linking teaching and discipline based research in national, institutional and department strategies:...
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Linking teaching and discipline based research in National, Institutional and Department strategies: International perspectives on Vietnam
Alan Jenkins
Professor Emeritus , Oxford Brookes University
(UK) HE Academy and QAA Scotland Consultant
Discuss one or more of these questions
1. What makes higher education higher ?
2. In what ways is a university different from a high
school ?
3. In what ways is a university different from a high
school –from the perspective of undergraduates?
4. What makes your university/college different
from other universities in Vietnam – from the
perspective of undergraduates?
Exploring your views
This session is about linking teaching and
research
What do you mean by ‘linking teaching and
research’
and is it an important issue in Vietnam and
or your institution – why or why not!?
Aims : …
Help clarify your views on teaching /discipline based research
relations
Set out the international debate on teaching /discipline based
research relations
Set out the research evidence
Give an over view of how various national systems handle this issue –
and how some of them have sought to bring teaching and
research together
Set out a range of strategies that institutions and departments can
do to bring together teaching and research
Explore the relevance of this to Vietnam / your institution
About Alan Jenkins
UK born : 1959-62 Geography undergraduate at University College London, UK
1963-66 School teacher British Columbia Canada
Graduate School : 1966-69 University of Madison Wisconsin USA
Long taught human geography and contemporary China studies in higher education mainly in UK at Oxford Brookes .
Then moved into educational/faculty development
Now Professor ( Emeritus ) Oxford Brookes University (UK) and educational consultant
Available from the HE Academy http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/rtnexus.htm
www.heacademy.ac.uk/assets/York/documents/resources/publications/DevelopingUndergraduate_Final.pdf
Some international perspectives
The New Zealand Education Amendment Act (1990) defines a university as where
“teaching and research are closely interdependent and most of their teaching is
done by people who are active in advancing knowledge.”
“Why does every University…. have to be doing research, teaching and scholarship and
struggling to do it in so many areas? Why can't we have Universities that make a
conscious decision to specialise in outstanding teaching and scholarship but do
very little research? Why can't we have formal affiliations, one specialising in
teaching and another research, between our domestic Universities?” (Brendan
Nelson, Minister for Education, Science and Training, Australia, April 2005)
“Our view is that university research often detracts from the quality of teaching. We
regret the continuing elevation of research and the systematic neglect of the
quality of instruction.” (Pocklington and Tupper 2002, 7 – about Canada)
What about ‘Research Intensive’ Universities? One perspective
"..The research universities have often failed,
and continue to fail their undergraduate
populations, thousands of students
graduate without seeing the world - famous
professors or tasting genuine research." (U.
S.) Boyer Commission on Educating
Undergraduates in the Research University
(2003,3)
Some ‘difficult’ research evidence
Loosely Coupled
“Based on this review we concluded that the common belief that teaching and research
were inextricably intertwined is an enduring myth. At best teaching and research are
very loosely coupled" (Hattie and Marsh, 1996)
At Arms length
Students at “arms length” from the worlds of university research (Brew, 2006)
Student indifference : Some research in professional disciplines including business and health ….have
revealed that some /many students and staff /faculty don’t necessarily value a research focus
Research Active
(One UK study …) Increasing the number or proportions of research-active teaching staff in lower RAE-rated
contexts
is unlikely to affect the quality of student learning. However, the results do suggest that more could be
done to help more students to experience the benefits of research-stimulated teaching environments,
not between different types of research context, but within each context” (Trigwell 2007) (emphasis added).
A Vietnamese perspective
“The picture of the nexus of teaching/learning and research at higher education
systems in the developing countries in Asia and Pacific Region, due to their
poor research capacity, is totally different than that of developed countries.
So the focus in the developing world must be first to strengthen and revive
university system’s research capacities…..
The Vietnamese Government in its “Five Year Socio-Economic Development Plan
2006-20010” specifies priority to higher education system. With the World
Bank Loan higher education project, it is designed to strengthen teaching
and research in Vietnamese universities by building research capacity,
supporting integration between university teaching and research and
facilitating and establish closer linkage between universities and the
industries, national,regional and international cooperation in university
teaching and research.” Phuong Nga Nguyen, 2007 (emphasis added)
Acting on the Research Evidence
“The aim is to increase the circumstances in which
teaching and research have occasion to meet….
Increase the skills of staff to teach emphasizing the
construction of knowledge by students rather
than the imparting of knowledge by
instructors......
Ensure that students experience the process of
artistic and scientific productivity."
(Hattie and Marsh, 1996, emphasis added )
One UK Government perspective
“… we want all students to access the benefits exposure to
teaching informed by research can bring…. …….We’re
doing this because we believe an understanding of the
research process – asking the right questions in the right
way; conducting experiments; and collating and
evaluating information – must be a key part of any
undergraduate curriculum; whether or not those involved
in delivering it are actively engaged in research activity
themselves.” (Bill Rammell, Minister for Higher Education
2006, 3) ( emphasis added).
Linking research and teaching: why is it important?
• For many it is what distinguishes higher education and or what distinguishes strong ‘research universities
• In an age of ‘supercomplexity’ (Barnett 2000), and given the increased significance of the knowledge economy) ….all students – certainly all graduates – have to be researchers (Scott 2002, 13)
• Can help academic staff manage what is often experienced as two different jobs –teaching and research
• May help build the research capacities of academic staff
My Perspectives
Student ‘understanding’ of the complexity of knowledge lies at the centre of higher
education. (Ron Barnett)
From the level of the academic, the student … and the institution there are tensions
between teaching and research
We need to maximise the (potential) synergies and minimise the conflicts
This requires actions at a variety of levels :In many institutions the department is the key
level of analysis and action?
There will be significant variations by disciplines/departments in how they conceive and
deliver the potential links between teaching and research
The link at undergraduate level is both most problematic and most important ?
•
Different ways of linking teaching and research
• Learning about others’ research
• Learning to do research – research methods
• Learning in research mode – enquiry based
• Pedagogic research – enquiring and reflecting on learning
STUDENTS AS PARTICIPANTS
EMPHASIS ON RESEARCH CONTENT
EMPHASIS ON RESEARCH PROCESSES AND PROBLEMS
STUDENTS AS AUDIENCE
Research-tutored Research-based
Research-led Research-oriented
The nature of undergraduate research and inquiry
Introducing students to staff research: department of
mechanical engineering, Imperial College, London, UK
This activity was a feature of the first year course in Mechanical Engineering at
Imperial College London in the l990s
In January of their first year mechanical engineering students were divided into
10-15 groups of 4-5 students
Each student group was given an engineering ‘artefact’ e.g. a safety razor; the
bottom frame of a bicycle. In the next few weeks these student groups
could knock on the doors of any of the department’s research groups
and ask questions around the issue of ‘what research are you doing that
might effect how this artefact will look like and function in c5 years time?’
Later all groups presented a poster which provided a summary of their findings
The poster session was held in large public space in the department with some
700 attending; academic staff, support staff, postgraduates and first year
and other students
Analysing a case study: department of mechanical engineering, Imperial College
In groups
Consider the case study and discuss
A Using the concepts in the diagram what forms of
teaching /research relations do you see there?
B From a head of department’s perspective what
has had to be done to set up this project eg
what have staff been told /encouraged to do ?
Some national strategies to bring teaching and research together – and perhaps relevant to institutions and departments
Research Councils – National Science Foundation (USA) grants
requiring selective undergraduate ….student involvement
Auditing – New Zealand – all institutions were required to
demonstrate …
Enhancing – Scottish Quality Assurance Agency – national funded
project to support institutions and disciplines
Funding – England – Research Informed teaching fund and some
‘centres of excellence’ in selected institutions
Promoting and Publicising – UK Higher Education Academy –a
range of publications , conferences and consultancies to
institutions
Some institutional strategies to bring teaching and research together-note these could be done at departmental …level?
Developing institutional awareness and institutional mission
( eg Hampshire College, USA: Linking research and teaching is
key element of the college’s mission(http://www.hampshire.edu/)
Developing pedagogy and curricula to support the nexus
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Undergraduate
Research Opportunities Program (http://mit.edu/urop/) –for
selected students
Oxford Brookes University (UK): Building undergraduate
research into the curriculum From 2007 all Schools /
Departments required to develop a structured approach to
developing all students as researchers in all course programmes
Institutional Strategies to Link Teaching and Research
Developing research policies and
strategies to support the nexus
Developing staff and university
structures to support the nexus –key
issues are probably relationships
between research and teaching policies
and issues of promotion and reward
Strategies for Linking Teaching and Research
within Courses and Programmes
Strategy 1: Develop students’ understanding of the role of
research in their discipline(s)
Strategy 2: Develop students’ abilities to carry out research
Strategy 3: Progressively develop students’ understanding
Strategy 4: Manage students’ experience of research including
Support students in making clear to them the employability elements
of research
Your conclusions are
What of this seems very relevant to your
institution/your role at your institution?
What of this seems irrelevant /
inappropriate ?
What –if anything –should now be done to
progress this agenda at your institution?