DALVision Academic Innovation Funded Projects

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Team lead: Donna Rogers, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Introduction Objectives Seminar Options 1-3 Seminar Options 4-5
The Faculty of Arts and Social
Sciences (FASS) recognizes a need
for a first year seminar course that
introduces our students to the rich
offering of programs and courses
available at FASS. This elective,
seminar-based course will be open to
all direct-from-high school, first year
students registered in FASS.
The five seminar options will draw on
the deep and varied expertise within
FASS. Students will have an
opportunity to learn about
interdisciplinary topics ranging from
performers’ roles in society to Latin
America through the lens of hip hop.
• Develop and test a pilot model for
a First Year Seminar-based
course for FASS
• Provide students with the
knowledge and tools to enhance
their information fluencies (an
expansion of “information
literacy”)
• Increase retention of
undergraduate students and help
students transition successfully to
university.
1) Social Relationships
- Exploring the lines between
private, public and political “self”
through interesting readings (some
classic and some new)
2) Performers in Society
- Explore Mik’Maq storytellers’
relationship to rituals
- Explore emergence of professional
actors
3) Freedom
- Explore cases and frameworks for
thinking about freedom through
literature
4) Latin America through the Lens
of Hip Hop
- Latin American cultural studies
and music (covering themes such
as dictatorship, race, immigration in
Chile, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Colombia
and Peru)
- Explore connections to North
America
5) Celtic World
- Explore various Celtic regions and
languages through poetry and
songs
- Examine Scottish, Irish, Welsh
connections to the Atlantic region
through journals and postcards
Funding provided by
Dalhousie University
Academic Innovation Fund

Dr. Kathleen Kevany
Faculty of Agriculture
Introduction Objectives Methods Implications
The Agriculture, Food & Well-being
upper-level capstone course (AFW) is
powered by a growing interest across the
Faculty of Agriculture – and beyond. This
unique course explores cross-cutting,
interdisciplinary issues in agriculture,
food, & well-being.
AFW supports student engagement, e-
learning, & experiential learning in real-
world problem solving situations. It
fosters exploration & analysis in
interdisciplinary approaches.
AFW encourages students to think
creatively & collaboratively about issues
facing the agricultural community - in
Canada & around the world.
Introduce an interdisciplinary course in AFW
that bridges faculties & facilities.
Harness the benefits of e-learning & distance
education to foster learning communities at
the Halifax & Truro campuses & beyond.
Foster the development of advanced skills in
problem solving, critical thinking, & research
methodologies through problem-based &
experiential learning.
Collaborate with diverse DAL faculties to
cross-list and widely promote AFW.
Engage students, faculty, staff & external
stakeholders in course design &
development.
Collaborate with other faculties & groups to
design a course that links considerations
like:
Review & build on other exciting models to
design AFW in an integrative, problem-based
‘studio’ approach.
Integrate input from industry, government &
community into real-world case studies that
challenge students to think creatively,
engage critically, investigate meticulously, &
articulate compellingly.
The initial engagement of students, faculty,
staff and external stakeholders will improve
course outcomes, design & content.
Students develop advanced skills in critical
thinking, critical reflection & investigative
methodologies.
Students develop enhanced teamwork &
communication skills.
Students disseminate the results of their
projects & collaborations directly to
stakeholder groups.
Students learn about the vital
interrelationships among agriculture and
food & well-being.
Funding provided by
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A L E C O N O M I C V
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Team lead: Donna Rogers
Introduction Objectives Goals and Implications
FASS recognizes a need to offer
flexible options for students, and with
this initiative will begin to position itself
to meet that need, engaging Dalhousie
students in innovative ways with FASS
disciplines, by offering blended or
wholly-online delivery of targeted parts
of our curriculum.
The Department of International
Development Studies (in collaboration
with the College of Sustainability) will
develop and pilot a new course,
“Sustainability, Development,
Economy,” to be delivered online in at
least two terms during the 2013-14
academic year.
Further, the Faculty seeks to build
capacity among its teaching faculty to
develop online/blended options for
existing courses, and Academic
Innovation funding will enable us to
designate a faculty mentor from within
our ranks, with significant experience,
to support colleagues who wish to
develop these options.
• Provide more flexible options for
Dalhousie students who cannot
access traditionally-delivered
courses during the summer,
• Position the Faculty to retain
existing Dalhousie students who
take certain FASS courses
elsewhere, especially online
options and summer courses.
We expect to strengthen student
engagement by responding to
students’ demand for greater
flexibility in our modes of delivery; to
retain student enrollments among
those who would otherwise take
summer and online courses
elsewhere; and to attract non-Dal
students to these new offerings
(both Canadian and international
students).
All of these goals will help us
improve the student experience in
FASS by creating a greater diversity
of study options, and also by
ensuring the high quality of the
summer and/or online courses they
can take.
Funding provided by

Fred McGinn, Director, School of Health and Human Performance.
• MOOCs are free.
• MOOCs are based upon leveling
the academic playing field in terms
of attracting and retaining
underrepresented students; most
notably international students,
visible minority students, students
with accessibility needs, students
from low-income families and
students who are working
professionals.
• MOOCs represent a new
generation of online education
offering low cost, accessible and
flexible learning.
• MOOCs are not credit-based.
• MOOC students do not register
with the University; however they
are offered a certificate of learning
upon completion of the online
course.
What Is A Massive Open Online
Course (MOOC) ?
What are the objectives of this
initiative?
MOOC Project Specifics
FUNDING
Interprofessional Health Education MOOC
Introduction to Grant Writing: A Massive Open Online Course (MOOC)
1) To expand the sharing of the
Dalhousie learning
experience
2) to a currently
underrepresented population
of learners.
3) To encourage new learners to
seek further academic
involvement by enrolling in an
undergraduate program in the
Faculty of Health Professions.
• Two MOOCs will be offered by
the School of Health and
Human Performance during
the 2013-14 academic year.
• Each MOOC will be comprised
of a 6 week, online course;
available at no charge to any
person interested in becoming
engaged in the Dalhousie
academic experience.
• The first MOOC offering will be
“Introduction to Grant
Writing”.

A collaboration of the Faculties of Arts and Social Sciences, Health Professions, Management,
the Transition Year Program, and the Aboriginal Health Sciences Initiative
Objectives Methods Implications
The establishment of a Minor in
Aboriginal Studies at Dalhousie will
bring together diverse scholars who
research Aboriginal issues and may
foster research collaborations within
the institution and between institutions
in the region. This initiative may also
serve to attract Aboriginal scholars to
Dalhousie. For example, the Tri-
Council has made Aboriginal research
funding a priority. SSHRC has
expanded the array of specialized
funding programs committed to
Aboriginal research, most notably
collaborative research initiatives. The
CIHR hosts the Institute of Aboriginal
Peoples’ Health which offers major
funding programs, complementing
other funding priorities within the CIHR
mandate. NSERC has an Indigenous
Ambassadors program to fund
Aboriginal students from
undergraduate scholarships to
postdoctoral fellowships.
Funding provided by
This minor would consist of three to
four full credits, second year and
above, drawn from at least three
faculties of Arts and Social Sciences,
Health Professions, and Management
and potentially other faculties as well.
 To increase enrolment, successful
transition, and retention of
undergraduate Aboriginal students.
 To enhance communication and
awareness within the community of
scholars from across Dalhousie,
and potentially from across the city,
the province, and the Atlantic
region, who research issues related
to Aboriginal people.
 To increase the visibility of and
respect for Aboriginal students and
Aboriginal studies on campus.
 To enhance institutional
engagement with the Aboriginal
community in Nova Scotia.
 To create a learning environment in
which Aboriginal students will be
knowledge leaders.
 To enhance recruitment of
Aboriginal scholars to Dalhousie.
 To lay a foundation for potential
further initiatives, such as a major
or graduate program in Aboriginal
Studies.
Introduction
Researching
Aboriginal
Studies programs
elsewhere
Identifying
current relevant
Dalhousie
classes
Identifying gaps
in the current
course offerings
Developing the
curriculum for
new courses
Incorporating
experiential
learning
A curriculum developer will be hired
who will work closely with a
development committee (which will
include Aboriginal scholars) and with
the Mi’kmaq/Maliseet communities.
Preference will be given to the hiring
of an Aboriginal curriculum developer.
This proposal will initiate the
development of an interdisciplinary
undergraduate minor in Aboriginal
Studies.
Vivian Howard, Associate Dean Academic, Management : Heather Castleden, Associate Professor, School of Resource and Environmental Studies : Patti Doyle-Bedwell, Director, TYP: Debbie Martin, Assistant Professor, Health
Promotion (Aboriginal Health) : Kara Paul, Manager, Aboriginal Health Sciences Initiative : Donna Rogers, Associate Dean Academic, Arts and Social Sciences : Anita Unruh, Associate Dean Academic/Research, Health Professions

Dr. Janice Chisholm, Dr. Patricia Livingston and the Anesthesia Curriculum Renewal Committee
Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management and Perioperative Medicine, Faculty of Medicine
Introduction Objectives Methods
Implications
The project is a review and renewal of the
Dalhousie Department of Anesthesia, Pain
Management and Perioperative Medicine
anesthesia residency curriculum to enhance the
program.
The goal is to train excellent clinician
anesthesiologists using an outcomes-based
curriculum that embeds the CanMEDS
competency framework. Adopted by the Royal
College of Physicians and Surgeons, CanMEDS
is an educational framework identifying and
describing seven roles that lead to optimal health
and health care outcomes: medical expert
(central role), communicator, collaborator,
manager, health advocate, scholar and
professional. The curriculum renewal initiative will
identify where and how each CanMEDS role is
achieved throughout the anesthesia residency
program.
The initiative will be evaluated through a research
project designed to assess
the curriculum review
process and the impact of
the revised curriculum and
mapping software on
learners and instructors.
The results of this research will offer insights on
outcomes-based curriculum design for teaching
and learning and will also explore the use of digital
mapping for both curriculum designers and end-
users.
Funding provided by
Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management and
Perioperative Medicine, Faculty of Medicine
And
To restructure the anesthesia residency curriculum
using outcomes-based format ensuring it continues
to meet training requirements identified by Royal
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
To define the Entrustable Professional Activities
(EPA) that are expected of anesthesia residency
graduates – the knowledge, skills, and attitudes
necessary for consultant-level practice applied in
variable clinical environments.
To apply custom-designed mapping software to
meaningfully connect the learner with program
content and flow.
Methods cont’d
The curriculum is being mapped using a program
that will allow both broad and detailed views of the
residency program. As the mapping identifies gaps
and areas of overlap, they can be addressed in an
iterative curriculum redesign.
Throughout the life of the curriculum, the mapping
software will be used by students and instructors as
a central repository for learning resources and will
continue to chart the course of anesthesia residency
education.
A committee of anesthesia
staff, residents, administrators,
and external experts was
established.
The committee has articulated specific EPAs for
each CanMEDS role and is in the process of
designing an outcomes-based curriculum which is
being mapped to the EPAs for easy identification
of where and how each will be taught.
The academic curriculum uses spiral design
whereby topics are penetrated more deeply with
each iteration.
Review is a final year course that allows
integration and synthesis of multiple
components of anesthesia to prepare for
consultant level practice.
Core is a two-year course using a deep
investigation of the body systems and
how multiple disease states impact
anesthesia practice.
Problem Rounds are resident led sessions
that work through practical evaluation and
management of common and rare anesthesia
emergencies.
Foundations is a one-year course for
junior residents to teach the fundamentals
of anesthesia practice. This course
includes pre-operative assessment,
pharmacology and physiology, anesthesia
equipment and anesthesia practice.
Orientation is a short course that covers
basic practical details needed for anesthesia
residency.
Figure 1: Harden,R.M. and N.Stamper,(1999). What is a spiral curriculum? (article), Medical
Teacher, 21:2, p142.
Figure 1

Jennifer Stamp, Tara Perrot, Raymond Klein, Heather Schellinck, Kim Good, John Christie
Faculty of Science
Currently, the Dalhousie Department of
Psychology and Neuroscience does not
offer online courses, which means that
some potential students get their first
experience in psychology elsewhere.
This project is specifically aimed at the
development of online laboratory and
demonstration content in our first year
course, Introduction to Psychology &
Neuroscience I.
We envision that students will act as
participants in simple experiments and
demonstrations in diverse areas in the
fields of Psychology and Neuroscience.
We plan to upload narrated videos,
present stimuli and record responses, as
well as collect data so that students gain
experience in Psychology and
Neuroscience that goes beyond what is
presented in the textbook. Examples of
plans for amending two such activities
are shown here.
Students observe and record animal
behaviour from engaging videos online.
OVERVIEW TRADITIONAL LABS ONLINE LABS DISCUSSION
FUNDING
Behaviours

Time ↓
Foraging
Paddling Preening Drinking Fluffing
Feathers
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This lab exercise is a field trip to Public
Gardens. Students observe ducks to construct
an ethogram of duck behaviour.
Public Gardens Ethogram
Behaviours

Time ↓
Licking Nosing Batting Grabbing Meowing
0:30
1:00
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YouTube ethograms
ventral
dorsal
medial laterallateral
Neuroanatomy lab
Students use simple pocket microscopes to
identify major structures in a sectioned rat
brain.
Virtual Neuroanatomy lab
Students learn to navigate the rat brain via
labeled photos and slides and accompanying
exercises.
Student benefits
• “Test the waters” before committing to a
particular field of study, or particular
institution
• Increased accessibility
• Enhance student engagement in the course
• Provide alternative options for students
who are unable to take the traditional
course
• Students can complete content at their own
pace, yet gain the benefits of real time
discussions with online office hours and
exam review
The development of the on-line version
of the course is expected to lay the
foundation for incorporation of a
substantial blended learning component
to our non-online classes. To this end,
students will benefit from a more flexible
learning environment. By comparing
performance in the traditional and online
offerings, we will be able to incorporate
the strategies that work best for students
and instructors.
Further applications

This academic initiative focuses on
providing an early experiential learning
experience in biochemistry and molecular
biology to first year undergraduate
students.
Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows
will travel to local high schools during the
fall and winter terms to promote the
opportunity with a recruiting seminar that
will feature biochemical experiments.
Students will apply in their first year (either
directly from high school or during the fall
term of their first year at Dalhousie).
Students will then be placed in labs within
their first year of undergrad. Selection will
be based on their academic record and a
written essay.
Learning Implications
Undergraduate Students
o Join a lab in first year. Provide first-hand
knowledge of what it is like to work in a
lab.
o Learn what graduate school is about and
how research is conducted on the front
lines.
o Create colleague connections
o Early research skills development
Graduate Students & Postdocs
o Leadership
o Mentorship
o Communication
o Recognition
Initiative Objectives
o Enhance recruitment to Biochemistry & Molecular
Biology, Graduate Studies & Dalhousie University
o Introduce and engage students in a “real” science lab
o Leadership opportunity for graduate students and
postdoctoral fellows
Plan of Academic Initiative
Graduate
Students
as Mentors
High School
Student
First Year
Undergraduate
Student
First Year
Undergraduate
Student
Winter Term
Fall Term
Selection
Process
Host Lab
Student engagement
First-year students
Experiential learning
Recruitment & retention
BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR
BIOLOGY
RESEARCH
FIRSTEARLY EXPERIENTIAL
LEARNING
molecules – genes – cells – diseases
Funding provided by
Faculty of Science
Team leads: Stephen Bearne and Melanie Dobson

Curriculum Development and Research: Service Learning Course
on Science Communication and Leadership
NASA image
wikicommons
NASA image
NASA image
Gibson photo
USGS image
OBJECTIVES – and Methodology
Investigate and identify best practices for peer tutoring
Conduct needs assessments… Do final year students want a
Leadership and Communication Course? Do first year students
want extra Academic Support?
Based on needs assessment, develop Leadership and
Communication Course in Science
Develop Service Learning opportunities for peer tutoriing
Research Team: Anne Marie Ryan, Lara Gibson
Allison Schmidt, Gabrielle Tompkins-MacDonald
Faculty of Science, Dalhousie University
Funding provided by
OUR QUESTIONS:
Are our students developing effective leadership and communication?
Would senior students benefit from a service learning experience?
What, if any, need is there for an Academic Resource “Centre” for
first year LSC science students and what might this look like?
Can we connect final year and first year students through a service
learning activity, to create a learning community in the LSC?
Is there a need for a Leadership and Communication Service Learning
Course in the Sciences?
IMPLICATIONS – OUTCOMES… assuming need identified:
4000-level Science Leadership and Communication course development in the Sciences
Develop service-learning opportunities that connect senior students with first year students
Determine the potential for development of an Academic Resource Centre to support 1st (and 2nd)
year students in the LSC Sciences… leading to…
In the longer term, development of a community of learners, where senior students
connect with novice students in the LSC Sciences

Some of the team at work!

Anna MacLeod, PhD; Simon Field, MD; Noreen Gaudet; Susan Love, MEd; Marie Matte, PhD; Greg Power, CMA
Faculty of Medicine
The Issue The Innovation How Will Students Benefit? Implications
The Objective Structured Clinical
Examination (OSCE) is a common
assessment method in medical education.
An OSCE is a timed assessment consisting
of multiple stations in which standardized
patients – who are trained to accurately and
reliably simulate patient illnesses and
concerns – simulate clinical scenarios. A
clinical faculty member (examiner) observes
each OSCE station and then makes a
determination about the student’s
performance using either a checklist of
specific behaviours or a global rating form to
assess the student’s performance at each
station.
Through recent iterations of the OSCE in the
Faculty of Medicine, it has become
increasingly clear that we are not using the
assessment strategy to its potential. Given
that information technology (IT) innovations
have influenced the way we teach and learn,
it follows that IT developments should be
considered with respect to assessment
strategies. We therefore propose to develop
and implement an innovative, digital
approach to OSCE assessment.
Medical education specialists and
Information Technology professionals are
collaboratively designing a digital scoring
system. This scoring system will address
challenges with data entry and examiner
variability. The key innovation, however, is
the fact that the scoring system will provide
each learner with high quality individualized
feedback in the form of a performance
report. It is our goal that the innovation will
encourage learning, not just measure
learning.
Students assessed via OSCE do not receive
significant feedback on their performance.
This is problematic. There is a wealth of high
quality educational literature documenting
that the more high quality feedback a learner
receives, the deeper the learning.
The digital scoring system will be designed
so that examiners feedback forms the basis
of a report to be provided to each candidate.
This means that students will receive
personalized feedback on their OSCE
performance.
The key innovation is the fact that the
scoring system will provide each learner with
high quality individualized feedback in the
form of a performance report. It is our goal
that the innovation will encourage learning,
not just measure learning.
Rather than an exam with the sole purpose
of separating competent students from those
who are not competent, the OSCE will be an
opportunity to learn more, continually
improve, prepare for future licensing OSCEs,
and prepare for professional practice.
Funding provided by
Currently, information about OSCE
performance is captured in a basic paper-
scoring booklet. We are using our Academic
Innovation funding to develop an innovative,
digital approach to OSCE assessment.
Medical educators and IT professionals are
working collaboratively on this project.
The digital scoring system will allow us to put
into practice a position of “assessment for
learning.” Currently, candidates receive only
a Pass or Fail. A digital scoring system
allows us to provide candidates with an
individualized report documenting her or his
performance on each station of the OSCE.
The report will include a station-by-station
overview of performance. Strengths will be
documented; however, areas for
improvement, along with tailored resources
to support further learning will be provided.
These resources might include:
• related readings
• experts for consultation
• videos documenting appropriate
techniques

TEDx: Ideas Worth Spreading: What
Education Might Look Like in the Future
TEDxNovaScotia partnered with
the Dalhousie Student Union and
Dalhousie University to bring this
independently organized TED
event to Halifax in March 10th,
2013.
TEDxNovaScotia is driven by a
team of volunteers who are
inspired by the mission and ideals
of TED.
This team of volunteers is primarily
made up of Dalhousie University
students, along with community
mentors.
About Speakers Goals
FUNDING
Higher education is currently
going through a period of great
transition.
TEDxNovaScotia’s goal was to
tap into the wisdom and
enthusiasm of our community
members and provide a platform
for discussion and debate on how
we can meet these challenges
head on.
TEDxNovaScotia built on the
success of DALVision 2020, an
academic innovation event
held in November 2012 at
Dalhousie University.

Team lead: Vivian Howard
Introduction OutcomeTask
This project will use curriculum
mapping software Daedalus
(developed by Dr. Christian Blouin of
Dalhousie's Faculty of Computer
Science), which maps student
learning outcomes for courses, and
visually demonstrates which learning
outcomes are strong and where
gaps or weaknesses in the
curriculum may lie.
Mapping the curriculum of
accredited programs will be very
helpful in the AACSB accreditation
process. Daedalus will be used to
collect the specific data needed for
accreditation reports, including term-
by-term statistics on the percent of
students meeting, exceeding, and
failing to meet learning outcomes.
The current version of the
curriculum maps can be viewed at
http://management.academics.cs.dal.ca
• A faculty-wide map which will
show the curricular relationships
between the various programs
in FoM (Bachelor of Commerce,
Management, Corporate
Residency, MBA, MLIS, MPA,
MES/MREM) as well as the
relationships of courses within
specific programs.
• Hire two curriculum map editors,
who will work closely with faculty
members to develop a
controlled vocabulary to
describe learning outcomes and
to accurately map the
relationship between outcomes.
Funding provided by
DALVision:
Fostering Academic
Innovation!

DALVision Academic Innovation Funded Projects

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