New TUR study of course in teaching to activate student learning

“We hope to be able to create new, similar places for our teachers to meet and share their experiences,” says Katarina Andreasen, Education Coordinator and co-author of the study.

In 2016, the Faculty Management commissioned TUR to design a short course for teachers with examples of how to work in ways to activate student learning within their own subject area. This came after faculty colleagues had previously expressed a need to use more active learning practices in their teaching.

In order to get a picture of different teaching practices in the study programmes in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects, it was decided to implement a compulsory course for the Faculty’s teachers. The course was designed on the basis of proven experience among the Faculty’s teaching staff, as well as international studies.

Between 2017 and 2019, a total of 516 people, including 156 doctoral students and researchers teaching part-time participated in 26 instances of the 3-hour course. Called “Student Centred Teaching And Learning”, the course addressed what is meant by student-centred teaching, and gave examples of how the focus can be shifted from teacher to student and how students themselves can take responsibility for their learning.

Good examples from colleagues

“From our evaluation, we can see that what most teachers appreciated about the course was getting to meet and to talk teaching,” says Katarina Andreasen. “In addition, good examples were shared by colleagues in their own subject areas as well as those in other departments. The participants got to inspire each other both within and between subject areas, which we think is important.”

In the years that followed, questions about the initiative were raised in programme surveys and course evaluations so that the effects of the course could be identified. According to TUR’s study titled “Effect of a short compulsory course on teachers’ active learning practices” and published in July 2024, these evaluations show that just under two-thirds of the teachers made some changes in their teaching to activate the students more.

Just over one third did not change anything after the course, mostly because they were already using student-centred teaching practices. The remainder either did not like the course being compulsory, or felt that the methods described were uninteresting.

“But only 360 out of the 593 teaching staff actually completed the course, even though they were all called to do so,” says Katarina Andreasen. “Today, many new teachers may already have encountered these methods in general courses in teaching and learning. The Faculty recently decided on a course in research ethics specifically for supervisors, and in TUR we are now implementing these special initiatives in collaboration with the departments.”

Small changes can make a difference

A comparison of student surveys before and after the compulsory course, comprising up to 2,389 individual responses, shows a significant increase in the proportion of courses with student-centred teaching from 2016 to 2022. When the perspective on learning changes, students are more likely to become aware of what they don’t understand and what opportunities there are for feedback,” says Marcus Lundberg. He is a chemistry lecturer, a member of TUR since 2021, and like Stefan Pålsson and Nicusor Timneanu, is a co-author of the study.

“Teachers don’t have to do anything big or revolutionary. Small things can make a big difference for students and their learning within the framework of the existing lesson planning,” says Marcus Lundberg.

In order to improve support within the Faculty for similar initiatives, the study’s authors suggest the inclusion of research findings that demonstrate the relationship between improved learning and student-centred teaching practices, for example.

Culture of student-centred teaching

The study also points to the importance of sharing experiences from different subject areas and ideas from current teaching and learning in higher education courses, which give teachers the opportunity to reflect on their own teaching.

“The Faculty can also encourage a culture of student-centred teaching practices that engage students, teachers, and course and programme coordinators alike,” says Katarina Andreasen. She adds:

“But I would also like to emphasise that the Faculty has an incredible number of dedicated teachers and generally excellent teaching. We do a great many good things, which the student surveys also show. Many students are already happy with the teaching, but we can always improve.”

Anneli Björkman