A gap analysis is a process that gives a broad
overview of which learning components are covered in
an existing program and to what degree. A gap
analysis - gives a general picture of what is taught
in the program, to what level of emphasis, and in
which specific classes. It is a useful tool in
establishing a dialog between the program faculty
and the curriculum development person. It introduces
the faculty to the concept of learning components and
shows the connection between learning components and
existing courses.
The gap analysis does not give a complete picture of
what changes need to be made to existing curriculum
to make it skill standard-based. A gap analysis gives
a high level picture of what major learning components
are not being addressed. Additionally, a gap analysis
should not be done using only the functions and tasks
in the skill standard. A gap analysis using only
functions and tasks presumes that:
- Outcomes of a curriculum should be determined primarily by the learners ability to perform specific functions and tasks.
- Technical and foundation knowledge, skills and abilities needed to perform a function and task will automatically be incorporated into the curriculum.
- The teacher and learner will have enough information to evaluate competent performance if assessment is done at the function and task level.
Note: The Curriculum Map is a very useful and
important tool for mapping the learner program outcomes
and key competencies to the existing, new or proposed
courses. It provides a more refined and detailed
picture of how and where these curriculum elements
are addressed in the curriculum. A Curriculum Map
can be developed for an existing or a new program.
See the Implementation section for a description of a
Curriculum Map.