Category: A-G

Amira Abdelrasoul, Wenona Partridge, Susan Bens

Although studies about the transformative impact of the Instructional Skill Workshop (ISW) have been conducted by Dawson, D., Borin, P., Meadows, K., Britnell, J., Olsen, K., & McIntyre, G. (2014) and Russell Day et al., (2004) these have as yet not examined the specific influence of local practice (Hager et al., 2012) on the ISW process. The goal of our exploratory study is to investigate the influence of local practices of teaching and learning on the overall learning process of the ISW. Our reasons for conducting this study include examining the assumptions that have emerged as part of the educational development practice at our own teaching and learning centre. Read More …

Earle Abrahamson, Duncan Cross

At the heart of ISSoTL, there lies a unique space populated by special interest groups. One such group is the Multinational Teaching Fellows (MNTF). This group was established to support and engage award winning teachers with conversations and debates around defining and recognising teaching excellence. The group has evolved into an inclusive community of practice focussing on supporting aspiring academics by sharing experiences and journeys. Through the group, members have enjoyed contributing towards conference abstract submissions including panels that are tasked with discerning the structures for, and definitions of, teaching excellence. Read More …

Tina Acuna, Alistair Gracie, Mojith Ariyaratne, Buddhi Marambe, Pradeepa Silva, Chalinda Beneragama

There is a significant body of scholarly literature on outward-bound mobility programs, which provide participating students with the opportunity to take part of their study abroad (Dall’Alba & Sidhu, 2015) and connects student learning with life outside the classroom. Potential benefits to students are self-awareness, adaptability and resilience, experiences in culture, study and travel. It is suggested that these benefits and the development of intercultural awareness of small groups of students who participate in short-term mobility programs is less than those on semester-long exchange (Dwyer, 2004). Read More …

Mirari Ayerbe, Elena Díaz, Idoia Fernandez, Mikel Garmendia, Urtza Garay, Iker Ros, Eneritz Ugarte

In April 2010 the University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU, approved its own educative model: IKD, ikaskuntza kooperatibo eta dinamikoa, cooperative and dynamic learning. During the course 2010-11 the new degree studies started. It was the right moment to establish new politics. This model states over five pillars:

• – Curriculum development
• – Active learning
• – Professional development
• – Institutional politics and development
• – Social and land development

 
This model is the natural evolution of the policies and strategies which drove the development of the studies after EHEA and Bologna process. Read More …

Jostein Bakke

Earth science education is a cornerstone of Norwegian Society, underpinning Norway´s major energy and resource based industries, but is also key to societal resilience and environmental safety. Yet the Earth sciences are in change, posed by changing climate, shifting energy landscape and resource utilization acutely highlight the inter-dependence between human society and our planet. In this proposal, we build a national consortium with broad international networks, to transform the Earth Science education in Norway. We will connect excellence in research to excellence in student-active learning by: 1) creating a national competence centre for earth science education, 2) developing a generic approach to cross-disciplinary earth science education within critical fields of societal relevance (geohazards, resources, energy, environment, climate), 3) establishing a coherent system of evaluation to foster teaching excellence and identify best practices to disseminate worldwide. Read More …

Jostein Bakke, Åse Hestnes

Geological and environmental hazards (i.e. earthquakes, landslides, floods, etc.) are a threat to society, and bound to increase in a changing climate. Therefore, we need competent Earth scientists to help society tackle these challenges. Hence, it is a pertinent question how educational institutes can fulfil the obligation to create a learning environment that helps to equip students with the relevant knowledge and tools to understand geohazards and implement necessary mitigation measures (Boulton, 2009. University world news). Our vision is to help students build broader skills and competencies, integrating a strong theoretical basis with real-life work and research experiences (Kastens & Manduca 2012. Earth and Mind II). Read More …

Deb Bennett, Glen Ryland

While philosophers and educators have been hammering out the purpose of the university, students have rarely been asked what they see as the university’s purpose and place. We neglect to introduce students to the university as an object of study in its own right, except perhaps in a graduate level philosophy or education class. Petruzzelli and Romanazzi (2010) found that universities would have more success with student retention if they could show students how the university is a service toward an individual student’s objectives for attending in addition to stressing the social value of the university. Read More …

Adriana Briseno-Garzon, Andrea Han, Gulnur Birol

Considerable institutional efforts have been implemented in Canadian post secondary institutions aiming at promoting and sustaining a culture for learning based on teaching excellence. The University of British Columbia (UBC), for instance, introduced the rank of Professor of Teaching into the Educational Leadership stream in July of 2011 with the goal of reinforcing the University’s “commitment to provide educational leadership, outstanding teaching, and curriculum development, and to recognize and reward it when it happens” (UBC, 2016). In 2013, the Flexible Learning Initiative aimed at promoting “evidence-based, technology-enabled teaching methods that improve the learning experience for a broader student community”. The new institutional Strategic Plan includes “transformative learning” as a core element to reach the goal of “enhancing the quality and impact of teaching for all students” (UBC, 2018). Read More …

Kari Brossard Stoos

This project provides a model for developing social and cultural sensitivity and inclusivity through service-learning. The proposal directly addresses a conference aim by describing an approach connecting student learning to life and work experiences outside the physical classroom. Robert Sigmon established the framework for service-learning by providing three principles that premised work in a reciprocal process between communities and institutions of higher education (Sigmon, 1979). Sigmon’s framework was later operationalized as providing a course-based (credit-bearing) experience for students to engage in need-based community activities simultaneously leading to enhanced content learning and appreciation for civic duties (Bringle et al, 2006). Read More …

Akeisha Brown, Caroline Campbell, Robert Irnazarow, Karen Llewellyn, Chandni Pandya

This poster shares the outcomes of an evaluative research project funded by the Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence (LITE). Co-created by two staff and three undergraduates, the aim of the project was to explore the value of the concept of ‘Broadening’ within the University of Leeds’ undergraduate curriculum, from the perspectives of both students and employers.

With a focus on the acquisition of knowledge, skills and attributes, and specifically in the context of developing (foreign) language skills, the project sought to map the learning experiences of students to the perceptions of employers in order to reveal the resonance and/or dissonance in their understanding of the value of broadening as a concept. Read More …

Therese Collins, Marian McCarthy, Catherine O’Mahony

There is an increased emphasis in European Higher Education on teaching approaches that foster active learning (High Level Group, 2013, EUA, 2018) and “encourage students to take an active role in creating the learning process” (ESG, 2015). Active learning can be supported through a multitude of pedagogical approaches which involve “students in doing things and thinking about the things they are doing” (Bonwell & Eison, 1991).

This poster will review differing active learning approaches used in higher education institutions in 10 countries in Europe. The different approaches will be critiqued to uncover how they could better support a culture for learning. Read More …

Sehoya Cotner, Lorelei Patrick, Aud Helen Halbritter Reichsteiner, Brian Engquist, Vigdis Vandvik

For developing scientists, the myriad benefits of research experiences are well established. In response, many collegiate science departments have begun to reimagine the curriculum in ways that incorporate more meaningful (or “authentic”) scientific experiences. Course-based research experiences (CREs) make research more inclusive and can lead to positive outcomes similar to those realized from a more traditional, apprentice-style research experience. A growing body of literature documents novel course-based undergraduate research experiences (or CUREs), but less work has focused on opportunities in graduate-level training. Also, developers have struggled with ways to make curriculum-based research broadly relevant to a community beyond the classroom (and thus authentic). Read More …

Josephine Csete

How can we support academics who have an initial interest in SoTL? What may they already know and what knowledge and skills related to SoTL would they find useful, especially when they are starting out in SoTL? Do they have skills from their core discipline that are readily transferable? What questions and concerns may they have that, if addressed, can further motivate them to pursue SoTL? Can we support them in a way that is both effective as well as makes efficient use of their time investment?

Questions such as these were asked in the first stage of a two year project that led to developing, piloting and further refining an introduction to SoTL that is currently provided as a seven-hour short course offered in blended mode with two ninety minute face-to-face sessions and four hours of online effort in a small private online course (SPOC). Read More …

Danie de Klerk, Ashwini Jadhav

A recent World Economic Forum report (WEF, 2016) outlines the vast changes the fourth industrial revolution will bring and explores the impact these changes will have on the world of work as we know it. The advent of this revolution (also known as Industry 4.0) is here and higher education, like most other sectors of society, will not go unaffected. Yet the higher education landscape remains a complex space, in a continuous state of change (Andrews & Osman, 2015; Hornsby & Osman, 2014; Maree, 2015; McGhie & du Prees, 2015). The future of present-day universities is being questioned (Arvanitakis & Hornsby, 2016) and calls for responsible citizen scholars abound (Duncan, 2016; Nichols, 2016) and the South African higher education sector is not immune to these realities. Read More …

Tayler Delannoy, Jessica Barabas, Jessica Booke, Pat Kostouros

There has been extensive research that demonstrates the important role that capstone courses play as a bridge or rite of passage by allowing students to transition from their university experiences to professional practice (Collier, 2000; Daspit & D’Souza, 2012; Dunlap, 2005; Durel, 1993; Todd & Magleby, 2005). These experiences increase student understanding of their chosen field and better prepare them for career options. In addition, capstone courses assist with opportunities to network with professionals already in the field. Capstone courses might include practicum, research, and community projects which assist students in gaining useful skills and knowledge. Read More …

Pernille Eidesen, Tina Dahl

Studies have shown that field work is associated with improved learning outcomes of both discipline knowledge and practical skills (e. g.(Lonergan & Andresen, 1988; Lisowski & Disinger, 1991; Kent et al., 1997; Fuller et al., 2014; Eidesen et al., 2017; Fleischner et al., 2017). Another benefit associated with field work is promotion of group interactions, both among students and between teachers and students, creating a beneficial learning environment both during the time spent outside and for the remaining classroom part of a course (Harland et al., 2006). However, how we organise the learning activities in the field, promote different learning environments, and to some extent the learning culture. Read More …

Tatiana Eldridge-Hinmers, Silvia Wehmeier

The concept of mindfulness, as a secular contemplative practice, has gained traction in many sectors of society: in higher education we are seeing it take the form of contemplative pedagogy. Mindfulness is still a relatively new concept in universities and often mainly found in medical schools.

Contemplation practices provide a powerful pedagogy towards a present mind, foundational academic competencies, and have been seen to benefit wellbeing, social and emotional growth, performance, character development, and insight. Mindfulness practice may support a learning culture, a liberating and empowering education, by intentionally creating a space in which to see learning in its full context — scientific, cultural, political and personal. Read More …

Sue Fostaty Young, Meagan Troop

In our poster session, we plan to delve into the collaborative writing process currently undertaken to produce an edited volume on the ICE model (Fostaty Young & Wilson, 2000; Fostaty Young, 2005). With chapters from twelve contributors working at universities in Japan, Sweden, and Canada, who describe the diverse ways that each have adapted the ICE model of thinking, learning, and assessment into their teaching practices, this edition will foster a culture that learns through a reciprocal review process. Interestingly, while each author reported the transformative effects of the model on both their conceptions of learning and their approaches to course delivery and assessment, their uses of the model each differ from the others’. Read More …

Michelle French, Franco Taverna, Melody Neumann

At universities, knowledge is typically compartmentalized into courses or subjects, and often students do not recognize the connections between them. As well, opportunities to reinforce learning are lost due to lack of cross-course/cross-departmental curriculum design. To address this, we are developing a cross-disciplinary, interactive teaching model that will be tested in three large courses with a combined yearly enrollment of 3500 students. Specifically, we have created video case studies with a storytelling arc that spans three disciplines in biology: cell and molecular biology, physiology and neuroscience. The case studies form the basis for interactive classes in each course with small group work and teaching assistants to facilitate discussion to foster learning. A feature is the in-class use of Team Up! (developed by Dr. Neumann). Read More …

Jennifer Gonyea

Students want to engage with material instead of listening to lectures or passively reading content (Roehl, Reddy, & Shannon, 2013); and consistently report that faculty use technology ineffectively (Burkley & Burkley, 2009; Price, 2009). Creative, integrative writing assignments that require technology meet student demands for interaction with faculty and with each other (Kotz, 2016) while assisting them in thinking critically about course content. This poster presents an assessment of both the degree of engagement between students and the level of critical thinking skills demonstrated by video log assignments that are designed to have students integrate course content, substantiate arguments, and broaden their perspectives. Read More …

Jan-Olof Gullö

Within the Bologna cooperation, an overall European framework has been developed with general learning outcomes and competences for different examination levels. In the Swedish interpretation of this framework, independence is a central concept. Student’s ten-week (15 ECTS credits) bachelor essays or degree projects are, for example, called independent projects in the Swedish system of higher education. Independence is however a concept that can be understood in different ways in different contexts. Ambiguities in how independence is understood and used in practice can lead to uncertainty and may even be a barrier to student exchange and hamper international comparability in accordance with the intentions of the Bologna Declaration. Read More …