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Hosted by the University of Sheffield, the third LTEA Conference built on successful events held previously at the University of Surrey (2007) and the University of Manchester (2006). We already look forward to 2009 when the conference will be hosted by CETL-AURS at the University of Reading. We hope we have provided an exciting focus for creative and critical exploration of inquiry-based learning, focusing on developments in practice and theory, and on the role of the inquiry approach in higher education in the UK and beyond.
We chose `inquiry in a networked world´ as the over-arching theme of this year´s conference. We wanted to explore the purposes of inquiry-based learning, and what it means to `do inquiry´ and to design and facilitate inquiry, in a world of rich and complex network connections. Our interest is in inquiry through networking and community-building in the widest sense – including, but not limited to, the many possibilities for learning through interactions via the internet and through the creation, sharing and use of digital resources.
The conference showcased and celebrated the diversity of approaches to engaging students in inquiry-based learning, and explored the impact on learning experiences. How are students empowered as learners? What is the impact on the roles and practice of teachers and learning support professionals? Are there implications for the way in which we understand the role of our universities, in national and global contexts? A strand in the conference critically explored the role of networked technology in inquiry-based learning, with an emphasis on practical, creative ideas for enhancing the experience of learning and teaching.
The conference brought together diverse perspectives, allowed for exchange of practice and research, and enabled participants to make new connections with each other across disciplines, professional roles and institutions.
The conference was based in the exciting setting of the University of Sheffield´s flagship new space for learning and teaching, the Information Commons, and the CILASS `inquiry collaboratories´ within it. This setting offers a rich variety of social and personal learning spaces designed specifically to stimulate and support innovative modes of learning and teaching in a networked environment. Conference participants were able to gain direct experience of using new spaces and technologies during conference activities. We took the opportunity to embark collectively, as an integral part of the conference experience, on an exploration of the role and impact of information- and technology-rich learning space on learning and inquiry.
The over-arching theme for contributions was: designing, facilitating and experiencing `networked´ inquiry. We hoped to explore inquiry-based learning from multiple perspectives, including those of students and staff, and the focus in part was on the possibilities and questions arising out of developments in new technologies.
Inquiry technologies: e.g. the use of web 2.0 and social networking tools in inquiry-based learning; mobile and pervasive technologies; virtual worlds; learning design tools.
Inquiry literacies: information, media and digital literacies in inquiry-based learning; approaches to literacies development; professional roles and partnerships for literacies development.
Inquiry spaces: physical and virtual spaces for inquiry-based learning; learning space design; technology-rich spaces; social learning spaces.
Inquiry cultures: disciplinary cultures and inquiry pedagogies; inquiry across communities and professional worlds; international student experiences; inquiry for global citizenship and a multi-cultural world.
Dr David Hodge, President, Miami University Ohio.
From Inquiry to Discovery: Developing the Student as Scholar in a Networked World
The shift to the Learning Paradigm and the call for more research-based education have opened exciting new possibilities for higher education. Unfortunately, while the Learning Paradigm has been applied to the whole of higher education, the focus on research has been primarily as an activity on the side or suitable only for a subset of university students. We argue that especially with the advent of world wide web, more ubiquitous access to the raw material of scholarship can now be readily available to all students. What is needed is an approach that organizes the entire curriculum around the mindset of a scholar and, just as importantly, incorporates an understanding of where traditionally-aged university students are developmentally
In this paper we lay out the rationale for the "student as scholar" mindset, describe the impact of technological advances on the possibilities for original research, relate the "student as scholar" to the core philosophy of a liberal arts and sciences approach, describe the developmental stages of university students as they relate to the students´ research potential, and then demonstrate how individual courses and a curriculum can be constructed with this perspective.
Biography
David Hodge became President of Miami University, which will be celebrating its Bicentennial In 2009, in July, 2006. Emphasizing the unique qualities of the Miami Experience during his first year, President Hodge launched the Miami Access Initiative, providing tuition and fees to Ohio students with family incomes of less than $35,000, created the Top 25 program to redesign Miami's foundation courses, completed a strategic planning initiative, and raised the goal for Miami's Love and Honor Campaign to $500 million, extending the campaign through the Bicentennial including a new Bicentennial Student Center. Dr. Hodge has actively supported the transformation of teaching and learning in higher education through his work on developing the "student as scholar" model, and he is captain of an intramural broomball team.
Dr. Hodge came to Miami from University of Washington. Joining the UW faculty in 1975, Dr. Hodge held the appointment of professor of geography and adjunct professor of civil engineering and served as chair of the Geography Department (1995-97), Divisional Dean for Computing, Facilities, and Research (1996-98) and as the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 1998 to 2006. Dr. Hodge served as program director at the National Science Foundation in 1993-94 and was editor of The Professional Geographer from 1994 to 1997. Additionally, he has served on numerous Seattle and Washington committees and boards dealing with issues of community development and transportation. In 1990, he earned the University of Washington's Distinguished Teaching Award.
A native of Minnesota, Dr. Hodge earned his bachelor of arts degree in geography from Macalester College in 1970 and went on to earn his master´s degree (1973) and Ph.D. (1975) in geography from Pennsylvania State University.
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