18 | JADE
ARTICLE #2 | 19
ANGELO LEONE ET AL.
Perhaps this movement began with the work of Wilhelm Von
Humboldt, whose vision, in 1810, of the future of the University of
Berlin was one of integrated practice. According to him the purpose
of a University, for both the teacher and the student, is a common
quest for knowledge (Elton, 1986). According to Elton, Von Humbolt
effectively “abolished the problematic nature of the researchteaching link” (Elton, 2001). However, the tension between the two
central academic missions appeared less relevant or obvious for John
Henry, a rector of a Catholic University of Ireland, who considered
the University as “a place of teaching universal knowledge” and a
source for the “diffusion and extension of knowledge”. He added: “If
the university objective were scientific and philosophical discovery
only then why a University should have students” (Elton, 2001).
The approaches taken by Von Humbolt have not proven to be
longstanding as both the German and the British along with those of
other western societies universities became increasingly research
oriented during the 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. A commonly
overlooked issue is the obvious point that learning is not always the
outcome of teaching. In the US, this issue in undergraduate education
was the focus point for a series of task-force reviews and reports
(Goldman et al, 2006). Perhaps the most notable of these reviews
was the landmark statement of Steven Mintz, which recommended
the stimulation of a broader and deeper intellectual engagement
by students in all undergraduate teaching settings. Consequently,
a significant increase in undergraduate