The Chinese National Quality Course Plan is a large-scale project by the Ministry of Education, which has led to the production of more than 12,000 courses from some 700 universities since 2003. This paper describes in detail the purpose of the project and how it is organized at all levels, including how individual courses get selected at…

This article describes a unique approach to developing and delivering the curriculum for an experimental program that prepares STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) graduates for teaching in high-needs secondary schools. The context for the collaborative design--including the charge, personnel, and purpose of the program--is…

Purpose: This paper seeks to describe and analyse an approach to course design as part of a strategic, technology-inspired, cross-university intervention to widen participation. A curriculum framework was developed for students who wished to make their work the focus of their study and could not readily access current university provision. A…

Many students are capable of reading a chapter, doing the end-of-chapter questions, studying a little bit, and passing the chapter test. Many teachers are in the habit of using a textbook as a crutch to fall back on when creativity is lacking. Others are capable of teaching incredibly creative lessons based on state standards but are bound by the…

This practice paper describes the development and implementation of a senior capstone course for communication and leadership development for undergraduate students. The resulting course is a unique combination of experiential skill development and career preparation. The success of this course provides students with an important and meaningful…

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to demonstrate that, with a bit of creative thinking, elements of certain university-wide projects (in this case study, establishing an iTunes U site) can be incorporated into student studies and assessment as real-world learning opportunities. Design/methodology/approach: Describes three different approaches…

The "National Mathematics Curriculum Framing Paper" has been released for consultation until 28 February 2009 (see www.ncb.org.au). Professional associations, teachers, teacher educators and others are taking the opportunity to organise meetings and forums to consider the views presented in the paper and to provide critical feedback and…

There are a wide variety of theories, beliefs, and practices as to what constitutes intelligence, how to define and measure giftedness, and why gifted students academically achieve or underachieve. However, while the current trend is to include other gifted eligibility criteria, in addition to mental ability, more studies are needed as to how…

Using the wealth of sites available in the Chicago metropolitan area, online learning technologies, and classroom interactions, Roosevelt University's seminar "The Sustainable City" takes a multidisciplinary approach to urban ecology, waste management, green design, climate change, urban planning, parklands, water systems, environmental…

Since 2001, there has been a dramatic decline in Information Technology and Computer Science student enrolments worldwide. As a consequence, many institutions have evaluated their offerings and revamped their programs to include units designed to capture students' interests and increase subsequent enrolment. Likewise, at Victoria University the…

Teachers often engage in curricular planning by critiquing and adapting existing curriculum materials to contextualize lessons and compensate for their deficiencies. Designing instruction for students is shaped by teachers' ability to apply a variety of personal resources, including their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This study…

Based on a series of videoconferences held between two universities, one located in China and another in the United States, this pilot curriculum study illustrates how successful interglobal communication via synchronized educational technology requires detailed planning and the use of a substantial number of pedagogical strategies. Achieving the…

This article presents generalisations drawn from experience gained designing and renewing study programmes so that the use of learning outcomes became the underlying principle of curriculum organisation. Conceptions of a purpose (profile), aim and outcomes of a study programme are presented, their formulation requirements are discussed and…

This three-year Virtual Measurements Environment curriculum development project for higher education within the Lifelong Learning Programme of the European Union is the result of intense collaboration among four institutions, teaching applied sciences and technology. It aims to apply the principles and possibilities of evolved distance and…

The Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM), established in 2004, is a network of 25 universities at the postgraduate level in 15 countries in Eastern, Central, and Southern Africa. RUFORUM's mission is to strengthen the capacity of universities to foster innovations responsive to demands of smallholder farmers…