cBL: New way of teaching
Teachers can participate in challenge-based learning within ECIU University. They can experience for themselves how this learning method works. A challenge-based support team has been set up within the UT to help and support teachers in this. Some teachers have already preceded you. Read their experiences below.
'EXCITING, INNOVATIVE AND INSTRUCTIVE'
University lecturer Sikke Jansma took part in challenge-based learning at ECIU University. He enthusiastically talks about this new way of teaching and learning.
‘As a teacher, you have a coaching role in challenge-based learning (CBL). And that takes some getting used to. The students set their own learning goals, for example, and they all have a different educational background. That means that, as a teacher, you don’t have all the knowledge. That is quite exciting.
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'During my project, a participant had a civil engineering background. Completely different compared to my communication background, but that doesn’t matter. It was my job to guide, motivate and coach the students. You guide the students in their teamwork, how they can give feedback on their results to the client, you motivate them when things get tough and you help them to find the information they need. Very instructive. It’s important that as a teacher you’re open to different forms of teaching and the corresponding feedback you receive.’
‘The best thing about challenge-based learning is the innovative nature of this form of education. Moreover, it is a concept that links students from all over Europe because they are working on the same challenge. The structure is very open and the students are problem owners in every respect. They are responsible for defining the challenge and they have to organise the surrounding process themselves, such as the frequency of consultation, teamwork, who does what and the research. They are a consultancy firm, as it were.’
Mobility hub
‘My challenge was about a new mobility hub around the Enschede train station. The assignment came from the municipality of Enschede. The question was about making the station area future-proof, looking beyond buses and trains. The students, two UT graduates and two from Hamburg University of Technology, ultimately delivered an advisory report containing a 3D design of how the station could look, both architecturally and functionally.’
Next step
‘The students were satisfied with the result. They did find the openness of the challenge difficult. They missed a structure, but that has now been built in. I see CBL as the next step after the Twente Educational Model (TOM). Within the UT, we are already very innovative in terms of education, and this is another step forward. If you are open to a new way of teaching, then challenge-based learning is certainly interesting.’
Would you like to know more? Send an e-mail to cbl-ces@twente.nl
‘This way of teaching has to suit you’
Le Anh Nguyen Long is assistant professor of Public Administration. She supervises the University of the Future challenge in which six students participate. ‘I learn to let go of students and let them struggle with a problem.’
According to Nguyen Long, letting go was a personal challenge. To not take up the role of teacher straight away, but to be a so-called “teamcher.” Which requires a shift in mindset from instructor to coach and guide. ‘The students are really thrown in at the deep end with a challenge. They swim, they complain, they don’t feel comfortable and they don’t really know what to do with the problem in question.’
CALL FOR CHALLENGE-BASED LEARNING IS HEARD
OVER 30 SUBMISSIONS, 26 OF WHICH WERE ACCEPTED
The recent call to submit a proposal for the implementation of challenge-based learning in university education did not go unnoticed. A total of 32 proposals were submitted, of which 26 have now been honoured. The total available budget of 368 thousand euros has been spent. Responsible for organizing were UT and ECIU University.
The purpose of the call is to encourage educational innovation. ‘And this time the focus is on challenge-based learning’, says Rianne Kaptijn, Local Ambassador of ECIU, the European Consortium of European Universities. ‘Together with the UT, we want to encourage challenge-based learning (CBL) in education. During this learning method, students work on real, existing assignments and do so in teams in which professionals and researchers also participate.’
CHALLENGE BASED LEARNING AND UAV PHOTOGRAMMETRY
At the Faculty of Geo-information Science and Earth Observation, lecturer Farzaneh Dadrass Javan teaches photogrammetry, in which Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) play a large role. Combining education on UAVs with Challenge Based Learning is a clear focus for 2022: 'We got a green light on a project proposal for a call at the UT to innovate our education regarding UAV Photogrammetry', states Dadrass Javan.
Experts in agriculture, urban planning, and disaster management are using UAVs for data collection and information extraction. However, these professionals often operate without having any specific education in photogrammetry. 'Education modules would need to be embedded in a framework closer to their professional interests, different from traditional teaching methods. In this regard, CBL looks a promising solution for this purpose as it can perfectly tailor the content for different backgrounds and needs,' says Dadrass Javan.
