Pedagogical research has a challenged and often undervalued place in Business Schools, with its worth to the mission of the School and the individual academic diminished by perceptions that it lacks academic rigour (Norton, 2021), focuses on arcane or abstract theorisation of practical actions (McDonald et al., 2012) or is a form of scholarship forContinue reading “Making education better is not a nice to have: Why Business Schools need to engage in and value pedagogical research part 1”
Category Archives: research
Entangled pedagogy, design and the messiness of education
In a recently published open access paper on “entangled pedagogy” (Fawns, 2022), I presented a diagram of a few views of the relationship between technology and pedagogy. This was an attempt to show some problems with emphasising one over the other (e.g. putting technology or pedagogy first or last). I sympathise with the desire ofContinue reading “Entangled pedagogy, design and the messiness of education”
Can poster assignments improve the student learning experience? Benefits for students and educators
Recent years have seen increased emphasis on developing the student learning experience in business school education. In addition to understanding how students engage with learning materials in their respective units of study, attention has turned to how students develop insights about themselves and their own personal development in the learning process (Dixon, 2022; Bovil, 2020).Continue reading “Can poster assignments improve the student learning experience? Benefits for students and educators”
Making space for connected learning: an ecosystem approach to designing teaching spaces in higher education part 1
This two-part blog post explores the complexities and affordances of using space to make connections. The first part interrogates the structural rigidity that emerges from physical classroom design and argues that connected learning requires a different design and emotional response from teaching spaces to be successful. Studies of teaching and learning spaces and their relationshipContinue reading “Making space for connected learning: an ecosystem approach to designing teaching spaces in higher education part 1”
Promoting Connectedness through Peer Mentor Support
During the lockdown of 2020, promoting connections and a sense of belonging became challenging. Leading in a Post-Covid World (LPC) was an intracurricular initiative run fully online in Semester 2, 2020, at the University of Sydney Business School. The program provided opportunities for students to develop their leadership and team skills during the COVID-19 lockdownContinue reading “Promoting Connectedness through Peer Mentor Support”
Framework for evaluating online assessment in business education: Trade-offs in promoting innovation
In the context of the rapid transition to fully online teaching and learning driven by COVID-19 (Ali, 2020), the Australian Business Deans Council commissioned a research project into online assessment in higher education in Australia. The cross-institutional project team consisted of members from the University of Sydney Business School, UTS Business and Chartered Accountants ANZ.Continue reading “Framework for evaluating online assessment in business education: Trade-offs in promoting innovation”
What do we mean when we talk about scale? Towards a definition of ‘at scale’ in higher education – part 2
Designing and delivering education at scale effectively is a challenge faced by many higher education institutions (Kagan & Diamond, 2019). This challenge is both an economic one, where the costs of magnifying and multiplying education offerings needs to be matched and exceeded by the revenue, and a pedagogical one, ensuring the quality of the teachingContinue reading “What do we mean when we talk about scale? Towards a definition of ‘at scale’ in higher education – part 2”
What do we mean when we talk about scale? Towards a definition of ‘at scale’ in higher education – part 1
Designing and delivering education at scale effectively is a challenge faced by many higher education institutions (Kagan & Diamond, 2019). This challenge is both an economic one, where the costs of magnifying and multiplying education offerings needs to be matched and exceeded by the revenue, and a pedagogical one, ensuring the quality of the teachingContinue reading “What do we mean when we talk about scale? Towards a definition of ‘at scale’ in higher education – part 1”
Rapport through a laptop? Benefits and drawbacks of online interviews
In this post, two researchers share their reflections on conducting interviews and focus groups online during a global pandemic for a large strategic educational project (CLaS). Both had previously conducted face-to-face interviews, which involved finding a suitable meeting room, printing information statements and consent forms, and making sure their trusty audio recorders were fully charged.Continue reading “Rapport through a laptop? Benefits and drawbacks of online interviews”
Academic Hero (学霸)
There are ongoing challenges for both academics and students because of the diversities in tertiary classrooms (Heng, 2021). Chinese international students experience academic stress (Yan & Berliner, 2010) and can struggle to make a successful transition from the Chinese educational system and pedagogical practices into Western tertiary classrooms and learning environments (Jiang & Smith, 2009).Continue reading “Academic Hero (学霸)”