Implementing the threshold learning outcomes for agriculture at two Australian universities

The national Learning and Teaching Academics Standards Statement for Agriculture (AgLTAS) defines the nature and extent of the discipline and provides a set of Threshold Learning Outcome statements (TLOs) that define what a graduate should know, understand and be able to do on graduation. The Australian Council of Deans of Agriculture have endorsed the AgLTAS document: it can be used to communicate to potential and current students the minimum standards of their degree, and also inform curriculum design. While the AgLTAS document provides explanatory notes to assist educators to further understand the intent of the TLOs there are no exemplars on how the AgLTAS can be implemented. This paper presents two case studies of how academics at the University of Tasmania and the University of Adelaide used the AgLTAS to map their respective agriculture curricula. Curriculum mapping was used to evaluate the links between the curriculum and the target learning outcomes, and to identify gaps and areas for improvement. Results include the curriculum maps but also a survey of academic staff and their reactions to the TLOs, plus a reflective commentary on what we believe are the next steps and implications of the AgLTAS for curriculum development, industry engagement and graduate employability in the agriculture discipline.