Welcome to UW's "OCAV UDLE" site. Teaching and Learning Specialists at the Centre for Teaching Excellence developed these resources to support the incorporation of this newest piece of undergraduate program review. We hope the site will be useful whether you are beginning a review, responding to a recent one, thinking ahead a few years, or planning a new program. Many Departments have questions about how the six "Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations" (UDLEs) and the two additional University of Waterloo expectations will tie in with your own program goals, student learning outcomes, and even course planning. If your questions are not answered by browsing our FAQs and other parts of this site, or if you simply wish to seek more support, please email the CTE for further assistance, or phone the CTE at x 33353.

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In the 1990s, the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) mandated Undergraduate Program Review Audits through the Ontario Council of Academic Vice-Presidents (OCAV). These procedures were to be undertaken every 7 years for each program in Ontario universities, very much like the Ontario Council on Graduate Studies (OCGS) review processes that had been in place for decades at the graduate level. In 2005, OCAV adopted Undergraduate Degree-Level Expectations (UDLEs) and asked for compliance with these six outcome statements from all member universities beginning in the June 2008 review cycle. We need to show that students are meeting these threshold, base-level expectations through each of our programs and we have five years in which to ensure that procedures are in place to guarantee this. Universities – and individual programs – are certainly free to exceed the basic expectations, and indeed Waterloo has added two of its own in order to further clarify its unique strengths for the public and its community.

The impetus for such outcomes-based assessment of programs included the fact that Canada is one of a very few countries without any clear statement of the meaning of its undergraduate degrees. Ontario decided to take the lead in this in part also because it was becoming clear through such channels as the Rae Report that if we did not clarify and institute our own quality measures, external forces would surely do so for us. The UDLEs were seen as a homegrown solution by the Vice-Presidents and as such may be preferable to the kinds of quality control measures mandated in the U.K. or Australia, for example. At the same time as the UDLEs were created, so too were Graduate Degree-Level Expectations (GDLEs) for both Masters and PhD.

The most recent OCAV guidelines state:

The globalization of higher education has led to the need to be able to compare and contrast the variety of qualifications granted by academic institutions for credit transfer, graduate study preparation, and professional qualification. Similarly, jurisdictions with decentralized systems are looking for ways to measure academic equivalencies. In addition, in order to be able to evaluate and monitor the effectiveness of all aspects of instruction, institutions, accrediting authorities and funding bodies have begun to clarify the outcomes expected of graduates. OCAV, aware of a national initiative to state degree expectations, has prepared this document to reflect expectations of performance by the graduates of the Baccalaureate/Bachelors programs of Ontario’s publicly funded universities.

The undergraduate degree level expectations (UDLEs) elaborate the intellectual and creative development of students and the acquisition of relevant skills that have been widely, yet implicitly, understood. At their most basic, the six UDLEs articulated by OCAV are as follows:

1. Depth and Breadth of Knowledge
2. Knowledge of Methodologies
3. Application of Knowledge
4. Communication Skills
5. Awareness of Limits of Knowledge
6. Autonomy and Professional Capacity

In addition, the University of Waterloo has added two more UDLEs:

7. Experiential Learning
8. Diversity

A Microsoft Word document containing all of these UDLEs, and suitable for printing, is available here. Additionally, each of these eight UDLEs is presented with additional detail below.

 

Curriculum mapping template

Curriculum mapping is a versatile tool; using a grid, you can map your program aims and outcomes against the OCAV/UW expectations, your program's courses against your program outcomes, or even each course against the content and skills of your discipline. Curriculum mapping can happen during Department retreats facilitated by someone with experience. Alternatively, you might create a survey for your faculty members to fill out and return to a curriculum committee. We've also seen examples of mapping software that creates the map for you based on surveys of what faculty members actually teach in their courses.

CTE has experimented with mapping exercises in several Departments on campus already. See the Case Studies in the menu to the right for local examples. This template (an Excel spreadsheet) contains all of the categories, subcategories, and sub-subcategories of the OCAV UDLEs for the Honours degree. You may, ultimately, want to complete a template right down to the sub-subcategory level. Initially, however, your departmental discussions about curriculum mapping may be more fruitful if you begin by simply focusing on the eight main categories, ignoring the sublevels until later in the process. If you need a template that is specific to the general undergraduate degree, please contact CTE.

Course planning template

This template (a Microsoft Word document) provides a framework for those who wish to start their planning at an individual course level. The template could also serve as a starting point for discussing program goals, since course outcomes typically feed into program outcomes.

Learning outcomes: examples

The panels below give examples of learning outcomes from several disciplines, written to correspond to the six levels of Bloom's Taxonomy. For the most part, the examples are for fairly discrete learning, such as might be included in an assignment, or for a single week of a longer course. At the same time, they give a sense of how outcomes can be written for different levels of complexity, and how that might look in different disciplines.

1. Remembering

Recognizing (locating knowledge in memory that is consistent with presented material)

• Match the following elements to the following atomic weights.
• Of the three prime ministers named below, select the one who is most associated with promoting deficit financing.
• Of the theories listed below, identify the ones that were influenced by poststructuralism.
• Identify the location of the PI controller in the following block diagram.

Recalling (retrieving relevant knowledge from long-term memory)

• Locate the following acidified lakes on this map.
• In less than 50 words, describe what happens in Act 2 Scene 1.
• List the molecules in the stratosphere that protect against ultraviolet radiation?
• List the composition, structure, fusion process, and features of the following stars.
• In approximately 300 words, describe the hydrologic cycle

2. Understanding

Interpreting (changing from one form of representation to another)

• Plot the following meteorological data onto a bar graph.
• Render Shakespeare’s Sonnet 44 into contemporary English.
• Examine the following snippet of C++ code and describe the function that both the loop and if/then statements are satisfying in this program.

Exemplifying (Finding a specific example or illustration of a concept or principle)

• Give three examples of effective political alliances.
• Give an example of cognate words.
• Using Frye’s taxonomy of fictional modes, provide literary examples of each of the following: myth, romance, high mimesis, low mimesis, and irony.
• Present a cellular process that relies on cell signaling.

Classifying (Determining that something belongs to a category)

• Identify which of the following elements are metals and which are non-metals.
• According to Showalter’s taxonomy of female authorship, which of the following novels belong to the Feminine era?
• Examine the following circuit diagrams and select the ones that utilize a “series” design

Summarizing (Rendering into a briefer form)

• Summarize Hamlet in less than 200 words.
• Write a 100-word abstract of the following journal article.
• In 800 words or less, describe how geologic, climatic, and floral events shaped the evolution of animals for the Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic eras.
• Provide a 4-6 sentence description of “ecological interface design.”

Inferring (Abstracting a general theme or major point)

• In a brief paragraph, describe what would happen if the support beams in this structure were aluminum rather than steel?
• What does Othello mean when he says that he loved “not wisely, but too well?”
• Judging from this survey’s results, are people satisfied with the current leadership? Prepare a response that you can verbally present to the class.
• Examine the data collected from the task analysis and determine the major patterns that emerge from the information.

Comparing (Detecting correspondences between two or more ideas, objects, etc.)

• Which country retains more of its colonial heritage, Canada or Australia? Provide evidence for your answer in a three-page essay.
• What are the key differences between the Mississippi river and the Amazon river? Render your response as a one-page chart.
• In approximately 300 words, explain the difference between weathering and erosion?
• In a five-page essay, compare the performance of Company A and Company B given the financial statements provided.
• In a five-minute class presentation, compare and contrast the signaling of data changes using inband techniques vs. the signaling of data changes using out-of-band techniques.
• Compare self-enhancement and self-verification theories.
• In a 300-word response, explain how social psychology and folk wisdom differ.

Explaining (Constructing a cause-and-effect model of a system or situation)

• Why did the U.S. not enter World War Two until after Pearl Harbor had been attacked? Explain your perspective in a three-page essay.
• Explain how these different local winds originate: land-sea breezes, mountain-valley breezes, katabatic winds, and regional monsoons.
• Explain the stages of the Core-Periphery model of development in an urban system
• In a presentation that you will make to your group, explain how paracentric inversion affects the products of meiosis?
• Explain what an action potential is and how it is created. Your response should be roughly 200 words in length.

3. Applying

Executing (Applying knowledge – often procedural – to a routine task)

• Prepare a 1 M solution of hydrochloric acid.
• Propose a way of correcting the following comma splice.
• Wrap the patient’s ankle to prevent further injury.
• Identify possible promoter areas in the DNA sequence presented below.
• A system is composed of gasoline liquid and vapor, and air. According to Gibbs phase rule, how many independent properties are required for phase equilibrium?
• Determine and record the subject’s systolic and diastolic blood pressure at rest and during exercise.

Implementing (Applying knowledge – often procedural – to a non-routine task)

• Audit the attached financial records.
• Edit the following paragraph for errors of grammar or punctuation.
• Identify and implement the appropriate treatment to remedy this patient’s lower back

4. Analyzing

Differentiating (Identifying defining characteristics)

• Identify which steps are most essential in the following procedure.
• Do the following stars belong to the same class?
• Is a platypus a mammal, reptile, amphibian, or bird?
• Is the Merchant of Venice a comedy or tragedy? Explain why.

Organizing (Determining how elements fit or function within a structure)

• Create a concept map that demonstrates how the people in this corporation report to one another.
• Draw a Venn diagram to show how these groups overlap.
• Devise a system of categories to logically organize the following forms of criminal behaviour.
• Draw a cladogram to depict the evolutionary relationship between modern birds and archaeosaurs.
• In order to explore a trend within the periodic table, plot the bond length of the group ПA metals (Be to Ba) as function of atomic number.

Attributing (Determining the underlying point of view, bias, values, or intent)

• In a one-page response, identify from what political perspective the following article is written.
• Is the tone of this column serious or ironic? Give evidence for your decision in a paragraph-long
• response.
• Is To Kill a Mockingbird told from the perspective of a child or adult?
• What do Professor Smythe’s comments about string theory imply about his views on where funding for physics should be directed?
• Does the following case study advance the scholarly work within Chemical Engineering?
• What assumptions are being made that are identified and not identified within this case?

5. Evaluating

Checking (Detecting inconsistencies or fallacies within a process or product)

• In what ways does the following sonnet not correspond to the conventional sonnet form?
• Observe a classmate as he or she examines a patient’s eyes, and identify any errors or omissions in the procedure.
• Verify that this bibliography corresponds to APA format.

Critiquing (Detecting the appropriateness of a procedure for a given task or situation)

• Is this author correct in proposing that the high levels of violence experienced by Aboriginal women are best understood as a product of misogyny rather than racism?
• Does the evidence presented in this article support the conclusions reached by the author?
• Identify any weaknesses in this experiment’s methodology.
• Assess how increasing urban land at the expense of forests and grasslands will impact the a)
• atmosphere, b) biosphere, c) hydrosphere, and d) lithosphere.
• Examine the three proposed Architectural designs for an indoor ecological park and critique the works based on the categories of: aesthetics, structure, function, and suitability.

6. Creating

Generating (Coming up with alternatives or hypotheses)

• Propose an alternative theoretical framework for understanding the high levels of violence that Aboriginal women experience.
• With the data you gathered from your field observations, devise a hypothesis that accounts for the geographic distribution of raccoons in Kitchener-Waterloo.
• Devise a theory to explain the origin and persistence of the tag “eh” that many Canadians affix to the end of sentences.
• Do you agree that PDAs were mistakenly marketed to the masses? Outline an alternative strategy.

Planning (Devising a procedure for accomplishing a task)

• Propose a protocol that will improve the accuracy of patient DNA identification.
• Devise a procedure for tracking sightings of raccoons that are reported by the public.
• Create a Gant chart outlining the workflow structure, tasks, and deadlines for your Learning Object project.
• Devise a protocol for determining when evacuation of a city located at the foot of a large composite volcano should begin. Consider safety versus economic issues in your answer.
• Prepare a weighted list of five criteria that can be used to assess the feasibility of potential sites for a new marina.
• What is a logical sequence of procedures that you could carry out to identify which genes are expressed in skin cells during exposure to UV radiation.
• Design the experimental plan to conduct observational user testing on a piece of software.
• Create a plan to prevent and manage stress in your life.

Producing (Inventing a product)

• Write a software program that will accept form-based reports of raccoon sightings, and then render them on an interactive map.
• Develop an environmental strategy for a company or organization of your choice.
• Create an electronic edition of a little-known sixteenth-century treatise, complete with critical apparatus such as introduction, footnotes, glossary, and so on.
• Develop a business plan for the product described in the case study provided.
• Create a Learning Object that is designed to help undergraduates understand the process by which a black hole is formed.
• Establish the circuit design for the solar energy collector of a large-scale outdoor lighting system.
• Clone a wombat.

Generating (Coming up with alternatives or hypotheses)

• Propose an alternative theoretical framework for understanding the high levels of violence that Aboriginal women experience.
• With the data you gathered from your field observations, devise a hypothesis that accounts for the geographic distribution of raccoons in Kitchener-Waterloo.
• Devise a theory to explain the origin and persistence of the tag “eh” that many Canadians affix to the end of sentences.
• Do you agree that PDAs were mistakenly marketed to the masses? Outline an alternative strategy.

Planning (Devising a procedure for accomplishing a task)

• Propose a protocol that will improve the accuracy of patient DNA identification.
• Devise a procedure for tracking sightings of raccoons that are reported by the public.
• Create a Gant chart outlining the workflow structure, tasks, and deadlines for your Learning Object project.
• Devise a protocol for determining when evacuation of a city located at the foot of a large composite volcano should begin. Consider safety versus economic issues in your answer.
• Prepare a weighted list of five criteria that can be used to assess the feasibility of potential sites for a new marina.
• What is a logical sequence of procedures that you could carry out to identify which genes are expressed in skin cells during exposure to UV radiation.
• Design the experimental plan to conduct observational user testing on a piece of software.
• Create a plan to prevent and manage stress in your life.

Producing (Inventing a product)

• Write a software program that will accept form-based reports of raccoon sightings, and then render them on an interactive map.
• Develop an environmental strategy for a company or organization of your choice.
• Create an electronic edition of a little-known sixteenth-century treatise, complete with critical apparatus such as introduction, footnotes, glossary, and so on.
• Develop a business plan for the product described in the case study provided.
• Create a Learning Object that is designed to help undergraduates understand the process by which a black hole is formed.
• Establish the circuit design for the solar energy collector of a large-scale outdoor lighting system.
• Clone a wombat.

Sample syllabi

This section houses sample syllabi that demonstrate how to use outcomes to articulate what students are expected to achieve by the end of a course.

• Faculty of Science syllabus guidelines ( Microsoft Word doc)
• Sample Course Outline (PDF)

Additionally, this PDF document lists the elements that are required by all UW courses.

UW Case Study Examples

Case Study 1: Department seeks feedback on curriculum plans partway through development of a new Honours major

Context

CTE was approached in December 2007 to facilitate a five- to six-hour retreat to “ask us the tough questions” and to help understand the new Degree-Level Expectations from OCAV.

Approach

Before the retreat, a Senior Instructional Developer studied all documents pertaining to previous program review, current mission statements, and the Department’s new curriculum plan. Having derived key terms and key objectives from them, the SID pre-printed large sticky notes with one objective per note. During the retreat, the same SID led a process of course and curriculum mapping. After brainstorming attributes of an ideal graduate from the existing and the planned program, faculty members were given the large sticky notes with one key objective or key value pre-printed per note, and asked to map these to the brainstormed list of ideal graduate attributes. Once they were satisfied with the results, they moved the sticky notes to a prepared grid with the OCAV UDLEs across the top, seeing clearly how they are already meeting these threshold expectations (and in some cases, exceeding them). Then, using smaller sticky notes and a new set of grids, the OCAV UDLEs were listed across the top horizontal axis and the program courses listed along the vertical axis; each faculty member noted where his or her course introduced, reinforced, or mastered content or skills in support of the UDLEs, and what activities and assessments allowed students to demonstrate these levels of learning.

Results

Faculty members discussed content, skills, and teaching/learning approaches across the curriculum; two months later, the program planning committee chair used similar concepts to continue the planning process.

Case Study 2: Department with several subspecialties seeks curriculum mapping help given faculty-wide curriculum integration request and new guidelines from OCAV (after a program review).

Context

CTE was approached in December 2007 to facilitate a five- to six-hour retreat to help integrate curricular approaches and refine the Department’s curriculum mapping in light of their recent program review.

Approach

Before the retreat, a Senior Instructional Developer studied all documents pertaining to the recent program review and derived key terms and key objectives from them. During the retreat, the same SID along with a CTE Liaison led a process of course and curriculum mapping. The process followed was nearly exactly that described in Case Study 1, with the significant difference that the three different sub-units divided and created maps of their own programs after the initial program outcomes mapping, and then regrouped at the end of the day to share what was learnt or changed.

Results

Faculty members discussed content, skills, and teaching/learning approaches across the curriculum within each of the three main programs (one more socially oriented, two more science oriented). This led to a more complete curriculum map for the whole Department.

Case Study 3: Department seeks course design support in the context of a new program with professional competencies and an imported /adapted curriculum

Context

CTE was approached in Spring 2007 to facilitate a course design process in support of a new curriculum in a new program, with students to arrive January 2008.

Approach

The Associate Director, CTE along with the SID, Programming designed and delivered an abbreviated version of the Teaching Excellence Academy, supported by CTE Liaisons (e-Portfolio and Science). In the Academy, faculty members created a concept map for their courses, wrote learning outcomes, chose formative and summative assessments, and selected learning activities in order to create course outlines that were well-aligned and clearly articulated. Interactive exercises facilitated the development of the outlines and created an open learning environment among the Department members.

Results

Faculty members created course outlines and began to map the assessments and activities to be used in their upcoming courses to identify areas of interaction, overlap, and gaps. They were able to see a visual representation of the kinds of work students were being asked to do across the first term’s curriculum and adjust accordingly.

Examples from elsewhere

Here some examples of how other universities have undertaken curriculum mapping:

• Mapping Assessment to Curriculum, University of Nevada (Reno)
• Curriculum Mapping for a Business Program, New Jersey City University
• Engineering Program Curriculum Mapping, University of California (Los Angeles)

What is OCAV?

The Ontario Council of Academic Vice-Presidents. OCAV is affiliated with the Council of Ontario Universities. 

What are UDLEs?

Undergraduate Degree Level Expectations – the learning outcomes expected for all students awarded undergraduate degrees in Ontario.

What are outcomes?

Outcomes are statements that describe what students will be able to know (cognitive), do (psychomotor), and feel/model (affective) by the end of the program or course of study. Outcomes describe measurable behaviours. Most outcomes have three parts: an action, a topic, and a criterion or context. Note that terminology is used interchangeably; you may find "outcomes," "objectives," and "goals" used to mean the same thing in different settings. The semantics are less critical than the essential notion: statements describing what students will have learned, articulated in a way that allows that learning to be measured. 

Where are outcomes used?

Outcomes can be written at the program level, the course level, and the individual unit level. Even when we write assignment criteria, we are writing what we want students to be able to demonstrate in response to their learning. Program outcomes will outline the learning that will be common to all graduates of the program. Course outcomes will articulate the specific learning for each course. Examples of outcomes can be found in many textbooks. Each chapter may have stated outcomes or objectives, and within each chapter, mini steps may be set along the way so the learner may test their knowledge.

Do I start with the program outcomes or course outcomes?

While the OCAV UDLEs describe program outcomes, you may wish to build toward them by first creating course outcomes. Alternatively, you may wish to start with overall program outcomes. Where you begin is your choice.

How do I write (or improve) learning outcomes?

The aim is to write statements of what students will learn that incorporate an action verb, an observable behaviour, and if relevant, criteria for performance. Well written learning outcomes lead neatly into how they will be evaluated.

Where can I find examples of learning outcomes?

An excellent list is available from York University’s Curriculum Development website, which provides links to examples from a number of disciplines.

Links

• Council of Ontario Universities
  For more than 40 years, the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) has been working to improve the quality and accessibility of higher education in Ontario. The COU is affiliated with the Ontario Council of Academic Vice-Presidents (OCAV).
  
  
• Creating Course Outlines: A Tip Sheet
  This tip sheet was developed by the Centre for Teaching Excellence.
  
  
• Writing Learning Outcomes
  A tip sheet developed by the Centre for Teaching Excellence.
  
  
• Curriculum Development at York University
  This web site is designed to allow universities across Ontario to share resources on how to develop DLEs and do curriculum development consistent with the OCAV guidelines.
  
  
• Guidelines for Writing Learning Outcomes from the University of Glasgow
  These guidelines have been developed by Dr Sarah Mann of the University's Learning and Teaching Centre.

A select bibliography of academic literature pertaining to curriculum development and learning outcomes 

American Association of Law Libraries (2008). Writing learning outcomes.
A straightforward page on the basics of writing learning outcomes, with clear rationale for why they should be written clearly, and tips on doing so.

Camosun College (2008). What are Learning Outcomes?
A succinct explanation of what learning outcomes are, and the benefits of having them.

Gronlund, N. E. (1995). How to Write and Use Instructional Objectives. (5 th edition). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, Inc.
A classic guide and very understandable and approachable text.

Jenkins, A., & Unwin, D. (1996). How to write learning outcomes. 
Clear explanation of how to write outcomes, with sample from math and computing. Provides a list of verbs to use in outcomes to link them to levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.

Mager's Tips on Instructional Objectives (1999).
Background detail on writing instructional objectives, but reading the interactive book is much more fun.

Mager, R. F. (1975). Preparing instructional objectives (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Fearon-Pitman.
Yes, it’s old, but if you’re looking for some more detail on understanding the components of outcomes/objectives and how to write them, this interactive book is a great resource.

Mager, R. F. (1973). Measuring instructional intent or got a match? Belmont, CA: Fearon-Pitman.
When you’re ready to think about matching your assessments to your outcomes, this book will walk you through how to do it.

UPRAC Review and Audit Guidelines (2006).

York University (n.d.). Curriculum Development Guidelines for Degree-Level Expectations from the Ontario Council of Academic Vice-Presidents.
Excellent links; particularly good for examples of degree level expectations from various disciplines.

In addition, the following general curriculum planning books are available in the CTE library (MC 4051):

Association of American Colleges (1992). Program review and educational quality in the major: A faculty handbook. Vol 3 of Liberal Learning and the Arts and Sciences Major. Washington, DC: AAC.

Clifton, C., & Grant Haworth, J. (Eds.)(1990). Curriculum in transition: Perspectives on the undergraduate experience. Needham Heights, MT: Ginn Press (Simon/Schuster).

Diamond, R. M. (1998). Designing and assessing courses and curricula: A practical guide(Revised Edition). San Francisco: Jossey Bass.

Gaff, J. G., Ratcliff, J. L., & Associates (1997). Handbook of the undergraduate curriculum. A comprehensive guide to purposes, structures, practices, and change. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.

Stark, J. S., & Lattuca, L. R. (1997). Shaping the college curriculum: Academic plans in action. Boston, MT: Allyn and Bacon.