Faculty Perceptions of a Design Thinking-Guided Curricular Revision Process at a Single Institution

To evaluate faculty perceptions of the Design Thinking (DT) framework used to assess and revise the didactic Pharm.D. curriculum.

An 18-month curricular assessment and revision process was implemented within a single school according to the DT framework. Faculty were anonymously surveyed about the extent to which the key principles of DT were followed and how faculty engaged with the process. Results from American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Program Quality Survey (PQS) section on curriculum, teaching, and assessment were compared before, during, and after the 18-month period.

Fifty-three percent of faculty responded to the survey. Prior to this process, few faculty had experience with revising a plan of study. Faculty agreed that the key principles of DT were followed, including teamwork, collaborative problem solving, focus on authentic needs of faculty and students, creativity, and having a sufficient opportunity to seek input and feedback from faculty and students. The faculty agreed the process utilized transparent communication, focused on and addressed the faculty approved curricular priorities, demonstrated inclusivity, applied best practices in curricular design, and promoted data driven decision-making. PQS results showed improvement over time, which may be consistent with a positive impact of the curricular assessment and revision process. Residual disagreement in the depth of curricular topics remains.

The DT framework was perceived as a viable human-centered approach to solving complex curricular problems in pharmacy education.