Experiences of Busy Time in the Curriculum Design at the University

Authors

• Virve Kallioniemi-Chambers Tampereen yliopisto
• Johanna Annala Tampereen yliopisto
• Marita Mäkinen Tampereen yliopisto

Abstract

The focus in this study is on university curriculum design and on the experiences of its speed. The data is comprised of 25 researcher-teacher interviews in one Finnish university which implemented a curriculum reform in 2011 and 2012. The phenomenological approach was used as a framework in analyzing the experiences of the busy time in the data. The results show that the busy time can be characterized as the time which comes from outside (e.g. timetables), as lack of time, and as time which is fragmented. The curriculum design requires understanding of the research, teaching and administration and by doing it, the tensions between the temporalities in these processes conflict sometimes heavily in curriculum design. The insights of the nature of the curriculum design – both individual and shared – are connected with the experiences of the busy time. The questions of a rhythm and a proper time required for curriculum design as a part of the temporal continuity in university work processes are discussed.