Fostering transformative learning experiences for student success

Transformative learning “involves transforming frames of reference through critical reflection of assumptions, validating contested beliefs through discourse, taking action on one’s reflective insight, and critically assessing it” Jack Mezirow (1997)

The symposium provides a platform to critically assess and share reflective insights on learning, teaching and assessment practices, assumptions and beliefs that impact on student success.

The focus is on transformative learning that lead to students successfully graduating with attributes that are personally, professionally and socially valuable. CELT invites you to share your scholarly interrogation of theory and practice designed to enhance students’ experience and success in higher education.

Sub-Themes

1. Transformative curricula and pedagogy

2. Enhancing the first year experience

3. Innovations in learning and teaching

4. Embedding graduate attributes in the curriculum

5. Approaches to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

You are invited to submit an abstract for a paper or poster on any of the sub-themes above. Your abstract should focus on a conscious linking of theory and practice.

Each paper will be limited to 20 minutes for presentation and 10 minutes for discussion and questions.

A session will be allocated for poster presentations.

Criteria for the selection of Abstract

• Clear focus on one or more of the broad areas.
• Linked to the conference theme
• Adherence to the technical criteria (e.g. length, timeous submission).
• The presentation makes a contribution to Student success in higher education

Submission procedure

Abstracts of 250-350 words (excluding references) should be submitted online via the following link https://www.dut.ac.za/lta-symposium by 30 September 2016

Prof Ronald Barnett

Ronald Barnett is Emeritus Professor of Higher Education at University College London Institute of Education (UCL IOE), where he was also (successively) Dean of Professional Development, responsible for all the Institute’s postgraduate taught courses, and Pro-Director, responsible for the Institute’s longer term strategy.

For thirty-five years, he has been working to establish and develop the philosophy of higher education. His (26) books (12 sole-authored) include The Idea of Higher Education, Realizing the University in an age of supercomplexity, A Will to Learn: Being a Student in an Age of Uncertainty and Beyond All Reason: Living with Ideology in the University. Recently, he has completed a trilogy on understanding the university in the twenty-first century, the three books being, in turn, Being a University (2011), Imagining the University (2013), and Understanding the University (2016). He also has well over 100 papers to his name and another 100+ other pieces of writing, including major consultancy reports.

He is a past-Chair of the Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE), has been awarded the inaugural prize by the European Association for Educational Research for his ‘outstanding contribution to Higher Education Research, Policy and Practice’, and is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, the SRHE and the Higher Education Academy (HEA). He is also a Visiting Professor at several universities both in the UK and across the world, and he has been a guest speaker in around 40 countries.

Find out more about Ronald Barnett at http://www.ronaldbarnett.co.uk/about-me.php

Prof Alex van der Merwe

Alex van der Merwe is an economist and associate professor at DUT’s Riverside Campus. Besides teaching economics he has a keen interest in academic research. His special interest is human capital theory and, in particular, the economics of education. He is excited about the possibilities that open education holds and, more especially, about the power of open educational resources (including open textbooks) to disrupt traditional higher education business models. 

Associate Professor Megandhren Govender

Megandhren Govender is a popular and well-known astrophysicist and showman extraordinaire. Also known as Dr G, he has taken the entertainment world by storm with his live theatre-based shows entitled “So You Thought Einstein was a Genius” and “So You Thought Einstein was a Genius Too!” which played out to capacity audiences at the Natal Playhouse and IZulu Theatre in Durban. He enthralled and mesmerized audiences with his spell-binding and riveting live performance that combines Physics, Mathematics, Technology, Engineering, dance and humour and has moved audiences both physically and intellectually through various media including ECR’s Damon Beard and his features on Eastern Mosaic and most recently, SABC’s MELA (view video clip at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tawu0AkU-zg)

Dr Megandhren Govender holds a PhD in relativistic astrophysics and is an associate professor in the Department of mathematics at the Durban University of Technology. He is also a research associate of the Astrophysics and Cosmology Research Unit, Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Sciences, UKZN. With over 50 international research publications, workshop and conference presentations, he is truly an internationally recognised scientist and academic (view Dr Govender’s cutting edge research into Einstein’s theory of general relativity at http://adswww.harvard.edu/)

His research interests include gravitational collapse, thermodynamics in curved spacetime, exact solutions to the Einstein field equations and higher dimensional gravitational theories. He has collaborated with some of the world’s leading researchers including Professor Naresh Dadhich (IUCAA, India), Professor Roy Maartens (Western Cape, SA and ICG, UK), Professor Roberto Sussman (Mexico), Professor Pankaj Joshi (TATA Institute for Fundamental Research, India), to name a few. Dr Govender has also supervised both Masters and PhD students in relativistic astrophysics. He has served as an external examiner for MSc and PhD theses as well as a reviewer for prestigious research journals in astrophysics.

Coupled with his research strengths is his amazing ability to teach Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics at the most fundamental level. Dr G has been involved with popularising science and mathematics amongst school learners, the corporate sector and the general public for over a decade. His innovative teaching methods involving demonstrations and experiments makes him a sought-after teacher and motivational coach.

His features on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, Eastern Mosaic, ECR and MELA has won him tens of thousands of fans throughout KZN. These fans range from grade R up to postgraduate level. This amazing academic, researcher, entertainer, motivational coach, scriptwriter and choreographer is insightful, energetic and humble. His latest book “Dr Genius: Mind-blowing Science Demonstrations” was an instant hit amongst learners and educators and the public at large.

He reaches out to learners in a unique and refreshing way which leaves them with self-belief and sustainable inspiration.

Important Dates

18 July 2016: Notice of Symposium and First Call for abstracts. Electronic Abstract Submission and Online Registration opens.
17 August 2016: Second call for Abstracts.
30 September 2016: Closing Date for Abstracts.
15 October 2016: Confirmation of Abstracts and Notification to Presenters.
28 October 2016: Final date for registration to attend the symposium.

Fees

DUT Participants: No Cost
External Participants: R500 per workshop on the 9^th November 2016 and R 1000 per day thereafter

Please pay appropriate amount into the following account:

Account Name: Durban University of Technology

Account Number: 050007068

Bank: Standard Bank

Branch Code: 040026

Reference: E124 301705

*Please send proof of payment to Judy Reddy: judyr@dut.ac.za

Teas and lunches will be provided.

Venue

Coastlands Hotel, Musgrave

Workshop, 9^thNovember 2016, 9am – 12pm

Teaching and Research: Possibilities for New Relationships

Facilitator: Professor Ronald Barnett

Background:

Across the world, much effort is going on to raise the research profiles of universities. One outcome of this development is the wish to bring research and teaching into a closer relationship, especially by bringing research elements into the curriculum and into student learning. This major shift is posing major challenges to many universities, both to teaching intensive institutions and those that would see themselves as research intensive.

Key questions:

• In general terms, how might research assist/inform teaching?
• How do you marry your research and teaching activities, if indeed you do?
• What relationships – if any – do you see between them?
• How do you strive to bring research into your teaching and your students’ experience?
• What possibilities might we glimpse for developing the relationships between teaching and learning?
• Might teaching assist research?

The context includes the following:

• Pressures on academics’ workloads
• Difficulties in some institutions in actually pursuing a research profile
• Challenges in writing
• Different conceptions as to what is to count as higher education
• Ideologies of higher education (why has this whole issue become so large?)

This workshop will address these questions, and in three ways:

• I will share some observations and raise some issues reflecting both the literature and my own experiences over a lifetime in higher education.
• The workshop will be highly inter-active. Participants will be encouraged both to reflect on their own views on the topic and to share with others the ways in which they bring research into their teaching and their students’ learning.

Please think about this matter in advance:

• How do you see the issue?
• In what ways do you try to bring research into the curriculum?
• Your challenges here – Pedagogic? Technological? Resourcing?
• Are there any difficult issues here for you, in your experience?

• Drawing on the collective experiences, approaches and thoughts, we shall try to identify possibilities for furthering the relationship between teaching and research.

Workshop 2, 9^th November 2016, 1-3.30pm

Tips and tricks to create and edit demonstration videos for blended learning

Facilitator: Neil van der Merwe

This workshop offers hands-on experience in creating videos for blended learning. Through exposure to a variety of tools, delegates will learn how to do recordings, capture demonstrations on a computer screen, add voice-overs and edit the videos.

The learning design of this workshop is based on principles of androgogy for the benefit of adult learners.

Delegates should bring along a laptop with the following software installed:

1. OPEN BROADCASTER software (Open source and free)

https://obsproject.com

2. WONDERSHARE FILMORA (Demo version)

http://filmora.wondershare.com

LTA Symposium Programme

Nalini Chitanand               nalinic@dut.ac.za            031-3732277
Judy Reddy                         judyr@dut.ac.za              031-3732904