The use of Teaching Films in blended and distance learning: Is good engagement good learning? By Tom Harrison

  Birmingham Digital, I think, is rightly a major theme of this round of the Big Conversation.  In a previous piece I outlined a healthy scepticism about the use of technology in Higher Education.  In this post, I consider a particular digital issue – the use of ‘teaching films’ in distance- and blended-learning programmes. We … Continue reading “The use of Teaching Films in blended and distance learning: Is good engagement good learning? By Tom Harrison”

Engaging the curriculum through research – Petia Petrova

Engaging the curriculum through research Inspired by our 2017 T&L Conference, I thought about the organising principles behind all the outstanding work that currently take place at Birmingham in relation to research intensive teaching. I was reminded of some of my past thinking on this topic, and considered  – whether I may find there some … Continue reading “Engaging the curriculum through research – Petia Petrova”

Student Futures Competition – Announcement of Winners

Thank you to all those who entered the Student Futures Competition, as part of the Big Conversation. The panel were very impressed by the quality of the entries that were submitted. The winning, and commended, entries can be found below and we would encourage colleagues to read and engage with the visions expressed. Winners Jenna … Continue reading “Student Futures Competition – Announcement of Winners”

Let’s talk about assessment…

Alison Broad (Primary Education and Early Years), Tom Harrison (Education), Duc Pham (Mechanical Engineering), Clare Ray (Institute of Clinical Sciences), Chris Ribchester (Academic Practice Advisor/Geography), Nicola Taylor (Academic Writing Advisor/College of Arts and Law) The recent Distinguished Fellows Think Tank provided an all too rare opportunity for colleagues from across the University to share their … Continue reading “Let’s talk about assessment…”

A collaborative community of students and academics (Rachel Kahn)

Collaborative; Produced by or involving two or more parties working together. Example, collaborative research. Collaboration and being an interdisciplinary worker are key components of success in many areas. For academics, collaboration builds research consensus and combining different areas of specialism looks impressive to potential funding bodies. For students, collaboration, or, ‘team work’, is an essential … Continue reading “A collaborative community of students and academics (Rachel Kahn)”

Ensuring prescribing competency in medical graduates using SCRIPT (Vera Kubenz, SCRIPT team)

One of the key challenges facing medical education is ensuring that medical graduates are equipped with the knowledge, skills and confidence to prescribe safely and accurately. Studies by the GMC have indicated that new doctors are often poorly prepared for prescribing and that First and Second Year Foundation Doctors prescribe with error rates of 8% … Continue reading “Ensuring prescribing competency in medical graduates using SCRIPT (Vera Kubenz, SCRIPT team)”

Bioscience students value campus based formats, including lectures and lecturers who also research, but they expect interactive and engaging teaching making use of the latest technology

The School of Biosciences Student Staff Committee had a short breakout session to join in with the Big Conversation. There were 14 students from all four undergraduate years in Biosciences. This is what our student reps said: In 10 years time We will still have face-to-face lectures We will still learn from active researchers and … Continue reading “Bioscience students value campus based formats, including lectures and lecturers who also research, but they expect interactive and engaging teaching making use of the latest technology”

Where in the World? Promoting diverse destinations for student mobility (Claire Belkadi)

By 2026 Birmingham students will thrive by discovering new cultures, learning new languages and travelling to more varied academic locations. Our network of global university partners is one that offers a great diversity of destinations, offering opportunities to study in all five continents of the globe, including Japan, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Sweden, Israel, Chile, Ghana … Continue reading “Where in the World? Promoting diverse destinations for student mobility (Claire Belkadi)”

Our 2026 Global Education Offer (Erica Arthur, International Relations)

The case for study abroad is increasingly compelling. Mounting political, economic and societal pressures assert the urgency of globally-connected and interculturally-aware citizens. Since 2011-2012 outgoing study abroad participation rates at UoB have increased by 63% — with 576 students (8.5% of the undergraduate cohort) studying abroad in 2016/17. In the next ten years we can … Continue reading “Our 2026 Global Education Offer (Erica Arthur, International Relations)”