Curriculum foundation pieces guide curriculum development to ensure a quality curriculum. Regardless of design considerations, curriculum foundation pieces are always present in NorQuest’s curriculum development approach.

2.1 Skills of Distinction

The Skills of Distinction refer to the skills we aspire to develop in each and every learner, including resiliency, new ways of thinking and inclusion. We call them Skills of Distinction because they prepare every learner for the challenges of a changing workforce and a changing world. They shape the learning outcomes expected for all programs and courses offered at the college. For more information on the Skills of Distinction, visit the Skills of Distinction Libguide.

2.2 Outcomes-Based Education

“Outcomes-based education addresses one fundamental question: ‘What do learners need to be able to do upon completion of the course?’ All curriculum decisions are based on the answers to this question” (NorQuest College, 2009). Outcomes describe the vision of what a learner will be able to do because of their learning once they leave the classroom. At its most basic level, OBE considers the learner experience along with concepts, skills, issues, outcomes, learning activities, and assessments.

2.3 Equity and Diversity

A curriculum that embraces equity and diversity “[has] the ability to function with awareness, knowledge, and interpersonal skill when engaging people of diverse backgrounds, assumptions, beliefs, values, and behaviours.” In general, equity and diversity are meant to include concepts that embrace human rights, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, and political beliefs. Specifically, curriculum embraces principles of indigenization and decolonization, interculturalization, and internationalization. Approaches might include consultation and collaboration, content expertise, and methodologies for assessment, teaching, and learning in general.

2.4 Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

“The College-Wide Learning Outcomes reflect the essential skills, abilities, and attitudes that NorQuest promotes in its programs and culture” (NorQuest College, 2017). As such, aligning curriculum outcomes to the College-Wide Learning Outcomes ensures purposeful and transformational learning.