scholarly journals Drawing as a Way of Knowing: Visual Practices as the Route to Becoming Academic

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 173-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra Abegglen ◽  
Tom Burns ◽  
Sandra Sinfield
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
First Year ◽  
Widening Participation ◽  
Approach To Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Learning Module ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Teaching In Higher Education

This case study illustrates what happened when we took a playful approach in a first year undergraduate academic skills module and a graduate Facilitating Student Learning module asking our students to “draw to learn.” We found that they not only enjoyed the challenges we set them, but also that they “blossomed” and approached their academic writing with more confidence and joy. Hence we argue for a more ludic approach to learning and teaching in Higher Education to enable Widening Participation students and their tutors to become the academic writers they want to be. In particular “blind drawing” seems to be a powerful tool for diminishing the fear of failure and for fostering deep understanding as well as self-confidence.

scholarly journals Montage, DaDa and the Dalek: The Game of Meaning in Higher Education

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 224-239
Author(s):  
Sandra Abegglen ◽  
Tom Burns ◽  
Sandra Sinfield
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Staff Development ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Visual Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Learning Module ◽  
Teaching In Higher Education ◽  
Development Practice

This paper argues for visual playfulness in Higher Education learning and teaching practice. We offer a case study example of how we, the authors of this paper, have incorporated creativity into our teaching - the Facilitating Student Learning module, the first module in the Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education. We outline how we used ‘visualising to learn’ and what learning resulted from our visualisation practices. With our staff learners, we found that visual play gave them the freedom to experiment, to question and to progress; important in these supercomplex, uncertain times. Our desire was not to ‘fix’ or train academic staff, but to give them the space and tools to become liberatory professionals on their own terms and in their own ways so they can support their students to also become academic without losing themselves in the process. We propose that what is needed are methods and methodologies that enable learners - staff and students - to evolve and transform as they co-construct their knowledge in ludic ways. We incorporate images of the representations that our participants have made of themselves, of their students and of Higher Education systems to illustrate the challenges and possibilities of visual learning - and of creative staff development practice in general - and invite the reader to engage dialogically with them also to see what meanings they might make of them.

scholarly journals A Reflective View of the Introduction of Technologies in Social Work Fieldwork Modules within the South African Context

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-73
Author(s):  
Marichen van der Westhuizen ◽  
◽  
Sibulelo Gawulayo ◽  
Nomvuyo Lukelelo ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Social Work ◽  
Activity Theory ◽  
Direct Interaction ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Role Players ◽  
African Context ◽  
Teaching In Higher Education

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need to prepare students for emergency online learning and teaching. The blended-learning approach that includes online learning and teaching options in social work theoretical modules has been described as valuable in providing students with a variety of modes of learning and teaching. However, its use in fieldwork modules requires further research. This article aims to explore the experiences and perceptions of undergraduate student social workers and their supervisors regarding the inclusion of technologies in the first-year fieldwork module, and how this affected their online experiences during the pandemic. The activity theory served as a theoretical framework. A qualitative approach was followed with an explorative-descriptive research design. Participants were selected through purposive non-probability sampling. Data was collected through written reflection sheets that were analysed through thematic content analysis. Ethics included voluntary participation, informed consent, privacy, confidentiality and anonymity. The findings indicate that all the components of the activity theory were present, while challenges experienced prior and during the pandemic were identified as a lack of previous exposure to the use of technology and of access to technological resources, socioeconomic challenges, the need to become skilled in becoming independent scholars, a need for direct interaction among students and between students and supervisors/lectures, and the importance of a variety of role-players to support learning. The findings provided a foundation to draw conclusions and make recommendations regarding what is needed to effectively use the activity theory’s components in fieldwork modules and to prepare students for technology-based learning and teaching in higher education settings.

scholarly journals Genuine students as partners: How a Teaching Assistant Consultant program put students as partners into practice

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 106-114
Author(s):  
Gerry Gourlay ◽  
Cynthia Korpan
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Graduate Student ◽  
Teaching Assistants ◽  
Teaching Assistant ◽  
Power Sharing ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Student Leader ◽  
Teaching In Higher Education ◽  
Do So

In this case study, a graduate student and staff member show how an institution wide program, aimed at enhancing learning and teaching in higher education, exemplifies Matthews’s (2017) “Five Propositions for Genuine Students as Partners Practice” at the department level. To do so, we describe the five propositions in relation to the Teaching Assistant Consultant (TAC) program that positions a graduate student leader in each department to support new Teaching Assistants (TAs). Through comparison, we look at how the program is inclusive, exhibits strong power-sharing capabilities through continual reflection and conversation, is ethical, and is strongly transformative.

scholarly journals Students’ perceptions of the learner attributes required for (and resulting from) heutagogical learning

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Stoszkowski ◽  
Liam McCarthy
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Research Study ◽  
Approaches To Learning ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Learning Potential ◽  
Approach To Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching

Heutagogy, a form of self-determined learning, is a learner-centred approach to learning and teaching, grounded in constructivist principles. This case study explores final year undergraduate students’ perceptions of the learner attributes required for (and resulting from) heutagogical learning. As part of a larger research study, data were collected at two UK universities, using an online survey that was intended to elicit their perceptions and experiences of a module designed using heutagogical principles. Results indicate that foundational knowledge, skills and attitude are a requirement for, and an outcome of, heutagogical learning. Potential implications for the use of heutagogical approaches to learning and teaching are discussed.

“Sell Your Bargains” or Playing a Mixed-Reality Game to Spice-Up Teaching in Higher Education

2013 ◽  
pp. 131-145
Author(s):  
Chrissi Nerantzi
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Mixed Reality ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Academic Development ◽  
Academic Practice ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Virtual Spaces ◽  
Creative Experience ◽  
Teaching In Higher Education

This case study relates to a mixed-reality game that has been developed and used by the author in the area of Academic Development and specifically within the Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (LTHE) module of the Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (PGCAP). The game aims to provide a highly immersive learning experience to the players and opportunities to enhance their teaching in more creative ways as a result of their engagement and participation. The author shares details about this mixed-reality game and the pedagogical rationale on which it is based with other practitioners. The following also explores how this approach could be adapted and used in different learning and teaching contexts to transform learning in Higher Education into a more playful and creative experience which has potentially the power to motivate and connect individuals and teams combining physical and virtual spaces.

The Use of Debating as an Aid to Effective Widening Participation in Psychology

2008 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joy Coogan ◽  
Chris Pawson
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Academic Standards ◽  
Widening Participation ◽  
Popular Belief ◽  
Essay Writing ◽  
Approach To Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Traditional Student ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Degree Of Innovation

The UK widening participation agenda is in place to unlock the doors of universities for many students. However, contrary to popular belief, beyond the higher education sector, this widening of participation need not mean a reduction in academic standards. It does, however, demand a different approach to learning and teaching and, the authors argue, a degree of innovation. This paper focuses on one way in which the ‘less traditional’ student can participate in an effective course of study by starting at Level 0 and using nontraditional means of assessment, to which their often less academic backgrounds are better suited in the early stages of their studies. The particular module discussed herein introduces key studies in psychology using the skills of debating and essay writing. The evaluation of this module shows that the students gained a great deal of confidence from debating and enjoyed the experience.

scholarly journals Implementing pedagogies of care in online teacher education

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dewa Wardak
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Qualitative Survey ◽  
Human Aspects ◽  
Survey Responses

Research shows that students who believe their teachers are caring for them are more likely to engage with the class and exhibit higher levels of self-esteem and well-being. What we learn from the past should guide our present practice to pave the way for a more authentic relationship with our students in the future. This paper reports a case study of how a ‘pedagogy of care’ was implemented in a first-year large teacher-education unit of study at an Australian university during the transition to fully online learning and teaching in response to the pandemic. The paper reports the strategies adopted by the teaching team and the results of an online survey conducted with the students about their experience of the transition. The qualitative survey responses were organised into themes that illustrated how students perceived teacher care. According to the students, teachers cared when they organised consistent synchronous sessions, provided opportunity for interaction between students, recorded lectures, were lenient, modified assessment, marked assessments quickly, exhibited positivity, and acknowledged challenges due to COVID-19. These themes were then classified into two broad categories on a continuum ranging between the delivery of the unit to interpersonal or human aspects.

scholarly journals From ‘Good Teaching’ to ‘Better Teaching’: One Academic’s Journey to Online Teaching

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan Paul Bentley ◽  
Benjamin A Kehrwald
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environments ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Mode Of Delivery ◽  
Learning Technologies ◽  
Good Teaching ◽  
Online Learning Environments ◽  
Approach To Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Face To Face

For many educators, the adoption of learning technologies as part of a ‘technology-enhanced’ approach to learning and teaching implies change. Technology takes on a disruptive role. Therefore, it is important to understand the pedagogical commitments associated with current practices in order to better understand any change implied by the use of particular technology ‘enhancements’. This article reports on a case study of the change experienced by one tertiary educator in the shift from successful on campus to flexible online teaching in an undergraduate Numeracy course. The study addresses the question: How do teaching academics translate a robust, proven on-campus course into a successful, flexibly delivered technology-enhanced course? The case employs an autoethnographic approach to recording and analysing the educator’s experiences to highlight comparisons between on-campus (face-to-face) and online teaching practices. The findings support the conclusion that ‘good teaching is good teaching’, based on sound pedagogical principles, regardless of the mode of delivery, but that the enactment of those principles in face-to-face and online learning environments differs in significant ways.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document