Curriculum Mapping and Inventory

What is a Curriculum Inventory (CI)?

• Definition: the CI is a comprehensive record of all courses, lectures, and other course learning activities.
• Importance: the CI is an essential tool for program evaluation, transparency, and curriculum alignment.
• Scope: the CI captures various learning activities, such as courses, clerkships, electives, and other educational experiences.
• Benefits: the CI can be used to improve program evaluation, promote transparency, and create curriculum maps.

But Really...Why?

1. It's an accreditation requirement. Although there are many other reasons, this one usually trumps all others when articulating the importance of mapping. The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) Data Collection Instrument (DCI) refers to this documentation as a curriculum database, and the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) refers to it as a curriculum map. Beyond simply having a curriculum map, reports sourced from your curriculum mapping data may support aspects of the accreditation process.
2. It's needed to complete AAMC/AACOM Curriculum SCOPE Survey. Schools rely on their local curriculum maps to be able to complete this survey, especially around curriculum topics (e.g., advocacy, clinical decision-making, nutrition, etc.). Benchmarking reports will only be useful with reliable, accurate data, thus sound curriculum maps are needed to inform schools' survey responses.
3. Students need it. The curriculum map helps students understand the trajectory of their learning, where they are, where they are going, and where they have been. It helps put their learning into context, so how their learning fits into long-term goals is clear. 
4. Faculty need it. With numerous faculty involved in the educational enterprise, some with very brief touches with students, it is critical faculty are able to know where all the "touches" on a given topic occur, so that they understand what students have already experienced and what they need to be prepared for. Faculty need to know how the content is structured and delivered, what gaps or unintentional redundancies may exist, and how their areas of expertise fit into the students' educational objectives. 
5. The school needs it. Whether its responding to inquiries, outlining expectations for students, ensuring content has a logical sequence and progressive complexity, ensuring content is aligned and integrated where appropriate, supporting continuous quality improvement and program evaluation, or providing reports to the curriculum committee, a healthy curriculum map is the foundation of educational program alignment and sound decision-making.

Using CI/Maps to Improve Curriculum

• Ensuring compliance with accreditation standards
• Identify gaps and redundancies
• Clarify course/learning objectives
• Improve instructional alignment
• Support course-level reviews
• Promote curriculum research
• Facilitating instructional collaboration amongst faculty
• Tracking student progress

The WSU SOM Approach to a Curriculum Inventory

This approach is embedded as part of the overarching QuAD Program (course design quality assurance at WSU SOM). Join the QuAD Community of Practice and access all tools and support in a single space.

• Update your syllabus in the Repository (email to T Anderson, CI manager and QuAD Program Director).
• OLT Learning Series sessions—learn more about:
  • The CI Syllabus Repository and how to create a syllabus
  • The Course Design Quality Pillars
  • The Course Design Quality Playbook/Checklist/Review Rubric