In 2021, I contacted the department of education at Western University in the hope to enrolled for my second PhD. At first I thought the ideas was crazy and unreasonable! Yet, I wanted to take the challenge despite all odds. What made me really want to go further is the new area of inquiry that was suggested by my future supervisor ...I found it very interesting to explore: Improvements sciences in education. This new emerging field did really align with the orientation of my previous PhD ( Curriculum and pedagogical practice sin higher education). I felt I found the missing link. That was what I really was working in my previous doctoral work: i.e., improvement per see of both pedagogical and curriculum practices in the higher education contexts in the state of Qatar ( and other higher education contexts in the region subsequently).
Few months later, sadly, due to extreme family responsibilities and pressures, I decided to place this adventure on hold. Now, I am thinking of either retaking the pathway or engage in an individual self-directed type of study and inquiry into the new field and produce future articles in the area of curriculum and pedagogy improvements.
A question that bothers me when it comes to improvement in higher education is the ongoing traditional, standardized and working pedagogic-curricular patterns that still ongoing in such a context. With covid, things seem to be heading the right direction, a case in point new post-covid mode of instruction, assessments and intervention modes.....The learning & teaching environments are changing. Thus, time , to engage in improving the curriculum and pedagogical practices. We need to lead inquiries into that . A new mindset of teachers, faculty, administrators and trainers is needed....we might even move on the barriers of pedagogy and start thinking of using and implementing the concept of andragogy ( how adults learn in professional and self directed contexts).
In my case, advocating for a competency based of approach to curriculum development and design is in itself a request or appeal for or think the curriculum practices. I doubt this will be used and bought by mainstream public university settings (for the moment), but certainly the private college/university sector would be keen to explore the new approach such as the case of universities advocating for the predominant use of the experiential and field/profession/market related types of training and development/learning.
I certainly think that the concept of improvement should start from basic education and move on up the ladder to higher education. It is not only a tool or practice , but a philosophy and a vision that need to be adopted and believed in.
Fouad
