Report on the Second Curriculum Conference

The first Curriculum Conference was held in July 2007. At this meeting staff, students and stakeholders met to define the Vision Statements for the new curriculum. The statements have been used to drive the design of the curriculum plan. At the second Curriculum Conference Professor David Newble, the School’s educational consultant, presented a report on the activities undertaken since the July meeting. These included the development of a detailed set of Outcome Objectives and a Core Curriculum Data Base structured around a set of Dental Presentations and a set of Medical and Health-related Problems. This data base will be entered into a searchable computer-based system to be called ‘Athena’ named after the Greek goddess of wisdom and ethical behaviour. A prototype has been constructed and will be further developed during the first half of 2008, with the intention of making it available to students and staff in the present curriculum later in the year. Also completed is the School’s Assessment Strategy. Decisions have been made on the approaches to student teaching and learning that will be used within the new curriculum some of which it is hoped will be piloted in the present curriculum. A proposed management structure for the new curriculum was presented.

Feedback was sought from attendees, who included Dental School staff, the Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences, and representatives from SADS and the University’s Centre for Learning and Professional Development. Clarification was sought on some of the educational terms used in the documentation. More detail was requested on issues such as the teaching of ethics, research, business management and curriculum management.

Professor Newble then presented details of the proposed 5 year Curriculum Plan. In broad terms there is to be a 5 phase structure. Within each phase there are several longitudinal components. The two academic themes are Dental Sciences and Clinical Competencies, reflecting the planned highly integrated approach as defined in the Vision Statements. There is also a longitudinal program of Integrated Learning Activities (ILAs) to be conducted in a variety of formats and requiring the students to integrate Dental Sciences and Clinical Competences. In addition, there is a Personal Development stream to provide support for students throughout the program. Opportunities for electives will also be incorporated.

Detailed planning for the first 2 phases will commence immediately with the expected starting time for the new curriculum being 2009.