Skill Profile
Curriculum Planning
"The observable action of designing and sequencing a structured programme of learning in order to move learners from a defined starting point to specific knowledge, skill, or competency outcomes."
YOUR SKILLS
Problems This Skill Solves
- Learners who cover content without building cumulative understanding because topics are not sequenced in a way that supports knowledge retention
- Teaching programmes that lack clear learning objectives, making it impossible to assess whether the curriculum has succeeded
- Inconsistent learner outcomes across a cohort or institution because curriculum design is left to individual teacher discretion
- Training and education that feels disconnected from real-world application because content was not mapped to actual performance requirements
Tools Used
Roles That Use This Skill
1 total · 1 industryThis skill is concentrated in one industry.
Education / Schools
"Curriculum planning is mainly about sequencing content — organise the topics in the right order, and learning builds progressively."
Content sequencing is a necessary structural decision. Curriculum planning must also identify the knowledge and skills that genuinely underpin later learning, anticipate common misconceptions and where they typically arise, plan how understanding will be assessed formatively across the sequence, and consider how students with different prior knowledge will access the material. A well-sequenced curriculum with no attention to these questions produces gaps that are invisible until assessments reveal them.
Research & Outlook
Curriculum planning is being transformed by the availability of digital learning tools, the growth of competency-based education, and the shift towards personalised learning pathways. AI tools are beginning to assist with content mapping, adaptive sequencing, and gap analysis. However, the pedagogical judgement — what to teach, in what order, and why — remains a domain requiring deep expertise in both the subject matter and how humans learn. Curriculum designers who combine evidence-based learning science with practical teaching experience are increasingly valued across both education and corporate L&D sectors.
See This Skill In Action
Watch a professional demonstrate Curriculum Planning in a real working environment — what it looks like, how it's applied, and why it matters.
Education / Learning Design
Curriculum Planning
Also Known As
Growth Path
Designs individual lessons or sessions with clear learning objectives aligned to a scheme of work. Understands curriculum sequencing principles and can adapt existing curriculum frameworks to a specific cohort's needs. Familiar with Bloom's Taxonomy and knows how to write measurable learning outcomes.
Plans and sequences a full unit or module from scratch — maps content to outcomes, designs formative and summative assessment, identifies prerequisite knowledge, and ensures progression across the learning journey. Evaluates curriculum effectiveness using learner data and iterates accordingly.
Designs institutional or programme-level curriculum — scopes entire qualification frameworks, integrates cross-subject or cross-functional learning, ensures curriculum aligns with regulatory or awarding body requirements, and leads curriculum review and development across a department, school, or organisation. Mentors teachers and designers in curriculum theory and practice.
How to Practise
- 1.Take a topic you know well and design a six-session curriculum for it from scratch: write learning objectives for each session, sequence them logically, and identify where prior knowledge is required.
- 2.Map an existing curriculum backward from its final assessment: does every topic taught actually appear in what is assessed? Are there gaps or irrelevant content?
- 3.Use Bloom's Taxonomy to audit a set of learning objectives — rewrite any that are vague or untestable into specific, observable actions at the appropriate cognitive level.
- 4.Interview a practitioner in a field you are designing curriculum for and use their description of their work to identify what knowledge and skills a learner genuinely needs to perform that role.
How to Prove
- ·Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) or equivalent professional teaching qualification with evidence of curriculum design as a documented competency
- ·Portfolio of curriculum plans, schemes of work, or learning programmes developed — with associated learner outcome data
- ·Evidence of a curriculum redesign that improved learner performance, engagement, or assessment results
- ·Instructional Design certification (e.g. ATD CPTD, Learning and Performance Institute qualifications) for corporate L&D contexts