International Journal of Education and Learning Vol. 2, No. 1, March, 2013 25 Competency-Based Calisthenics of Learning Outcomes for Engineering Education D. Asir Antony Gnana Singh and E. Jebamalar Leavline Anna University Chennai, BIT Campus, Tiruchirappalli – 24, India asirantony@gmail.com, jebi.lee@gmail.com Abstract Today the number of students pursuing education in various engineering disciplines is on the rise. With the growing demand for higher achievements of learners, engineering institutions are expected to develop and implement a competence-based curriculum. Hence designing curriculum and courses in engineering education with stress on learning outcomes is the goal. This paper presents a practical approach to perception of teaching-learning process in engineering education, systems model of human behavior and design of curriculum based on learning outcomes. Keywords: Action verb, Bloom’s taxonomy, Cognitive domain, Engineering, Engineering Education, Human behavior, Learning outcomes, Learning, Teaching, Technical education 1. Introduction Rapid developments in the fields of engineering and technology were the result of enduring researches and professional practices all over the world. Therefore, many nations have a focus on improving the quality of engineering and technical education [1]. Scores of institutions offering engineering education have emerged across the globe. Yet, especially in developing nations, there are frequent complaints from the employers and corporations about the skill set and the analytical ability of engineering graduates, which questions the success of engineering education institutions in the recent past. There are a number of factors which can affect the quality of engineering education such as specifying clear educational goals, educational methods adopted, assessment methods, the balance between 'content' and 'process' in the educational programs, overloaded curriculum, the use of information technology, and the modern methods of quality assurance. According to John J. Sparkes [2], the foremost factor to be considered is ‘specifying clear educational goals’. This includes setting up and mapping learning objectives and outcomes with competence based curriculum towards the educational goals. Hence, setting of curriculum based on learning outcomes, has been a prime aspect for the success of any engineering educational institution. In the following sections, we describe the teaching-learning process in engineering education, the systems model of human behavior, the design of curriculum based on learning outcomes and the benefits of learning outcomes based approach for quality engineering education. 2. Problem Definition The two key elements of teaching faculty—proficiency in the discipline and teaching methodology—focus on moulding the behaviour of students through the teaching-learning process. The goals of engineering education, thus, cannot be accomplished if any of these elements fail. Although the teaching faculties are expected to possess higher levels of