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Course Alignment

What is course alignment?

Course alignment is a design process that ensures learning goals, assessments, and course learning activities are all well linked. The learning goals you craft will drive your choice of your formative and summative assessments, which will then determine which learning activities you plan for class time. Making this connection clear and explicit for your students helps to reinforce your course organization, effort in design, and the relevance of assignments and activities. 

Prepared by: Catherine Scott, Assistant Director for Faculty Development - Testing, Assessment, & Evaluation, Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT)

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Course Alignment Tool

Step One (1) Step Two (2) Step Three (3) Step Four (4) 
Outcomes
As a result of participating in this (program/course), your (students) will be able to (Action verb): (Make SMART Outcome- Specific, Measurable, Attainable/Achievable,
Relevant, & Time bound
Current Method for Assessment
Which course artifact (assignment, quiz, exam, survey, rubric, etc.) will you use to assess your student outcome?
Course Activities
Identify where students will be introduced to the assessment content (lecture, reading, video, etc.)
Notes
What did you find out and what, if any, changes will you make for the future? 


Example Below

1. Outcome
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to identify the formal elements of art, which apply to the creation, and discussion of an artwork.
2. Assessment Method
Students are asked to take a series of 7 photographs, 1 for each element of art discussed during week three.
3. Course Activity
During week three of the course, I will discuss the formal elements of art, including color, form, line, shape, space, texture, and value. 
4. Notes
The majority of the students were not able to demonstrate texture; I will spend more time discussing in class and perhaps provide examples. 
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