Journal of Academic Development and Education JADE Issue 11 Summer 2019 | Page 34
module asking students to conduct an ‘active’
crime scene search for a buried target on campus.
This project is student-led, group problem-based
learning to design a survey, process and interpret
data and submit a group technical report. There is
plenty of pedagogic research to evidence students
‘learning whilst doing’, with a multitude of learning
environments suggested. Previous pedagogic
research in GGE has used fieldwork for students to
acquire a variety of skills (see Pringle et al. 2010)
and Keele campus is a great laboratory for students
to use. Student evaluations of these session are
universally appreciative and many students go on to
related commercial careers using the skills gained.
Using such outdoor spaces for engaging with abiotic
nature in their studies is highly effective for learning.
Enhancing Academic and Professional Skills
through Collaborative Projects
Sam Davenward ([email protected])
This presentation shares the social learning
implications and opportunities from multidisciplinary
group projects within Keele Foundation Year’s
Academic Development module. Students across the
full range of Keele programmes work in small tutorial
groups alongside Personal Tutors to enhance their
generic academic and professional skills. Semester
one encourages a personal reflective approach to
skills development with support in the form of linked
lectures and tutorials; the module is constructively
aligned (Biggs, 1996) so that, in semester two,
these skills are enhanced and broadened in the
collaborative process of a research project where
students from a range of backgrounds and degree
pathways collaborate to design, execute, present and
assess their own assignment under the guidance of
the Personal Tutor. According to Vygotsky’s (1978)
social constructivist view of learning, knowledge is
shaped through social interactions. The group project
provides ample opportunity for peer learning and
peer support, which promotes the development of
students’ teamwork and leadership skills, along with
other interpersonal skills, organisation and project
management (Boud, 2001). At the end of the project,
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students assess the contributions from their group
members using WebPA, which encourages students
to take ownership of the project and ensures that
the work is fairly assessed (Gordon, 2010). The
presentation identifies key beneficial components
and potential pitfalls within this group work which
may be adapted and incorporated into peer learning
within the wider academic curriculum.
Black Gold for a Green Future
Steve Rogers ([email protected])
Sustainability of the planet is fundamental to our
common future, and geologists and geoscientists
are key stakeholders in this process. Better
understanding of the Earth, its processes and
utilisation of its resources, through successful
science communication, is necessary for the effective
creation of sustainability policy. Whilst the synergy
between geoscience and sustainability is often
obvious, the framing of the links is often neglected
or downplayed within the UK Higher Education
setting. This results in geoscientists lacking in
familiarity with sustainability issues, including
the ability to communicate geoscience issues to
non-specialists effectively. Using the United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals, the inclusion and
embedding of sustainability issues within Geology
and Geoscience modules (offered by the School of
Geography, Geology and the Environment, Keele
University, UK) is framed in an effort to consolidate
and enhance our current standing on sustainability
issues. Further tracking of the emphasis and
positioning of sustainability issues within these
modules will enable a better articulation of the
importance between geology and society.