by: Dr Michelle Mosiere

Comprehensive course reviews can sometimes feel like taxes. Academic staff ‘pay as they go’, making updates and improvements to course materials regularly throughout the semester, only to be hit with subject reviews and moderation at the very time they need to direct their attention to writing an article, undertaking a peer review and/or preparing for the next teaching period.

For the lucky among us, the ATO offers a tax return… so where is the gold under the comprehensive course review rainbow for those battling the course delivery storm?

External subject matter experts offer 24 carat nuggets of advice. Investing in them can trigger substantial returns through improved educational quality and student experience. When it comes to comprehensive course reviews, providers commonly go small and limit the review scope to the necessary and perfunctory. DVE recommends the opposite.

Go big:

• broaden the scope of comprehensive course reviews to create professional development opportunities for your staff
• commission external reviews and follow up with training by experts in how to implement their report recommendations in the classroom
• engage a broader field of experts to enhance the academic staff’s understanding of pedagogies relating to online delivery, equity and accessibility, and Indigenous teaching and learning paradigms
• create positive drivers for compliance activities, like professional development.

Assessment and course design are central to course development and reviews, yet the regulatory framework extends beyond these core activities. Leveraging the comprehensive course review process to address additional Threshold Standards strategically enhances an institution’s ability to collate more evidence with less effort.

All this strategy requires is a comprehensive course review template that reports the external disciplinary expert’s and other expert findings alongside:

• projected enrolments and identified disruptors that could negatively impact the projections
• analysis and evaluation of progression/attrition data across and between subjects and student cohorts
• current and future risks to the quality of the education and associated controls in place to manage and mitigate those risks
• confirmation of funding to ensure appropriate resourcing of the course
• recommendations for improvements to course design and delivery arising from the outcomes of external referencing, student and staff feedback, and the external review.

Going ‘big’ does not mean neglecting the ‘small’. External disciplinary experts are still needed to review the course structure and materials, confirm that the course is constructively aligned, and verify that it addresses regulatory requirements.

As the Expert Checklist shows, going big means thinking broadly and seeking input from a range of experts.

For additional strategies and targeted advice on how to strengthen course review processes and documentation for TEQSA (re-)accreditation and/or (re-)registration, please contact our Governance and Compliance team via info@dvesolutions.com.au.

Artwork attribution –

https://www.freepik.com/free-ai-image/pot-gold-end-rainbow_413065954.htm#fromView=search&page=1&position=20&uuid=34106c69-b0fa-4d89-a474-af96e79a0065&query=pot+of+gold+rainbow