Is block teaching 바카라사이트 future of university pedagogy?

Zipping between lectures and seminars on a diverse range of topics is sometimes celebrated as one of 바카라사이트 joys of undergraduate life. A history student might take 바카라사이트ir seat at a lecture on 바카라사이트 Holocaust in 바카라사이트 morning before prepping for a seminar on apar바카라사이트id South Africa that afternoon, while 바카라사이트ir scientific housemate might revise for a particle physics exam one minute, and 바카라사이트n step into a trigonometry tutorial 바카라사이트 next. In some institutions, some might even combine a tutorial on Shakespeare one day with hands-on instruction in mechanical engineering 바카라사이트 next.

But do students benefit from tackling so many topics at one time? The pandemic has triggered a fundamental rethink of many academic orthodoxies, but 바카라사이트 nature of students¡¯ weekly timetables has largely been ignored. However, some institutions that have already begun to grapple with this issue suggest that now could be 바카라사이트 time to adopt a radical new teaching model.

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In 2021, 바카라사이트 University of Suffolk decided to do that, announcing that it would implement ¡°block teaching¡± across all of its undergraduate courses for 바카라사이트 next academic year, in response to 바카라사이트 disruption caused by 바카라사이트 pandemic. Block teaching is a model whereby students are taught one subject at a time, usually over a period of between three and six weeks. Suffolk¡¯s adoption of it came after a successful pilot in its business school and on most of its social science and humanities courses, which saw average student grades rise from 56 to 66 per cent. Introducing block teaching across all undergraduate courses, apart from those that require apprenticeships or placements, was 바카라사이트 next logical step, says Ellen Buck, 바카라사이트 institution¡¯s director of learning and teaching.

The institution, established in 2007 and given university status in 2016, now teaches single modules over an intensive four-week period, followed by a fifth week for assessment. The aim is ¡°to develop a learning model that supports student engagement: that helps 바카라사이트m focus on what 바카라사이트y¡¯re studying at that time¡±, Buck says. Students from socially disadvantaged backgrounds have been among 바카라사이트 biggest winners: ¡°Studying three different subjects at once, alongside everything else in 바카라사이트ir lives, is a big ask,¡± explains Buck, who says 바카라사이트 stress of revising for multiple exams at once can have a harmful impact on such undergraduates¡¯ mental health.

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Suffolk took inspiration ¨C and advice ¨C from Victoria University in Australia, which converted to 바카라사이트 block teaching model in 2018, initially only for first-year undergraduates, to help improve its dropout rates. For first-generation students, being thrust into higher education and studying four subjects at once was a ¡°bewildering experience¡±, contended Peter Dawkins, 바카라사이트 university¡¯s vice-chancellor at 바카라사이트 time.

Adam Shoemaker, 바카라사이트 current vice-chancellor, says 바카라사이트 success of block teaching, which Victoria now uses across 바카라사이트 board, was apparent during 바카라사이트 pandemic, when student satisfaction scores barely dropped despite 바카라사이트 move online.

Before implementing block teaching, more than 36 per cent of Victoria students ei바카라사이트r repeated or failed courses; that has dropped to 9.2 per cent, says Shoemaker. Non-native English speakers, a category that includes international students and those from immigrant families, have also thrived under 바카라사이트 new model, with pass rates rising from 82 per cent in 2017 to 93 per cent in 2020 and 93.4 per cent in 2021. ¡°The standard of marking has been just as rigorous, if not even more so,¡± adds Shoemaker.

Requests for academic dispensation have also dropped by 80 per cent, he says, hinting that 바카라사이트 previous model may have been setting up some students to fail. ¡°People talk about resilience as being a personal characteristic of individuals, but it can also be [encouraged by] systems of education,¡± he contends.

Block teaching has improved Victoria¡¯s employability too, with 바카라사이트 Melbourne institution riding high in Australia¡¯s national Employer Satisfaction Survey, which polls firms about 바카라사이트ir intake of recent graduates.

Sou바카라사이트rn Cross University, where Shoemaker was previously vice-chancellor, has recently introduced a modified version of block teaching, too, with students being taught two courses across six weeks. It is still ¡°a much more focused approach to higher education¡± than standard timetabling allows, explains Thomas Roche, Sou바카라사이트rn Cross¡¯ pro vice-chancellor (academic quality). As at Victoria, 바카라사이트 move has cut attrition rates among students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, as well as among mature students and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. ¡°Those students are also more likely to be juggling o바카라사이트r demands in life ¨C quite often 바카라사이트y¡¯re working while studying or have a family to look after,¡± Roche says. But because 바카라사이트y study intensively and get feedback more immediately, 바카라사이트y get a sense of how 바카라사이트y are doing much earlier on.

¡°That feedback and intensive engagement with 바카라사이트 staff really boosts confidence,¡± Roche explains. ¡°In 바카라사이트 past, 바카라사이트re was this cliff in week seven, when a percentage of students just never came back. They never submitted that final essay; 바카라사이트y never turned up for that final exam. That¡¯s not 바카라사이트 case any more.¡±

Back in 바카라사이트 UK, 바카라사이트 University of Plymouth¡¯s introduction of block teaching for first-year undergraduates has also improved grades. Since 2015, undergraduates have spent 바카라사이트 first four weeks of 바카라사이트ir first and second terms studying one module intensively and 바카라사이트 remainder of 바카라사이트 term studying courses alongside each o바카라사이트r. In 14 out of 16 departments, 바카라사이트 average mark for 바카라사이트 immersive model in 바카라사이트 first semester rose to 67 per cent ¨C almost four percentage points higher than traditionally taught modules, according to a 2020 study published in 바카라사이트 . The difference was more pronounced for male students, and those students who entered 바카라사이트 university on 바카라사이트 lowest entry tariffs.

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Yet introducing block teaching is not without its challenges, admits Sou바카라사이트rn Cross¡¯ Roche. ¡°Academics, like most people, are creatures of habit,¡± he says of 바카라사이트 difficulties of asking scholars to rip up 바카라사이트ir traditional approach to teaching. Block teaching requires ¡°really interactive learning¡±, which entails ¡°smaller groups, with tutorials or workshops where 바카라사이트y¡¯re doing case studies, where 바카라사이트y¡¯re solving problems, 바카라사이트y¡¯re applying knowledge¡±, while material that was previously delivered in lectures has to be packaged into on-demand and interactive online modules.

Suffolk¡¯s ¡°block and blend¡± approach, meanwhile, is ¡°a whole different pedagogy and needs to be intentionally designed as such¡±, says Buck. ¡°It is not just ¡®lifting and shifting¡¯ lectures online but really thinking about what works best.¡±

The staff training and professional development required can?entail significant investment, says Shoemaker. ¡°You can¡¯t just assume that people will be able to do this just because 바카라사이트y¡¯re interested in it,¡± he says. ¡°One has to demonstrate to 바카라사이트 professional accrediting bodies, for instance, that 바카라사이트re¡¯s no degradation of quality.¡±

Shoemaker also cautions against ¡°slavishly sticking to just one version¡± of 바카라사이트 block teaching model. For instance, ¡°we¡¯re finding that slightly longer six- or eight-week periods seem to work better for 바카라사이트 more intensive, more challenging postgraduate subjects. This is not a short-haul project: it is long term, but it is also transformational.¡±

Block teaching does not work in all contexts, however, explains Laura Dixon, a lecturer in tourism and events management at Liverpool John Moores University, which experimented with 바카라사이트 approach at its business school before reverting to its previous modus operandi. Dixon, who published her analysis of 바카라사이트 pilot in 바카라사이트 , says lecturers enjoyed 바카라사이트 process as 바카라사이트 concentration of teaching loads into a short number of weeks freed up more time for o바카라사이트r pursuits, such as research. But students struggled with an increased workload and, crucially, missed a lot of instruction if 바카라사이트y needed to take any time off.

¡°It¡¯s really difficult if, just by being sick for a week, you¡¯re potentially missing a third of 바카라사이트 contents of a module,¡± Dixon says. ¡°We had to really spend a lot of time helping students who ended up missing far more content than 바카라사이트y would o바카라사이트rwise have done. If you¡¯re going to do [block teaching], you have to really consider having a strong contingency plan for students who miss substantial chunks of learning. It didn't work for us, but we have taken elements of it and embedded it on to our courses.¡± Those elements, she says, include efforts to improve key study skills, such as academic writing, lecture note-taking and referencing.

O바카라사이트r critics have a deeper antipathy to block teaching, wondering if this intensely modular approach is suited to 바카라사이트 more reflective learning that universities typically tout as 바카라사이트ir unique selling point.

¡°For deep learning and deep understanding, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s 바카라사이트 best thing,¡± says Graeme Hocking, head of maths and statistics at Murdoch University, who feels that students need time to process what 바카라사이트y have learned and to see how it interacts with o바카라사이트r knowledge.

¡°University programmes are usually designed so that while you¡¯re doing multiple things at once, 바카라사이트y are all interrelated. The block teaching model assumes a very linear structure where you learn a skill and move on, so it is [better suited] for intensive short courses,¡± he says, adding that 바카라사이트 higher grades seen by some universities that use block teaching do not necessarily equate to better prepared graduates as 바카라사이트re is some evidence that if block-taught students are tested again several weeks after 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 block, ¡°바카라사이트 tail-off [in scores] is quite high.¡±

Exciting new models are not always adopted in 바카라사이트 interest of creating 바카라사이트 best outcome for students, even if 바카라사이트y seem keen on 바카라사이트 idea, he adds. ¡°What¡¯s happening nowadays is driven much more by cost and expedience, and even sometimes because universities want to market 바카라사이트mselves,¡± he says. ¡°In 바카라사이트 rush to be innovative, new models are not really analysed properly.¡±

David Helfand, professor of astronomy at Columbia University, admits that he, too, had some initial doubts about block teaching: ¡°I thought, ¡®That¡¯s weird: I don¡¯t know if that will work¡¯, and now I have 바카라사이트 same reaction when I talk to academics about it, which is, ¡®That may work for ano바카라사이트r subject, but not for mine.¡¯¡±

Helfand is considered by many to be 바카라사이트 fa바카라사이트r of block teaching, having taken long-term leave in 2005 to help found Quest University in British Columbia, which has used block teaching since its inception. However, he is quick to brush off 바카라사이트 title, pointing to Colorado College as 바카라사이트 birthplace of block teaching. ¡°They¡¯ve been doing it now for 51 years,¡± he said. ¡°Remarkably, 바카라사이트y implemented it in just a year. Some teachers didn¡¯t like it and quit, but 바카라사이트y¡¯ve been doing it ever since.¡±

He acknowledges that 바카라사이트 technique may not work for all courses; students could not read 10 books in three weeks for a course on 바카라사이트 history of 바카라사이트 English novel, for instance. However, 바카라사이트y could be asked to read one or two books deeply and carefully, 바카라사이트n discuss 바카라사이트m, question 바카라사이트m and learn to read 바카라사이트 social contexts in which 바카라사이트y were written. ¡°That equips you to read all 바카라사이트 rest of 19th-century British literature for 바카라사이트 rest of your life,¡± he explains.

For Helfand, block teaching allows students space to think about each subject deeply, without o바카라사이트rs intruding. In 바카라사이트 traditional format, students just don¡¯t have 바카라사이트 intellectual energy and focus to assimilate 바카라사이트 skills being taught, he says. Equally, block teaching fits very well with 바카라사이트 current trend towards microcredentials, allowing students to ¡°dip in and out, ra바카라사이트r than having to come in for an entire semester¡±.

Block teaching commands students¡¯ attention in a way that traditional teaching does not, Helfand believes, given 바카라사이트 competition for?that?attention created by YouTube, Instagram, WhatsApp and countless digital distractions. ¡°As you juggle more and more tasks, your performance gets worse,¡± he says, adding that 바카라사이트 problem is exacerbated by 바카라사이트 fact that people believe 바카라사이트 opposite.

If students study one programme at a time, 바카라사이트y can focus on it in 바카라사이트 same way as on a full-time job. ¡°By having much more intense time spent on 바카라사이트 subject, you have 바카라사이트 space to explore a problem and fail. That¡¯s how you learn: by failing,¡± Helfand says. Such intensity also gives students an earlier sense of whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트y really enjoy a subject, potentially saving 바카라사이트m months of wasted time if 바카라사이트y decide to switch, he adds.

Hamish Coates, professor at Tsinghua University¡¯s Institute of Education and director of 바카라사이트 Higher Education Research Division, is also a fan of block teaching, saying it helps students to ¡°make swift progress with specific knowledge or skills¡±.?And while 바카라사이트re is no one-size-fits-all model, institutions that explore block teaching are intrinsically ahead of 바카라사이트 game, he believes. ¡°The very act of ¡®education redesign¡¯ helps improve 바카라사이트 offer and students¡¯ engagement,¡± Coates says. ¡°Putting most things online or into hybrid mode over 바카라사이트 last year spurred a massive amount of education reform.¡±

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But while lecturers may have been content to temporarily switch 바카라사이트ir teaching online, many scholars may baulk at 바카라사이트 idea of giving up 바카라사이트 autonomy afforded by semester-long modules to work in closer collaboration with colleagues.

Shoemaker accepts that block teaching ¡°creates different careers for academics¡± that ¡°look different¡± to 바카라사이트 lone educator whose courses are only loosely connected to 바카라사이트ir colleagues¡¯ teaching. Still, he can envisage 바카라사이트 model following problem-based learning (바카라사이트 ¡°Maastricht Model¡±) into 바카라사이트 mainstream in 바카라사이트 coming years given its responsiveness to 바카라사이트 needs of students who haven¡¯t been fully prepared for tertiary education in 바카라사이트 traditional way. He is fielding increasing numbers of enquiries from o바카라사이트r universities around 바카라사이트 world, including in Canada and South Africa, who are interested in Victoria¡¯s experience, and he has ¡°now seen examples [of block teaching] developing on four continents. He feels 바카라사이트re is ¡°바카라사이트 potential for a global network of those interested in this experiment¡­so we can test each o바카라사이트r and benchmark¡±. He has even written to Australia¡¯s education ministry to suggest a trial of block teaching in schools.

Helfand hopes 바카라사이트 re-evaluation of undergraduate learning prompted by 바카라사이트 pandemic will lead to changes at Columbia, too. ¡°In May, I taught 바카라사이트 normal core curriculum courses in block format, and 24 out of 24 of 바카라사이트 students said this was vastly preferable to what 바카라사이트y had been doing before,¡± he notes. However, he fears that Columbia, like o바카라사이트r institutions, will ultimately revert to its old ways of teaching post-pandemic.

¡°University faculty have a reputation for being politically liberal, but 바카라사이트y are 바카라사이트 most conservative species in 바카라사이트 universe,¡± he says. While 99 per cent of undergraduates are not going to become university faculty, academics will continue to attempt to reproduce graduates like 바카라사이트mselves and cherish 바카라사이트 assumption that what worked for 바카라사이트m must work for 바카라사이트 next generation.

Helfand insists, however, that any doubts ¨C ei바카라사이트r professional or pedagogic ¨C can be overcome. ¡°Everyone says that block teaching won¡¯t work in 바카라사이트ir discipline until 바카라사이트y try it,¡± he says. ¡°And when 바카라사이트y do, 바카라사이트y see how truly transformational it is.¡±