Tag Archives: motivation

Transparency, turbulence, ambiguity and uncertainty in #activelearning

“One student’s safe uncertainty is another student’s chaotic nightmare.” (Orr & Shreeve, 2018) Based on research I conducted with others into student satisfaction of learning (Heaton et al., 2015), being clear with students about what is expected of them has … Continue reading

Posted in Learner Engagement | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Deviation and self-determination #activelearning

In a previous post I suggested that the art of teaching to an active learning philosophy is about creating loose structures so that each and every student has the space to bring their own knowledge, experience and imagination to their … Continue reading

Posted in Active Learning, Creativity, Learner Engagement, Learning Space and Place, Studio and Studio-based Learning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Further reflections on learning walks and the #Twalk model of #activelearning

The walk I organised for last week introduced several new ideas about the role and methods of learning walks for me. This is a very long post. I was tempted to break it down. However, I needed to get it … Continue reading

Posted in Active Learning, Co-operative pedagogy, Learner Engagement, Learning Space and Place, Polycontextuality, Social Media for Learning, Walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Universal design and #activelearning

Following on from the previous post on Decolonising the active curriculum, this post looks more closely at some of the seven principles of universal design to explore how they can inform the active learning space – its pedagogy and physical-digital … Continue reading

Posted in Active Learning, Co-operative pedagogy, Digital Placemaking, Learner Engagement, Learning Space and Place, PhD, Studio and Studio-based Learning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Competition and co-operation in the #activelearning classroom

I have been reading a great paper this morning on the use of Instagram memes by students studying art at Central St Martins (Burns et al., 2016). Amongst the many themes present in the paper, I picked up on one … Continue reading

Posted in Academic Innovation, Active Learning, Assessment & Feedback, BYOD, Co-operative pedagogy, Creativity, Gamification, Learner Engagement, Learning Space and Place, PhD, Social Media for Learning, Studio and Studio-based Learning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Gamification – a way to understand #activeleaning

I have been interested in games-based learning and playful learning since the early 2000s when I came across J. P. Gee’s work and since leading work on creative development in academic practice. The Creative Development Team I was responsible for … Continue reading

Posted in Active Learning, Applied Learning, Employability, Gamification, Learner Engagement | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Celebrate #imperfection. Challenge resilience.

I listed to Thomas Curran’s TedTalk ‘Our dangerous obsession with perfectionism is getting worse’ before I left for work this morning. Curran warns against perfectionism, and his warning kept me thinking all day. Here are three mini-stories that explain why … Continue reading

Posted in Assessment & Feedback, Creativity, Employability, Literacies and Intelligence, Personal & Professional Development Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Repositioning contact time to explain the value of education

I happened to mention that I worked in higher education to a women who sold me a vase in a craft shop; the sort of situation where I normally feel at ease with people I meet beyond the educational setting. … Continue reading

Posted in Belonging, Learner Engagement, Learning Space and Place | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Creating happiness and flow

Listening to 6 Music this morning, Marie-Ann Hobbs noted how both Viv Albertine and Johnny Marr could not equate happiness with creativity. Instead, creativity seems to be something quite separate. – a drive to be productive. I do a lot … Continue reading

Posted in Creativity, Learner Engagement, Learning Space and Place | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rules of engagement – how to motivate students

I have been working with course teams across the University recently on a number of themes where there is a common articulation of a fundamental problem – how to engage students. Without marks. Many books have been written and many … Continue reading

Posted in Active Learning, Belonging, Learner Engagement | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment