(NB. ‘To me… To you…’ was a British children’s TV show hosted by The Chuckle Brothers which ran from 1996-1998)

This week’s #LTHEChat 227 follows on the #LTHEChat 216 (see the Wakelet) that was led by Dr David Walker (University of Brighton) and Dr Susan Smith (University of Sussex) on 20th October 2021 on “Breaking Boundaries: career progression and education focussed roles”.

During the chat, colleagues shared their experiences and practices for understanding the term “scholarship” and identified the practical steps for their own scholarship activities. The discussion had much insight and demonstrated the vast scholarship activity of colleagues from different institutions especially on areas that we consider between scholarship, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) and pedagogic research.

SoTL can be described as a tool, a revolution or a framework to transform higher education space in how we view our pedagogical practices (Fanghanel et al, 2016). However, from a learner, and more specifically from a student perspective, the way I view SoTL may not necessarily be similar compared to colleagues who have more extensive SoTL experience in higher education. It is without a doubt that SoTL will not work without the presence of students. My reflection from the previous #LTHEchat 216 got me thinking about the responsibility of delivering successful SoTL. Is it me as a student? OR is it you as the scholar? SoTL provides an opportunity to disrupt the way we think and practice, often prepared to mess with “we’ve always done it like that”. However, it also messes with students’ minds and emotions as they try to adapt to new ways of thinking and learning. SoTL is not to remain dormant, but an active process within higher education to mess and examine how best to be more effective and successful in the 21st century ways of learning and teaching.

In this #LTHEchat, I want us to consider the growth of SoTL for students and early career professionals and their position in this as they try to navigate the system, and not simply be pushed into the deep end when they officially become a staff member within higher education. Finally, let’s consider the following passage from Boyer (1990):

‘We believe the time has come to move beyond the tired old “teaching versus research” debate and give the familiar and honourable term “scholarship” a broader, more capacious meaning, one that brings legitimacy to the full scope of academic work. Surely, scholarship means engaging in original research. But the work of the scholar also means stepping back from one’s investigation, looking for connections, building bridges between theory and practice, and communicating one’s knowledge effectively to students. Specifically, we conclude that the work of the professoriate might be thought of as having four separate, yet overlapping, functions. These are: the scholarship of discovery; the scholarship of integration; the scholarship of application; and the scholarship of teaching.’ (Boyer, 1990)

Join Us 🕗

The live tweet-chat will take place via https://twitter.com/LTHEchat on Wednesday 9th February 2022, 8:00 to 9:00 pm GMT. During this time 6 questions will be posed (one every 10 minutes) – everyone is welcome to contribute (as much or as little as they like) or just to read. Conversation is also welcomed at any time post 9:00pm GMT.

References  📗  

Boyer, E (1990.) Scholarship reconsidered: Priorities of the professoriate. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass

Fanghanel, J., Pritchard, J., Potter, J., & Wisker, G. (2016). Defining and supporting the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL): A sector-wide study. York: HE Academy.

TweetChat Questions

Q1 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning messes with the higher education landscape. In what form do you think it also messes students’ perspectives on their learning?

Q2 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) contributes to teaching excellence involving students. What ethical issues could there be using students in SoTL research?

Q3 Consider the value of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning vs the value of students’ emotions and feelings in higher education. Which is more important, and why?

Q4 Aside from student partnership projects, how can you, as individuals, support students to engage in Scholarship of Teaching and Learning as part of their career planning?

Q5 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning could enhance staff career development, but how can this also be relevant to students who might not want to stay in academia?

Q6 Me or you? Scholarship of Teaching and Learning should be embedded into students’ learning experiences in higher education? Discuss

Wakelet

Here’s the Wakelet link to this TweetChat: https://wke.lt/w/s/pCpsp5

Kiu Sum’s Bio 📷

Kiu Sum is a Doctoral Researcher in nutrition at the University of Westminster. Her primary research interest focuses on workplace nutrition and dietary behaviour in healthcare professionals. Kiu is on Twitter @KiuSum and documents her PhD journey on a monthly blog. She is also interested in pedagogy research, having been involved with student partnership projects since her undergraduate degree. She is a Co-Convenor of the Engagement Assessment and the Early Career Researchers Special Interest Groups. To continue her passion or student engagement, she hosts The Education Burrito podcast (Twitter @EdBurritoPod)