In this extra post, Dr Omolabake Fakunle describes how the Linked Teaching Approach is a practical way for high-level and meaningful student engagement, which encourages inclusion in an internationlaised classroom. Omolabake is a Senior Lecturer/Chancellor’s Fellow at the Moray House School of Education and Sport.
Student engagement has been extensively researched. But the question remains, to what extent has the research been converted into actionable practice in designing and delivering engaging and active learning for students, especially in internationalised classrooms?
Drawing on research into student experience (Fakunle, 2021), this blog post shares what I conceptualise as ‘Linked Teaching Approach’ (LTA), a practical way for high-level and meaningful student engagement. The LTA is a purposeful integration of course materials, teaching delivery, and reflective exercises for an active and engaged learning experience.
As Course Organiser of the Masters-level ‘Higher Education the Global Context’ course, I successfully implemented the LTA, and this consistently fosters a reflective and inclusive classroom environment, high-level of student engagement, and excellent feedback from students and colleagues. The key features of the LTA are outlined below in five steps (Structure; Linking; Activity; Feedback and Inclusivity). This contributes to positive student outcomes evidenced by verbal and written excellent feedback.
1. Structure
Timing: The first key step is the course structure. Weekly one-hour lectures are followed by one-hour workshop/seminar, over a ten-week semester.
Workshop allocation: Groups of 4-5 students are randomly allocated by the tutor at the start of the course. Effort is made to have diversity (such as, educational background) in each student group.
2. Linking
Students need to make sense of what is been taught. Accordingly, at the core of the LTA, preset-questions are integrated into the lecture slides. Questions are normally posed to critically interrogate theories or postulations put forward in course materials (e.g, journal papers) used in lectures. See example below:
Topic: Regionalisation of Internationalisation
Sample question: What are your thoughts about the pertinence of ‘Ubuntu’ (see Alemu et al. 2022, p.9) for global internationalisation? Discuss any other related philosophical concept from a different cultural context.
Each student group will share their ideas on their allocated questions, as above, during the follow-on workshop. Usually, the number of questions correspond with the numbers of the groups. This offers a range of questions for critical consideration and discussion amongst the different group members.
3. Activity: Linked questions from the lecture form the basis for workshop discussions and group presentations. Each student group will deliver joint, short presentations during the workshops. Students decide on what works best for their workshop preparation. This might involve meeting online (or in-person) and allocating tasks for their group presentation before the workshop. Fellow students offer their ideas on topics that are presented by their peers, which facilitates deeper engagement during workshop discussions.
4. Feedback: The workshop tutor provides formative feedback on the group presentations. This ensures consistency in provision of staff feedback and active student engagement throughout the duration of the course. Of course, student feedback is critical. The efficacy of the linked approach was captured in a detailed [anonymous] feedback from the Course Monitoring Feedback form:
“The course was very well structured. The workshops were structured excellently. Placing us into teams…We would contribute to questions as a team, and so I am sure that others felt more comfortable sharing answers knowing a teammate could “help out” if they were faltering. You also knew beforehand which question you’d need to work on for your team, so you could do detailed research and focus most heavily on it. Other groups could contribute to each of the questions as well. The questions were integrated into the lecture which created this sense of continuity between them and made it easy to see exactly what the question was getting at. Just altogether an excellent course. My best workshop experience by far. Every single workshop the students all came well prepared and I was always learning something new or deepening my knowledge.” (Higher Education in a Global Context, Student feedback)
5. Inclusivity: An ethos of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is crucial for the LTA. EDI considerations need to take account of students’ learning adjustments. Hence, pre-set questions are provided on Learn before lectures and workshops, providing time for familiarisation with the topic, and opportunity for clarification. Compliance with schedules of adjustment ensures that students’ circumstances are carefully considered and applied, as required.
Cultural inclusivity using the LTA is important. This is achieved by restating throughout the course (also in the style of the questions) the value of diversity of voices and sharing knowledge from different cultural and educational backgrounds. This leads to enriched learning experiences for everyone.
Learning outcomes
The LTA provides opportunities for developing group cohesion and deeper understanding of theories and concepts taught during the course. These offer students with support in preparing for their group assignment, and building confidence in their analytical and communication skills, which is beneficial for the course learning outcomes, and beyond the classroom. It is always fulfilling to see students flourish in their learning environment in every classroom where the LTA is used. The high student engagement level has been commended by academic colleagues.
LTA in Challenge course
Pre-honours Undergraduate students enrolled on the new Challenge course, Understanding Decolonisation in a Globalised World (EDUA08127) will have the opportunity to experience the Linked Teaching Approach for an enhanced immersive teaching and learning experience!
References
Fakunle, O. (2021) Developing a framework for international students’ rationales for studying abroad, beyond economic factors. Policy Futures in Education 19(6), 671-690 https://doi.org/10.1177/1478210320965066
Omolabake Fakunle
Omolabake Fakunle is a Senior Lecturer/Chancellor’s Fellow at the Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh. Her research, teaching and advisory roles contributes to advancing inclusivity in educational policies and practices, across three thematic areas: internationalisation, decoloniality, and employability. Her award-winning research underpins theorisation/conceptual frameworks for advancing inclusivity in academic and non-academic policies and practices at the institutional level, and within national, and international contexts.
