AEC Curriculum Design and Development in Higher Music Education

AEC PUBLICATIONs 2007

handbook

CurriCulum design and development

in higher musiC eduCation

jeremy Cox

The Polifonia project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views of its authors and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which might be made of the information contained therein.

A free electronic version of this handbook is available through www.polifonia-tn.org.

handbook

CurriCulum design and development

in higher musiC eduCation

jeremy Cox

Contents

Foreword1. introduction2. some preliminary remarks on Curriculum design and development –whatisitandwhatisitfor?3. Curriculum design: the holistic approach 3.1 Thepartsandthewhole 3.2LearningOutcomes 3.3FromLearningOutcomestoaholisticcurriculum4. the use of learning outcomes in curriculum design 4.1 Fromtheorytopractice 4.2Lessons,classes,LearningOutcomesandtherelationshipbetweenthem 4.3Semesters,yearsandaprogressivecurriculum 4.4LearningOutcomesandintermediatemilestones 4.5LearningOutcomes,the‘typical’student,coreandoptionalunits5. the use of credit points in curriculum design 5.1 Creditpoints,volumeandstandardunits 5.2Thebenefitsofstandardisation 5.3Creditpointsandlevels 5.4Creditpoints,optionsandmanagingthecostofprovision6. reviewing and updating a designed curriculum – Curriculum development 6.1 Design,approvalandreview 6.2LearningOutcomesandreview 6.3Ongoingdevelopmentthroughannualmonitoring 6.4Continuousenhancement–thedevelopmentalphilosophy 6.5Thedevelopmentalapproachtomanagingthecostofprovision 6.6Curriculumreviewandexternalqualityassurance7. Conclusion 7.1 Returningtofirstprinciples 7.2Student-centeredness:traditionsandideals 7.3Finalremarks

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Foreword

ThisdocumenthasbeendevelopedintheframeworkoftheERASMUSThematicNetworkforMusic“Polifonia”1,thelargestEuropeanprojectonprofessionalmusictrainingtodate.Thisprojectinvolved67organisationsinprofessionalmusictrainingandthemusicprofessionfrom32Europeancountriesand30expertsin5connectedworkinggroupsinanintensive3-yearworkprogrammefromSeptem-ber2004–October2007.Theproject,whichwascoordinatedjointlybytheMalmöAcademyofMusic–LundUniversityandtheAssociationEuropéennedesConservatoires,AcademiesdeMusiqueetMusikhochschulen (AEC),receivedsupportfromtheEuropeanUnionwithintheframeworkoftheERASMUSProgramme.Theaimsoftheprojectwere:

1. To study issues connected to the Bologna Declaration Process, such as the development oflearningoutcomesfor1st(Bachelor),2nd(Master)and3rdcyclestudiesthroughthe“Tuning”2methodology,theuseofcreditpointsystems,curriculumdevelopment,mobilityofstudentsandteachers,andqualityassuranceinthefieldofmusicinhighereducation.

2. Tocollect informationon levels inmusiceducationother than the 1st (Bachelor)and the2nd(Master)studycycles,inparticularpre-collegetrainingand3rdcycle(Doctorate/PhD)studiesinthefieldofmusic.

3. Toexploreinternationaltrendsandchangesinthemusicprofessionandtheirimplicationsforprofessionalmusictraining.

WiththeaimtoparticipateinthediscussionstakingplaceinthehighermusiceducationsectorandintheframeworkoftheBolognaprocess,theAECformedwithin“Polifonia”agroupwiththefollow-ingexperts:

• JeremyCox(Chair-RoyalCollegeofMusic,London)• HannuApajalahti(SibeliusAcademy,Helsinki)• EvertBisschopBoele(HanzehogeschoolGroningen)• CristinaBritodaCruz(EscolaSuperiordeMúsicadeLisboa)• BrunoCarioti(ConservatorioStatalediMusica“AlfredoCasella”,L’Aquila)• GrzegorzKurzynski(K.LipinskiAcademyofMusic,Wroclaw)• JörgLinowitzki(MusikhochschuleLübeck)• JacquesMoreau(CNSMDdeLyon)

1 Moreinformationabout‘Polifonia’canbefoundatwww.polifonia-tn.org.

2 Formoreinformationaboutthe‘Tuning”methodologypleaseseehttp://www.tuning.unideusto.org/tuningeu/index.php?option

=content&task=view&id=172&Itemid=205.

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InordertoassisthighermusiceducationinstitutionswiththerequirementsproposedbytheBolognaprocess,the“Polifonia”projectissuedaseriesofpublicationsthatcanbeusedbytheinstitutionsinthedevelopmentoftheirstudyprogrammes:

• Severalpracticalhandbookson: - CurriculumDesignandDevelopmentinHigherMusicEducation - ImplementationandUseofCreditPointsinHigherMusicEducation - InternalQualityAssuranceinHigherMusicEducation• Adocumententitled“SummaryofTuningFindings–HigherMusicEducation”,whichcontainsthe

AECLearningOutcomesforthe1st,2ndand3rdcycles,aswellasthe“Polifonia/DublinDescrip-tors”asmentionedinparagraph3.2.6ofthishandbook

• Atrilingualwebsitecalled“BolognaandMusic”(www.bologna-and-music.org),whereallrele-vantdocumentationinrelationtotheBolognaprocessseenfromtheperspectiveofhighermusiceducationcanbefound.

Inaddition,theAECproject“AccreditationinEuropeanProfessionalMusicTraining”3producedsev-eralimportantdocumentsaddressingexternalqualityassuranceandaccreditationinmusic.

3 Moreinformationaboutthisprojectcanbefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/accreditation.

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1 IntroduCtIon

1.1 Thishandbookisintendedasashortguideforthosewhoworkinconservatoiresandareinvolvedwithorganisingthetypesandpatternsofteachingthatgoonthere.Itisnotmeanttobeanexhaustivemanualforcurriculumdesignanddevelopment,althoughitdoesaimtogivesomepracticaladviceoncertainkeyissues.Itsprimaryfocusisuponthewaythat,inrecentyears,CurriculumDesignandDevelopmenthavebecomemoreconsciouslyandelaboratelyembeddedinthewaywerunthelearn-ingandteachinginconservatoires.

1.2 Becauseofthisfocus,thehandbookisdeliberatelyconcernedwithlinksbetweencurriculumde-signanddevelopmentandthreeofthekeyelementsthathavebeenmuchtalkedaboutinEuropeanHigherEducationinrecentyears–Learning Outcomes, Credit PointsandQuality Assurance.AllthreeofthesehavebeengivenadditionalimpetusbytheBolognaProcessandthishandbookhasbeenwrittenwiththatbackgroundinmind.Itishopedthatitwillgivesomehelpandencouragementtoin-dividualsandteamsworkingonimplementingchangesintheirinstitutionsthatrelatetotheBolognaProcess.

1.3 Ihavewrittenthishandbookassomeonewhobelievesthatawell-designedcurriculumreallycanhelpconservatoirestudentstolearntobebettermusicians–inotherwords,thatcurriculumde-signisnotjustsomethingforthemoretraditionallyacademicsubjectstaughtinuniversities.Icanappreciate,though,thatsomereadersmayfeelthatcurriculumdesignisyetanotherexampleofmoderneducationalbureaucracyforcingustoputproceduresandprotocolsaroundsomethingthatwe,inconservatoires,areusedtodoingquitefreelyandnaturally.Iamalsowellawarethat,howeverbeautifullywemayeachofusdesign,balanceandintegratethecurriculuminourinstitution,ourkeyteachers–thebusymusicianswhodividetheirtimebetweentheprofessionandtheir1-to-1teaching–probablyhavelittleinterestinaspectsofthecurriculumoutsidetheirspecificarea-andevenlessinreadingcurriculumhandbooksandotherdocuments,insteadofjustgettingonwiththepracticalrealitiesofmusicmaking!

1.4 Inmanyways,thechallengetocurriculumdesignersinconservatoiresastheyworktocreatecours-esanddocumentationinlinewiththeBolognaProcessisoneoftranslation–howtoconverttheEuropeanHigherEducationjargonintotermsthatmusicianscanfeelreasonablycomfortablewith,andhowtogivetheformalcoherenceandclaritybelovedofeducationaliststotherich,butoftensomewhatchaotic,patternoflearningandteachingactivitiesthattakeplacewithinthewallsofaconservatoire.Intheend,likeanytranslation,thisprocesswon’tentirelysatisfythenativespeakersofeitherlanguage!

1.5 Oneofthemostencouragingsigns,though,isthattoday’sstudentsmostlyseemtohaverelativelylit-tledifficultyfindingtheirwayaroundnewer-stylecoursehandbooks,withtheirLearningOutcomes,CreditPoints,etc.Thisispartlybecausetheirearliereducationhasbeencarriedoutundersystems

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thatarealsochanging,likethoseofhighereducation.Butmostly,Iliketothinkthatitisbecausetheirmindsarestillyoungandflexible.Iwouldalsohopethat,thankstoalearningprocessthatisperhapsmorestudent-centredthanthatexperiencedbytheirteachers,theymayretainsomeoftheircurrentflexibilityandabilitytotakeinthebiggerpicturewhenthey,inturn,becometheteachersofthenextgeneration.Weoweittothemtotrytodesignthecurriculathatwillhelpthatprocesstocomeabout.

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2 someprelImInaryremarksonCurrICulumdesIgnanddevelopment–whatIsItandwhatIsItFor?

2.1 The word “curriculum” is used to describe the course of study that is offered by an educationalinstitutionandtakenbyitsstudents.Historically,curriculawithininstitutionshavetendedtoevolverelativelyinformallyandinapiece-by-pieceway.Thisisnottosaythatthereisnotextensivecom-monground,nationallyandeven internationally,across institutionsteachingthesamediscipline.Onthecontrary,eachacademicorvocationaldisciplinetendstohavedevelopeditscoreelements,generallytaughtineveryinstitutionofferingthediscipline.Forconservatoires,theforemostofthesecoreelementsistheone-to-onePrincipalStudylesson,deliveredbyateacherwhoisusuallyalsoadistinguishedprofessionalperformerorcomposeroutsidetheconservatoire.Almostallconserva-toiresoffermuchmorethanjustthislesson,however,andtherearemanycommonpatternstowhattheyofferinaddition–usuallygroupmusicalactivityofsomekind–chamber,orchestral,choral,etc;supportingtheoreticalstudy;perhapsasecondorrelated instrumentalstudy,oftensomekindoftraininginthepedagogyofone’sinstrumentand,increasingly,somekindofpreparationforthechal-lengesoftheprofession.Collectively,theseelementsconstitutethecurriculum-recognisablefromoneconservatoiretoanotherbut,initsspecifics,almostcertainlytheproductoftheuniquehistoryandcircumstancesofeachinstitution.

2.2 Partofthisuniquenessarisesbecausecurriculahaveatendencytogrowoftheirownaccord.Wherecurriculaarerelativelymodest-andifresourcesarereasonablyabundantandnottoocloselymoni-tored-newelementscansimplybeaddedasandwhenaneedisidentified-orperhapswhenaparticularmemberofstaffwishes tocontributeanelement thatreflectsapersonalenthusiasm.Conservatoireshaveaparticularlyrichtraditionofofferingarangeofactivitiesthatarealmost“op-tionalextras”inthissense;infact,theymaynotbeconsideredpartoftheformal“curriculum”atall–thislattermayactuallybequitenarrowandnotatallflexible.Themoreenergeticandenthusiasticastudent,themoreoftheseactivitiesheorshecanbenefitfrom,butthereisusuallynopenaltyat-tachedtonottakingthem.Crucially,theseactivitiesarenotthereforeseparatelyassessed;theyaresimplygivenouttothosestudentssufficientlymotivatedtotakethem.

2.3 Withincreasingaccountability,thereisacorrespondingpressuretoformaliseorcurtailtheseactivi-ties,bringingthemwithinadocumentedandproperlyassessedcurriculumiftheyaretoberetained.Becauseofareluctancetolosetherichnesstheyrepresent,thishasledtomanycurriculareachingasaturationpoint.Meanwhile,theacceleratedpaceofchangeinallwalksoflife,includingthemusicprofession,meansthattherehasbeenanunprecedentedpressureinrecentyearstoaddnewele-ments.Andyetallthishastakenplaceacrossaperiodwhenconservatoires,likeallhighereducationinstitutions,haveincreasinglyhadtojustifytheircostsand,whereappropriate,todelivertheircur-riculamoreeconomically-atthesametimeasneedingtodevelopframeworksofqualityassurancewhichthemselvesaddtocosts.Allthishasmeantthatcurriculacannolongercontinuetoevolveinthewaydescribed.Theyneedtobereviewedfromtoptobottom,lookingateachelementand

judgingitsvalue,aswellaswhetherthatvalueisconstantovertime,increasingordecreasing.Then,becausenoteverythingcanbeincluded,prioritieshavetobedecided–whattokeepin,whattotakeout.Inshort,thecurriculumnowadaysneedstobedesigned.

2.4 Goodcurriculumdesigncanhelpaninstitutiontogetthemostfromtheresourcesithasavailable;itcanalsoleadtoacurriculumwhichiseasiertomodifyandupdatesubsequently,helpingtheongoingprocessofcurriculumdevelopment.Ingeneralterms,aneffectivelydesignedcurriculumwilltendtohavethefollowingfeatures:

• Well-balanced:thevariouscomponentsareeachgiventheirdifferentweight,asappropriate,butnoelementisgivenmorethanitsfairshare.

• Full, but not overloaded:deliverablewithintheresourcesavailable-anover-fullcurriculumwill,inanycase,leadtostudentschoosingwhichelementstheywillattendandwhichtheywillmiss,sincetheycan’tattendeverything.Thewasteinsuchasituationisobvious.

• Flexible:adaptabletothedifferentneedsofdifferentstudents;responsivetochangingprioritiesandalerttolikelyfuturerequirementsoftheprofession.

• progressive:encouragingstudentstogrowanddevelopastheypassthroughtheprogramme,oftenbystartingwithastructuredandlargelycompulsorypatternofstudiesandmovingtooneinwhichchoiceplaysagreaterpart.

• student-centred:recognisingthat,foreachstudent,thecurriculumismorethansimplythepat-ternoflessonsandclassesthattheinstitutionoffers–itisthesumtotalofeverythingthestudentislearningandabsorbingduringhisorhertimeattheconservatoire.

• Focussed on learning:selectingteachingmethodsandmethodsofassessmentonthebasisofhowwelltheyencouragelearningandthendemonstratethatithasbeenachieved.

2.5 Thishandbookdiscussesthewaysinwhichcertainprinciplesofcurriculumdesign,coupledtotoolssuchasLearningOutcomesandCreditPointSystems,canhelpinstitutionstodevelopcurriculathatfulfilthesecharacteristics.Itthengoesontoexaminehowacurriculumdesignedinthiswaycanbedevelopedovertime,whetherinresponsetochangingcircumstancesorsoastoincorporateim-provementssuggestedbytheexperienceofrunningit.

2.6 Itshouldbesaidthatthecontentofthechaptersthatfollowisbasedupontheassumptionthataninstitutionhasbroadcontroloverwhatitchoosestoteachandhowitchoosestodoso.Ofcourse,somecountrieshavesystemswherethecurriculum,oramajorpartofit,isfixedatnationallevel;inothercountriesandsystems,partof themechanismofexternalqualityassuranceconsistsofsettingagreedtemplates,sometimescalledSubject Benchmarks,thatdefinethemainareastobecoveredbycurriculaandthekindsofstandardsthatstudentsareexpectedtoachieveinrelationtoaparticulartypeofqualification.Whilstanyoftheseexternalinfluencesmayfeelasthoughitisplacinglimitationsuponaninstitution’sfreedomtocarryoutcurriculumdesign,theyaregenerallyintendedtopromotemanyofthesamecharacteristicsasthoselistedabove.Therefore,eveninasituationwheresubstantialelementsofthecurriculumarepredeterminedbyexternalforces,theprinciplesinthishandbookshouldstillbeofrelevance.

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2.7 Thisintroductionhasattemptedtosetoutsomeofthebackgroundtocurriculumdesignandwhyithasbecomeaprocessthatneedstobemoreconsciouslyplannedandarticulatedthanpreviously.Thechapterthatfollowscontinuesthissomewhatphilosophicalapproach,suggestingawayofthink-ingthat,inmyopinion,leadstomoreeffectivecurriculumdesign.ChaptersThreetoFivethendealinmorepracticaltermswiththewaysinwhichtheprinciplesadvocatedintheearlierchaptersmaybeputintopractice.

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3 CurrICulumdesIgn:theholIstICapproaCh

3.1 thepartsandthewhole

3.1.1 Itisnatural,andinevitable,thatweshoulddividecurriculaintodifferentcomponentparts.Students’learninghastohaveastructure;thereisalimittohowlongstudents–andforthatmatterteachers–cancontinuedoingthesamething;varietyinthedailyandweeklyactivityishelpfulandfocussinginturnonvariousspecificareaswithinadisciplinehelpsthelessonslearnttobeunderstoodandassimilated.However,itisalwaysimportanttorememberthattheendresultofthelearningproc-essshouldbeacompleteindividualwhousesalltheirskillsandaccumulatedexperienceflexibly,fluentlyandwithoutconsciouscompartmentalisation.Soalthoughcurriculumdesignispartlyaboutdividingupwhatistobelearnt,itmustalsobeverymuchconcernedwithputtingalltheelementstogetherinacoherentmannerandwithawell-integratedendresult.Acurriculumdesignedwiththisinmindisontherighttracktofulfilthefirsttwofeatureslistedabove,namelythatitshouldbewell-balancedand full,but not overloaded.Moreover,byhavingregardtothekindofwholemusicianwhoshouldemergefromtheprogrammeoftraining,itwillalsotendnaturallytobestudent-centredandfocussed upon learning.Howflexibleandprogressiveitiswilltendtobemoreamatterofdetailedimplementation,aswillbediscussedinlaterchapters.

3.1.2 Manyteachingsituationsreflecttheideathatlearningisnotrigidlycompartmentalised.Inmusic,the1-to-1PrincipalStudylessonisaperfectexampleofthis.Duringthecourseofonelesson,astudentmaybedoinganyorallofthefollowing-andprobablyotherthingstoo:honingtheirtechnicalskills;exploringnewrepertoire;receivingcontextualorvaluableanecdotalinformationaboutthatreper-toire;gainingwiderinsightsfromanexperiencedprofessionalmusician-evenbeinggivenvaluabletipsorcontactsforprofessionalnetworking.Somelessonsmayatfirstappeartobemorenarrowlyfocussedupononespecificskillbuttheboundariesarehardlyeverrigidlydrawn.Forexample,anauraltrainingclass,aswellasenhancingthestudent’sauralskills,mayalmostincidentallyintro-ducehimorhertonewrepertoire,provideinsightsintomusicalformandstructureandofferoppor-tunitiestoreinforceeffectivecommunicationandgroupinteraction.

3.1.3 Despitethefactthattheseexamplesshowhowfluidthevarioustypesoflearningtakingplaceinaparticularlessoncanbe,mostofthetimewedon’tthinkinthisway.WethinkofthePrincipalStudylessonasonetypeoflearning,sittinginitsowncompartment,andtheauralclassasanother–andsoonthroughallthetraditionaldivisionsofthecurriculum.Thesedivisionshavecomeaboutforgoodreasons,ofcourse,buttheyarenottheonlywaythatthesubjectareamighthavebeendividedandtheyshouldnotencouragesimilardivisionsofthoughtandexperiencetobebuiltinthemindsofstudentsandteachers.Forexample,learningthroughhistoricalandanalyticalstudyaboutmusicalstyleanditschangesinrelationtosuccessiveperiodsanddifferentrepertoiresisnotmuchuseif,attheendofthelesson,thestudentpacksawaytheseideasalongwithhisorhernotesandgoesontoaninstrumentallessoninwhichtheyperformthepiecetheyhavepreparedthinkingonlyoftech-niqueandtoneproduction.EspeciallywithacomposersuchasBach,whoisbotharepresentativeof

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aparticularhistoricalstyleperiodandoneofthekeyfiguresinthegeneralmusicalcanon,thiskindofdislocationbetweentypesoflearningcanbesurprisinglycommonandisalmostalwaysdamagingtoastudent’sdevelopmentasathoughtfulandwell-roundedmusician.

3.1.4 Thisisthekeyreasonwhyitisimportantthatcurriculumdesignshouldstartfromtheholisticview-point.Thefirstconsiderationshouldbewhatkindofcomplete,integratedmusiciantheinstitutionishopingtohelpdevelop.Thisoverallaimoraspirationmaybeginasasingle,all-encapsulatingsen-tencebutitwillprobablyquicklytaketheformofalistofattributesofsuchamusician.Interestingly,inbuildingsuchalistaprocessofcompartmentalisationisbeginningtotakeplaceonceagain,butitisimportanttonotethatthisnewlistisalmostcertainlynotgoingtobedividedinthesamewayasthetraditionaldivisionsofthecurriculum,althoughtheremaybesomeoverlapbetweenthetwo.ThelistisbasicallywhatwewouldcallasetofCompetenciesor,ifexpressedintermsofspecificandmeasurablethingsthateverysuccessfulstudentshouldbeabletodo,asetoflearning outcomes.

3.2 learningoutcomes

3.2.1 Learning Outcomes are an increasingly common way of describing the objectives of a course orwholeprogramme.Theyrepresentasubtle,butimportant,shiftinthewaythatwethinkaboutedu-cation–fromwhatistaughttowhatislearned.Ofcourse,thereisacloseconnectionbetweenthesetwoconceptsbuttheyarefarfromidentical.Ontheonehand,itisclearthatastudentmayeasilyenduplearning,andproperlyinternalising,lessthanthetotalofwhatheorshehasbeentaught;equally,though,thestudentmaybeexploringthingsforhim-orherself,learningwithandfromfellow-stu-dents,processingarangeofexperiences,bothinsideandoutsidetheformallearningenvironment,andtherebylearningquiteliterallymorethanisbeingtaught.LearningOutcomesfocusuponthissecondviewofastudent’seducation.Inthissense,theyarethemselvesstudent-centredandtheyencourageanapproachtoteachingthatissimilarlystudent-centred.

3.2.2Atthesametime,LearningOutcomesdonotpassthewholeresponsibilityforlearningtothestudent.Theyareusuallywordedinsomethinglikethefollowingway:“Atthecompletionoftheirstudies,suc-cessfulstudentswillbeableto…”.Thisimpliesasharedresponsibility.Theinstitutionwillprovidetheteaching,theresourcesandtheenvironmentwhichoughttoenableastudentwithappropriateinitialaptitudeandareasonablycommittedapproachtosucceedinmeetingtheseoutcomes;meanwhile,thestudent,tobesuccessful,willshowduecommitmentandmakeappropriateuseoftheteaching,resourcesandenvironmentalsupportprovidedasheorsheproceedsalongthepathoflearningtothepointofmeasurementthatcomesatthecompletionoftheirstudies.

3.2.3LearningOutcomesdescribewhatthesuccessfulstudentshouldbeabletodoattheendoftheirstudies.Morespecifically,theydescribewhat everysuccessfulstudentshouldbeabletodo.Asaresult,whattheydescribe isaminimum foreverysuccessfulstudent.Successmustthereforebepitchedatarealistic“typical”level.FormoststudentstherewillbesomeLearningOutcomesthattheycomfortablyexceedbytheendoftheirstudies,aswellasothersthattheyonlyjustmanageto

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reach.IfastudentfailstoreachthelevelofoneormoreoftheLearningOutcomesofaprogramme,thenstrictlyspeaking,heorsheshouldnotpasstheprogramme.Thisiswhyit isimportantthatLearningOutcomesarewordedsoastocapturewhatistheminimumlevelofachievementthatastudentneedstoreachtobesuccessful.

3.2.4LearningOutcomesdescribewherestudentsshouldarriveattheendoftheirstudies,nothowtheyshouldgetthere.Thisnotonlyacknowledgesthatthelearningmightinvolvemorethanwhatistaughtformally,asseenabove,butitalsopotentiallyintroducesaflexibilityastohowlongaparticularstu-dentmighttakeinreachingthedestinationidentified.Differentstudentsprogressatdifferentspeedsand,especiallyinadisciplinelikemusic,differentstudentsmayarriveatthestartingpointofhighereducationwithverydifferentlevelsofpriorattainment.ThisfeatureofLearningOutcomesisusefulinthecontextofcreatingcomparabilitybetweenprogrammesthatmaybeofdifferentduration.

3.2.5TheoriginalBolognaDeclarationexpressedaminimumnumberofECTScredits(andhencelearningtime)thatshouldapplytoeachcycle,butdidnotlaydownamaximum–or,indeed,anideal-dura-tiontobeusedbyallcountriesandall institutions.Asaresult,systemswithboththreeandfouryearsforthefirstcycleandoneortwoyearsforthesecondcyclecanbefound.Often,institutionsarenotfreetochoosewhichdurationsshouldapplyintheircase.DefiningthesecyclesintermsofthetypicalLearningOutcomestobeachievedmeansthatinstitutionscanplantheircurriculasoastomeettheselevelsacrosstheperiodofstudyavailabletothem.Ofcourse,thisdoesnotremovealltheproblemsassociatedwithhavingsupposedlyequivalentprogrammesthatlastadifferentnumbersofyears,butitdoesatleastcreateanenvironmentwhereeveryoneisworkingtowardsbroadlysimilargoalsintermsoftheminimumthresholdofachievementexpectedofstudentsattheendofeachcycle.

3.2.6 ItwaswiththisinmindthattheAECWorkingGroupexaminingtheimplicationsoftheBolognaProc-essforhighermusiceducationchosetoexpressitsrecommendationsintheformofaproposedsetofsharedLearningOutcomesforthefirstandsecondcycles4.TheLearningOutcomesarrivedatdrewuponmodelsalreadyinexistenceinEuropeancountriesandinNorthAmerica.TheysoughttodescribeapatternoflearningsufficientlybroadtoberecognisedbyAECmemberinstitutionsfromdifferentnationaltraditionsandofferingteachingdifferentspecialismswithinhighermusiceduca-tion.TheAECLearningOutcomeshavebeenrefinedaspartoftheworkofthePolifoniaErasmusThematicNetworkforMusic.OutcomesforthethirdcyclehavebeenaddedandthelanguageoftheLearningOutcomeshasbeencarefullymappedagainstframeworksanddocumentsthatarenowemergingtodescribehighereducationacrossEurope,mostnotablytheso-called“DublinDescrip-tors”5andtheproposedEuropeanQualificationsFramework(EQF)6.

4 TheAECLearningOutcomesforthe1st,2ndand3rdcyclescanbefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/learningoutcomes.

5 A‘musical’versionofthe‘DublinDescriptors’,whichdescribethelevelsforthe1st,2ndand3rdcycles’,hasalsobeenmade-

these‘Polifonia/DublinDescriptors’canbefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/learningoutcomes.

6 MoreinformationabouttheEuropeanQualificationsFramework(EQF)canbefoundathttp://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/

educ/eqf/index_en.html.

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3.2.7 BecausetheAECLearningOutcomesaredesignedtoberecognisabletoallmemberinstitutions,theyarenotnecessarilyexpectedtobetakenoverliterallyastheLearningOutcomesforindividualprogrammes.Institutionswillalmostcertainlywanttoadaptthem,perhapsstrengtheningtheminareaswherethey feel theirownstrengths lie,but thehope is that theywillnot feel that there isanythingaskedofstudentsintheseLearningOutcomesthattheycannotaddressintheirownpro-grammes. InstitutionalLearningOutcomesshouldbeonesthatpeoplefeelcomfortablewithandthatcanberealisticallysharedwithteachersandstudents–whoare,afterall,thepeopleinthefrontlineofensuringthatOutcomesaremet.Itisforthecurriculumdesignerstoensurethataninstitu-tion’sownOutcomesremaincompatiblewiththewiderAECLearningOutcomes.Providedthatthisisthecase,theycanthenbeconfidentthattheOutcomeswillalsobecompatiblewiththeframeworksandstandardsbeingsetoutforEuropeanHigherEducationacrossalldisciplines.

3.3 fromlearningoutcomestoaholisticcurriculum

3.3.1 ArmedwithasetofLearningOutcomeswithwhichitfeelsconfidentandhappy,aninstitutioncanthengoaboutdesigningacurriculumthatisholisticallyconceived.Asthedesigningteamcomestoconsidereachlessonorclassthatitisplanningtoinclude,thereisaseriesofquestionsthatitcan,andshould,beasking:

• IsthereoneormoreofourchosenLearningOutcomethatatypicalstudentwouldbehelpedtowardsbytakingthislessonorclass?

• Ifnot,whyareweplanningtoputthelessonorclassintothecurriculum?(Ifitturnsoutthattherereallyisagoodreasontodoso,itmightbeworthgoingbacktolookattheLearningOutcomestoseeifsomethingimportanthasbeenmissed!)

• IfthereisatleastoneLearningOutcomethatthelessonorclassdoesaddress,howdoesithelpthestudentachieveit?

• Havingdecidedhowithelps,doesthewaythelessonorclassisassessedactuallymeasurethestudent’sprogresstowardstherelevantLearningOutcome(s)and,ifnot,howmightitbechangedtodoso?

• Oncewehavegonethroughalltheproposedlessonsandclasses,arethereanyLearningOut-comesthathavenotbeenproperlyaddressed?

• Ifso,whatotherlessonsorclassesneedtobeadded?• Andiftherearetobeadditions,whichlessonsorclassesmightwebepreparedtodrop,trimdown

oramalgamatetomakeroomwithintheavailablebudgetand/orthelearningtimeavailabletothestudentfortheelementsweneedtoadd?

3.3.2Thislastquestionmightfeelrathernegative,butitcanactuallybeoneofthemostrewardingaspectsofcarryingoutacurriculumdesignprocessorganisedaccordingtotheseprincipleswhentheproc-essitselfuncoversamoreefficient,andperhapsamoreintegratedandelegant,wayofdeliveringtheintendedoutcomes.

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3.3.3 Ofcourse,institutionswillalsoneedtocomebackfromtimetotimetolookattheLearningOut-comesthemselvestomakesuretheyarestillhappywiththem.Often,whentheydoso,theymaydecidethattheycouldbeimproved,whetherbecausetimesandtheneedsoftheprofessionhavemovedonorsimplybecausetheinstitutionitselfhasbecomemoreadeptatthinkingintermsofLearningOutcomesandmakingthemworkinawaythatishelpfultocurriculumdesigners,teach-ersandstudentsalike.

3.3.4 AssoonastheLearningOutcomesarealtered,thelistofquestionsaboveneedstobegonethroughagainandanyappropriatechangesmadetothelessonsandclassesofthecurriculum.ThisistheprocessknownasCurriculumDevelopmentanditisliterallynever-ending.However,inordertopro-videsomestabilitytothepatternsofteaching,top-to-bottomreviewoftheLearningOutcomesandcurriculumusuallytakesplaceonacycleofanythingfromfivetotenyears.ChapterFivediscussestheprinciplesandprocessesofcurriculumdevelopmentingreaterdetail.

3.3.5 EvenwithoutchangestotheLearningOutcomes,smalladjustmentstoanindividualelementhereandtherewillprobablyhappeneachyearaspartofannualmonitoringofthecurriculumanditsef-fectiveness.Thisisimportantifinstitutionsaretoavoidcurriculabeingfrozenforfiveyearsbetweenreviews.ChapterFivewillalsodiscussthisprocessofannualmonitoring.Meanwhile,thefollowingchaptergoesintomoredetailabouttherelationshipbetweenLearningOutcomesandthecurricu-lumandhowthisrelationshipcanbeusedtoshapethecurriculumdesignprocess.

3.3.6 Thepracticalexamplesgiveninthechaptersthatfollowarebaseduponfirst-cyclemodels,whetherofathree-orfour-yearvariety.Thisisbecausethefirstisthelongestandoftenthemoststructuredofallthreecyclesandpresentscorrespondinglycomplexcurriculumdesignchallenges.Ingeneral,curricula across the three cycles become progressively more tailored to the individual student’sdevelopment,suchthat insomethird-cycleresearchdegrees, theonly“curriculum” is theearlyportionthataddressesresearchskillstraining.Hopefully, theexamplesusedwill thereforeofferideasthatcanbeadaptedforsecond-andthirdcycleprogrammes.Ontheotherhand,thecom-mentsmadeatseveralpointsaboutflexibilityandstudent-centredlearning,ifanything,applywithincreasingforceasonemovesthroughthesequenceofcycles.

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4 theuseoFlearnIngoutComesInCurrICulum desIgn

4.1 fromtheorytopractice

In the lastchapter, itwassuggestedthat thetraditionalelementsof thecurriculumanda listofLearningOutcomeseachdividethecurriculum,andthatthewaysinwhichtheydosocorrespondinsomerespectsbutnotinothers.SinceacurriculumdesignedaccordingtoLearningOutcomesneedstotaketheseoutcomesandrelatethemtoaseriesoflessonsandclasses,itisimportanttolookincloserandmorepracticaldetailatthisrelationship.Adiagrammaticapproachmaybehelpfulhere.

4.2 lessons,classes,learningoutcomesandtherelationshipbetweenthem

4.2.1 Ifweimaginethewholecurriculumasrectangularblock,thevariouslessonsandclassescouldbeseenasdividingitintoverticalcolumns.Theprocessmightgosomethinglikethis:

theCurrICulum

theCurrICulum

Lessonsand

classes

Prin

cipa

lStu

dyle

sson

Cham

ber

coac

hing

Orc

hest

ra

His

tori

cals

tudi

es

Theo

ry/

anal

ysis

Aura

l

Prof

essi

onal

pre

para

tion

4.2.2Correspondingly, the Learning Outcomes agreed for the curriculum might be imagined as divid-ing it into a series of rows. Where a lesson or class and a Learning Outcome coincide, this canthenbeshownbyamarkattheirintersectingpoint.Thefollowingtableshowsthisprinciple,us-ingthelessonsandclasseslistedaboveand,forthesakeofillustration,thefirsteightoftheAECLearning Outcomes, which relate to practical (skills-based) outcomes. These are numbered and

18 19

giveninheadlineforminthetable.Noteveryonewillnecessarilyagreewitheveryoneoftheintersec-tionssuggestedhere,buthopefullyatleasttheprinciplewillbeclear:

theCurrICulum

lessons and classesPr

inci

palS

tudy

le

sson

Cham

ber

coac

hing

Orc

hest

ra

His

tori

cals

tudi

es

Theo

ry/

anal

ysis

Aura

l

Prof

essi

onal

pr

epar

atio

n

learning outcome 1

Skillsinartisticexpression• • •

learning outcome 2

Repertoireskills

• • • • •

learning outcome 3

Ensembleskills

• • •

learning outcome 4

Practisingandrehearsingskills

• • • •

learning outcome 5

Readingskills

• • • • •

learning outcome 6

Aural,creativeandre-creativeskills

• • • • •

learning outcome 7

Verbalskills• •

learning outcome 8

Publicperformanceskills

• • •

18 19

4.2.3Asthisexampleshows,someelementsofthecurriculumwillintersectwithjustafewLearningOut-comesandotherswithseveral–perhapsnearlyall.Becausetheskillslistedherearepractical,theintersectionswiththemoretheoreticalelementsofthecurriculumarerelativelyfew;iftheexercisewererepeated for theother twocategories-knowledge-basedandgenericskills- thecoveragewouldbecomemorebalanced.

4.2.4Onthefaceofit,onemightexpectthatthemoreLearningOutcomesalessonorclasscontributesto,thelargerthenumberofcreditsitshouldbeallocated.Thingsarenotquiteassimpleasthis,however.AswillbediscussedfurtherinChapterFour,creditpointsmerelymeasurethevolumeofstudenteffort,notthe“value”thatissetonthateffort.SomelearningactivitiesmaycontributetoanumberofLearningOutcomes,yetstillonlytakearelativelysmallamountofastudent’stimeintheircompletion.

4.2.5A diagram such as the table above can be useful in course documentation so that teachers andstudentscanseeataglancetherelationshipbetweenaparticularsetoflessonsorclassesandtheoverallLearningOutcomesoftheprogramme.Indeed,thiskindofdiagram–sometimesreferredtoasaCompetency Matrix–isoftenprovidedaspartoftheevidencebaseinquality-assuranceexer-cises.Forsimilarreasons,thebriefdescriptionofeachlessonorclassfoundinacoursedocumentfrequentlyliststhoseLearningOutcomestowhichitcontributes.

4.3 semesters,yearsandaprogressivecurriculum

4.3.1 Sofar,thetableabovesimplytreatseachlessonorclassasadivisionofthewholecurriculum.Inpractice,curriculathatrunformorethanoneyear–andatypicalfirst-cyclecurriculumwillrunforthreeorfouryears–donotkeepthesamepatternoflessontypesthroughouteachoftheyears.Someelements,likethePrincipalStudylesson,willrunthroughout;others,especiallysomeofthesupportingacademicclasses,mayoperateforjustthefirstorfirst-and-secondyears.Thisiswhere,referringbacktothefeatureslistedintheintroduction,awell-designedcurriculumwillbebuiltwithaprogressivestructureinmind.

4.3.2Inordertotakeaccountofprogression,eventhoseelementswhichruncontinuouslythroughouttheprogrammeneedtohavesomesenseofthemilestonestobeachievedyear-by-year(or,wherethecurriculumisstructuredinsemesters,semester-by-semester)sothatthestudentknowswhetherheorsheisontracktoreachtherelevantLearningOutcomessetfortheprogrammeasawhole.Thesemilestonesfortheprogrammecanalsobehelpfulinsettingpersonalmilestonesforstudentsaspartoftheirindividual Study Plans.

4.3.3Someclassesorlessonsthatfinishbeforetheendofaprogrammemayneverthelessbeimportantpreparatorystepsformoreadvancedworkthatcomeslater;othersmayalreadyenablethestudenttoreachthenecessaryleveltosatisfyaparticularLearningOutcomebeforeheorshereachestheendoftheprogramme.Essentially,thewaysthatthelessonsandclasseschosenacrosstheyearsandtheLearningOutcomesfortheprogrammeasawholecanrelatetooneanothermaybeseen

20 21

asfallingintothreecategoriescorrespondingtotheexamplesgiveninthisandtheprecedingpara-graph.Thesecategoriesmightbedescribedas 1-continuous, 2-consecutive and3-achievingearly

completion.

4.3.4Indifferentways,allthreecategoriesrequiresomedefinitionoftheintermediateoutcomesthatastudentisexpectedtoachievebytheendofaparticularsetoflessonsorclasses.Incategory1,theintermediateoutcomesarethemilestonesalongthecontinuouspathtotheendoftheprogramme;incategory2,theywillbeformulatedasoutcomesforeachclassthatensurethatthepreparationforlaterclasseshasbeenachieved;incategory3,theoutcomeforthefinalclass,althoughcompletedsubstantiallybeforetheendoftheprogramme,mustbethesameastherelevantprogrammeLearn-ingOutcome.Again,thismaybeshownmoreclearlybytheuseofadiagram,inthiscasebaseduponafour-yearfirst-cyclepattern:

4.3.5

learnIngoutComesFortheprogrammeasawhole

Category1

(continuous)

Category2

(consecutive)

Category3

(earlycompletion)

Year4

Alessonorclassrunning

throughouttheyearsof

theprogrammeshouldbe

directedtowardshelpingthe

studenttoachievetherel-

evantLearningOutcomesby

theendoftheprogramme.

Todosoitwillneedtoestab-

lishmilestonesofachieve-

mentforeachindividual

year/semester

AlessonorclassinYear4

buildsonYears1,2&3and

setsapassingstandardthat

willmeanthattherelevant

LearningOutcomesfor

theprogrammehavebeen

achieved

Year3


buildsonYears1&2and

preparesthestudentforlater

classes

Year2


buildsonYear1andprepares

thestudentforlaterclasses


buildsonYear1andsets

apassingstandardthat

willmeanthattherelevant

LearningOutcomesforthe

programmehavealready

beenachieved

Year1



classes



classes

20 21

4.4 learningoutcomesandintermediatemilestones

4.4.1 Itmaybehelpfultogiveanexampleofhowtheseintermediatemilestonesoroutcomesmightbeconstructed.TakingCategory1,forexample,itisverylikelythatthePrincipalStudylessonwillbeoneofthekeyelementsthatrunthroughoutallyearsoftheprogramme.Thiselementisalmostcer-tainlygoingtorelatetoaLearningOutcomesuchasthefirstoftheAEC/PolifoniapracticalOutcomes–skillsinartisticexpression.Thisoutcomereadsinfullasfollows:

skills in artistic expression:Atthecompletionoftheirstudies,studentsshouldbeabletocreateandrealisetheirownartisticconceptsandshouldhavedevelopedthenecessaryskillsfortheirexpres-sion.

ThisOutcomeexpressesarichsetofskillsspanningfromcreativeimaginationtothetechnicalabilitytorealisetheproductsofthisimagination.Wetendtothinktraditionallyofworkingtowardsagoalsuchasthisbyfirstensuringthatthetechnicalelementsaresecureandthengivingtheimaginativeandcreativeaspectincreasingemphasis.Thisstraightawaygivesusapotentialshapeandsequencefor intermediatemilestoneswhichmight lead inaprogressiveandcoherentmannertowardstheculminatoryLearningOutcome.

4.4.2Again,imaginingafour-yearfirst-cycleprogramme,thekindofmilestonesthatmightbelaiddowncouldwelllooksomethinglikethefollowing:

learnIngoutCome1:skIllsInartIstICexpressIon

Year4 Atthe completion of their studies,studentsshouldbeabletocreateandrealisetheirownartistic

conceptsandshouldhavedevelopedthenecessaryskillsfortheirexpression.

Year3

Milestone3:

Atthecompletionoftheir third year of studies,studentsshouldbebeginningtodeveloptheirown

artisticintentionsintocreativeconceptionsspanningentireworksandshouldhavedevelopedthe

necessaryskillstointegratetechnicalandimaginativeaspectsalmostseamlessly.

Year2

Milestone2:

Atthecompletionoftheirsecond year of studies,studentsshouldbeabletoformulatetheirown

artisticintentionsandshouldhavedevelopedthenecessaryskillstoimplementthese,orrespond

imaginativelytosuggestionsfromtheirteacher,withfluencyandtechnicalsecurity.

Year1

Milestone1:

Atthecompletionoftheirfirst year of studies,studentsshouldhavedevelopedsufficienttechnical

skillsandsecuritytobeabletoconcentrateupondevelopingtheirskillsinartisticexpression.

22 23

4.4.3InCategory2,theconsecutivemodel,asimilarprocesscanbecarriedouttoproduceintermediateoutcomesforlessonsorclassesconcludinginthefirst,secondorthirdyears.Eachlessonorclasspreparesforthesucceedingone,justasthemilestonesdointhecontinuousmodel.Becausewearenowdealingwithlessonsorclassesthatformallyfinishatanintermediateyearorsemester,theycouldalsobesaidtoformPre-requisitesforthelessonsorclassestakeninthesucceedingyear.Eachlaterclasscanbestructuredontheassumptionthatstudentswillenteritwithalevelofpriorattainmentcorrespondingtothepreviousintermediateoutcomes.Thecontentofthelatercoursecanthereforetakethingsforwardfromthatassumedlevelofattainment.

4.4.4Strictly, this means that a student must have successfully completed the earlier class or lesson–henceitsbeingdescribedasapre-requisite.Inpractice,astudentwho,forwhateverreason,hasnotcompletedtheearlierelement(perhapsbecausetheyaretransferringintoaprogrammeatanintermediatepoint)canusuallydemonstratewhetherornottheyhaveachievedacomparablelevelofattainmentbyothermeans–suchasasimplyadministeredtest.

4.5 learningoutcomes,the“typical”student,coreandoptionalunits

4.5.1 Alloftheabovehasimplicitlyrelatedtowhatisreferredtoasthecore curriculum–thepatternofstudyundertakenbyallstudents.Aswasstatedintheintroduction,oneofthefeaturesofawell-designedcurriculumisthatitshouldbeflexible.Flexibilitywasdescribedthereastakingtwoforms-beingadaptabletothedifferentneedsofdifferentstudentsandbeingresponsivetochangingpriori-tiesandalerttolikelyfuturerequirementsoftheprofession.Thesecondofthesewillbeaddressedinthenextchapteroncreditpoints;thefirstisrelevanttothepresentchapter.

4.5.2Aswasstatedin2.2.3,LearningOutcomesdescribewhatevery“typical”studentshouldachieveifheorsheistobesuccessful.Inonesense,therefore,theyrepresentoutcomesforthecorecurriculumsincethisiswhatallstudentstake.However,acurriculumwhichisflexibleneedstohaveroomforsomestudentstodoonethingwhileothersdoanother.Inparticular,thefreedomforstudentstostarttospecialiseduringtheirprogrammeisan importantpartofensuringthattheir learningisdevelopmentalandprogressive.Onthefaceofit,suchflexibleandindividually-tailoredactivitymightseemtolieoutsidethescopeofgeneralLearningOutcomes.Thisneednotbethecase,however,iftheLearningOutcomeshavebeencarefullyconstructed.

4.5.3Indescribingtheachievementofa“typical’student”,LearningOutcomesinevitablysetstandardsthatareexceededbysomestudents.Thisistrueinfinalassessmentofthoseelementsofthecur-riculumwhichallstudentstakethroughouttheprogramme,suchthe1-to-1lesson.Inasimilarway,astudentchoosingaparticularoptioncanstillbeaddressingoneormoreofthegeneralLearningOutcomesoftheprogrammebutdeliberatelytakingtheoutcometoahigherlevelthanthe“typical”student.

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4.5.4Forexample,astudentwithaspecialinterestinperforminguponperiodinstrumentsmightbeabletopursuesuchanoptiontoarelativelyhighlevel,whileotherstudentsarefreetodolittleornostudyinthisarea.Asaresult,thestudentmightfulfilcertainLearningOutcomestodowithbreadthofrep-ertoireknowledge,rangeofperformingskillsorunderstandingofhistoricalcontextmorefullythan–oratleastdifferentlyfrom–otherstudents.Nevertheless,thesamegeneralLearningOutcomesapply,justastheywouldtoastudentchoosingtopursueoptionsincontemporaryclassicalmusic,jazz,etc.

4.5.5Theprincipleisperhapsmoreclearlyshownwithadiagram.Thediagram,thistimebaseduponathree-yearfirst-cycleprogramme,depictsafirstyearthatconsistsentirelyofcompulsory,coresub-jects,asecondwithsomeoptionalelementsandathirdwhereatleasthalfofthestudent’sindividualprogrammeofstudyismadeupofoptionalelements:

All LearningOutcomesfulfilledatleastto

thresholdlevel

SomeLearningOutcomesfulfilledtohigher

thanthresholdlevel

Year3 CoreCurriculum Optionalelements

Year2 CoreCurriculum Optionalelements

Year1 CoreCurriculum

4.5.6Insomecases,theremaybeoptionswhichastudentcanchoosewhichbegintostandoutsidethescopeofgeneralLearningOutcomes.Agood,althoughoftencontentious,exampleofthisispeda-gogy,whichisanimportantelementofsomestudents’learningandcompletelyabsentfromthecur-riculumofothers.ItwouldobviouslybenonsensicaltosaythatbecausepedagogyisnotfeaturedinthegeneralLearningOutcomesofaprogrammeitshouldnotfeatureasastrandinthecurriculumforsomestudents.Clearly,incircumstancessuchasthis,amorespecificLearningOutcomeneedstobedrawnupforthosestudentstakingthisoption.Eveninacasesuchasthis,though,thelearningprocessesinvolvedintakinganoptioninpedagogywillalmostcertainlybefoundtocontributetooneormoreofthegeneralLearningOutcomes,particularlyiftheseincludeoutcomesrelatedtogenericskills.

4.5.7Wheredifferentstudentsaretakingdifferentoptions,itisimportanttoensurethattheiroverallwork-loaddoesnotdiffertoowidely.Eachstudent’sstudypattern,aswellastheinstitution’scurriculum

24 25

asawhole,needstobefull, but not overloaded,toreferoncemoretothefeaturesofawell-designedcurriculumlistedintheChapterOne.Credit-pointsystemscanbeveryusefulincontrollingthisas-pectandthenextchapterwilldealwiththisandotherwaysinwhichtheycancontributetoeffectivecurriculumdesign.

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5 theuseoFCredItpoIntsInCurrICulumdesIgn

5.1 creditpoints,volumeandstandardunits

5.1.1 Creditpointsareaclearandeasywaytoshowhowthevolumeofoneelementofthecurriculumcompareswithanotherandhowthewholecurriculumaddsuptoavolumeofstudythatismanage-ableforthestudent-andcomparablewithcurriculainotherinstitutions.Inoneofthecompanionhandbookstothis,entitled“handbook for the implementation and use of Credit points in higher music education institutions”7, a detailed account is given of how an existing curriculum can bedividedintosuitablenumbersofcreditpointsforeachelementandhowtodealwiththefactthateveryonetendstofeelthattheirpartofthecurriculumisthemostimportant-andthereforeshouldhaveasmanycreditsaspossibleassociatedwithit.Asismadeveryclearinthathandbook,creditsareameasureoftheamountofstudenttimedemandedbyeachelementofthecurriculum,nothow“important”itisinsomehigher,almostmoral,sense.

5.1.2 Themodelsproposedinthecreditpointhandbookallinvolvesomeelementofcompromisebuttheystillendupdividingthecreditsinquitesensitiveways,suchthateachelement’sallottednumberofcreditsispotentiallyunique.Thisisclearlythebestwaytotrytocaptureintermsofcreditstheshapeandproportionsofanexistingcurriculum.

5.1.3 Whendesigningacurriculuminwhichcreditpointsareincorporatedrightfromthestart,apoten-tiallyfreerrangeofchoiceintheuseofcreditvaluespresentsitself.Underthesecircumstances,itcanbeextremelyhelpfulifsomesystemofstandardcreditvolumeisused.Thisdoesnotmeanthateveryelementofthecurriculumhastobethesamesize;someelementsmaybedouble,tripleormoretimesthesizeofthestandardunit.Iftheratiosarekeptsimple,though,thereareseveralbenefitsthatarisewhendesigningcurriculathatareadaptable,bothtoindividualstudents’differentinterestsandtochanges,updatesandotherdevelopments.

5.1.4 Assumingthepatternof60creditscorrespondingtoafull-timestudent’stotaleffortforoneacadem-icyearthatisfoundintheECTSsystem,thereareanumberofwaysthatthissummaybedivided.Ideally,thoughitisprobablyhelpfultohaveastandardunitofvolumethatgivessomewherebetween10and15divisionsofthewholeamount.Witharangeofdoubleandtripleunits,thiswillprobablygiveanywherebetween6and10elementsintowhichthecurriculumfortheyearmaybedivided.Ina60-creditsystem,wewouldthereforebelookingatastandardcreditunitof4,5or6points.A5-pointcreditunitoffersagoodrangeofupto12divisionsofthetotallearningeffortfortheyearand–quiteimportantlyforgeneralunderstanding–makesthemathematicsofaddingunitstogethersimple,sinceeverythingisinmultiplesof5and10.

7 Thishandbookcanbefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/creditpoints.

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5.1.5 Whilsta5-pointcreditunitworkswellinyear-longteachingpatterns,itshouldbenotedthatitcanleadtoproblemswhereasemesterisedcalendarisused.Teachinginsemestersalsomeansassessingeverysemester,soitislikelythatthestandardunitofcreditswillhavetobesubdividedwhenallocatingcreditsacrosseachelementofthecurriculumandoverthetwosemesters.Althoughthisproblemcanbeovercomebygroupingelementsofthecurriculumtogetherinsidethesemesterandallocatingahighercreditvaluetotheresultantcompoundunit,thiscanhaveafeelingofexpedi-ency,ratherthanrealcurriculumdesign.Manycurriculumdesignersworkingwithinasemesterisedstructurethereforeprefertouse6creditpointsasthestandardunitsize,therebypermitting3-creditunitswithineachsemester,linkedtoeachotheracrosstheyearina3+3=6pattern.

5.1.6 Toseehowthissystemofstandardcreditunitsmightworkinrelationtoanimaginarycurriculum,wecangobacktotheelementsusedintheexampleat3.2.2.There,thecurriculumwasdividedintosevenelements.Ofthese,mostpeoplewouldassumethatthePrincipalStudylessonandthestu-dent’sindependentpracticeassociatedwithitwouldtakebyfarthemosttimeandeffortoftheseven.Afterthat,therecouldobviouslybeextensivedebateaboutwhetherthestudenteffortdevoted,say,tochambermusicshouldbemore,lessorthesameasthatallocatedtoorchestralactivityandwhethereitheroftheseshouldbegivenmore,lessorthesametimeashistoricalstudies,etc.Nevertheless,itwouldprobablybewidelyagreedthattheremainingsixelementsareprobablyroughlyequivalenttoeachotherinvolume–especiallywhenoneremembersthatwearedealingwithanimaginary“typical”studenthere,notaparticularindividualwhowillundoubtedlydevotemoretimetoonethananother.

5.1.7 Bearingthisinmind,thesimplestwayofdividingthiscurriculumintostandardunitsandmultipleswouldbetogivehalf,ornearlyhalf,ofthestudent’stotalefforttohisorherPrincipalStudylessonandallocateequalnumbersofcreditstoeachoftheremainingsixelements.Assumingthatthisweredonewithintheslightlymorecomplicatedsemesterisedpatterndiscussedabove,thismightbeachievedusinga6(3+3)-creditstandardunitasbelow:

theCurrICulum(60CredIts)

less

ons

and

clas

ses

prin

cipa

l stu

dy l

Cham

ber

coac

hing

orch

estr

a

his

tori

cal s

tudi

es

theo

ry/

anal

ysis

aura

l

prof

essi

onal

pre

para

tion

tota

l cre

dits

24 6 6 6 6 6 6

27

Cred

its in

sem

este

r tw

o

12

(standard

unit x 4)

3 3 3 3 3 3

Cred

its in

sem

este

r on

e 12

(standard

unit x 4)

3 3 3 3 3 3

5.1.8 Asanalternativetotheabove,togivejustoneexample,itmightbedecidedthat,forsomeinstru-ments,workinorchestrasismoreimportantandtheamountofindividualpracticetimerequiredforthePrincipalStudyinstrumentless.Ifso,3creditspersemestermightbetransferredfromthePrin-cipalStudylessontoorchestra,givingcreditsof9,3,6,3,3,3and3respectivelyineachsemester.Itcouldevenbethat,forayearinwhichtheorchestralworkismainlyinthesecondsemester,thepat-ternshowninthetablecouldbeusedforSemesterOneandthealternativegivenhereforSemesterTwo,asshownbelow:

theCurrICulum(60CredIts)

less

ons

and

clas

ses

Cham

ber

coac

hing

orch

estr

a

his

tori

cal s

tudi

es

theo

ry/

anal

ysis

aura

l

prof

essi

onal

p

repa

ratio

n

tota

l cre

dits

21 6 9 6 6 6 6

Cred

itsin

Sem

este

rTw

o

9

(standard

unit x 3)

3 6 3 3 3 3

Cred

itsin

Sem

este

rO

ne 12

(standard

unit x 4)

3 3 3 3 3 3

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5.2 thebenefitsofstandardisation

5.2.1 Animportantpointtonoticeintheexampleaboveisthatbyusingastandardcreditvolume,wecanstillsay that the totalcreditvolume for the first threesubjects,PrincipalStudy lesson,chambercoachingandorchestraisconstantat36creditsacrosstheyear.Bysacrificingasystemofcountingthatispreciselysensitive,onanuniquebasis,totheperceivedweightingofeachelement,wegainapowerfulinter-changeabilitywithinthecurriculum.

5.2.2Thefirstwayinwhichthiscanbeusefuliswhenwewishtogivestudentstheabilitytoputelementsofthecurriculumtogetherinwaysthataremoreindividuallytailored.Withoutstandardisation,thiswillleadtosomestudentstakingatotaloffewerthan60creditsandothersmore.Thisisnotonlyuntidybutpotentiallyserious.Togivejusttworeasonswhy:astudentwhohaschosenapatternwithmorethan60creditsmayfailsomeelementbutstillhave60creditsoverallfortheyear,makingitunclearwhethertheyshouldprogresstothenextyearornot;anotherstudentwhonoticesthattheyhavefewercreditsoverallintheiryear’sstudymaystarttoquestionwhetherthis“fair”andwhether,inaclimatewherestudentfeesarerising,theyaregettingthesame“valueformoney”asanotherstudent.

5.2.3Astandardisedunitsizeavoidsalloftheseproblemsandisuseful inasecondway.Standardisa-tionmakesiteasierforcurriculumdesigners,andforstudentschoosingtheirelementsofstudy,toseehowoneelementmaybe“liftedout”ofthecurriculumandanotherofthesamevolumeslottedcleanlyintoitsplace.Inthisway,agroupofstudentsmayeachbetakingslightlydifferentpatternsofstudybutallbefollowingacurriculumwhich,tothesameextent,isfull, but not overloaded.

5.3 creditpointsandlevels

5.3.1 Sofar,ithasbeenassumedthatstudentchoiceisanunequivocallygoodthing.Ofcourse,thishastobetemperedbythenotionthateachstudent’spatternoflearningmustbewell-balancedandpro-

gressive.Wehavealreadyseenhowaspectsofthecurriculumneedtoberegardedasformingacoreforeverystudent(4.5).Wehavealsoseenhowthereneedstobesomecontrolovertheorderinwhichastudenttakeselementsofthecurriculumandanassurancethat,inenteringaparticularcourseofstudy,theyhavethenecessarypriorexperiencetobeginworkingattheappropriatelevel.Thisisaddressedbytheprincipleofpre-requisites(4.4.3).Althoughcreditpointsthemselvesonlyaddressthevolumeofstudy,notitslevel,credit–pointsystems,thatcombinecredit-pointswithaqualifica-tionsframework,canbeofassistanceherebecausetheyaddtotheissueofvolumethatofLevel.Byintroducingsomekindofladderorframeworkagainstwhichthekeyqualificationsaremapped,suchsystemsnotonlyallowcomparisonsofleveltobemadeattheendofparticularcycles,buttheyoftenprovideanumberofintermediatelevelswithinagivenqualification,especiallywithinthefirstcycleofhighereducationstudythatlastsforaminimumofthreeyears.

28 29

5.3.2Manycredit-pointsystemsmapthefirstcycleacrossthreeoftheirlevels.Howtheselevelsarede-finedvariesinthedetailbutacommonideaisthattheycorrespondtodifferenttypesoflearning,movingincreasinglytowardsautonomy,fluencyandtheabilitytohandlecomplexity.Atypicalpatternwouldbesomethinglikethefollowing:

First-cycle level type of learning

3Thestudentsynthesisestheskillsfacts,concepts,etc,applyingtheminanintegratedmannerwithinlarger,

longer or more complex learning situations

2 Thestudentassimilatestheseskills,facts,concepts,etcandgainsfluencyinusingthem

1 Thestudentacquiresskills,facts,concepts,etc

Referringbackto4.4.2,itwillbeseenthattheintermediatemilestonessuggestedaspointsofref-erenceonthewaytotheachievingoftheoverallLearningOutcomeofskillsinartisticexpressioncorrespondbroadlywiththesetypesoflearning.

5.3.3Athree-Levelsystemmapsveryconvenientlyontoathree-Yearfirstcycle,ofcourse,anditiseasytoimaginethat,insuchapattern,YearandLevelareessentiallydifferentwaysofexpressingexactlythesameconcept.However,itisimportanttorememberthat,althoughLevelandYearofstudydooftencorrespondtooneanother,theyarenotentirelythesameandneednotinvariablymapdirectlyontooneanother.Oncetheyarementallyseparated,itbecomespossibletoseehow,forexample,astudentwhodecidesinhisorherfinalyearthatitwouldbehelpfuliftheylearnedsomeofthebasicsofMusicTechnologymight,ifthecurriculumstructureallowed,takeanappropriatecourseofstudyatLevel1alongsideotherstudiesthataremostlyatLevel3.

5.3.4HavingonlythreeLevelsmightseemtopresentaproblemwhenafour-yearpatternoffirst-cycleprogrammesisusedbut,inpractice,itneednotbeandcanactuallygivebenefitsintermsofcur-riculumdesign.Afour-yearprogramme,setagainstthreelearningLevels,increasesthescopeforlaterbroadeningofastudent’sknowledgeandexperiencealongthelinesoftheMusicTechnologyexampleabove.ItcanalsoallowastudenttoextendsomeoftheirLevel2learningintoathirdyearorspreadsomeoftheirLevel3learningacrossthethirdandfourthyears.

a four-year first

cycle

type of learning

year 4 Thestudentusuallytakesmainlylevel 3units

30 31

year 3Thestudentusuallytakesamixturesoflevel 2 and 3unitsbutmaytakeoneortwounitsnotcoveredinthe

previoustwoyears,startingafreshatLevel1

year 2Thestudentusuallytakesmainlyunitsatlevel 2.SomeareasnotcoveredinYearOnemaybestartedafreshat

level1.Whereastudentisalreadyadvancedinaparticulararea,someLevel3workmaybepossible

year 1 Thestudentusuallytakesunitsatlevel 1only

5.4 creditpoints,optionsandmanagingthecostofprovision

5.4.1 Thislatterpointcanbehelpfulwhenitcomestotryingtodesignarichcurriculumthatisneverthe-lessaffordable.If,say,aLevel3optionalunitisofferedinamannerthatmeansitmightbetakenbyamixtureofstudentsfromthefinaltwoyears(advanced2nd-yearwith3rd-yearstudentsinathree-yearpatternand,especially,3rd-and4th-yearstudentsinafour-yearone)thelikelihoodofitsoperatingwithaneconomicallyviablegroupsizeisincreased.Inthiscontext,itisimportantforinsti-tutionsofferingchoicewithinthecurriculumtosetlimitsaroundtheminimumgroupsizesatwhichcertainoptionsmayruninagivenyear.Forexample,aninstitutionmightdecidethataparticularoptionmayonlyruniffivestudentsselectit.Clearly,thechancesofthisnumberbeingreachedareeffectivelydoubledifstudentsfromtwoyearsmaystudytogetheronthisoption.And,thinkingofthistheotherwayaround,astudentpotentiallyhasasecondchancetotakeagivenoptionifitdoesnotruninoneyear.

5.4.2Aswellasminimumgroupsizes,institutionsmayneedtosetmaximumsizesincertainareas.Thismightsimplybeamatterofpractical issues,suchashowmanywork-stationsareavailable inateachingroomforaMusicTechnologyclass,oritmaybeconnectedtoamoreabstractsenseofhowthedynamicofthelearninggroupmayceasetobeeffectivebeyondacertainsize.Ineithercase,asimpleformulacandeterminenotjustwhetheranoptionshouldrunatallbutalsothepointatwhichoneormoreadditionalclasseswouldneedtobesetup.Takingtheexamplegivenaboveofafive-studentminimum,thepatternmightbeextendedasfollows:

Doesnotrun 1group 2groups 3groups

1-4students

5-9students

10-14students

15–19students

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5.4.3Inasystemsuchasthatdescribedhere,thenumberofoptionsadvertisedeachyearmaybeexten-sive.Studentswillneedtoindicatearangeofchoices,sothateveniftheirfirstchoicedoesnotrun,theirsecondorthirdchoiceshouldstandagoodchanceofbeingmet(and,asalreadyindicated,theymightbeabletotaketheirfirstchoicethefollowingyear).Onceallthechoiceshavebeencollatedandthedecisionstakenaboutwhichoptionsshouldrun,theactualnumberoflessonsandclassesneedingtobearrangedfor theyearwillprobablybeconsiderablysmaller thanthe“menu”fromwhichthestudentschosebutitwillalsohavebeensubstantiallyshapedbytheirchoice.

5.4.4Overtime,optionsthatproveconsistentlyunpopularmaybedroppedfromthelistofthoseadver-tised.Conversely,newoptionsmaybeintroducedovertimebyfirstbeingdevelopedinprinciple,thenadvertisedand,ifselectedbysufficientstudents,incorporatedintothecurriculum.Suchaprocessismademuchmorestraightforwardlogisticallywhenusingastandardisedunitsizesince,asindicatedabove,standardisationpermitsoneelementtobeliftedoutandanotherofthesamevolumetobeslottedcleanlyintoitsplace.

5.4.5Theyear-by-yearprocessofevolution,whereby“weaker”unitsfallbythewaysideand“stronger”onestaketheirplacebeginstoleadusintotherealmsofcurriculumdevelopmentand,therefore,bringsustothetopicofthenextchapter.

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6 revIewIngandupdatIngadesIgnedCurrICulum– CurrICulumdevelopment

6.1 design,approvalandreview

6.1.1 Whendesigningacurriculum,asopposedtosimplylettingonegrow,thedesignprocessitselfwillprobablyinvolvesomekindofcriticalreviewoftheexistingpatternofteachingtofindoutwhichele-mentsworkwellandwhichmightbenefitfromchange.Suchareviewwillbestrengthenedifthepeoplegivingtheanswersarenotjusttheteachersofeachelementofthecurriculumbutalsothestudents,formerstudents,peopleinpositionsintheprofessionwheretheyareregularlylookingfornewly-qualifiedconservatoiregraduates(andthereforeknowwhatqualitiestheyarelookingfor)etc.Itmayalsobehelpfultodosomefact-findingaboutthewaysthatotherconservatoiresorganisetheircurricula–almosteveryinstitutionwillhavesomethinginitscurriculumthatitdoesinawayworthimitating.

6.1.2 Basedonallofthisinformation,thecurriculumdecideduponwillthenbedesignedanditsdesigndocumented.Nowadays,itisrecommended,andinsomesystemscompulsory,toputtheproposedcurriculumthroughsomeprocessofformalapprovalbeforeitruns.Thisiswherecurriculumdesigninteractswithqualityassurance,whichisthesubjectofanothercompaniontothishandbook,“inter-nal Quality assurance in higher music education”8.

6.1.3 Whenanewly-designedcurriculumisapproved,approvalisnormallygivenforacertainnumberofyears–usuallybetweenfiveandten-withtheexpectationthatareviewcomparableinscaletotheonethatledtothedesignitselfwilltakeplaceattheendofthisperiod.Thisprocessofperiodic reviewisimportantbecauseitre-imposesthedisciplineofthinkingholisticallyfromtimetotimeaboutthecurriculum,howithasevolvedoveranumberofyearsandhowtheneedsoftheprofessionmayalsohaveevolved,notnecessarilyinidenticalways,duringthesameperiod.Decidingthatacurriculumwhichwasdesignedandimplementedfiveormoreyearspreviouslynowneedssomefundamentalchangesdoesnotnecessarilymeanthattheoriginaldesignersgotitwrong;itsimplymeansthat,inanewsituation,anothermodelmightworkbetter.

6.1.4 Thereviewprocessneednotalwaysleadtoradicalrevision,ofcourse.Sometimes,ateammaylookatthecurriculumanddecidethat,apartfromafewminoradjustments,itisstillfitforpurpose.Thekeythingisthatthescopeofthereviewshouldbethorough,andpeople’smindsopentothepossibil-ityofchange.Aswehaveseeninthelastchapter,acreditstructurethatmakesitstraightforwardforelementsofthecurriculumtobeliftedoutandothersputintheirplacewithoutdestroyingthewholecanmakethekindofchangethatmaybecontemplatedatatimeofperiodicreviewseemamuchlessthreateningexercisethanitmightotherwise.

8 Thishandbookcanbefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/internalqa.

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6.2 learningoutcomesandreview

6.2.1 WithacurriculumthathasbeendesignedusingLearningOutcomes,theoutcomesthemselvesaretheobviousplacetostartthereviewprocess.InstitutionswillwanttoholdeachLearningOutcomeupforscrutinyandtoaskthemselveswhethereachOutcomeindividually,andthewholelistofOut-comesincombination,stillcorrespondtotheskillstheywouldwishtheirgraduatestopossess.Thequestionwillneedtobeputinanumberofways:

• IsthisparticularLearningOutcomestillrelevantanddesirableforgraduatingmusicianscom-pletingtheirstudiesnowand,asfarasonecanpredict,forthenextfive,ormore,years?

• DoestheoverallpatternofLearningOutcomesadduptoadescriptionofthekindofcomplete,well-roundedgraduatingmusicianthatwearehopingtoproducenow,andforthenextfiveormoreyears?

• And,intermsofthekindofmusicianwearehopingtoproduce,hasourowninstitutionalmissionchangedoverthepastfiveyears–forexample,intermsofthemusicalstylesandgenresthatwefeelitisimportanttocover?

• ArethereanyLearningOutcomesnotcurrentlyintheoverallpatternthatoughtnowtobeadd-ed?

• Ifso,andifthenumberofLearningOutcomesisstartingtobeunwieldy,arethereanythat,whilestillrelevantanddesirable,canperhapssafelybeomitted?

6.2.2OncetheLearningOutcomeshavebeenreviewed,andperhapsmodified, theseriesofquestionslistedin3.3.1needstobeposedonceagainandanychangesthatappeardesirableasaresultin-corporated.EvenifitisdecidednottochangeoraddtotheLearningOutcomes,itisstillimportanttoaskthequestionsaboutlessonsandclasses.Changes,developmentsandtheinfluxofnewideasmaymeanthattheanswerstothequestionsthatemergedfiveyearspreviouslymaynotnowcomeoutentirelyinthesamemanner.

6.2.3 Initialapprovalandperiodicreviewarethemajorlandmarksinthelifehistoryofanycurriculum.However,itisimportantthatacurriculumshouldbeallowedtodevelopascontinuouslyaspossible–again,providedthatthechangesinvolvedinthisdonotcompromisetheoverallstructureorinstilasenseofperpetualfluxanduncertaintyinthemindsofteachersandstudents.Withthisinmind,itisagoodgeneralprincipletoobservethatanychangeintroducedshouldbeallowedtorunforatleasttwoacademicyears.Newelementsarealmostalwaysunpopularwithsomegroupssimplybecausetheyarenew.Bythetimetheycomearoundasecondtime,theyaremorelikelytobejudgedontheirmerits,ratherthanbytheirunfamiliarity(itcanoftenbeinterestingtoobservehowaninnovationthatwasmetwithwidespreadscepticismatitsintroductioncan,afteronlyafewyears,becometheorthodoxythatnobodycouldimaginebeingchanged!).

6.3 ongoingdevelopmentthroughannualmonitoring

6.3.1 Mostof thechangesthatan institutionmightwantto introduceonayear-by-yearbasisbetweenreviewswilltendtobeatthelevelofoperationaldetail.Forexample,acourseofstudy,asoriginallydesigned,mighthavebeengivenapatternofassessmentwhichturnsout,inpractice,tofeeloverlyheavytothestudentsanddifficulttohandleswiftlyandeffectivelybytheteachers.Thiskindofover-zealousdesign isquitecommonand,althoughthoseleadingcurriculumdesignexercisesshouldbeawareofitandtrytominimiseit,intheend,onlytheexperienceofrunningthecourseisgoingtoprovewhatworksbest.Again,itisimportantnottoleaptochangesomethingbecauseonegroupofstudentsfindsituncongenial;itissituationswhereapatternemergesthatshouldpromptustodecidethatchangeisrequired.

6.3.2Tohelpachievethisbalancebetweencontinuallylookingforwaysto improvethecurriculumandavoidingperpetualchangeanduncertainty,theprocessofannualmonitoringcanbeveryhelpful.Thisis,insomewayslikeascaled-downversionofperiodicreview.It,too,involvesgatheringfeed-backbut this isusually internal, fromstudentsandstaff.Theonekeyexternal ingredientcomeswhereasystemofExternalExaminersisused.Especiallywhenthistakestheformofoneormorein-dividualsinvitedtoattendpracticalassessmentsandreviewwrittenassessmentsandthenproduceareportonwhattheyhaveobserved,thisprovidesanextremelyusefulperspectivetocomplementtheinternalone.

6.3.3Feedbackgatheredannuallywillproduceavarietyofsuggestions,rangingfromthesmallandeasilyimplemented to themajorandpotentially far-reaching.Correspondingly, thestraightforwardanduncontroversialrecommendationscan,andshould,beacteduponswiftly.Othersmaybenotedandputintoalistforconsiderationatthenextperiodicreview.Thisensuresthatmajorupheavalwithinthecurriculumbetweenperiodicreviewsiskepttoaminimum.Ifthecurriculumhasgonethroughathoroughdesignprocessatitsoriginalinception,itisunlikelythatanissueshouldarisethatisatoncesomajorastoinvolvecomprehensivere-designandsourgentastobedangeroustodelaytothenextperiodicreview.

6.4 continuousenhancement–thedevelopmentalphilosophy

6.4.1 Curriculumdevelopmentdependsuponanattitudeamongteachersthatrecognisesthat there isprobablynoteaching,howevergood,thatcannotstillbeimprovedinsomeway.Althoughthiscouldperhapsbeseenasachallengetoaspectsofthetraditionalviewoftheconservatoireteacheras“guru”andcustodianofwisdomhandeddownfromearlierteachers,itisnotintendedtobe.Con-stantlylookingforimprovementisitselfasignofexcellence,ratherthananindicationofinadequacy.Manyofthereveredteachersofthepastacquiredtheirgreatreputationspreciselybecausetheywererelentlesssearchersafterimprovement.Moreover,theirmostsuccessfulstudents,someofwhomsucceededthemasillustriousteachers,succeededpreciselybecausetheywereabletodomorethan

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simplytakeinandreproducewithnopersonalvariationordevelopment,theestablishedwisdomoftheirteachers.Whereateacherhasanexplicit“method”ofteaching,itwillusuallybeasynthesisofearlyinfluencesadaptedandrefinedinthelightofpersonalexperience–inotherwords,theresultofapersonalisedandinformalversionofcurriculumdevelopment.

6.4.2Ifacceptedasaninstitution-wideapproach,curriculumdevelopmentensuresthatteachersseeitaspartoftheirprofessionalresponsibilitytocontinuetodevelopandretainacuriosityfornewideasandapproaches.Thismaymean,inturn,thattheyfeelencouragedthemselves,orareencouragedbyothers,totalkmoretocolleagues,bothwithintheinstitutionandoutside.Forhourly-paidpart-timestaff,thismayinvolveallocatingresourcestoallowsuchmeetingstohappen.Assuch,itisaprocesstowhichtheinstitutionasawholealsohastobecommitted.

6.4.3Intermsoftheexternalaspectofthisdialogue,thisiswheretheEuropeandimensioncanplayanes-peciallybeneficialrole.Therecanbeatendencytothinkofmobilityfirstintermsofstudentsandonlysecondarilyintermsofstaff.However,thepositiveimpactuponstaffofbeinginvolvedinexchangeschemescanbeverystrikingandlong-lastingwithintheinstitution.TherichnessanddiversityofeducationaltraditionswithinthecountriesandregionsofEuropeandtherelativeeaseoftravellingfromoneEuropeancountrytoanotherrepresentadvantagesforEuropeaninstitutions.Moreover,theavailabilityofEuropeanfundingtosupportexchangesofthiskindmeansthat,inthisareaatleast,thecommitmentofresourcerequiredbyindividualinstitutionscanbesignificantlyreduced.

6.5 thedevelopmentalapproachtomanagingthecostofprovision

6.5.1 As the previous paragraphs imply, curriculum development requires a commitment of resource.However,itcanalsoleadtoresourcesbeingsaved.Acultureinwhichcurriculumdevelopmentisthenormismorelikelytoleadtoteachersseeinghowelementsofthecurriculumcanbedeliveredmoreefficiently,andhencemoreeconomically.Forexample,itmightemergethattwopreviouslyseparateelementsofthecurriculumcouldbedeliveredinanintegratedmanner.Ifthisisseentoleadtoabetterandquickerunderstandingonthepartofstudents,itwillbewelcomed.But,asasecondarybenefit,itmayalsoreducetheoveralltimeandcostinvolved,whetherbecausethelearningprocesscanbecoveredinfewerlessonsoverallorbecauseintegratingtheelementsalsomeansintegratingtheirassessment,withanreduction,therefore,inthenumberofassessmentsastudentmustunder-take.Aswellassavingresources,suchadevelopmentcanhelptoensurethatthestudent’soverallpatternofstudy,whichincludestheirassessment,isfull, but not over-loaded.

6.5.2Fromtimetotime,mostconservatoiresarelikelytoencountercircumstanceswheretheyneedtomakemoresignificanteconomiesacrossthecurriculum,asopposedtotheseminorandisolatedefficiencygains.Atsuchtimes,itisespeciallyimportantthatthepotentialusefulnessofcurriculumdevelopmentasatoolforresourcesavingsbekeptinmind.Justasitcanhelptoimproveprovisionfornoextracostandmaintainprovisionwithsavings,itcanensurethateducationaldamageinflicted

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ifresourcesareseverelycutcanbekepttoaminimum.Aculturebasedonclearprinciplesofcur-riculumdesignandcontinuousdevelopmentcanalsoenableaninstitutiontorespondquickly,andinthemostbeneficialareas,ifandwhenfinancialcircumstancesthenimprove.

6.5.3Thekindsofcontinuousmonitoringdescribedabove,andtheinstillingofanapproachgearedtothepossibilitythatthereisalwaysapotentiallybetterwayofdoingthings,shouldprovidemuchoftheevidenceneededto judgetheeffectivenessoftheLearningOutcomesattheirperiodicreview.Bythinkingholisticallyofthekindofmusicianwearehopingtohelpdevelopandworkingfromthatvi-sion,expressedinLearningOutcomes,tothecurriculumthatwilldeliverthisindividual,wearemorelikelytoremainopentothepossibilityofchangeandthereforetoensurethatourcurriculacontinuetodevelop.

6.6 curriculumreviewandexternalqualityassurance

6.6.1 In6.1,itwaspointedoutthatformalapprovalforaprogramme,andasimilarlyformalperiodicre-viewofallprogrammes,isnowadaysrecommendedand,insomesystems,compulsory.Whereaninstitutionisauthorisedtoconductitsowninternalapprovalprocesses(forexample,inthecaseofUKuniversitiesgrantedtheirownRoyalCharter)externalqualityassurancewillconsistofperiodicmonitoringofthoseprocessestoensurethattheyarerobustinprincipleandhavebeencorrectlyoperatedinpractice.Inothercases,approvalisitselfgrantedthroughsomeexternalagencywhichthereforeconductstheapprovalandreviewexercisesitself.

6.6.2Ineitherofthecasesdescribedabove,someformofexternalqualityassuranceisthereforebeingappliedtoensurethattheinstitutionisfulfillingtherequirementsplacedonit.Wheretheexternaldimensiontakestheformofperiodicmonitoring,itusuallyinvolvesseparatevisits,generallyonafive-to-ten-yearcycle,atwhichdocumentationfromtheapprovalandrevieweventsthathavetakenplacesincethelastvisitisscrutinisedandtherigouroftheprocessesinvolvedevaluated.

6.6.3Whetheroneisdealingwithasystemofexternalmonitoringorfull-scaleinvolvementinapprovalandreviewprocesses,thevalueofhavingagreedandwidely-sharedLearningOutcomesisconsider-able.LearningOutcomesprovidetheagencyconductingtheexternalqualityassurancewithasetofbenchmarksthattheycanuseasmeasuringtools.Fromtheinstitution’spointofview,iftheLearn-ingOutcomeshavebeendevelopedamongthecommunityofinstitutionsworkinginthisdiscipline,theyshouldprovidesomereassurancethatthoseconductingtheexternalreviewwillbelookingforthingsthatthoseinthedisciplineregardasimportant.Anexampleofhowsubject-specificlearningoutcomescanbeusedinexternalreviewscanbefoundintheAECFrameworkDocument“QualityAssuranceandAccreditationinHigherMusicEducation:Characteristics,CriteriaandProcedures”9,whichaddressesexternalqualityassuranceandaccreditationprocessinmusicinmoredetail.

9 ThisFrameworkDocumentcanbefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/accreditation.

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6.6.4Itmightbethoughtthatthepreviousparagraphimpliesthataninstitutionisbest-advisedtosticktoanydiscipline-wideLearningOutcomesthatmaybeavailableandnotbranchoutonitsownatall. This, of course, would make curricula at different institutions tend to become very homoge-neousand,overtime,mightdestroythediversitythat isoneofthestrengthsofEuropeanhighereducation.Therealityisnotlikethat–or,atleast,itshouldnotbe.AsharedsetofLearningOut-comesenablesaninstitutiontogoalongwiththesewhereitfindsitappropriatetodoso,butalsotodevelopclearargumentsfordivergencewhereitfeelsthatitsownmissionrequiresthis.Oneofthefeaturesofsharedlearningoutcomesisthattheyneedtobe“ecumenical”,andinclusive.Thiscanmakethemrathergeneralised,andevenbland.ItisgoodthataninstitutionshouldfeelabletoconstructitsownsharperandmorespecificLearningOutcomes,reflectingitsparticularstrengths,whilstpreservingacertaindegreeofreferencetothesharedoutcomes.

6.6.5Amatureandwell-operatedexternalqualityassurancesystemwilllistentotheargumentsthataninstitutionputsforwardastowhyithasinflectedsharedLearningOutcomestoitsownparticularsituationand, if it findsthemconvincing,willnotpenalisean institutionwhichhasthe justifiablestrengthofconvictiontobedistinctive.Thisisespeciallyimportantastherangeofmusicsaddressedbyconservatoiresgrowsthroughrecognitionbeinggiventotheimportanceofpopulargenres,tech-nology-basedmusicandmusicfromothertraditionsthanthatofWesternEuropeanArtMusic.

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7 ConClusIon

7.1 returningtofirstprinciples

ThishandbookhasattemptedtoshowhowLearningOutcomes,CreditPointsandthecyclesofan-nualmonitoringandperiodicreviewcanhelptodeliveracurriculumthatstartsout,andcontinuestobe,characterisedbythequalitieslistedin2.4:

• Well-balanced:thevariouscomponentsareeachgiventheirdifferentweight,asappropriate,butnoelementisgivenmorethanitsfairshare

• Full, but not overloaded:deliverablewithintheresourcesavailable-anover-fullcurriculumwill,inanycase,leadtostudentschoosingwhichelementstheywillattendandwhichtheywillmiss,sincetheycan’tattendeverything.Thewasteinsuchasituationisobvious

• Flexible:adaptabletothedifferentneedsofdifferentstudents;responsivetochangingprioritiesandalerttolikelyfuturerequirementsoftheprofession

• Progressive:encouragingstudentstogrowanddevelopastheypassthroughtheprogramme,oftenbystartingwithastructuredandlargelycompulsorypatternofstudiesandmovingtooneinwhichchoiceplaysagreaterpart

• Student-centred:recognisingthat,foreachstudent,thecurriculumismorethansimplythepat-ternoflessonsandclassesthattheinstitutionoffers–itisthesumtotalofeverythingthestudentislearningandabsorbingduringhisorhertimeattheconservatoire

• Focussed on learning:selectingteachingmethodsandmethodsofassessmentonthebasisofhowwelltheyencouragelearningandthendemonstratethatithasbeenachieved

Inconcluding,Ishouldliketosayafewmorewordsaboutwhatismeantby student-centred learningandabouttheparticularimplicationsofthisforconservatoire-styleteaching.

7.2 student-centredness:traditionsandideals

7.2.1 Inonesense, theconservatoire teaching traditionhasalwaysbeenstudent-centred in thatat itsheartliestheteachingmodelofthe1-to-1lesson.Evenwhereapracticalteacherworkswithaclassformat,thisisstillusuallybasedupontheprinciplethatheorsheinteractswithonestudentwhileotherslookon,learningvicariouslyuntilitistheirturntobethefocusofindividualattentionfromtheteacher.Since,atanygivenmoment,oneteacheristhereforeinteractingwithonestudent,itisinevitablethatthegroundcoveredinthelessonshouldbeinfluencedbythematerialthestudenthasbroughttothelessonandbythestrengthsandweaknessesofthatparticularstudent.

7.2.2 However,ascanbeseenaboveinthesupplementarysentenceaboutstudent-centredlearning,thereismoretobeunderstoodinthisideathanjusttheelementofindividualtailoringthatcomesnaturallythroughthe1-to-1lesson.Inpart,itinvolvesafundamentalconceptualshiftfromteachingtolearningandagreaterconcentrationupontheideathatthestudentisanactiveagent,seekingoutknowledge,

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skills,etc.wherevertheyaretobefound,ratherthanthepassiverecipientofabodyofteachingthatothershavedecidedisinhisorherbestinterests.Inthisrespect,student-centrednessandafocusuponlearninggocloselytogether,aswasseenintheinitialdiscussionofLearningOutcomesin3.2.

7.2.3 Ofcourse,noteverystudenthasaclearideaofwhattheyneedtolearn–andsomewhodohaveclearideasarenotalwaysrightaboutthis!Especiallyintheearlieryearsoftheprogramme,studentsgen-erallybenefitfromreceivingacarefully-plannedpatternoflessonsandclassesdrawnupbythosewhodeliverthem.Whatisimportantisthattheteachersoftheselessonsandclassesshouldgivethoughttohow,inthecourseoftheirteachingandalongsidetheskillsandknowledgetheyaregivingthestudents,theyarealsopreparingthemforgreaterindependenceintheirsubsequentlearning.

7.2.4Thisiswherethe1-to-1lesson,althoughtailoredtotheindividualstudent,cansometimesbelessthantrulystudent-centred.Atitsworst,the1-to-1teachingsituationcansimplyencouragethestu-dent’spassivedependencyontheteacher–theveryoppositeoftruestudent-centredness;atitsbest,though,itcanpromoteasearchingdialoguebetweenteacherandstudent,thecharacterofwhichprogressivelyandinstinctivelychangesasthestudent’sexperienceandskillgrow.Where,initially,therolesofteacherandstudentmaybequitedistinctandtheteacher’scontributionsubstantiallydirective,ideally,thelessonswillgraduallyturnmoreintosharedjourneysofexploration,inwhichthestudentwillcontinuetotakecuesandsuggestionsfromtheteacherbutwillincreasinglyhaveinsightsandcounter-suggestionstocontributeinreturn.

7.2.5Teacherswhoencouragethismetamorphosis–andmanydo–generateateachingandlearningmodelwhichisorganic,developmental,optimisticallyopen-endedandgenuinelystudent-centred.Thestudentmaygrowindifferentdirectionsfromthosetakenbyhisorherteacherandmayevencomeintimetoeclipsethem.Whenthishappens,itissurelytobewelcomed-inthatthealterna-tivewouldbeamodelwhereeachstudentcouldonlybeaslightlyimperfectfacsimileofhisorherteacherandtheresult,overtime,wouldbediminution,ratherthandevelopment.

7.3 finalremarks

7.3.1 Likeanydocumentdealingwithaspecialistsubject,thishandbookcontainswordsandphrasesthathaveaspecialmeaning–inthiscase,withinthelanguageofhighereducation.Withmanyofthese,explanationsoftheirmeaninghavebeengivenalongsidetheirintroductionduringthetext.However,thereadermayfindithelpfultorefertothelargerGlossaryofsuchtermsthathasbeenpreparedseparatelyaspartofthePolifoniaproject.ThisGlossarymaybefoundatwww.bologna-and-music.org/glossary

7.3.2 Throughoutthishandbook,wehaveseenprinciplesandpracticesofcurriculumdesignanddevelop-mentthatareintendedtoencouragestudent-centredlearning.Perhapsitisappropriatetofinishbysayingthat,ideally,eachstudentshouldsimilarly,butonanindividualbasis,reflectonwhatkindof

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graduatingmusiciantheywishtobe(asitwere,theirpersonallearningoutcomes)andwhichlessonsandclassestheyfeelwillbesthelpthemtogetthere(theirpersonalcurriculum).

7.3.3Acurriculumdesignedaccording to theprinciplesdescribedaboveshouldhave theeffectofen-couragingjustthiselementofreflection,planningandchoice.Indeed,itisanincreasinglycommonfeatureoftoday’sdesignedandmorefully-documentedprogrammesthattheyshould involvethestudentproducingsomekindofwrittenStudyPlan.Providedthatthesearekeptsimple,theycanbeasusefulandrelevantformusicstudentsasforthoseinotherdisciplines.Forthestudent,asfortheinstitution,itcanbegenuinelyhelpfulforlearningtobeconsciouslyplannedandthen,whereverappropriate,developedthroughreflectionandreview.

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AEC Curriculum Design and Development in Higher Music Education

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