# Curriculum Map: [Programme name]

> Curriculum map template that traces programme learning outcomes to course
> learning outcomes, teaching activities and assessments, following the idea
> of constructive alignment described by John Biggs. It covers the outcome
> statements, an introduce-develop-master matrix, course-level alignment, a
> gap and overload analysis and a review plan. Replace every `[bracketed]`
> value and every row marked *Example*.

<!--
Guidance: How to use this template
- Start from the programme learning outcomes (section 2). Agree them with
  the programme team before mapping any course.
- Map what courses actually teach and assess today, not what the handbook
  says. Ask each course lead to fill their own row, then check it against
  the syllabus and the assessment briefs.
- A map is useful only if it leads to decisions. Finish with the gap
  analysis (section 6) and give each finding an owner.
- The worked example is a fictional three-year undergraduate programme in
  environmental data science with six core courses. Replace it with your own.
-->

## Document control

<!-- Guidance: Name the programme, the version of the outcomes being mapped and who approves the map. Maps go out of date when courses change, so record the review date. -->

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Document ID | [CMAP-2026-002] |
| Programme | [BSc Environmental Data Science] |
| Award level | [Bachelor's degree, level per your national qualifications framework] |
| Outcomes version | [PLO set approved YYYY-MM-DD] |
| Programme lead | [@programme-lead] |
| Contributors | [Course leads: @name, @name] |
| Version | [0.1] |
| Status | [Draft / In review / Approved / Under periodic review] |
| Next review | YYYY-MM-DD |
| Classification | [Internal] |
| Last updated | YYYY-MM-DD |

### Approvals

| Role | Name | Decision | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Programme lead | [@name] | [Approved] | YYYY-MM-DD |
| Programme committee or quality office | [@name] | [Approved / Changes requested] | YYYY-MM-DD |
| Student representative | [@name] | [Consulted] | YYYY-MM-DD |

### Revision history

| Version | Date | Author | Change summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | YYYY-MM-DD | [@programme-lead] | First map from course leads' returns |
| 0.2 | YYYY-MM-DD | [@programme-lead] | *Example:* PLO-5 assessment added to EDS230 after gap review |

## Contents

<!-- Guidance: Keep this list in step with the headings. -->

1. [Constructive alignment in brief](#1-constructive-alignment-in-brief)
2. [Programme learning outcomes](#2-programme-learning-outcomes)
3. [Programme matrix: introduce, develop, master](#3-programme-matrix-introduce-develop-master)
4. [Course-level alignment](#4-course-level-alignment)
5. [Assessment load by year](#5-assessment-load-by-year)
6. [Gap and overlap analysis](#6-gap-and-overlap-analysis)
7. [Review plan](#7-review-plan)
8. [Glossary and references](#8-glossary-and-references)
9. [Standard and licence note](#standard-and-licence-note)

## 1. Constructive alignment in brief

<!-- Guidance: Explain the idea to everyone filling the map, in a few lines. Pitfall: treating the map as a compliance form rather than a design tool. -->

Constructive alignment means that intended learning outcomes, teaching and
learning activities and assessment tasks are designed together. Outcomes are
written with verbs that say what students will do; activities give students
practice in doing it; assessments ask them to show it, and grading judges how
well they did. The map makes these links visible across a whole programme, so
the team can see where an outcome is taught but never assessed, assessed but
never taught, or crowded into one course.

The diagram shows the chain this template traces, from programme outcomes
down to the evidence students produce.

```mermaid
flowchart TD
  P["Programme learning outcome PLO"] --> C["Course learning outcome CLO"]
  C --> T["Teaching and learning activity"]
  C --> A["Assessment task"]
  T -->|"prepares students for"| A
  A -->|"evidence of"| C
```

## 2. Programme learning outcomes

<!-- Guidance: Keep the list short, five to eight outcomes is common. Each outcome starts with an observable verb and states the level expected at graduation. Check them against any external reference your programme must meet, for example a national qualifications framework or a professional body's requirements. -->

On successful completion of the programme, graduates will be able to:

| ID | Outcome | External reference |
|---|---|---|
| PLO-1 *(Example)* | Explain how physical, biological and human factors interact in environmental systems | [Framework or professional body reference] |
| PLO-2 *(Example)* | Write reproducible code to acquire, clean, analyse and visualise environmental data | [Reference] |
| PLO-3 *(Example)* | Select and apply statistical and spatial methods, and justify the choice | [Reference] |
| PLO-4 *(Example)* | Communicate findings to specialist and non-specialist audiences in writing and speech | [Reference] |
| PLO-5 *(Example)* | Work ethically and collaboratively, including responsible handling of data | [Reference] |

## 3. Programme matrix: introduce, develop, master

<!-- Guidance: For each course and outcome, mark I (introduced), D (developed), M (mastered at graduation level) and add A where the outcome is formally assessed. Leave a cell blank when the course does not address the outcome. Be honest: a single lecture is not "developed". -->

Key: **I** introduced, **D** developed, **M** mastered, **A** assessed.

| Course | Year | PLO-1 | PLO-2 | PLO-3 | PLO-4 | PLO-5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EDS101 Environmental Systems *(Example)* | 1 | I, A | | | I | I |
| EDS120 Programming for Data *(Example)* | 1 | | I, A | | | I |
| EDS210 Statistics for Environmental Data *(Example)* | 2 | | D | I, A | D | |
| EDS230 Geospatial Analysis *(Example)* | 2 | D | D, A | D, A | | |
| EDS310 Field Research Project *(Example)* | 3 | D, A | D | D | D, A | D, A |
| EDS390 Capstone *(Example)* | 3 | M, A | M, A | M, A | M, A | M, A |
| **Assessed in (count)** | | **3** | **3** | **3** | **2** | **2** |

## 4. Course-level alignment

<!-- Guidance: Repeat this section for each course, or attach the course leads' returns. Every CLO should map to at least one PLO, have a teaching activity and be assessed. Assessment weights must add up to 100%. -->

### 4.1 Course: [EDS210 Statistics for Environmental Data] *(Example)*

| CLO | Course learning outcome | PLO | Teaching and learning activity | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CLO-210-1 | Describe and visualise a data set in a reproducible notebook | PLO-2 | Weekly lab with worked notebooks | Problem sets |
| CLO-210-2 | Choose a suitable test or model for a stated question and justify it | PLO-3 | Case discussions comparing methods | Exam |
| CLO-210-3 | Fit and check a linear model on field data | PLO-3 | Guided lab with real monitoring data | Lab report |
| CLO-210-4 | Report a result with an estimate and its uncertainty in plain language | PLO-4 | Peer review of draft summaries | Lab report |

| Assessment | Weight | CLOs | Feedback timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Problem sets (5) *(Example)* | 20% | CLO-210-1 | Within 1 week |
| Lab report *(Example)* | 30% | CLO-210-3, CLO-210-4 | Within 3 weeks |
| Exam *(Example)* | 50% | CLO-210-2 | After results release |
| **Total** | **100%** | | |

Plan the exam with the Assessment Blueprint template
(`education/assessment-blueprint`), and describe tasks and criteria with
`education/assignment` and `education/rubric`.

## 5. Assessment load by year

<!-- Guidance: Count summative assessment components (a series of problem sets counts as one component) and their deadlines by year and term. Bunched deadlines push students towards surface learning. -->

| Year and term | Courses | Summative components | Weeks with two or more deadlines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1, term 1 *(Example)* | EDS101, EDS120 | 4 (2 per course) | [Week numbers] |
| Year 2, term 1 *(Example)* | EDS210, EDS230 | 5 (EDS210: 3, EDS230: 2) | [Week numbers] |
| Year 3 *(Example)* | EDS310, EDS390 | 4 (2 per course) | [Week numbers] |

## 6. Gap and overlap analysis

<!-- Guidance: Read the matrix row by row and column by column. Typical findings: an outcome never reaches M, an outcome is assessed only once, a jump from I straight to M, the same skill taught three times at the same level, or a CLO with no assessment. -->

| ID | Finding | Evidence | Proposed change | Owner | By |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GAP-01 *(Example)* | PLO-5 is not developed in Year 2 | Blank PLO-5 cells for EDS210 and EDS230 in section 3 | Add a data-ethics review step to the EDS230 project, assessed | [@course-lead-230] | YYYY-MM-DD |
| GAP-02 *(Example)* | PLO-4 is assessed only in Year 3 | PLO-4 assessed in EDS310 and EDS390 only | Assess the plain-language summary in the EDS210 lab report (CLO-210-4) explicitly | [@course-lead-210] | YYYY-MM-DD |
| GAP-03 *(Example)* | Data cleaning taught at the same level in EDS120 and EDS230 | Course lead returns | Teach general cleaning in EDS120 only; EDS230 builds on it with spatial data | [@programme-lead] | YYYY-MM-DD |
| [GAP-NN] | [Finding] | [Evidence] | [Change] | [@owner] | YYYY-MM-DD |

## 7. Review plan

<!-- Guidance: Decide when and how the map is refreshed, and which data are used to judge whether outcomes are being achieved. -->

| Item | Plan |
|---|---|
| Review cycle | *Example:* Annually after exam boards; full review every 5 years |
| Evidence used | *Example:* Assessment results by CLO, external examiner comments, student survey, course evaluation reports (`education/course-evaluation-report`) |
| Triggers for an early review | *Example:* New course, change to a professional body requirement, repeated low results on one outcome |
| Where the map is stored | [Shared drive or repository path] |

## 8. Glossary and references

<!-- Guidance: Define terms that staff in different departments use differently. -->

| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| PLO | Programme learning outcome: what graduates can do at the end of the programme |
| CLO | Course learning outcome: what students can do at the end of one course or module |
| Constructive alignment | Designing outcomes, activities and assessment so they point at the same performance |
| I, D, M, A | Introduced, developed, mastered, assessed: the levels used in the programme matrix |

References:

- Biggs, J. (1996). Enhancing teaching through constructive alignment.
  *Higher Education*, 32(3), 347-364. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00138871
- Biggs, J., Tang, C. and Kennedy, G. (2022). *Teaching for Quality Learning
  at University*, 5th edition. Maidenhead: Open University Press.
- Related templates: `education/course-design`, `education/syllabus`,
  `education/unit-plan`, and for business schools
  `mba/mba-core-curriculum-map`.

## Standard and licence note

Structure aligned with the principle of constructive alignment (Biggs, 1996;
Biggs, Tang and Kennedy, 2022), cited by name; no text from those
publications is reproduced. The introduce, develop and master matrix is
common curriculum-mapping practice. Check your institution's and any
accrediting body's current requirements before using the map for quality
review. This template is original text written for this collection; the
example programme, courses and findings are illustrative. Template licence:
MIT.