Student engagement

Academics and university staff address what student engagement means to them and offer advice on boosting attendance, class participation and building a campus community.

TikTok can be a great instructional tool for engaged educators

What I learned from spending three years researching TikTok

Far from being an attention span wasteland, the popular social media platform has great instructional potential for engaged and experimental academics, says Elizabeth Losh

Elizabeth Losh

William & Mary

Worldwide teaching tips

International perspectives on teaching and learning forged during Covid

Academics from around the globe share practical advice and lessons learned for those teaching online now or in future turbulent times

Katherine Mansfield

University of Westminster

Assessment and feedback as a participatory dialogue

Assessment and feedback as an active dialogue between tutors and students

Seven steps towards enhancing assessment and feedback as a participatory, social process that supports deeper learning, by Neil Lent, Tina Harrison and Sabine Rolle

Neil Lent, Tina Harrison, Sabine Rolle

The University of Edinburgh

Elvis stamp

A little more conversation: using Elvis to teach critical theory

Sharing a critical reading of an American icon via film and critical theories builds an authentic learning space that can examine current cultural issues

Stone Meredith

Colorado State University Global

Building emotional resilience in students is a key goal

Building emotional resilience is not creating a generation of ‘snowflakes’

Many students arrive at university adept at navigating challenging situations. Julia Downes explains how to leverage and add to these skills for positive and validating results

Julia Downes

The Open University

THE Campus webinar graphic

Strategies for a holistic student experience

Pardis Mahdavi and Loulou Hong discuss the strategies they use to foster a culture of student wellbeing on campus.

Pardis Mahdavi, Luoluo Hong

University of Montana , Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

Pyramid of people-shaped blocks

Blocks for building a stronger student community

Block teaching can help rapidly establish bonds among students, and with their lecturers, which in turn maximises learning potential. Here, Sarah Jones offers insights from the 50-year history of block scheduling

Sarah Jones

De Montfort University

Diverse hands illustrating inclusive student-staff partnership concept

Student-staff partnerships: seven strategies for adopting inclusive practices

Student-staff partnerships can support skills development and enrich courses, as well as offer life-changing professional and academic opportunities for diverse students. Here, Madelaine-Marie Judd and Brooke Szücs encourage others to embrace this ethos

Madelaine-Marie Judd, Brooke Szücs

The University of Queensland

Relationship-building skills are transferable from the workplace to academia

Relationship-building: the key to effective teaching

Teaching in HE is daunting for new academics, but interpersonal skills honed in the workplace provide strong foundations, say Charles Marley and colleagues

Charles Marley

University of Adelaide

Virtual reality has failed higher education

Virtual reality has failed education, so what should we do with it?

Getting VR right at a sophisticated level requires a hefty mix of hardware, pricey developers, rock-solid internet and suitable pedagogy – but there is a way forward

Malcolm Burt

Central Queensland University

How to communicate the value of the arts and humanities to students

Classroom tips for debunking the arts and humanities employability myth

David Dodick offers practical pointers gleaned from a course he designed and taught aimed at communicating the value of arts and humanities degrees for various careers

David Dodick

University of California, Berkeley

Socrates' methods can still help university student in the battle with misinformation

How Socrates can help your students question information

In a world full of answers, we must take time to ask questions, and the approaches favoured by Socrates can still be useful today, explains Konstantinos Arfanis

Konstantinos Arfanis

Arden University

Student voice initiatives in universities need to be rethought

You said, we did – now what? Why student voice initiatives need a rethink

‘Student voice’ initiatives tend towards changes that can be easily packaged and publicised rather than those that demand time, resources and deeper consideration

Claire Kinsella, Linda Kaye

Leeds Beckett University, Edge Hill University

Eye scanner

What can human behaviour analytics tell us about student learning?

Human behaviour analytics could be the answer to enhanced student engagement and better learning experiences in computer-aided learning environments

Fang Chen, Kun Yu

University of Technology Sydney

We may never stop university students cheating but we should still encourage academic integrity

Zero cheating is a pipe dream, but we still need to push academic integrity

David Rettinger and Erica Price Burns offer key points for institutions to consider when creating systems that encourage academic integrity among students

David Rettinger, Erica Price Burns

University of Mary Washington

Ants building a bridge

Bridges to study: how to create a successful online foundation course

Online access courses can enable more students who don’t come to higher education directly from high school to smoothly enter university. Here are tips for designing an effective online university foundation programme

Jane Habner , Pablo Munguia

Flinders University

Podcast as pedagogy

Podcast as pedagogy: discovering the joys of a new teaching format

After a first foray into podcasting as a mode of instruction, Alan Bradshaw shares some of the tips he picked up along the way for those considering taking the mic

Alan Bradshaw

Royal Holloway, University of London

Videos and podcasts can be useful tools for assessment

21st-century assessment: improve and update the way you evaluate

Mariana del Sol González offers initial tips and guidance on how to update assessment methods in your classroom

Mariana del Sol González

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Podcast discussing building resilience and protecting well-being among university staff and students

THE podcast: what makes research and teaching interesting?

Find out what universal tricks and traits can make things more interesting whether introducing a new concept in class or drafting a research paper for fellow academics

Kurt Gray, Manuel Goyanes, Emily Corwin-Renner

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , Carlos III University of Madrid (UC3M), University of Tübingen

Image representing creative inspiration

Creative projects as a way of bringing students together

An institution-wide creative project is an opportunity for students to make friends and learn from one another, writes Karen Amanda Harris. Here, she shares tips for developing an extracurricular language-art project

Karen Amanda Harris

University of the Arts London

There are many simple, free tools in a lecturer's arsenal for making lectures more inclusive

Tips for new lecturers on the human elements that make students feel included

Forget constructive alignment and instructional scaffolding, things like saying ‘hello’ and being encouraging are the real key to good, inclusive lectures, says Andy Grayson

Andy Grayson

Nottingham Trent University

Academics and lecturers should not conflate interesting with entertaining

Beware the pitfalls of making lectures ‘interesting’ and focus on curiosity instead

Conflating ‘interesting’ with ‘entertaining’ and getting caught in a never-ending loop of shinier and shinier edutainment should be shunned in favour of cultivating sustained interest

Lee Li Neng

National University of Singapore

Gamification brings great benefit to online university classes but has negatives too

Next level? The pros and cons of game-based learning

Using gamification in the classroom can work wonders for engagement, but does it come at too great a cost to deep thinking, asks Frederik van Dam

Frederik van Dam

Radboud University

Happy online university student

Awaken your students’ interest in your online course

Are you struggling to motivate students in your online class? Angeles Carolina Aguirre-Acosta provides strategies to generate greater motivation and participation

Angeles Carolina Aguirre-Acosta

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Anxious students can be helped in the university classroom by using tech and empathy

Using tech (and a little empathy) to help anxious students

Amber Phillips shares some high- and low-tech tips for supporting anxious students and improving inclusivity in the post-pandemic physical classroom

Amber Phillips

University of the West of England Bristol

Fire-eater

The rise and rise of the lecture-tainer

Falling class attendance and shorter student attention spans present challenges for university teachers. Sandi Mann offers advice for tackling the boredom conundrum

Sandi Mann

University of Central Lancashire

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

University of Adelaide

lecturer takes student questions

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

Woman thinking at her laptop computer

Yes, online learning can teach you to think

The idea that online learning ‘doesn’t teach people to think’, which was suggested by one of our peers recently, is short-sighted and false

Valerie Wood, Laura Shannon

Queen's University

Image showing one person striding off with a crowd following

Build your teaching presence to better engage students

A strong ‘presence’ in the classroom can help imbue students with a passion for your subject and willingness to learn. Catherine Wehlburg explores simple ways to enhance teaching presence

Catherine Wehlburg

Athens State 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

Leverage students' eco-anxiety to drive change

Embrace students’ eco-anxiety to spur critical and systemic climate action

Luis Gerardo Rojas Solorio gives tips on how to leverage and assuage your students’ eco-anxiety, using fun games and discussions, in order to drive change

Luis Gerardo Rojas Solorio

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Podcast discussing building resilience and protecting well-being among university staff and students

THE podcast: what Freeman Hrabowski wants you to know about inclusivity

The outgoing UMBC president and civil rights activist speaks about the difficult conversations around inclusivity and how it is work that benefits all of humanity

Freeman Hrabowski

University of Maryland Baltimore County

bored students in a lecture hall

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

Designing activities for hybrid learning can be difficult without following the correct steps

The 7 steps for designing activities in hybrid courses

When planning a hybrid course, a main concern is how to design the activities in this still relatively unfamiliar format

Laura Patricia Zepeda Orantes

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Robot writing

Original essays written in seconds: how ‘transformers’ will change assessment

Artificial intelligence that generates original text will be both empowering and disruptive for students and higher education at large, say Mike Sharples and Rafael Pérez y Pérez

Mike Sharples , Rafael Pérez y Pérez

The Open University, Metropolitan Autonomous University

Helping quiet students find their voice will benefit the entre university class

Getting the quiet students to talk helps everyone

Often the quiet students have the most insightful ideas but won’t share them for fear of speaking in public. Here are some tips on building their confidence and voice

David Cheng

Australian National University

Analytics and other similar tools are becoming crucial for teachers

Analytics is quickly becoming a crucial teaching tool

Easily accessible analytics tools can help teachers understand aspects of their classroom they might otherwise overlook

Julián Urrutia , Cynthia López

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Young woman recording herself using a mobile phone

How to use Microsoft Flipgrid in university teaching

Video-sharing platforms can increase student engagement and confidence. Here, Seb Dianati shares uses and challenges and offers tips for setting up spaces and topics

Seb Dianati

The University of Queensland

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

Webinar discussion how to reduce student drop out rates in the context of the pandemic and online learning

Campus webinar: What’s the future of higher education assessment?

A panel of teaching and learning experts from Campus+ institutions around the world discuss how can institutions create evaluations that are fair, robust and credible

Campus team

Campus

Communication is a vital skill for all students to master

Promoting communication skills is just as vital as course content

From the classroom to the workplace, students need to communicate effectively – and you can show them how

Jessica Guadalupe Toro Palacios , Eunice Costilla Cruz

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Image showing an inclusive diverse and happy group of students

It is about ‘people knowing who I am’: reflections on how to guide inclusion work in universities

Advice on using a framework called ‘the Inclusion Compass’ to guide inclusion work within universities, based on a pan-European research project carried out to explore how this could work across higher education

George Koutsouris, Lauren Stentiford , Tricia Nash

The University of Exeter

Empathy is an important quality for tutors to practice in the classroom

Using empathy in the classroom can have a great impact on learning

Instructors can take many small steps to make their classrooms a more enjoyable and positive space for students

Mariano Garay Peña , Beatriz Murillo Pancardo

Tecnológico de Monterrey

Student motivation and engagement can be about helping university students to untangle difficulties in personal lives

A ‘motivation and engagement wheel’ to keep students on board

The wheel model was designed to help demystify student motivation and provide targeted help where and when necessary, explains Andrew J. Martin

Andrew J. Martin

UNSW Sydney

Getting your university admission team's online engagement right can help attract and keep prospective students

The top three engagement challenges facing admissions teams and how to solve them

Whether it's due to ‘ghosting’ or ‘student melt’, prospective students are harder than ever before to attract and hold on to, but a combination of tech and human solutions is at hand

Ardis Kadiu

Element451

Dog with ear cocked listening

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 showing students learning via online tools

Using remote learning technology  to boost student engagement and interaction

As face-to-face teaching returns, educational technology can be used to boost student engagement in ways that are not possible in a physical classroom. Andreina Parisi-Amon explains how

Andreina Parisi-Amon

Engageli

University student staying in bed and disengaging

Are your first-year students disengaging? Here’s how to get them back on board

From creating distinct spaces on your VLE to discuss first-year study to checking in with absentees, Katherine Mansfield provides tips for re-engaging students

Katherine Mansfield

University of Westminster

Social media chat bubbles

Tips and apps to encourage better interaction with students

Classting and Remind are two lesser-known apps that can aid communication with your class when used effectively

Gloria Anahí Molina Barrón , Dania Arriola Arteaga

Tecnológico de Monterrey

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