Course Design at Northumbria University
This study compares an existing module at Northumbria University with the following module after it was refreshed and redesigned.
Pearson and Northumbria University partnered in 2018 to redesign various courses by using the existing
skills and academic expertise at Northumbria alongside Pearson’s experience in developing, scaling and
supporting online provision.
Already delivered fully online, the programme team and Pearson sought to ‘refresh’ their existing content by applying high-level learning design principles, ensuring students received the best possible experience through:
- a consistent module structure with a guided student journey
- the development of interactive learning content
- learning activities designed to promote student engagement and collaboration.
Overall the student experience of the refreshed Module 2 was much more positive than for the unchanged Module 1 – they found many things had been improved and were supportive of their learning experience.
The improvement is evident when you look at the survey results for Module 2, with 100% of students rating tutor communications as Excellent, compared to just 6% in Module 1.
"It’s just a lot more interactive, a lot more chances to raise questions and have issues clarified...I would absolutely recommend it. I think especially now, following the improvements. I think it’s really sleek and it’s fantastic."
- Student, Northumbria University