We will launch competence-based degree programmes in phases, as we learn and grow our capacity, starting with Sept 2020. By 2022/2023, our entire on-campus portfolio will be competence based.
Competencies must be taught in practice and assessed in application. This will see our students learning by attending to live or authentic/real world assignments relevant to study, work and life, wherever possible with local partners. This not only benefits the local region, but for our specific student population, opens up the potential to build student educational and cultural and social capital – that is how to get on as a professional in the fast-changing world.
We, the Teaching Excellence Academy, are committed to paying constant attention to the academic development of our staff involved in teaching, essential if we are to support our students’ graduate future in the 4IR (Martin, 2019). We are finding ever more 'fluid' ways of working (Stuart & Shutt, 2019) to sustain the relevance of our educational portfolio. We do this by keeping our knowledge of the scholarship of teaching and learning up to date; consulting with our stakeholders (student sponsors, prospective students, employers and providers of voluntary and other services), and working with programme teams in ensuring the competencies delivered on the University of Hull’s degree programmes are meaningful to all.
We believe our students will leave us with a clear understanding of who they are and what they are able to do as graduates, complimented with a personal commitment to life-long learning. Our competence-based degree programmes will ensure the enduring currency of our students ‘graduate-ness’ and set them up for success in work and in life.
Acknowledgements
The Teaching Excellence Academy would like to thank all the members of the Competency-based HE working group who tried and tested the Competence Framework, our peer reviewers and critical friends and specific members of the Academy team who have leaned into the task of creating the framework:
Carole Craven; Catherine Lillie; David Sands: Elizabeth Ward; Fernando Correia; Katharine Hubbard; Lesley Morrell; Michael Gratzke; Mike Ewen; Paula Gawthorpe; Steve Burwood; Stuart McGugan; Wayne Williams; Anne Kaegi; Jason Lawrence; Helen Fenwick; Alison Price-Moir; Graham Scott; Simeon Orduan; Colette Conroy.
References
Basio, E (2019) The need for a values-based curriculum. University World News Retrieved from https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=2019092415204357 on 20 January 2020.
Coonan, E. and Pratt-Adams, S. (2019) Building Higher Education Curricula Fit for The Future: How Higher Education institutions are responding to the Industrial Strategy. York: Advance HE. [accessed from: https://arro.anglia.ac.uk/703769/6/Coonan_Pratt-Adams_2018.pdfLinks to an external site.]
Dewey, J. (2019) Moral Principles in Education and My Pedagogic Creed. UK: Myers Education Press.
Martin, P (2019) On The Horizon. An Advance He report on the challenges for learning and teaching in global higher education over the next five to ten years. York: Advance HE.
Stuart & Shutt (2019) A manifesto for the 21st Century University. WonkHE blog, Retreived fromhttps://wonkhe.com/blogs/a-manifesto-for-the-21st-century-university (Links to an external site.) on 23.1.2020
United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organisation (2015) Rethinking Education: towards a common good. Retrieved from https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000232555 January 20th