Basics of Curriculum Development


Spread the love

Chances are good that at some point in your career, you will need to teach people something in a formal environment like a classroom or lecture hall. You might get assigned the entire first year of intro bio (with labs), or you might just give a guest lecture in some graduate seminar where you are visiting, but it is a common responsibility for scientists. It is also something very few of us get training on.  Perhaps someone has prepared slides and exam questions for you, and you will just go through the motions. But at some point, I’d like all scientists who teach to spend a few minutes thinking about how to build a course. This will help your teaching evaluations, give you confidence as an instructor and speaker, and improve the learning experience for your students.