Trade-offs in curriculum design: Implementation of an integrated curriculum in chemical engineering

This Innovative Practice Full Paper reports on perceptions of a curriculum reform innovation in an undergraduate engineering program in chemical engineering at a South African university. A key feature of this program is an integrated curriculum design, which involves a coherent development of theoretical topics alongside closely related project work. This design was chosen in alignment with the core objectives which were to improve the quality of student learning in the program and to increase the relevance of the curriculum to contemporary developments in the profession. The study took place during the year in which the final year of the new curriculum for the four-year program was implemented. Both lecturers and teaching assistants involved in delivering the new curriculum, and final year students who had been the first cohort through the curriculum were surveyed in an open-ended questionnaire. The study goes beyond a traditional evaluation design to be able to research in-depth differing perceptions of the new curriculum. The discussion focuses on the implicit trade-offs when moving to a more integrated curriculum design. The analysis also focuses on the inherent immediate challenges of implementing a substantial change to curriculum, and how this is perceived by both academics and students.