Higher education pedagogy

Learn more about pedagogy and how different theories of teaching and learning work across higher education. Here, academics offer insights into a variety of pedagogies, drawing on their own teaching experience alongside research, to provide practical advice on what instructional methods work best for different university contexts, disciplines and classes.

Animation showing students working together to answer a question

Tech tools that boost student engagement through competition and interaction

Digital tools that promote interaction and competition in class can have notable benefits to learning, as Yuyang Zhao explains, based on her use of quizzes

Yuyang Zhao

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Using comic books can be a great way to teach complex topics to university students

Picture this! Teaching difficult concepts through comics

David Brown and Mark Giancaspro explain how they use visualisation to maximise engagement and student success when teaching complex topics

Mark Giancaspro , David Brown

Adelaide University

Observe, improvise and listen: how to re-engage bored students

In this video, Basim Al-Qargholi explains how to spot the signs that university students are not paying attention in class and offers tips for getting them back in the room

Basim Al-Qargholi

Al-Mustaqbal University

A student watching a lecture online at home

Strategies to motivate students in asynchronous learning

The self-directed nature of asynchronous learning makes it easy for students to disengage. Guhuai Jiang and Jiayu Zhou offer strategies that boost students’ motivation when working on their own

Guhuai Jiang , Jiayu Zhou

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Image of medical students being taught using a mannequin patient

Assessing science students’ practical skills – can we learn from healthcare education?

Healthcare educators have developed effective ways to assess a range of practical skills in their learners. What can other science educators learn from their example?

Derek Scott

University of Aberdeen

socio-emotional learning, juggling emotions

Make social-emotional learning part of teaching: it’s easier than you think

These practical, achievable tips show how to incorporate social-emotional learning into everyday educational practices

Sasha Lynn, Alexandra Osika, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Learning can be an emotional roller coaster: how can we help our students (and ourselves) enjoy the ride?

Emotions can help and hinder learning. These practical, evidence-based strategies can help teachers understand and engage student emotions for better outcomes

Stephanie MacMahon, Alexandra Osika, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Say goodbye to bored students

Boredom is the enemy of learning. Educators can minimise it, increase student engagement and allow deep learning to take place with these practical tips

Amanda Bourgeois, Alexandra Osika, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Illustration of online and blended learning

A course design method to aid the transition to quality blended learning

To adapt traditional teaching techniques to a blended learning model educators must apply effective instructional design processes that harness technology to support the pedagogy and access to teaching materials, as Nelcy Natalia Atehortua Sanchez and Juan Sebastian Blandon Luengas explain

Nelcy Natalia Atehortua Sanchez, Juan Sebastian Blandon Luengas

Technological University of Uruguay (UTEC)

Teaching English for academic mediation and discussion using team games

Using English for academic discussion and mediation is a challenge for students who are not native speakers. Laura McNabb shares classroom games that help students learn the language skills they need

Laura McNabb

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Illustration of people with an oversized stopwatch

Block mode of teaching in higher education: advantages and challenges

Block scheduling may be intense but can also foster student engagement and reduce stress. It needs careful implementation to realise its full benefits

Amir Ghapanchi

Victoria University

Image depicting critical thinking and analysis

Educating trainee teachers in critical thinking

Effective approaches to training student teachers in critical thinking so they can apply it across multiple disciplines and pass on their knowledge to their own pupils, by Joseph Sanacore

Joseph Sanacore

Long Island University

Image representing global politics with dozens of national flags

Helping students make sense of global politics through class debates

How to guide students to develop and take part in class debates to deepen their understanding of course content

Adrian Man-Ho Lam

The University of Hong Kong

Feet climbing hands acting as steps (illustration)

From conventional course to block scheduling: adapting resources for successful learning

Block teaching can seem like an impossible task – all the teaching in less than half the time. But with intentional design of courses and resources, you can move from traditional to block delivery. Here, Ellen Buck shares advice based on her experience

Ellen Buck

University of Suffolk

Image to depict how sensory and motor systems aid learning

Improving learning through physical action and sensory perception

Drawing on movement and sensory perception as part of learning can enhance outcomes, research shows. Sheila L. Macrine and Jennifer M. B. Fugate explain how to put this into practice

Sheila L Macrine, Jennifer MB Fugate

University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, Kansas City University

Image representing innovation involving thinking creatively and taking risks

Five ways to apply a creative mindset to education

Students should be encouraged to create and innovate rather than just accrue knowledge. Alan Morgan shares five approaches to cultivating a creative mindset in class

Alan Morgan

University College Dublin

Eight tips to boost active listening in university students

Active mental engagement enhances students’ understanding and their ability to remember the ideas we teach. These simple tools and skills can help to move students from passive to active modes of listening and keep them there

David Geelan

The University of Notre Dame Australia

Image of a student taking part in a live online class

Introducing an activeflex teaching model into pre-existing online courses

Steps for designing and implementing an activeflex model of teaching in pre-existing online courses, shared by Marla Williams

Marla Williams

Athens State University

Enhancing learning from digital, audio and video resources

Print textbooks have serious competitors from digital texts, podcasts, audiobooks and video. The medium – and how each is used – can affect how much students learn, as Naomi Baron explains

Naomi Baron

American University

Image depicting a student sitting on top of a pile of books while working on a computer

Using ‘spaced learning’ to aid students’ retention of new information

Repeating information in chunks with breaks in between improves students’ ability to remember it. Stephen Braybrook explains how to translate this into the classroom

Stephen Braybrook

Brain Move

Don’t lose sight of learning outcomes in pursuit of digital innovation, counsels task force

Institutions should also think carefully about what is considered ‘innovative’

Campus team

Campus

Block teaching: what it is, how to do it and why

With its short, intense courses, is block teaching the way to boost student success and engagement? John Weldon gives seven tips for switching to the block model and examples of what it offers university educators

John Weldon

Victoria University

A student playing the part of a teacher to represent the revolving roles pedagogy

Revolving roles: creating inclusive, engaging, participant-led learning activities

‘Revolving roles’ is a simple, adaptable method for designing learning activities that challenge and change conventional ‘leader’ and ‘participant’ responsibilities, embrace students’ diverse needs, and develop their unique attributes, as Pablo Dalby explains

Pablo Dalby

The University of East Anglia

In-person teaching now needs to be justified

If we take the same critical lens to in-person learning as we once did to online, rationalising our need for the former, how much better could we make our teaching?

Stephen Dann

Australian National University

Naming students in online classes helps them connect and feel that their tutor is present

Naming students is even more crucial in online classes

Naming learners fosters a community in which the teacher is clearly all in and focused on individual members in the unique, shared space of the online classroom

Stone Meredith

Colorado State University Global

Lecturer recording a lesson for an ActiveFlex course taught online and in person

The mechanics of teaching a multi-section “activeflex” course

Lessons on the mechanics of bringing faculty together to teach a multiple-section class using the activeflex learning model, by Morgan Stanford

Morgan Stanford

Athens State University

Image of students learning the transferrable skills wanted in the workplace

Strategies to train students in three transferable skills wanted by employers

Two simple teaching methods that faculty can use in the classroom to train students in the communication, problem-solving and critical thinking skills sought by employers, shared by Elly Vandegrift

Elly Vandegrift

University of Oregon

illustration of woman with wrench watching a practical demonstration on a screen

Using vicarious experiences online to engage and motivate students

Vicarious experiences can be harnessed in remote and blended learning to foster both the ‘skill and the will’ of students. Roma Forbes outlines how to do it

Roma Forbes

The University of Queensland

A student learning online during a hyflex class session

Classroom management strategies to enhance hyflex learning

Effective classroom management strategies that keep students engaged during hyflex courses, by Letitia Bergantz

Letitia Bergantz

Athens State University

Designing effective reinforcement activities for university teaching in person and online

How to design effective reinforcement activities for activeflex courses

How to effectively design reinforcement activities for the activeflex course to maximise student engagement, by Joy Oettel

Joy Oettel

Athens State University

Building blocks of elements of education

Deep and meaningful learning: taking learning to the next level

Explicitly linking prior knowledge and experience is key in engaging students in deep learning and transitions them away from passivity in learning

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Tips for engaging online learners using group activities to increase their sense of belonging

Engaging online learners using group activities

Online learning can leave students feeling lonely and disengaged. Tracy DeCicco explains how incorporating group activities into coursework can get them re-engaged with the materials – and each other

Tracey DeCicco

Athens State University

Learning challenge and difficulty: calm seas do not make skilful sailors

Five strategies for university teachers to encourage students to use challenge, struggle and safe failure for effective long-term learning

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Learning to learn and higher-order thinking: it’s not just what to learn but how to learn

Through deconstructing the thought processes that occur during learning, students understand how they learn and therefore learn more effectively

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Advice on using four online platforms to boost student engagement and motivation to learn

Four tips for increasing student engagement and self-efficacy using online platforms

A guide to increasing student interaction and motivation by using four well-known online platforms in your teaching, by Archimedes David Guerra

Archimedes David Guerra

Hong Kong Baptist University

Propaganda and disinformation are rife on social media and beyond, and in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, universities need to play their part in countering it

Fake news and disinformation abounds, but what can universities do?

Few universities offer courses on countering propaganda, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine brings this weakness of provision into sharp relief, says Paul Baines

Paul Baines

University of Leicester

Interactive learning: more than teamwork makes the dream work

Educators can engineer, harness and guide social dynamics towards a positive learning experience rather than leaving students’ interaction to chance

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Advice on guiding students through four modes of analysis to aid informed decision making

Thinking in action: training students in decision-making

Four interrelated modes of analysis that support informed decision-making, and how to teach them, by Adrian Man-Ho Lam

Adrian Man-Ho Lam

The University of Hong Kong

Advice on applying quality assurance to digital teaching in higher education

How to ensure effective quality assurance for digital teaching and learning

How university teaching staff can ensure that their digital teaching maintains the same quality as their on-campus face-to-face delivery, by Tim Thompson

Tim Thompson

Teesside University

Advice on supporting academics to engage with equity and diversity issues as part of their teaching

Making space for academic colleagues to think about race as part of pedagogy

Kevin Brazant shares tips on how to use digital content creation to deconstruct themes of equality, diversity and inclusion with colleagues and inform their learning and teaching practice

Kevin Brazant

London Metropolitan University

More university students require or prefer self-directed learning, and academics must be ready to provide it

Things to consider when designing a self-directed course model

With increasing numbers of students learning remotely and showing high levels of independence, the ability to offer self-directed courses is more important than ever

Blanca Benavente , Estela Murrieta

Tecnológico de Monterrey

illustration of outline of heads showing different emotional states, detail, emotions and learning

Emotions and learning: what role do emotions play in how and why students learn?

If educators understand the factors that interplay with emotional states to affect learning, they can work with this to enhance the learning experience. Here are six strategies to manage the role of emotions in learning

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

University teachers must work hard to ensure students become comfortable with the process of peer review

Fostering student collaboration rather than competition using peer review

When students are involved in peer review, they can more easily see the ‘problems’ with classmates’ writing – and this creates opportunities in their own work, too

James Meredith

Colorado State University Global

Advice on using photography to complement written materials when teaching human rights

Using photography as a teaching tool in human rights and international affairs

Photography is a powerful way to bring topics to life and enhance students’ understanding of different perspectives and representations of world events and people, as Noam Schimmel explains

Noam Schimmel

University of California, Berkeley

Red squirrel and hazelnut illustrating video about teaching statistics with storytelling

Using storytelling to make introductory statistics less scary: a contextualised approach

Carl Sherwood explains how imaginative, contextualised writing tasks can make mathematical concepts less abstract and more engaging for diverse student groups

Carl Sherwood

The University of Queensland

Advice on adapting courses to teaching online using small chunks of material

Non-linear approaches to course structure that improve learning

Breaking up teaching content into chunks that can be repeatedly revisited offers educators a non-linear approach to learning. Chris Jones shares advice for designing online courses

Chris Jones

Pearson College London

Arrow leading up steps illustrating article about Wordle, mastery experiences, the power of success

What Wordle teaches us about the power of success

Offering more mastery experiences will greatly reduce the mental and emotional fatigue that permeates so many post-Covid university classrooms

Thomas R. Guskey

University of Kentucky

Advice on instilling democratic principles into your assessment methods

Democratic assessment: why, what, and how

Divya Bheda shares five ways educators can embody democratic principles through their assessment practices to help students learn civic-minded values and behaviour

Divya Bheda

ExamSoft

Advice on using popular culture to demonstrate concepts to students in relatable ways

Squid pro quo: using Squid Game to engage economics students

Wayne Geerling explains how economics lecturers can draw on popular culture to demonstrate key concepts in a more relatable way that aids understanding, taking ‘Squid Game’ as an example

Wayne Geerling

Monash University

Advice on using project-based learning to get students learning away from their screens

Using project-based learning to boost student motivation and engagement

Worapoom Saengkaew shares key lessons from using project-based learning to get students away from their screens and into the real world, boosting their enthusiasm for their studies

Worapoom Saengkaew

Siam University

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