The University Of Learning

Universities are rarely structured to facilitate learning and when they are, it is often done so in a limited way. This book looks at the theory and practice of learning and how universities can improve their quality and competence. It tackles the past failure of the quality and competence movements and advocates a move towards 'Universities of Learning'. The authors advocate an integration of elements that are often dealt with separately - theory and practice, teaching and research, and the levels of institution and individual - and handle these dimensions of integration in conjunction with each other. This new paperback edition will be essential reading for all those who are concerned with improving learning in higher education. It includes an updated preface that takes account of developments since the publication of the hardback edition.

This groundbreaking book, now available in paperback for the first time, looks at the theory and practice of learning and how universities can improve their quality and competence.

Simulation-based education (SBE) is a teaching strategy in which students adopt a character as part of the learning process. SBE has become a fixture in the university classroom based on its ability to stimulate student interest and deepen analytical thinking. Simulations and Student Learning is the first piece of scholarship that brings together experts from the social, natural, and health sciences in order to open up new opportunities for learning about different strategies, methods, and practices of immersive learning. This collection advances current scholarly thinking by integrating insights from across a range of disciplines on how to effectively design, execute, and evaluate simulations, leading to a deeper understanding of how SBE can be used to cultivate skills and capabilities that students need to achieve success after graduation.

Universities across North America and beyond are experiencing growing demand for off-campus, experiential learning. Exploring the foundations of what it means to learn "out there," Out There Learning is an informed, critical investigation of the pedagogical philosophies and practices involved in short-term, off-campus programs or field courses. Bringing together contributors' individual research and experience teaching or administering off-campus study programs, Out There Learning examines and challenges common assumptions about pedagogy, place, and personal transformation, while also providing experience-based insights and advice for getting the most out of faculty-led field courses. Divided into three sections that investigate aspects of pedagogy, ethics of place, and course and program assessment, this collection offers "voices from the field" highlighting the experiences of faculty members, students, teaching assistants, and community members engaged in every aspect of an off-campus study programs. Several chapters examine study programs in the traditional territories of Indigenous communities and in the Global South. Containing an appendix highlighting some examples of off-campus study programs, Out There Learning offers new pathways for faculty, staff, and college and university administrators interested in enriching the experience of non-traditional avenues of study.

University teaching and learning take place within ever more specialized disciplinary settings, each characterized by its unique traditions, concepts, practices and procedures. It is now widely recognized that support for teaching and learning needs to take this discipline-specificity into account. However, in a world characterized by rapid change, complexity and uncertainty, problems do not present themselves as distinct subjects but increasingly within trans-disciplinary contexts calling for graduate outcomes that go beyond specialized knowledge and skills. This ground-breaking book highlights the important interplay between context-specific and context-transcendent aspects of teaching, learning and assessment. It explores critical questions, such as: What are the ‘ways of thinking and practicing’ characteristic of particular disciplines? How can students be supported in becoming participants of particular disciplinary discourse communities? Can the diversity in teaching, learning and assessment practices that we observe across departments be attributed exclusively to disciplinary structure? To what extent do the disciplines prepare students for the complexities and uncertainties that characterize their later professional, civic and personal lives? Written for university teachers, educational developers as well as new and experienced researchers of Higher Education, this highly-anticipated first edition offers innovative perspectives from leading Canadian, US and UK scholars on how academic learning within particular disciplines can help students acquire the skills, abilities and dispositions they need to succeed academically and also post graduation. Carolin Kreber is Professor of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education and the Director of the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Assessment at the University of Edinburgh

University Teaching in Focus provides a foundational springboard for early career academics preparing to teach in universities. Focusing on four critical areas - teaching, curriculum, students, and quality/leadership - this succinct resource offers university teachers a straightforward approach to facilitating effective student learning. The book empowers university teachers and contributes to their career success by developing teaching skills, strategies, and knowledge, as well as linking theory to practice. Written in a clear and accessible style by internationally acclaimed experts, topics include: learning theories, assessment, discipline-based teaching, curriculum design, problem-based and work-integrated learning, effective classroom teaching, and flexible modes of delivery. The needs of diverse student groups are explored and the scholarship of teaching and learning is addressed within a quality and leadership framework. The book also makes reference to seminal works and current resources. Real-world cases illuminate the theoretical content and 'Your Thoughts' sections encourage reflection and adaptation to local contexts. University Teaching in Focus explores ways that teachers can effectively engage students in life-long learning, extending their capacity to solve problems, to enter the workforce, to understand their discipline, and to interact positively with others in a global community throughout their professional lives.

“Essays from staff on 15 farms . . . illustrate the trials, tribulations and sheer joys of establishing and maintaining such enterprises.” —USA Today Originally published in 2011, Fields of Learning remains the single best resource for students, faculty, and administrators involved in starting or supporting campus farms. Featuring detailed profiles of fifteen diverse student farms on college and university campuses across North America, the book also serves as a history of the student farm movement, showing how the idea of campus farms has come in and out of fashion over the past century and how the tenacious work of students, faculty, and other campus community members has upheld and reimagined the objectives of student farming over time. Ranging in size from less than an acre to hundreds of acres, supplying food to campus dining halls or community food banks, and hosting scientific research projects or youth education programs, student farms highlight the interdisciplinary richness and multifunctionality of agriculture, supporting academic work across a range of fields while simultaneously building community engagement and stimulating critical conversations about environmental and social justice. As institutions of higher learning face new challenges linked to the global climate crisis and public health emergency, this book holds continued relevance for readers in North America and beyond. “A timely and hopeful book.” —Jason Peters, editor of Wendell Berry: Life and Work “The opportunity for students to spend time learning on campus farms is not just a good idea—it should be mandatory.” —Gary Hirshberg, President & CEO, Stonyfield Farm “An excellent book, useful for anyone interested in the past, or the future, of the student farm movement.” —Journal of Agricultural & Food Information

To understand the modern university and the contemporary crisis of higher education we must consider its central issues. The Order of Learning thoughtfully considers the problems facing higher education by focusing on some of the main underlying factors: the relationship of higher education to government, academic freedom, the responsibilities of the academic profession, among others. Edward Shils believes that higher education has a central role in modern society, and that the distractions of the recent past, including undue pressures from government, the fads of some students and faculty, and increasing involvement of the post-secondary education with day-to-day questions, have damaged higher education by deflecting it from its essential commitment to teaching, learning, and research. The Order of Learning will be of great interest to educators and students alike, as well as those interested in the future of higher education in the United States.