Outcome-based education (OBE) is a path-breaking trend in higher education that is focused on student’s demonstration of learning at the end of the course.
It transforms learning experience by convergence of various educational inputs and processes including teaching, learning, skills, competencies, course content, and instruction that is made available to students. The quality of education in institutions are rigorously tested to determine whether they are robust and effective. Programs are evaluated to ensure they deliver appropriate outcomes.
The keys to having an outcome-based system are:
1) Developing a cleat set of learning outcomes around which all of the system’s components can he focused.
2) Establishing the conditions and opportunities within the system that enable and encourage all students to achieve those essential outcomes.
OBE is growing at astonishing rates all over the world. Every institution has a unique OBE framework to develop competent students to take on a professional career after graduation. All too often, this knowledge is not efficiently captured and used in higher education institutions. It is scattered in documents, spreadsheets, models, people’s minds and buried in paperwork. What if the linking of curriculum processes could be more easily captured in education institutions as an automated mind map system that can be processed, activated, shared and reused to create better learning outcomes? A move to implement software tools to support outcome-based learning, teaching and assessments and evaluate student outcomes will improve learning outcomes and accelerate continuous quality improvement processes.
Similar to other education technologies like learning management system (LMS), content management systems (CMS) or continuous program improvement systems (CPI) – educational processes are transformed into visual mind maps, like automating an academic process.
How automated mind mapping support OBE principles
OBE curriculum means starting with a clear picture of what is important for students to be able to do, then organizing the curriculum, instruction and assessment to make sure this learning ultimately happens. Clarity of focus is easily achieved by helping students to develop the knowledge, skills and personalities using online assignments and assessments that will enable students to achieve the intended outcomes. Curriculum is designed by mind mapping the intended outcomes that students are to achieve by the end of the program. Teaching methods and assessments are then made to ensure achieve this desired end result. When performance standards are configured to encourage students to develop critical thinking and analytical skills to promote successful learning. Students are provided expanded opportunities through advanced technology tools to achieve high standards in learning.
Mind Mapping
Mind mapping is essentially a non-linear form of outlining. The idea is to make an organically associated diagram of words, concepts, ideas, tasks, decisions, or other information, and to link individual items as their associations demand. Mind maps can be used to generate ideas, represent complex ideas and relationships, classify related items, and to assist one’s thinking, study, writing, and decision making.
Presentation of outcomes with automated mind mapping
The power of auto-generated mind maps lies in the way they more accurately represent the way curriculum elements are arranged, classified and grouped instantly and easily.
Linking learning outcomes to multiple curriculum elements
Constructive alignment is the process that is usually followed in OBE. By mind mapping the skills, competencies, program educational objectives, program & course outcomes, teaching methods and assessments accurately with learning outcomes in a graphical illustration, much manual work, can be completely automated, thus reducing errors, time and workload.
Student learning outcomes (SLO)
A learning outcome is what a student can do as a result of a learning experience. It describes the attributes of their ideal graduates based on their visions and missions as part of their institutional goals or outcomes, and using these as bases for developing specific program outcomes.
The three broad types of learning outcomes are Disciplinary knowledge and skills, Generic skills and Attitudes and values.
Program outcomes
Program outcomes are the sets of competencies (related knowledge, skills, and attitudes) that all learners are expected to demonstrate. These desired outcomes are mapped to the expected learning outcomes in specific courses. The desired course and learning outcomes are attained through assessment and evaluation tools.
Course outcomes
Course outcomes refer to the knowledge, values, and skills all learners are expected to demonstrate at the end of a course. Learning outcomes are mapped to course outcomes and program outcomes.
Outcome-based assessment & evaluation
Implementing OBE further translates to the quality and orientation of the faculty members. The core mission of teaching is to build the learning competencies through online tests, assignments, quizzes and evaluation and support continuous quality improvement, as well as to mobilize resources and methods through technology-enabled performance demonstration of pedagogical learning such as video lectures, podcasts, slides, etc. that would innovate and enhance learning. Technology-aided teaching methods and assessments would enable education institutions to accurately and perfectly map with the targeted outcome. This enables students and faculty to work together as partners toward achieving a visible and clear goal.
OBE & student success
There is a paradigm shift from traditional OBE to technology-based, learner-centred result-oriented OBE, which is reflected on the key purpose that technology enhances learning and performance abilities of students before they leave the institution. Structuring and operating colleges, universities and higher education institutions to achieve and maximize learning outcomes of students.
Thus the primary aim of OBE is to transform learner’s experience by augmenting knowledge, skills, abilities, IQ, values and judgement. OBE is proactive learning and the best way to learn is to determine the outcomes. All the strategies, techniques and workflows are mapped to fulfilment of the distant goals. In this context, OBE is a comprehensive and systematic approach for the functioning of an education system that is focused on successful demonstrations of learning from students.
OBE software provides efficient data capture and collection of all academic programs and courses offered at the educational institution. College administrators can access data via online and mobile apps with real-time tracking of student’s academic performance.
