Trends in Undergraduate Program Curriculum Frameworks

Authors

  • Mohammed A. Shallal Scientific Research and Development Centre, Nawroz University, Duhok, Kurdistan Region – Iraq

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25007/ajnu.v7n3a229

Keywords:

Nawroz University, Curriculum, Outcome-Based Education, General Education, National Qualifications Framework, Academic Accreditation

Abstract

The paper outlines some trends in current frameworks of undergraduate (UG) academic programs, necessitating a fresh look into many local higher education institutions (HEIs) curricula with improvements and reforms in mind. An attempt is made to establish a link between national qualifications frameworks (NQFs) and academic accreditation standards to guide in the process. Focus is on two currently common issues : first, the role of NQFs and second, the adoption of specialization streams in the structure of UG program curricula.  Particular attention is given to revising curricula to include the general education (GE) and the concentration components, within outcome-based education (OBE) environments, in a systematic manner as a way of meeting the demands. Model frameworks that may be adapted for UG programs are proposed based on current practices in many established and accredited UG program curricula to illustrate the intents.

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References

1. National Qualifications Framework for Higher Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, May, 2009
2. MSCHE, Middle States Commission on Higher Education, Standards for accreditation and requirements of affiliation, http : //www.msche.org
3. ABET EAC, CAC, Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, http : //www.abet.org
4. Extracts from the Qualifications Framework Handbook (QFEmirates, http : //www.caa.ae
5. CAA, Commission for Academic Accreditation, http : //www.caa.ae
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7. United Arab Emirates University, http : //www.uaeu.ac.ae
8. AACSB, The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, www.aacsb.edu
9. Mohammed Ali Shallal, ”Alignment of Curriculum Elements at the Course Level : Two Useful Tools”, Academic Journal of Nawroz University (AJNU) Volume 7, No 1, 2018.
10. Nicole Totté, Steven Huyghe & Alexandra Verhagen, “ Building the curriculum in higher education : a conceptual framework“, Academic Development Unit, KU Leuven, Belgium
11. G. O’Neill, ”Initiating curriculum revision : exploring the practices of educational developers”, International Journal for Academic Development, vol 15, no 1,2010
12. Academic Program Curriculum Frameworks, Seminar, Nawroz University, Jan 2018
13. Curriculum Guidelines for UG Degree Programs in Computer Science, ACM, IEEE Computer Society, December 2013
14. Report in the Computing Curricula Series, Joint Task Force on Computer Engineering Curricula, ACM,IEEE, CE2016

Published

2018-06-20

How to Cite

Shallal, M. A. (2018). Trends in Undergraduate Program Curriculum Frameworks. Academic Journal of Nawroz University, 7(3), 228–234. https://doi.org/10.25007/ajnu.v7n3a229

Issue

Section

Articles