Prudentia: A medical school’s solution to curriculum mapping and curriculum management

Abstract

The School of Medicine (SoM) at the University of Notre Dame Australia has developed a curriculum mapping system called Prudentia. This web-based application allows users to explore curriculum across all four years of the MBBS to determine what and when students are expected to learn, and if there are any anomalies evident within this data. A five-level hierarchical, outcomes-based curriculum framework underpins Prudentia, ranging from the macro Australian Medical Council's Student Outcomes Statements to the micro daily learning objectives. Data in all five levels of the framework can be mapped and constructive alignment between the outcomes, instructional and assessment methods can also be investigated. While Prudentia is a user-friendly application, it is only as good as the curriculum framework which underpins it. This paper discusses the critical questions that were pivotal in developing the SoM’s curriculum framework, upon which a robust curriculum mapping system was eventually built.