QAA Competence Based Education Project – Collaborative Enhancement Project

Collaborative Enhancement Projects

Competence-based Education

The competence-based education framework developed at the University of Hull shifts the focus from what students know to what they can actually do.

The CBE model has three domains: Self Awareness; Disciplinary and Professional Experience; and Knowledge Management, underpinned by our approach to Inclusive Education. If you are already familiar with CBE and are developing a new programme or re-validating an existing one – go straight to the C-BAss pages below.

Competence Based Education

Self Awareness

Self-assessment and self-regulation in public and private domains

Disciplinary and Professional Experience

Dialectic action and critical thought to address real-world practice

Knowledge Management

The ability to source, understand and communicate knowledge clearly

C-BAss

C-BAss addresses key challenges facing higher education by focusing programme design on developing and assessing the competencies essential to student aspirational futures.

Iterative Scholarly Reflection

C-BAss The 5 components of Competency-Based Curriculum Development

Relevant

Aligned with the four domains of relevance to student futures: academic, life-long personal, professional, and societal.

Meaningful

Written in jargon-free language that can be understood by all stakeholders and consistently interpreted by them.

Assessable

Some form of activity or output that allows students to evidence their level of competence in a way that is quantifiable.

Valuable

Recognised by key stakeholders as being necessary for the personal and professional future of graduates of the degree.

Meaningful & Engaging

Constructively aligned, requiring students to evidence competencies in contexts that are relevant to their futures

Inclusive, Fair, and Feasible

Seeks to reduce, not reinforce, educational inequalities and awarding gaps for staff and students.

Integrated and Scaffolded

Developed at the programme level before determining disciplinary content, guiding what and when students are taught.

Appropriately Challenging

Tasks should be sufficient to stretch learners yet not be so challenging as to overwhelm or undermine their sense of self-efficacy.

Competence-based

The marking should clearly show how well the submission demonstrates the programme competencies.

Reliable

The grading process is fair, consistent, and transparent, helping students see it as unbiased across levels.

Appropriately Explicit

Criteria should be clear for all stakeholders but flexible enough to allow judgement and encourage creativity.

Developmental

Helps students clearly understand their competence level and supports their growth and self-efficacy.

Institutional literacy

Understanding Higher Education dynamics and navigating institutional rules, expectations, and resources.

Academic literacy

The wide range of skills and attitudes students need to maximise learning gain and attainment.

Attitudinal literacy

Understanding the shift from prior education to Higher Education or between Higher Education study levels.

Educational literacy

The expected skills and knowledge students have when starting the programme or a new study level.

We’re currently developing the section on iterative scholarly reflection to ensure it meets our highest standards of quality, accuracy, and usefulness. C-BAss project partners are working behind the scenes to bring you something valuable, engaging, and informative.

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we complete this phase of development. This section will be available soon, and we’re excited to share it with you once it’s ready.