Designing Modules: How to Move Towards a Competence & Occupation Based

Curriculum

Curriculum design in occupational therapy is complex, but there is now a common acceptance in European occupational therapy education that a competency and occupation based curriculum is desirable. By using competences, this leads to the development of the curriculum in units or modules. These units can then be structured in a common way, indicat- ing the student outcome and effort. This then encourages programmes to have units or modules that can be understood by others, and that fi t with the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). This addresses the issue of common, agreed standards and ways of structuring and deliver- ing occupational therapy programmes throughout Europe.

In occupational therapy education throughout Europe, occupational therapy educators are facing all the current issues present in higher edu- cation. A move towards E -learning and web based teaching is com- mon, with a tension often arising between teaching skills and teaching theory and reduced contact time being encouraged by the institutions. Problem Based Learning is also popular and most occupational therapy programmes include components and suggestions from this style of learning. There follows an example of an occupational therapy mod- ule, which has been developed along a problem based learning model, based on a competence based curriculum.

Tuning Ocupational Therapy.indd 78

PLANNING FORM FOR AN EDUCATIONAL MODULE © Jutta Berding

Imke Winkelmann

ETOS Ergotherapieschule Osnabrueck, Osnabrueck, Germany Programme of Studies: Occupational Therapy

Name of the module: Introduction in Problem Based Learning and Con- ceptual Foundations of Occupational Therapy Type of course: Major

Target group: First cycle Occupational Therapy students Level of the programme: Bachelor Level 1 / 1st _{semester, 10 weeks}

Number of ECTS credits: 10 ECTS

Competences to be developed:

1. Generic competences: — Problem solving — Teamwork

— Interpersonal skills

2. Subject specifi c competences:

Explain the theoretical concepts underpinning occupational therapy, specifi cally the occupational nature of human beings and their perform- ance of occupations

Introductory description of the module

The main objective of the module is to engage the students in the study of occupational therapy through problem based learning, skill training and lectures.

The module is focusing on understanding the core concepts and con- ceptual foundations of occupational therapy in the national and partly European context and offers a fi rst theoretical basis for the further edu- cational process. This means that the module emphasises features such

80

as: problem based learning as teaching method, the development of occupational therapy, occupational therapy terminology and scientifi c foundations.

Learning outcomes On successful completion of this module student should be

able to: Learning/teaching activities Estimated student work time in hours Assessment methods Week 1

— Refl ect and explain the learning experiences so far in order to defi ne the new student-role

— Recognise and describe individual targets for the education programme — Defi ne rules for teamwork

Team building/skill training-day Introduction

«self refl ective competence-

documentation»

Group activities, practicing inter- viewing others, discussions

8 Use of stu- dent’s self refl ective competence- documenta- tion

— Refl ect their own learning style

— Analyse and explain the integration and the devel- oping Higher Education of occupational therapy in the national education system — Point out examples of core

elements of occupational therapy

Lecture 1:

Analysis of the own working/ learning style

Lecture 2:

Educational Situation in Europe: Occupational therapy on the way to Higher Education Lecture 3:

Core issues/concepts of occupa- tional therapy

(part I)

3

3

3

— Describe elements of com- munication of groups — Describe and apply tech-

niques of • Active listening • Open and closed ques-

tions

— Describe rules for feedback and give feedback — Describe and analyse the

phases of group- and pres- entation processes — Explain and apply presenta-

tion techniques

— Explain and integrate par- ticular characteristics of the presenter’s role

Introduction to presenta- tion techniques

Lecture, Skill training: practicing presentation techniques, role- play, presenting group work

16 Refl ecting team Oral feed- back

Tuning Ocupational Therapy.indd 80

Learning outcomes On successful completion of this module student should be

able to: Learning/teaching activities Estimated student work time in hours Assessment methods Week 2 — Explain characteristics, attributes and quality of PBL learning/self-organised learning

— Know and apply the 7-step- approach as basic of PBL learning process — Defi ne and apply PBL roles

PBL task 1

(as introduction into PBL) «There is a miracle in each beginning… «(H. Hesse); Crucial question: What is PBL? Tutorial group (step 1-5):

Formulate learning objectives/ questions

Independent studies (step 6): Reading books and papers, fi nding additional information outside the group

2 18

Oral feed- back

— Know and describe differ- ent kinds of learning types — Identify and explain differ-

ent types of discussions — Defi ne core attributes of a

successful discussion

Lecture 1:

a) Working and learning tech- niques

b) Introduction discussion techniques

4

— Defi ne and explain WFOT, COTEC, ENOTHE

Lecture 2:

Occupational therapy in Europe & «worldwide»

3

— Point out examples of core elements of occupational therapy

Lecture 3:

Core issues/concepts of occupa- tional therapy (part II)

3

Week 3

— Describe the historical background and pre- professional concepts of occupational therapy — Exemplarily describe the

professionalisation/devel- opment of occupational therapy in Europe the USA and

Tutorial group (step 7): Report back to the tutorial group, discussing the results of self-study activities

PBL task 2

«You can only understand life backwards but you have to live it forwards«

Crucial question: What is the history and development of oc- cupational therapy?

Tutorial group (step 1- 5): Formulate learning objectives/ questions

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Learning outcomes On successful completion of this module student should be

able to: Learning/teaching activities Estimated student work time in hours Assessment methods Week 3

— Describe the main aspects of the establishment of oc- cupational therapy in their own country

— Explain the different work- ing areas of occupational therapy

— Describe the functions, tasks and aims of the na- tional occupational therapy association

— Form and discuss a fi rst view on occupational therapy in Europe — Describe scientifi c founda-

tions (frames of reference) for occupational therapy

Independent studies (step 6): Reading books and papers, fi nding additional information outside the group

Lecture 1:

Historical precursors/concepts of occupational therapy

Lecture 2:

a) Is occupational therapy an old or young profession?

b) Question-based/interactive lecture: development of occupa- tional therapy

before and after 1945

18 4 4 Oral presen- tation and feedback

— Analyse and explain dif- ference between science and humanities, between mechanistic and holistic thinking

Lecture 3:

Introduction into scientifi c work- ing, criteria of scientifi c working, dealing with scientifi c literature

4

Week 4

— Explain the term occupa- tional therapy paradigm — Describe the paradigm shift

of occupational therapy — Analyse and discuss dif- ferent descriptions of the occupational therapy paradigm shift

— Name and explain charac- teristics of the current occu- pational therapy paradigm — Describe and explain the

client centred practice as a component of the cur- rent occupational therapy paradigm

— Analyse and explain pos- sibilities and limits of the client centred practice

Tutorial group (step 7): Report back to the tutorial group, discussing the results of self-study activities

PBL task 3

«Handicrafts or what?» Crucial question: What does the current paradigm of occupa- tional therapy look like? Tutorial group (step 1- 5): Formulate learning objectives/ questions

Independent studies (step 6): Reading books and papers, fi nding additional information outside the group

Lecture 1

(question-based/interactive): Para- digm shift in occupational therapy, the client centred approach

3 20 4 Oral presen- tation and feedback

Tuning Ocupational Therapy.indd 82

Learning outcomes On successful completion of this module student should be

able to: Learning/teaching activities Estimated student work time in hours Assessment methods

— Name and defi ne core terms of occupational therapy

Lecture 2

Core terms of occupational therapy, (defi nitions from ENOTHE terminology group/ AOTA-framework)

4

— Perform a literature search Visiting university-library: making investigations about occupational therapy/scientifi c- literature

4

Week 5

— Describe the connection between different levels of theoretical foundations — Explain, classify and corre-

late the frames of reference for occupational therapy, approaches and conceptual models

— Identify, defi ne and explain the most essential occupa- tional therapy-terms

Tutorial group (step 7): Report back to the tutorial group, discussing the results of self-study activities

PBL task 4 «At one sight!!!»

Crucial question: How do we visualize occupational therapy -terminology in a good way? Tutorial group (step 1- 5): Formulate learning objectives/ questions

Independent studies (step 6): Reading books and papers, fi nding additional information outside the group

Lecture 1

Introduction theoretical occupa- tional therapy concepts (frames of reference, approaches, models etc.) 3 20 4 Oral presen- tation and feedback

— Name and defi ne core items of the AOTA framework — Describe the AOTA frame-

work

— Explain the dynamic rela- tion between occupation, person and environment

Lecture 2

Introduction AOTA framework 3

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Learning outcomes On successful completion of this module student should be

able to: Learning/teaching activities Estimated student work time in hours Assessment methods

— Describe the connection between meta-theories, theories, models, scientifi c process

— Describe the research proc- ess and different approach- es of research

— Explain qualitative and quantitative research

Lecture 3

In document Reference Points for the Design and Delivery of Degree Programmes in Occupational Therapy (Page 78-84)