Partner Article

Over 100 delegates attend annual Learning and Teaching

The Association of Business Schools (ABS) and its partners the Higher Education Academy (HEA), British Academy of Management (BAM) and supporters Nottingham Trent University and the FT welcomed over 100 business school academics and post graduate students through various stages of their career to its annual Learning and Teaching Conference today.

Learning and teaching in universities is in the spotlight now more than ever. Changes in the undergraduate fee system, large and diverse classes, the National Student Survey (NSS) and technological change are all having an influence, but what exactly constitutes a quality student experience with students, employers and business schools as partners has yet to be clearly articulated.

This conference provided a forum for those involved in business education to exchange excellence and discuss issues in teaching practice and pedagogic research.

Delegates heard from Dr Jane Harrington, Pro Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean, Faculty of Business and Law, University of West of England (and ABS Executive member and Chair of the Learning and Teaching Committee), Prof. Baback Yazdani, Dean Nottingham Business School (ABS Vice Chair and host) and a keynote from Prof. Sue Cox OBE, Dean, Lancaster University Management School and Prof. Rebecca Taylor, Dean, Faculty of Business and Law, The Open University.

Prof. Cox said:

“Rt Hon David Willetts has recently said in a presentation to HEFCE that we are now seeing the biggest cultural shift in our universities for a generation, as teaching is brought back centre-stage. This will mean changes to teaching practices and enabling staff to work more flexibly to meet student demand.

Better information about what is going on is crucial. I know many of you shudder at the information requirements placed on you but it is interesting how attached universities have come to the TRAC system..

“As educators we not only need to be able to deliver innovation but also deliver an excellent student experience; and we also need to be able to both measure and communicate the value of this more effectively outside of the business school community”.

Dr Jane Harrington, Pro Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean Business and Law, University of West of England (and ABS Executive member and Chair of the Learning and Teaching Committee), said:

“Firstly I would like to thank all of the partners and supporters that made this conference such a success, the traditional technology of Learning and Teaching, the lecture, the tutorial the essay, the dissertation, the library, the face to face element, the year, the timetable as a unit is being disrupted and challenged by new technology on all different fronts. Reduced distance, and at the same time an increasing diversity of stunts from across the globe and at its core if asks what we are trying to instil in students, not just understanding and knowledge but skills and attitude to apply that knowledge.

Innovation in the student experience is essential for the sustainability and success of business schools. Students are demanding it, technology is disrupting but providing opportunities. This conference has showcased a range/number of excellent innovations in teaching, learning and assessment within business schools across the UK

The conference welcomed peer reviewed papers for presentation and discussion covering the following streams:

Flexible learning
Assessment and feedback
Employability
Enterprise and entrepreneurship
Students as partners
Internationalisation
Research informed teaching; and
Retention and success.

Over 50 papers were presented over the course of the conference representing institutions from Aston to Wolverhampton Business School.

Date of next years’ conference: 29th/30th April, 2014 - venue tbc.

Unable to attend? Watch content from the conference *here*:

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Association of Business Schools .