Exploring the curricular and pedagogical decision criteria for research-based learning design in undergraduate studies

Learning design has a multifaceted nature requiring a range of course- and institutional considerations. Analyzing the decision criteria’s influence on research-based learning design helps understand the causes of the success/failure of the approach in achieving the teaching goals to improve the study programs. This study explores the interrelationship between the curricular and pedagogical criteria for research-based learning design decisions at the undergraduate level. For this purpose, the DEcision-MAking Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) method is used to systematically analyze the decisive criteria and their causal relationships. Feedback from education professionals and university professors from Scandinavian universities is used to validate the pedagogy decision framework and provides input into the DEMATEL method. The student's role in the course is identified as the central criterion, featuring the highest level of interactions in the network of curricular and pedagogical decision criteria. Results are supportive of the identified institutional and course-specific criteria as prerequisites for the study outcomes.