Yes, its EBL, not IBL. You say tomato…
On the 25th May, Sabine and I attended an ‘Enquiry based learning worksop’ at the University of Manchester, organised by the History, Classics and Archaeology Subject Centre, and hosted by CEEBL, the Centre for Excellence in Enquiry-Based Learning, the University of Manchester’s equivalent of our own CILASS. The aim of the workshop was to discuss the possible applications of EBL/IBL in history, archaeology and classics courses.

Sabine and I spoke briefly about the possible uses of ICT in IBL courses in archaeology, drawing from examples that currently exist in the archaeology department here at Sheffield. We talked about a module run by Dr. Jane Rempel, in which students used the Collaboratory space in Bartolome house for a brief session entitled ‘Mapping Athenian Democracy’. The students were told that the university was to be restructured in order to form a radical democracy, and that they ahd to create a proposal of how this was to happen. The students were then given an hour to use the Collaboratory’s resources to research and structure their proposal. This was a good example of how small amounts of IBL incorporating ICt could be incorporated into a traditional lecture-based course. We then talked about the second year module ‘Research Skills in Archaeology’, in which ICT palys a large part. WebCT is used to facilitate group work and tutor feedback, as well as to provide tutorials on the key skills of analysis needed. The students also ahve access to web database resources such as Digimap and the database of Sheffield General Cemetery. This was a more radical example of how ICT can be integrated into a coursework based module, in order to provide structure and cohesion.

We also heard contributions from other members of staff from other universities, who detailed examples of the use of IBL in courses they had run. We heard about a course at Manchester where students had to produce their own anthology of Landscape poetry, a course at Durham University where students had to produce a project based on ancient clothing, in which they undertook experimental production of textiles themselves, and a course in museum studies at Reading in which students were encouraged to examine objects in museum collections, and how they were displayed.

Overall, the day was very enjoyable, and it was good to have a nosy around Manchester’s CEEBL facilities, and compare how they did things differently. It was also good to hear the wide range of examples of IBL that people brought with them. A number of people came to the workshop saying they did not know what IBL/EBL was, or had not had much experience of it, but then ended the day by saying “Oh, I realise now that I use it in my teaching all the time”, and I think everyone went away enthusiastic about the potential for IBL in their own courses.

Plus, there was a rather good buffet.

Hi everyone!

These are the minutes of the early meeting we had this morning. We had a very interesting discussion on many aspects of IBL.

The people who attended was from the Institute of Lifelong Learning, from LDMU, Hispanic Studies and of course, member of CILASS.

First of all we talked about the 3 research projects and grants that CILASS have, and how they are carried out. This provided a deeper insight into the various activities of CILASS, which is always good.

Then we discussed how IBL was actually performed in our departments. We noticed that the level of IBL shown by students was highly correlated to their level of motivation and passion for their subject. For instance, a music student is more likely to spend his spare time to do activities related to his subject (go to concerts, listen to music…) than a law student. (no offense!)

A certain level of knowledge is required in order to be able to question our modules, our learning as well as justifying it.

Then we came across a “philosophical question”: is there a right answer? How can IBL help us about that? Well, there are some right answers for some situations in some particular situations (medical diagnosis). But for most languages questions, as long as one can justify its point of view (based on work done through IBL!) he has potentially a right answer. And that is the magic of IBL!

Finally we talked about different conceptions of IBL: it is natural in the creative fields (such as archeology). Most often, we tend to forget that we are actually using IBL because it has become a natural part of our learning process.

We are all looking forward to the next IBL cafe, which will be during the next academic year!

Emmy

I facilitated the presentation for Understanding Law II module. The CILASS backed module is run in the second semester of the first year for Law students. It was brought into existence this year, and aims to give students the key skills needed to succesfully complete a law degreee using numerous IBL teaching techniques.

 The presentation consisted of the two module convenors, Claire McGourlay and Jonathan Doak, giving a breif run through of the module. Then three law students talked about their views on the module. It was an interesting and thought provoking presentation, making me as a law student think a lot about the way I was taught, and what could have been improved. The students felt comfortable enough to talk not only about what worked in the module, but also what did not. 

It was encouraging to see that there was a long discussion at the end amongst those viewing the presentation. So long in fact, that I had to tell a former lecturer to be quiet!

 Thank you again to everyone involved in the presentation and all those who gave up their time to come and see it.

Guys!

 I need your help!

As you know, I an the S.A. for Hispanic studies, and my academic champion just asked me if I wanted to be used more by the department as being the CILASS studt. ambassador. The problem is, he does not know what exactly my role is, nor how to involve me more. He asked me to take initiatives, which Im really happy about, but I dont really know where to begin.

What exactly is our role? What do you guys usually do? Can you suggest any ideas please?

 Thank you!

Emmy 

This presentation about a CILASS module in the department of Psychology was very interesting. George Thomas (undergraduate) Emily Jones (postgraduate associate tutor) and Myles Jones (staff) presented their experiences of learning and teaching on this module. Students were asked to identify a media report that was based on an original psychological report, and comment on the contrast between the popular media approach to the report and the original research. They were aided in this by postgraduate associate tutors who also offered advice on using online academic research tools.

 George, Emily and Miles all spoke about what they liked about the module. The discussion that followed was based mainly around how best to utilise and introduce online search tools in IBL

Presented by Kirk Burdett, Yousef Taktak, Emily Wythe (students) and Jon Scaife (staff) from Educational Studies, this reflective insight into PBL or problem-based learnign was very interesting. The students described how PBL and the related group work was relevant and important in their learning, and highlighted how they were able to use the process of finding out ‘what we know and what we need to know’ and how this was useful in setting and achieveing goals when working in a team.

Following the presentation, the discussion mainly focused on how best to evaluate and mark group work, with both staff and students offering their views. Many of the students expressed concern that they are marked down for the uncooperative group work of others, and that many students only seem to care about work that is assessed. The staff commented that perhaps having groups submit minutes of weekly minutes was a way to combat this.

Marie Kinsey gave a fascinating insight into the importance of IBL in teaching Journalism. We saw a film project by a final year student that demonstrated how IBL is a very effective learning tool. Marie highlighted how the Journalism department has in recent years devised projects that become more open-ended and open to interpretation to encourage independence and creative thinking.

During the questions at the end of the session, it was highlighted that Sheffield Journalism students have specific skills that come from the emphasis on IBL teaching.

 I found this session very informative and the student film that Marie showed very interesting – if a lot better than the film that I produced with the film group!!!

Hello all!

On Monday I facilitated the film group presentation. It was great to see Student Ambassadors with a real interest and passion in the CILASS community. The film has been really useful in showing us how many students fully understand what IBL is and highlighting ways in which we can promote it further.

As my student ambassador reign is almost nigh, I feel I have gained a great amount out of exploring the depths and wonders of IBL. One of my current modules entails students doing fieldwork into the music of other cultures. In my opinion you can’t beat first hand knowledge, by having such a large level of involvement I have gained an insiders view into the lives of many different individuals.

The Symposium was a great success and I have no doubt that it will continue to be so in future years.

Lets continue being great!

Marcella