School of Health & Wellbeing

I had the opportunity to attend the UofG Best Practice in Social Sciences Teaching Workshop on 7^th August. A range of workshop sessions were provided across the themes ‘how to deliver an introductory lecture’, ‘knowledge and skills transfer’, and ‘simulations in practice’ allowing participants to select a session on each theme. I would encourage anyone interested in gaining insight into implementing active learning and gamification to attend a similar session if it is offered in the future!  

Engaging with unfamiliar lecturing content through games and simulations provided a fantastic opportunity to unpick how interactive learning can help make complex issues more accessible and develop associations to establish deeper comprehension. I experienced several ‘ah ha’ moments throughout the workshop where clarity was gained through my active learning. Like me, fellow participants left the sessions pondering on how small (and big) adaptations to their own teaching could recreate these ‘ah ha’ experiences for their students. 

My favourite session was offered by Dr Faye Donnelly who teaches a 30-credit 3^rd year course on ‘Security’ at St Andrews University. The assessment breakdown is a 3000-word essay (30%), a 2000-word reflection focusing on the student voice (20%), and a written exam (50%). 

Faye managed to independently offer a double act, giving sample sections of her lectures to provide insight into the intricacies of the topic and facilitating discussion around the lecture topic, and then breaking the fourth wall, providing a commentary on how each of her actions aimed to achieve student learning. On completing her presentation, she was peppered with questions from attendees enthusiastic to borrow and implement some of the tweaks she had outlined. Here are some ‘take home points’ that might be useful to others: 

Try New Things 

It is ok to fail in the classroom, as teaching should be a learning experience for both the students and the staff member. Trying new things and reflecting on their effectiveness and adapting for the next run can help optimise the enjoyment of facilitating learning.  

Don’t be Afraid of Silence 

1. There is value in teaching students the foundations of the topic, but it is not necessary to provide every detail. Offering students an opportunity to apply their own experiences and perceptions to the topic area is valuable. Having students share these reflections can stimulate class discussion incorporating themes you as the teacher had not previously considered, in addition it promotes peer learning.

 Quote of the Week 

Faye sets three pieces of reading for each 1-hour weekly tutorial and students are asked to select a single sentence quote from the papers that spoke to them the most. Their reason for selection could vary, it could be the one they liked most, disliked, were intrigued by, struggled with, etc. In tutorials of 10, each student shared their quote and their reasoning. Faye found this promoted discussion in class but also resulted in students consistently preparing for the session by engaging with the set reading.  

Promoting Reflection: Draw it Out 

During the first tutorial students are each provided with a large piece of blank paper and art materials and asked to create a poster summarising what the topic of security means to them. Faye claims her artistic skills are poor, she joins in this activity to reassure the students that any approach is appropriate, many adopt mind maps, others draw thematically or add words. Later in the course students are encouraged to revisit what security means to them and then undertake a comparison with the original work. This comparison activity informs their reflection assignment.  

Promoting Reflection: No Conclusions Provided 

Weekly lectures are scheduled for 1 hour. Faye teaches for 45 minutes engaging a range of didactic and interactive approaches. Her final slide reads ‘I invite you to write your own conclusion each week’ and she advises the students to open their laptops and answer the question ‘what does this week’s learning mean to you’. A timer is set for 5-minutes and students sit in silence making notes. Questions are invited after the writing period and any final comments made to conclude the session. Students are encouraged to consider these weekly notes when collating their final reflection assignment. 

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First published: 27 August 2024