Improving Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Can Learning Theory Add Value to Quality Review?

Author(s):  
Vaneeta-Marie D'Andrea
Author(s):  
Jason DeHart

This review of The Phenomenological Heart of Teaching and Learning: Theory, Research, and Practice in Higher Education focuses on the organization, strengths, and weaknesses of a newly-published qualitative research text that also serves as a guide for teachers who wish to improve their practice. The case study nature of the text is explored, as well as the contributions of the text’s authors. The book is most notable as a text that draws on the rich history of Merleau-Ponty and seeks to consider classroom instruction in higher education in light of phenomenological tenets.


Author(s):  
Deborah West ◽  
Zaidatun Tasir ◽  
Ann Luzeckyj ◽  
Kew Si Na ◽  
Danny Toohey ◽  
...  

Several studies have been conducted to evaluate the experience and involvement of academics in learning analytics (LA) due to its potential for improving teaching and learning. However, findings often reflect an educational culture which is indicative of the institutional or national context where the study has occurred, resulting in bias regarding LA perspectives. Therefore, this study seeks to compare and contrast the experiences of LA among academics in Australia and Malaysia, with intentions to learn from each other’s experience. Areas of comparison were: (1) academics’ involvement in LA activities; (2) academics’ responses to the institutional capacity in supporting LA; and 3) academics’ concerns about the ethical issues surrounding LA. A survey of 353 Australian and 224 Malaysian academics revealed similarities and differences. It is evident from these results that the context and infrastructure for LA are at different stages of development in both countries. Nevertheless, the results provide an interesting reflection on academics’ needs, institutional understanding, policies, and educational cultural biases in applying LA in teaching and learning in higher education institutions.


In a formal online learning course in higher education, learners usually respond to both assignments and assessments in order to achieve the learning and to provide evidence of their progress. In a learning management system (LMS) instance, analysts may access (1) high-level descriptions of selected features of the assignments and assessments through an administrator-accessed data portal (and a reports section), and they may access (2) close-in descriptions from the learner-facing side. This chapter describes an exploration of the assignments and assessments in a live LMS instance, based on both high-level and close-in analyses; systematized approaches to harness such information to benefit teaching and learning; and proposes some tentative ways to improve teaching and learning for the particular university.


Author(s):  
Laura Landry-Meyer ◽  
Su Yun Bae ◽  
John Zibbel ◽  
Susan Peet ◽  
Deborah G. Wooldridge

The aim of this article is to connect transformative learning theory with the practice of teaching in higher education. Connecting theory to effective active learning pedagogy is good practice in teaching adults, andragogy. Using transformative learning theory as a guide, this article describes the historical evolution of transformative learning theory and describes specific application in higher education using Chickering and Gamson's principles of undergraduate education. The discussion of teaching and learning examples from face-to-face, online, service-learning, and short-term study abroad contexts provide the reader with concrete applications.


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