All Ireland Society for Higher Education
| Name: | Norman James Powell |
|---|---|
| Email: | Norman.Powell@manchester.ac.uk |
| Institution: | University of Manchester |
Moore, Ivan, Ivan.Moore@manchester.ac.uk O'Rourke, Karen, Karen.O'Rourke@manchester.ac.uk Theaker, Elizabeth Diana, Elizabeth.Theaker@manchester.ac.uk Bearn, David R, David.Bearn@manchester.ac.uk Gough, Graham D, Graham.Gough@manchester.ac.uk Jinks, Peter J, Peter.J.Jinks@manchester.ac.uk
Increasingly, professional skills are perceived to be an essential component of `Graduateness'. This is especially true of professional degrees, which provide a gateway to professional practice and offer accreditation by professional societies. Research shows that graduates are frequently deficient in these skills and suggest that traditional teaching methods of lecturing and exams do not prepare students for entry into the professions.
The professional skills required include: determining lines of enquiry, collaborative team-working, project planning and management, communication, presentation and leadership. In addition, motivation towards life-long learning and information skills are seen as essential, ensuring that individuals are able to stay up-to-date with the rapidly changing knowledge-base, standards and legislation of that profession.
Enquiry-Based Learning (EBL) is a supported, collaborative, student centred approach to learning that puts students' individual enquiry at the heart of the learning process. The students follow their guided enquiry into discipline knowledge, whilst developing and practising these professional skills in a process integrated with their core subject learning.
This paper describes the use of EBL in three diverse, professional programmes in the Schools of Dentistry, Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Computer Science. Each of these Schools has taken the principles of EBL and adopted them to varying extents, adapting them to differing models, according to their discipline and culture.
The outcomes of these three instances of EBL have been evaluated through a process of integrative evaluation, which combines responses from surveys, questionnaires, observations, discussions with staff and student focus groups to provide insight on the student experience. The evaluations have been tailored for the contexts of the School and aims of EBL initiatives. This paper will synthesise the results of these evaluations, focusing on whether the students' professional skills have been developed and whether student learning has indeed been improved for the development of professional skills.