weeks prior to the commencement of the course.
NOTE: Learners must notify their supervisors/managers in order to support them on this journey. In so doing they will be able to successfully complete this course and take the learning back to their workplace. To this end the availability of time, resources and an enabling environment will benefit both learners and their department.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course participants should be able to:

• Examine the influence that  perspectives, mindsets and paradigms have had on training and development over time in order to make informed choices about curriculum and related instructional strategies.
• Explain how to design and develop materials that are aligned to the public service pursuit for training and development programmes that are equitable in terms of race, gender, disability and geographic location.
• Explain the relevance and importance of training needs analysis within the Learning Provision  Cycle  as a means to identifying, designing and delivering learning that is both relevant to the public service and that results in significant and meaningful learning outcomes to enhance the competence of public service employees.
• Examine the relevance, importance and challenges of outcomes  based curriculum design within the Learning Provision cycle and the public service context.
• Design an outcomes based curriculum for a specific learning area, that meets ETD QMS and relevant ETQA standards and that result in credible interventions  to accelerate skills development  and progress towards  achieving the transformation agenda of the public service.
• Develop and evaluate  learning  activities according  to  the design strategy  and specifications that result in the achievement of intended learning outcomes.

Accreditation

This course  is accredited  and aligned to SAQA. A Certificate of Competence  will be issued upon successful completion of the course, including the summative assessment.

Assessment Approach

The course follows an integrated assessment approach, comprising:

• Pre-attendance Reading and Activity; and Formative assessment activities will be conducted during training delivery; and
• Summative Assessment: A portfolio of evidence, for formal summative assessment, is required which includes:
• Knowledge questions to assess your foundational knowledge.
• Practical tasks to assess your ability to analyse and evaluate the design, and develop learning programme.
• Workplace asks to assess your ability to practically implement the design and development processes.
• A qualified assessor will assess the Portfolio of Evidence. The Portfolio of Evidence will then be verified by an internal and external moderator. Participants have ten (10) weeks to complete the workplace assignment and submit a portfolio of evidence.

Duration

The course is presented over eight (8) working days.