Course Designer: sample review
An illustrative review and follow-up, showing how a course outline can lead to a focused improvement.
Illustrative review drawn from an undergraduate introductory Organizational Behaviour course outline. Not evidence of observed classroom effectiveness.
Input
A syllabus with two individual exams (30% each) and a team-based evidence-informed research project (proposal 5%, video 10%, report 25%). Teams formulate a PICOC question, receive feedback on the proposal, and assess organizational practices using research evidence. The official objectives mainly emphasize knowing and explaining OB concepts.
Short diagnostic review
Overall assessment: The course has a coherent foundation and a strong applied project. A full redesign is not warranted. The most valuable change is to make evidence-based judgement an explicit learning target.
Keep
- Early introduction to evidence-based management, a library workshop, and a PICOC proposal.
- A staged research project that requires analysis of research, practical applicability, and unintended consequences.
- Individual exams (60%) complemented by collaborative work (40%).
Improve / verify
- Align objectives and assessments (change): The research project demands more than the stated knowledge-based objectives. Add an evidence-evaluation objective or revise existing objectives, subject to approval.
- Individual evidence of learning (possible improvement): With 40% group work, consider a short individual evidence explanation, but first determine whether exams or other activities already assess this capability.
- Feedback between proposal and final products (verify): The outline documents proposal feedback but does not establish whether additional feedback occurs. Add a midpoint checkpoint only if existing support is insufficient.
Assessment snapshot
| Evidence | Weight | Primary contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Midterm | 30% | Individual understanding of foundational OB |
| Final exam | 30% | Individual understanding of later OB topics |
| Group proposal | 5% | Research question and search plan |
| Group video | 10% | Communicating findings |
| Group report | 25% | Critical evidence-based analysis |
Explore improvements (choose any)
- Align objectives and assessments: Two routes, with a revised objective and assessment map.
- Make individual learning visible: An individual research explanation and a low-marking alternative.
- Clarify project feedback: A 10-minute evidence checkpoint and an option to verify current practice.
- Optional deeper review: Add the project rubric or sample exams.
Example instructor choice
Expand option 1. Keep the assessments and weights unchanged; prepare ready-to-paste English wording.
Example ready-to-use deliverable
Proposed project-level learning objective:
Evaluate organizational practices using relevant organizational behaviour theories and credible research evidence, considering contextual factors, competing explanations, and potential unintended consequences.
Proposed alignment
| Assessment | Weight | Main learning evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Midterm examination | 30% | Core individual-level OB concepts |
| Final examination | 30% | Power, influence, and leadership concepts |
| Group proposal | 5% | Researchable question and evidence search plan |
| Group video | 10% | Communication of evidence-based findings |
| Group report | 25% | Critical evaluation and contextualized recommendations |
Implementation note: Add this as a project-level outcome if official course outcomes cannot be changed without approval. The table is a proposed mapping, not proof of exam item-level alignment. Review actual questions and rubric before claiming full alignment.