Feature article

‘Reflective learning is becoming a meaningless buzzword’

Lip service to reflective learning is eroding its potential for confronting ingrained beliefs and encouraging students to explore new ways of thinking, writes Ella Houston. Here, she shares practical strategies for promoting the transgressive aspects of reflection

Ella Houston

Liverpool Hope University

Female instructor in class before screen with code

The building blocks of effective teaching

The best teachers genuinely care about their students, but build that care upon a solid structural foundation. Find advice here on making good teaching a habit

Karen Yu Ka Man

The Education University of Hong Kong

A schoolteacher standing in front of a whiteboard interacting with pupils

Want to improve your teaching? Ask a teacher

Schoolteachers-turned-lecturers have a wealth of pedagogical knowledge, says Gordon Baillie, Here, he outlines reasons why university educators should be tapping into it and shares questions they can reflect on to improve their practice

Gordon Baillie

University of Chester

Outline of marching band as if in chalk on a blackboard

Lessons in teaching excellence drawn from leading a marching band

The football field can foster teaching excellence as much as the classroom. The leader of a nationally recognised marching band shares five ways to build a culture where students learn to work together and lead

Polly Middleton

Virginia Tech

Staff and students strategising with Post-It notes on a transparnt screen

How to prepare, motivate and reward students who engage in EDI work

EDI work can take a psychological toll on students. Thoughtful discussion and engagement strategies are key, as are psychological support and remuneration, say a medical school team

Lois Haruna-Cooper , Emma Kelley , William Shem Braithwaite

UCL

A student watches a teacher lecture on a laptop

Strategies for making online courses more impactful

Here’s how to break the barrier between screen and student and engage with your online cohorts in a personal way

Heather Gass

Colorado State University Global

Multiracial group of university students in a study group

Teaching strategies to support international students in diverse classrooms

How can we design teaching that better supports international students to succeed within higher education? Here are teaching tips to boost classroom practice for the inclusion and benefit of all students

Elida Cena, Gülseli Baysu, Judith Wylie

Queen’s University Belfast

Build students’ intercultural competence in online classrooms

The ‘global shared learning classroom’ teaches students how to view traits such as leadership through different cultural lenses, better preparing them to thrive in an interconnected world. Learn how

Jorge Alberto Mosqueda Benavides

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Students and mentors laugh around a table

Personalised coaching could be the key to postgraduate resilience

Democratise executive coaching for postgraduate students and help them develop the resilience and adaptability they’ll need for the future. Here’s how

Pamsy Hui, Terrance Leung, Celine Ho

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Where the Nile’s waters meet: creating value through interdisciplinarity and collaboration

Effective interdisciplinary collaboration hinges on four principles: focusing on the problem, understanding how disciplines interact, fostering relationships and recognising power dynamics, writes Ben Kei Daniel

Ben Kei Daniel

University of Northern British Columbia

Advice on launching co-created humanities modules

It can be daunting designing and introducing a new module. Be brave and take chances, says Alyson Mercer, who shares tips on the process from conception to implementation

Alyson Mercer

The University of Exeter

Why a laboratory is more than a room full of equipment

The laboratory is at the centre of a university’s academic infrastructure. Here’s how to define laboratory excellence for the future

Imtias Amir Bahauddin

Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP)

Man pushing pound coin up a hill in Sisyphys metaphor for research funding

The Sisyphus trap: surviving plummeting funding success rates

Building a research programme absolutely depends on winning grants, but early career researchers also need to be able to distinguish which opportunities are worth pursuing and where their finite time is best spent

Meysam Qadrdan

Cardiff University

An online learner smiling at classmates on his laptop screen

Five design principles for meaningful online global learning

As digital technologies transform access to both information and education, how can universities offer distinctive educational value for professional learners online? Maria Cross offers advice

Maria Cross

UCL

‘Great teaching does not mean more work. It means better choices’

Effective teachers connect students to the ideas and knowledge that matter to them. Urbi Ghosh explains how educators can demonstrate clear links and interrupt their own practices when autopilot has kicked in

Urbi Ghosh

Colorado State University Global

Success in academia is more than a citation count

Academic communities have long relied on citations, publication counts, the journal impact factor and the h-index as indicators of scholarly achievement. These metrics capture only part of the story, as Rachel Miles explains

Rachel Miles

Virginia Tech

A group of smiling students standing outside on university campus grounds

What can traditional degrees learn from apprenticeships?

Three stages for embedding apprenticeship-informed practice, with strategies collected from degree apprenticeship educators across the UK

Multiple authors

The University of Exeter, Manchester Metropolitan University

An academic surrounded by books looks stressed

Does your university workload allocation model support gender equality?

Workload allocation models can fail to reflect the reality of female academics’ workloads and unintentionally compound gender inequality. Find advice for making the process more transparent

Noreen O’Leary , Hannah Christie, Ioana Tistea

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

How a silent card game helps students develop intercultural communication skills

A game built on gesture can speak volumes about hidden norms and the skills to navigate them because it converts an abstract concept into personal experience

Nasreen Sultana

The University of Queensland

A student taking notes on a notepad while looking at her laptop

How to prevent free riding in online group work

When collaborative assignments lack structured guidance, levels of contribution among team members may vary. Gabriela Espínola offers insight into building community and accountability online

Gabriela Espínola Carballo

Tecnológico de Monterrey

A teacher gestures to a screen in a lecture hall

Six ways to design a class students look forward to

Give students a clear reason to pay attention to your content. Here’s how to design courses to spark curiosity

Ricardo A. Ramirez-Mendoza

Universidad del Caribe (UNICARIBE)

Four engineers considering an automotive problem

Great teachers simplify before they complicate

Students often overcomplicate challenging concepts, so educators should break complexities into parts, use real-world examples and introduce uncertainty to simulate industry environments

Jeff Warfford

Virginia Tech

Preparing students for the workplace? Alumni could be the key

The alumni community have been exactly where students are now. Here’s how harnessing their expertise and guidance can be invaluable

María Manson

Universidad Austral

‘Close your laptop, use your brain’

How thoughtful technology use and analogue activities can engage distracted students and reduce overreliance on AI

Lauren B. Clark

UCL

AI literacy as habit, not bolt-on

Let’s avoid teaching students that AI is a topic separate from the rest of the course content. Instead, embed it in course design. Find out how

Lucy S. Méndez Santiago

Universidad del Caribe (UNICARIBE)

Human and robot hands making a curve shape

How applied theatre can help students examine the ethics of AI

Why not harness theatre to spark students’ exploration of the ethical dilemmas embedded in AI design, deployment and regulation? Jon Catherwood-Ginn explains how educators can do just that

Jon Catherwood-Ginn

Virginia Tech

A teacher advising a student on a reading in the library

What sets great teachers apart?

A great teacher is there to inspire students, not through theatrics of personality but because of a burning love of their subject, writes Steve Lambert

Steve Lambert

University of Chester

A student raises a hand in the classroom

How to spot bias in your own teaching – and what to do about it

Bias can materialise as a set of habits no one thought to question. Here’s how to look at your own teaching with clear eyes

Dami Folayan

Arden University

Caucasian male working at laptop in cafe

Learning shouldn’t have a graduation date

AI’s pace of change is challenging the idea that education is something we complete at the beginning of adult life. Drawing on lifelong learning expertise, Aidan McGowan shares five lessons for extending the university-learner relationship across a career

Aidan McGowan

Queen’s University Belfast

The world is not a case study: teaching business judgement with the Bloomberg Terminal

A software program can give students a better proxy for business environments and help them make better decisions. Learn how

Irina Gokh

De Montfort University

A student and careers advisor discuss options

Three steps to introduce transfer students to career services

Students who arrive at university midway through their studies often miss out on vital introductory courses, and the opportunity to discover the career services centre with confidence. Here’s how to remedy that

Roxanna M. Ruiz-Vázquez , Adrienne L. Provost

University of Florida

Male Asian student writing on laptop in common area

International scholars’ real-world strategies in academic writing

Students writing in English as a second language bring a practical and targeted approach to research, reading and writing. Xinqiang Li explains how he integrated these lessons into his teaching

Xinqiang Li

Michigan State University

Teachers and students working on a project together in the library

Co-creation isn’t simply asking for students’ views

How to prepare, support and work with student co-creators so that diverse perspectives can genuinely shape change

Manjula Patrick

UCL

Give students space to practise the soft skills they’ll need for the workplace

Don’t leave the development of soft skills up to chance – they can be the difference between one graduate candidate and another. Here’s how to build them into teaching

Hanene Duprat

Al Akhawayn University

Why AI literacy must include supporting student – and faculty – well-being

In embedding artificial intelligence into curricula without considering how it shapes students’ thinking, relationships and sense of self, educators risk switching one problem for another. Amy Allen and David Hicks offer an approach to help ensure well-being in the age of AI

Amy Allen, David Hicks

Virginia Tech

Muslim law students discussing a case in class

How can we ease Muslim law students’ transition into the workplace?

Muslim law students might feel a sense of belonging at law school but what happens when they enter the profession? Maria Bhatti and Sandy Noakes outline tips for making that transition more inclusive

Maria Bhatti, Sandy Noakes

Western Sydney University, University of Sydney

A mechanical robot hand writes on a notepad

A tool for teaching argumentative writing to EFL students

Even students with a solid grasp of English can find it hard to construct coherent arguments in their academic writing. A six-week training course centred around an AI-powered corpus platform could help, writes Liu Kanglong

Liu Kanglong

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Jon Batiste at NYU Skirball for the launch of the Jameel Arts & Health Lab-Lancet Global Collection on Arts and Health

What the movement to integrate the arts and health can teach us about making research matter

Moving research into action requires more than publishing evidence. Stories, images, trusted messengers and examples of uptake can build public acceptance, shift what people see as possible and help evidence become practice and policy

Nisha Sajnani

New York University

Young female student looking confused at laptop

How to turn students’ smartphone confidence into academic digital literacy

Confidence using apps and social media doesn’t always indicate that first-year students can use university systems. Here are four ways how to make sure their practical computing habits are up to scratch

Nassir Ibrahim, Jameson Tucker, Imran Khan

Birmingham City University

A hand holding a magnifying glass over a stack of papers

Don’t ban GenAI: teach students to question it

By turning AI output into an object of collective enquiry, educators can teach a valuable habit: rather than simply asking whether an answer is correct, asking what makes it credible, writes Mert Can Atar

Mert Can Atar

Istanbul Aydin University

Research staff in a library working on a digital huimanities project

How to build a sustainable digital humanities ecosystem

Digital humanities is about more than adopting new technologies. It depends on bringing people, expertise and ideas together – and creating the structures to help them thrive, says Mara Oliva

Mara Oliva

University of Reading

A professor teaches from the front of class

We promise our graduates will be employable. Are we keeping that promise?

How can our degree programmes prepare future graduates to be employable and equipped? Chathura Sooriya-Arachchi envisages a better way

Chathura Sooriya-Arachchi

University of Westminster

Candidate in wheelchair in job interview

Beyond lived experience: choosing effective candidates for identified roles

Roles that centre diversity, equity and inclusion research and practice should be filled by candidates with lived experience. For recruitment teams outside these communities, however, it is not always clear what to consider or what to ask in an interview

Brooke Szücs

The University of Queensland

How can we better support female autistic students?

Autism can manifest differently in women and girls. Learn how small changes, such as warning students before making changes to classroom layouts, can make all the difference

Sarah Guest

University of Chester

Students developing a model aeroplane at an event

Universities create structured opportunities for students – but what happens in the spaces between?

Closer attention should be paid to what happens once students walk out of an event or workshop or complete a project – this is where the real impacts can be seen and further developed, writes Tosin Adebisi

Tosin Adebisi

The London School of Economics and Political Science

It’s time to stop celebrating resilience

When universities ask their staff to do more with less, is it really a test of individual fortitude? Rachelle McKay explains why we should stop praising endurance

Rachelle McKay

Dalhousie University

Female student examining a computer chip with a magnifying glass

What is authentic about ‘authentic learning’?

The catch-all term ‘authentic’ can distinguish certain teaching, practical and assessment tasks as being more valuable than others, but educators need to ask what assumptions underpin the label, writes J. Patrick Williams

J. Patrick Williams

Nanyang Technological University

A woman wearing a headscarf in an office

Beyond access: what Muslim women can teach universities about inclusion

Universities have made significant progress with widening participation, but access alone does not create belonging. Here are four ways to build environments that recognise and support Muslim women

Amena Amer

UCL

An illustration of a figure balancing on a tightrope

The balancing act involved in teaching a class of mixed-ability students

Have you faced a situation where half of your class are subject-matter experts, and the other half are absolute beginners? Find practical strategies for bringing novices up to speed while keeping experts motivated

Lolita Edralin

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Team meeting with lightbulb in foreground

Don’t just assemble an interdisciplinary research team, design one

Being intentional about collaboration across fields results in a more responsive, open and effective research project. Seyedahmad Rahimi shares advice for ensuring the right people are working together in the right way

Seyedahmad Rahimi

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

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