Philosophy and rationale of curriculum change.

There are several factors in curriculum design of universal importance. Faculty members at all levels must be free to contribute but it must be recognized that decisions have to be made at department, school and university levels. Programme goals must be defined so that there is adequate education of dental practitioners and not just training for dental students. Preclinical teaching should not be an end in itself but should be closely relevant to clinical practice. Basic concepts must be taught; factual overload should be avoided and outdated material eliminated. The curriculum should meet local needs and not be based on one developed for another part of the world. In re-designing a curriculum, attention should be paid to new content, new teaching methods, the introduction of early clinical experience, evaluation methods and the effects of specialization in practice. Above all, curriculum revision must be an ongoing process.