Some key takeaways on curriculum mapping:
A curriculum map identifies what content is taught, how it is taught, and when it is taught. The goal of curriculum mapping is to create a visual aid to demonstrate relationships between various components of the curriculum and ensure that learning outcomes and objectives are being addressed. The concept of curriculum mapping was introduced by Fenwick English in 1984 to provide a visual depiction of what is being taught within a program or department. Curriculum maps illustrate content areas and skills that students should learn over the course of a semester or degree program.
Curriculum mapping requires instructors to define learning outcomes for their courses and degree programs. The process benefits from the involvement of as many instructors as possible. A faculty retreat can be a useful method to both write and map objectives.
Alternatively, the curriculum mapping process can begin with individual instructors mapping the content of their courses. Then, multiple instructors teaching the same course can work together to aggregate their maps. Once the maps are combined, all faculty members working on the mapping project review the map to identify overlaps, gaps in content, strengths, etc.
In a curriculum map, the objectives of the program are typically written on one axis and courses (or class activities) are written on the other axis. Within each cell, a mark is used to indicate when (either what course or lesson) that objective is taught. The following table demonstrates how components of a program can be mapped onto learning objectives.
Faculty can also choose to differentiate between when the content is introduced, practiced, refined, or mastered by creating a key of simply marking that the content was addressed.
After a curriculum map is created, revisions in course content or delivery can be created and implemented. This process can be repeated for continuous improvement and cohesion in a department.
English, F.W. (1984) curriculum mapping and management, in: B.D. Sattes (Ed.) Promoting Schools Excellence through the Application of Effective Schools Research: Summary and Proceedings of a 1984 Regional Exchange Workshop.