The Residential Curriculum Institute defines a curriculum as having 10 "Essential Elements." These are the features and principles that a residence life department's educational program should adhere to if it is to be considered a "true" residential curriculum. In 2013, while in my PhD program, I conducted some research on schools implementing this curricular approach. I wanted to find out... Continue Reading →
The “Residential Curriculum Edition” of our “Student Affairs Training Card” Business Cards
We previously released Series 1 of our Student Affairs Trading Card business cards and it's time for a second series. In honor of Roompact's partnership with the ACPA Institute on the Curricular Approach (formerly RCI), we've designed business cards that pay homage to the original ten essential elements of a residential curriculum. That's right! These... Continue Reading →
Residential Curriculum Element #7: Learning is Scaffolded and Sequenced To Follow Time-Based Development
Learning does not take place in a vacuum. It takes place in time and space. A well-designed curriculum recognizes that learning is most often a cumulative process. Individuals learn and grow over time. Sometimes they regress and sometimes they make large leaps forward, but the broad arc of learning is progressive over time. To this... Continue Reading →
What is a Residential Curriculum? Curricular Approach? Residential Learning Model?
The terms “residential curriculum” or “curricular approach” are used to describe an intentional specifically-structured way of promoting learning in college and university student affairs programs. Borrowing from techniques utilized by classroom-based teachers, the curricular approach to student affairs designs a series of successive learning and engagement opportunities for students that are measurable against defined objectives.... Continue Reading →