## 2 The Context: Curriculum Mapping  
According to [PERSON] [6], curriculum mapping is a process for recording what content and skills are taught in a study program. The recording relies on a visual medium, typically a chart, table, or map, depicting the building blocks of the study program and how these blocks relate to one another. Because different types of building blocks could be used, there are different types of curriculum mapping.  
When individual courses are the building blocks, curriculum mapping provides a snapshot of existing learning pathways considering the available courses, helping students navigate the study program. These _course_ mappings use the calendar year as an organizer to depict vertical (from year to year) and horizontal (within a year) relations between courses [6], and are usually represented as flowcharts. [PERSON] and [PERSON] [7] provide an example of a course mapping published online, with course-specific scientific and pedagogic details available as hyperlinked content.  
For accreditation bodies, the grouping of contents and skills per course is not as relevant as ensuring these contents and skills results in expected learning outcomes [2; 8]. For this reason, for accreditation purposes, learning outcomes are the building blocks, and _learning outcomes_ mappings are used to show that the study program yields the expected learning outcomes. These mappings are typically represented as tables that align program learning outcomes and accreditation standards. Examples of learning outcomes mappings are given in [PERSON] and [PERSON] [9].  
_Learning outcomes_ mappings' purpose goes beyond reporting the alignment with accreditation standards. This type of curriculum mapping is used to communicate accreditation bodies' vision of transparency, accountability, and scientific curriculum development [5]. A vision that becomes reality with HEI adoption of outcomes-based education [10; 11] and constructive alignment principles ([12] p. 99). Curriculum mapping is used, therefore, as a tool to shape HEI processes, particularly program planning.  
[PERSON] and [PERSON] [13] describe another type of curriculum mapping: the _concept_ mapping. Concepts are, in this case, used for building blocks, with a concept denoting \"the main idea underlying a (typically small) unit of content covered in a course\" ([13] p. 9). These units of content are linked to _Knowledge Concepts_ defined by [14], and [PERSON] and [PERSON] [13] use concept mappings to provide insight into the relations between learning outcomes and between courses, helping faculty with the precise program plan navigation. Examples of this type of mapping are given in [PERSON] et al. [15], [PERSON] and [PERSON] [13], or [PERSON] et al. [16]. These authors use circular ideograms [17] and/or network graphs [18] to detail concepts' precedence relations. The visual outputs presented by these researchers are very successful and efficient in conveying visual meaning to the complex relations found in study programs.  
The analysis of the three types of curriculum mapping reveals important characteristics. Curriculum mapping is used to shape HEI processes, and this ability is valuable for opening program planning discussions to non-faculty groups. Curriculum mapping uses visual-supported communication to represent and discuss study programs, and the developments taking place in the field of information visualization can be used to bridge communication gaps, helping stakeholders to articulate their expert (non-verbal) knowledge. However, with regard to the choice of building blocks, if the objective is to increase non-faculty groups' participatory involvement, broader (not detailed) concepts, requiring fewer scientific and pedagogic skills, should be preferred.  
A curriculum mapping method that builds on the practices already available but tailored for non-faculty groups' participation in program planning discussions is described in the next section.