University home|

Centre for Excellence in Enquiry-Based Learning

Projects matching your search criteria

Using Participatory Image Based Research to Inform Teaching and Learning about Inclusion in Education

Images can play an important role in developing skills in critical reflection, both in schools and universities. Working with school students to take their own photographs as a way of exploring their school and its culture has great potential as an EBL approach. As such, University students in Education stand to gain invaluable skills in learning and engaging with this participatory methodology. This project will engage with six LEAs in the North-West to develop a 15 credit course unit which will also be available as an online resource. Aspects of the unit will be piloted in the second semester with PGCE students.
Project Team: Susie Miles, Ian Kaplan  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: education, images, research, participatory, teacher training, image-based, postgraduate, teamwork, inclusion
Case Study (PDF, 257.2Kb)

Improving the PBL Experiences for First Year Nurses

Staff contact with students will be modified to bring about a change in stimulus for learning. Variations in students' backgrounds results in some feeling unchallenged whilst others are confused, discouraged and fall behind. This along with a full curriculum, leads to tutors falling back into a didactic approach to facilitation. The new weekly format will offer an introductory lecture and time for students to undertake some self study before they come together for group discussions around a PBL case.
Project Team: Ingrid Gouldsborough, Elizabeth Sheader  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: nursing, pbl, self-study, case, medicine, anatomy, first year, facilitation
Case Study (PDF, 156.2Kb)

Innovative Student Assessment in EBL

The aim of this project is to make students full partners in the teaching and assessment of an EBL engineering mathematics course. The objective is that students will work in small groups using EBL to specialize on a particular part of the course syllabus. They will then teach their specialist part to their peers and formulate a suitable assessment question by which their peers' learning will be gauged. The desired outcome is to empower students' learning through having them experience the entire 'life cycle' of a taught course module, from preparation, through delivery to final assessment.
Project Team: Paul Grassia, Grant Campbell  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: assessment, chemical engineering, engineering, mathematics, groups, peer, syllabus, question writing, teamwork
Case Study (PDF, 151.3Kb)

A Structured Approach to Preparation for Group Project Work

The Embedded Systems Project (ESP) is a major student-centred PBL activity where students work in small groups throughout the second semester on the design of a microcontroller based product. This development project will generate a series of linked activities focused on the three key areas of team working, project planning and presentation skills, which the students previously identified as areas of difficulty.
Project Team: Peter Hicks, Norman Powell  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: embedded, systems, design, electrical engineering, electronic, pbl
Case Study (PDF, 86.9Kb)

Being a Student: An Ethnographic Perspective

The use of ethnography to teach a course in ethnographic methods exemplifies the project's commitment to a research-led approach to learning. Students will learn about qualitative research methods by researching their own learning and university environment. The approach will identify and challenge the students' own notions of responsibility and learning. In this way, students will learn about ethnography and will become more aware of how their own learning works.
Project Team: Alberto Corsin-Jimenez  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: ethnography, reflection, reflexivity, ethnographic, research, diary, individual, undergraduate, qualitative
Case Study (PDF, 75Kb)

Assessment and Enterprise through EBL

The aim is to development a robust method of assessment based upon the application of enterprise skills to an investigation. It is difficult to devise fair assessment when learning is characterised by a lack of rigid structure as in EBL. The project will develop a guiding structure for EBL assessment. This will provide some guidance and constraint to the lines of enquiry being followed and yet still allow students considerable freedom when making their investigations.
Project Team: Tim Jones  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: enterprise, assessment, project, individual, undergraduate, engineering, report writing
Case Study (PDF, 129.6Kb)

An Integrated Model of EBL in Practice

Previous development work will be evaluated using appropriate custom-designed instruments. This will help identify defining principles and describe working relationships that give access to the current experiences of students. From this the project will activate and embed EBL in the teaching programme and devise approaches to formal assessment.
Project Team: David Pottage  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: design, medicine, psychiatry, postgraduate, individual, practice based, presentation, evaluation
Case Study (PDF, 69.4Kb)

Manchester Access Programme: EBL Masterclasses

This project aims to engage non-traditional FE students with the process of enquiry-based learning through a series of masterclasses. The masterclasses will focus on the theme of sustainability and will touch on various curriculum areas. The masterclasses will be facilitated by trained University of Manchester students and will take place in Spring 2006. Year 12 students participating in the masterclasses are involved in a wider series of activities aimed to support and encourage their application to The University of Manchester. Involvement with the Centre for Excellence in Enquiry-Based Learning at a pre-University level will benefit both the institution and the students by better preparing them for the alternative learning and teaching methods practiced at the University.
Project Team: Patricia Clift, Stephanie Lee
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: widening participation, further education, sustainability, pbl, presentation, facilitation, sixth form, inclusion, diversity
Watch Video about this project: Windows Media Video; Video Transcript
Case Study (PDF, 70.9Kb)

Embedding Interdisciplinarity: Developing a Generic Undergraduate EBL Team Project Module

Global and societal issues are best addressed by interdisciplinary teams. This requires graduates to be able to communicate their knowledge and skills across interdisciplinary boundaries. Building on previous work, this project will develop an undergraduate interdisciplinary EBL module which will be open to all disciplines across the university. 24 students from 5 disciplines will work together and provide feedback on their experiences of the module so as to identify institutional issues, including support for WebCT.
Project Team: Julia McMorrow, Charlotte Woods, Isobel Braidman, Susana Lorenzo, Caroline Bowsher  Faculty: Humanities, Medical and Human Sciences, Life Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: interdisciplinary, undergraduate, webct, medicine, geography, spanish, languages, education, biology, teamwork, poster
Case Study (PDF, 137.4Kb)

Medical Assessment via EBL

The integration of a new self-assessment function will capitalise on the MedLea Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), which provides online resources for electronic PBL casebooks in order to support EBL. The new function (MAEBL) will enable students to contribute to a sustainable, formative self-assessment resource as well as enhance their own understanding of the subject of study.
Project Team: Andrea Owen  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: medical, medicine, assessment, self-assessment, MedLea, VLE, case, question writing, MCQs, pbl
Case Study (PDF, 70.2Kb)

An Enquiry-Based Learning Approach to Drug Development and Design

In this enquiry-led exercise, groups of students will use data to select therapeutic targets and screening methods and will evaluate simulated results from screening experiments and clinical trials to identify drugs to bring to market. They will present their findings in a poster. Three suitable clinical targets will be identified and simulated datasets will be generated for the trial during semester 2.
Project Team: Richard Prince  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: drug development, design, pharmaceuticals, clinical trials, data analysis, teamwork
Case Study (PDF, 79.5Kb)

Pedagogic Development - Enquiry-Based Learning for Constructed Textiles

Learning how to weave can be problematic for designers. The discipline demands the visualisation of 3D structures and manufacturing processes. Weave design has traditionally been taught through a technology-based route using lectures, laboratory classes and written exams. Observations and analyses of exam results have shown that the design students find constructed textiles difficult to master. Through this project we will translate some of the lectures from TX2009 Weaving for Designers into Problem Based Learning. The aims of this project are to: - Match the teaching methods more closely with the learning style of the students - Promote deep and holistic learning - Promote a more vibrant and stimulating learning experience - Ensure students are at the centre of the learning environment These aims will be met by creating an EBL environment for constructed textile design through a blended learning approach, converting weave design lectures into PBL, and creating a WebCT portal in which curriculum objectives and study techniques are clarified.
Project Team: Kate Sayer  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: textiles, design, visualisation, 3d, manufacturing, process, weaving, webct, pbl, undergraduate, teamwork
Case Study (PDF, 98.4Kb)

Partnerships in Pedagogy

Post-qualification support for secondary school teachers is less well provided than other aspects of their professional preparation. This project will develop materials that will enable school-based mentors to work together with trainees, using an EBL approach, to investigate and develop pedagogic beliefs and practices. Findings from this project will be captured and made available to other areas of the university where training for professional practice is carried out.
Project Team: Geoff Wake  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: pedagogy, partnership, secondary school, teachers, mentoring, practice, teacher training

Application of Chemical Knowledge to the Clinical Understanding of Medicines

The aim of this project is to encourage pharmacy students to take an integrated approach to their learning across the subject areas of this multi-disciplinary degree. The objectives are for groups of pharmacy students to select a therapeutic area and select four drugs, complete an information retrieval and processing exercise and apply knowledge of their chemical properties to appreciate their clinical effectiveness. The desired outcome is the development of generic skills (databases, IT, teamwork) and enthusiasm for self-learning which will support them through their degree and in a career committed to CPD.
Project Team: Sally Freeman  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2005
Keywords: chemistry, clinical, medicine, pharmacy, pharmaceuticals, teamwork, poster, drugs, processing, CPD, first year
Case Study (PDF, 69.7Kb)

Using j-Dorama in EBL language study in Japanese

This project is to develop and trial materials to foster a (2 or 3 student) team EBL approach to grammatical and socio-cultural issues that must be addressed in understanding and ‘translating’ texts (Japanese TV dramas). The aim is assist learners in becoming confident and autonomous in both group and individual study. The development of higher level skills in using dictionaries, online, human and other resources is expected to emerge as part of the outcome of a group presentation project.
Project Team: Jonathan Bunt  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: japan, japanese, languages, j-Dorama, translation, translating, drama, television (tv), grammar, video, teamwork, undergraduate
Case Study (PDF, 139.8Kb)

Enquiry Based Learning in Museums: A Mechanism for gallery evaluation

This project asks the question “What is the relevance of Classics to the 21st Century?” with Manchester students to encourage debate and regeneration of Classics though enquiry-based learning. Using a mixture of field work and project planning, the student cohort will develop key transferable skills. Students will devise approaches to formal assessment and evaluation of galleries, by directing their own investigations at key cultural sites in the UK. By encouraging students to take an interest in classics we are enabling them to enquire, question and debate, to be aware of the huge influence of the ancient world on their own lives and the ways in which it has been interpreted over the years.
Project Team: Bryan Sitch, Ella Louise Sutherland, Janet Tatlock, Kathryn McTavish  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: manchester, museums, gallery, classics, culture, widening participation, schools, teamwork, evaluation, debate
Case Study (PDF, 817Kb)

EBL for EBL: Enquiry-Based Learning for an End to being Bored with Language Learning

To encourage students to engage actively with continuous independent language-learning, particularly the perfection of grammar and mastery of pronunciation in French, and to reflect upon their own learning process.
Project Team: Julie Lawton, Annie Morton, Catherine Franc  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: french, languages, grammar, phonetics, pronunciation, undergraduate, teamwork, first year
Case Study (PDF, 154.2Kb)

Using EBL to improve the teaching of science, technology and innovation policy in a business school context

The proposal aims to explore the use of EBL to improve the quality of the teaching of science, technology and innovation policy studies in MBS (and thus to improve the learning outcomes and employability of students taking those courses) by building upon our strong tradition of multi-disciplinary, research-led teaching and by consolidating existing ad-hoc practice of EBL into a more systematic use of multiple teaching methods to improve recruitment and retention onto STI policy course units and pathways. The outcome will be to increase the uptake of EBL in our teaching thereby improving the quality of teaching provision. Staff and student evaluation of course units and the pathway/programme will indicate the extent to which we succeed, as will the extent to which we are able to maintain/increase student numbers and at the same time improve student learning.
Project Team: Dr Kieron Flanagan, Dr Elvira Uyarra, Ms Kate Barker, Dr Michael Keenan, Prof Philippe Laredo  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: MBS, science, technology, innovation, business, policy, multi-discipline, enterprise, case, undergraduate

EBL From The Very First Day: Developing New Senses of Place

To develop a new EBL project for all first year geography students to be implemented during the induction weekend residential fieldtrip to Keswick. The exercise will engage students directly with the environment through role play and collaborative mapping, and will be team-based, with students responsible for the design and execution of the fieldwork research. This will be the student’s first university experience of geography and will immerse them in an EBL project that will stretch them, encourage collaborative, creative and artistic appreciation of place, and also be fun. It will open their eyes to the different ways cultural geography makes places and their own roles in this process.
Project Team: Martin Dodge, Mark Jayne, Sara MacKian, Chris Perkins  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: geography, fieldtrip, keswick, first year, place, environment, mapping, research, collaboration
Case Study (PDF, 988.3Kb)

An Enquiry-Based Chemical Engineering Design Project for First Year students

The aim of the project is to create a new Chemical Engineering Design Project that incorporates relevant aspects of today’s process industry with an enquiry-based approach. The objective is to design an open-ended task based on a real industrial problem in which students will use all mechanisms of enquiry to elicit a solution. The main purpose is to change the approach from a fixed and sometimes contrived process design with very restricted alternatives and solutions to a more open-ended problem in which students can explore different routes, make decisions and find different solutions depending upon those decisions. The project will look at real industrial questions and will set an engineering working environment by using role-playing. The work will be carried out in small teams with a team leader and also a chief engineer and a manager. The academics will act as consultants to the teams and a representative from industry will provide students with relevant information about the problem at hand.
Project Team: Dr Robin Curtis, Dr Esther Ventura-Medina  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: chemical engineering, design, project, industry, process, role-play, first year, undergraduate, teamwork, professional
Case Study (PDF, 85.2Kb)

Embedding Enquiry-Based Learning in the First Year Curriculum

The aim of the project is to incorporate enquiry-based learning in the delivery of the first year curricula of the undergraduate courses of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering. The objective is to promote and develop critical thinking and problem solving skills as well as encourage students to be more independent in their learning by changing the focus of the course delivery from traditional lectures and tutorials in modules to an integrated format of lectures and enquiry-based learning sessions. Students will be given real and stimulating problems to solve as part of a team so that they will be encouraged and motivated to gather information, apply concepts and develop working skills. Learning resources such as lectures material, course notes and IT will also be available for the enquiry-based sessions.
Project Team: Dr Esther Ventura-Medina, Dr Ted Roberts, Dr Leo Lue  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: chemical engineering, critical thinking, pbl, first year, problem solving
Case Study (PDF, 83.7Kb)

Conversion of an MSc Module in Physiological Measurements to EBL

This project will convert the conventionally taught 12 week 'Physiological Measurement's module into a Problem-Based Learning module. This module combines engineering knowledge and medical knowledge pertaining to vital sign monitoring; the latter part is similar to Nursing curriculum while the first part is akin to Electronic Engineering modules. It is intended that the final converted module will be of a multidisciplinary nature which could be effectively utilised by both Engineering and Nursing students as well as the MSc students targeted in this particular module. It is the intention to map the learning objectives (the existing curriculum) to an MCQ evaluation test and hence satisfy the requirement of curriculum coverage while at the same time ensuring that the learning process remains open ended.
Project Team: Dr Tony Matthews, Dr Paul Beatty  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: physiology, physiological measurements, postgraduate, pbl, multi-disciplinary, engineering, medicine, medical, MCQs

An enquiry-based student-led project to develop a learning module on cultural competency for patient-centred communication

To develop an enquiry-based student-led learning module on patient-centred cultural competency; to enable Phase 2 medical students to demonstrate awareness of and respect for cultural diversity when communicating in the workplace.
Project Team: Valerie Wass, Maria Ahmed, Jo Hart  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: student led, project, cultural, competency, patient-centred, communication, medical, medicine, diversity, workplace
Case Study (PDF, 578.4Kb)

Learning about Patient Safety and error from tutors and peers: What can students learn from asking tutors about error?

To develop an 8 week module that uses enquiry as a central tool in sharing learning experiences involving both system and personal error. Phase 1 will explore the potentials and drawbacks of student enquiry about personal error. Phase 2 will explore the integration of inter-personal learning with clinicians alongside student led enquiry into systems error. The intended outcome is to develop an effective Enquiry-Based Learning method that uses the apprenticeship model in conjunction with recognised tools, group work and reflective writing to meet a range of Patient Safety ILOs.
Project Team: Mark Perry, Aneez Esmail, Caroline Boggis, Tom Sanders, John Sandars  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: patient, safety, error, tutors, peers, personal, clinic, clinicians, system, apprenticeship, mentoring, postgraduate, workplace
Case Study (PDF, 641.3Kb)

Development of an Enquiry-Based programme for exploring the scientific method

We will develop an enquiry-based programme that will provide first year students with the skills to critically evaluate the scientific method and scientific knowledge. The programme will be delivered in a series of tutorials, where students will elaborate hypotheses, collect data, and draw conclusions from (sometimes) conflicting evidence. Students will also research databases, give an oral presentation, and write an essay. The course will culminate with a seminar by a leading researcher from outside the University. The programme will help students develop a critical understanding of the facts, and the need for alternative hypotheses, enabling them to grapple more rapidly and effectively with units which require a greater degree of independent thought. We will focus on the question “What is the origin of humans?”, using different kinds of data (e.g. DNA sequence and morphological data).
Project Team: Paula X Kover, Matthew Cobb, Henry McGhie  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: scientific, method, critical thinking, evaluation, knowledge, data collection, hypothesis, research, dna, presentation, hypotheses

Life Sciences Enterprise Projects

Development of a new type of final year project in the Faculty of Life Sciences. Students will identify an area of life sciences in which there is potential for a hypothetical new product. After receiving didactic and EBL-based training in business methodology from the Manchester Science Enterprise Centre (MSEC), teams of students will conduct market research and formulate a business plan for their product. We anticipate that this will improve students' understanding of how businesses are structured and the skills required to be an entrepreneur and develop students' independent learning and decision making skills.
Project Team: Dr Maggie Fostier, Dr Tracey Speake, Dr Martin Henery  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2006
Keywords: science, enterprise, msec, final-year, project, product development, market research, business, teamwork
Case Study (PDF, 111.6Kb)

Introducing EBL to second year undergraduate module Organisations, Management and Technology

By applying a robust EBL method and assessment to 2nd year undergraduate Organisations, Management and Technology, students will learn to apply their knowledge of innovation studies to investigate specific issues. In addition to exercising the students' application of their knowledge, the EBL method and assessment will contribute to their wider intellectual and transferable skills. For example, self-organisation, team work, delegation, presentation skills.
Project Team: Dr Paul Dewick, Evita Paraskevopoulou  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: MBS, organisations, management, technology, business, assessment, quantitative, qualitative, knowledge, data analysis, teamwork, presentation

Information Technology Management for Business

This project involves the introduction of EBL to new degree, 'BSc IT Management' developed in collaboration with e-Skills UK. EBL will become a core part of the curriculum, through which business will set a problem to be solved by student teams. Students will role-play business and technical roles and seek to deliver systemic solutions that meet the combined needs of business, people and technology. Business partners will participate through setting problems and by acting as mentors for student teams. Students will also use collaboration tools to interact with students from University of Arizona, School of Management and IT.
Project Team: Professor Linda Macaulay, Dr Victor Gonzales, Dr Nikolay Mehandjiev, Dr Ilias Petrounias, Dr Sri Kurniawan  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: IT, business, management

Reading Ancient Texts Today: Papyri, Narrative and the Articulation of Past and Present

This project aims to improve student engagement with the content of Classics and Ancient History programmes by making the JRULM collection of papyri and early manuscripts more accessible to undergradtuate students and using enquiry-based educational theories. A range of resources (including online digitised texts) will be developed to provide jumping off points for student exploration of texts in translation and the original Greek. A framework will be developed for students to explore their own learning experiences through group discussion of Greek myth. This will invole EBL study groups and a student-directed WebCT project.
Project Team: Dr Emma Griffiths  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: classics, history, webct, papyri, manuscripts, library

Introducing Principles and Practices of Phonetics Through Enquiry-Based Learning

Phonetics is the study and description of human speech sounds, their articulatory and acoustic properties, and how the speech signal is conveyed from the speaker to hearer. This project aims to introduce first-year undergraduate students to the practice of phonetic transciption, description and data analysis, and to the concepts of 'linguistic fieldwork' using self-collected and analysed data. The data will come from the participation of Language Informants, whose representative phonetic properties will enrich the students' ear training and analytical skills. We aim to create a digital corpus of audio-visual data to be used across a range of taught modules at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
Project Team: Dr Kristine Hildebrandt, Martin Barry  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: language, linguistics, phonetics, transcription, english

Development of an Enquiry-Based Learning Approach for Training Translators in the Commercial Domain

The project will develop a new EBL component for the delivery of the course unit Commercial Translation on the MA in Translation Studies. EBL materials will be developed with the aim of engaging students directly with the professional translation environment through completion of a real-life translation project. Following an initial briefing from an experienced translator/translation project manager and a briefing on EBL, the student group will assume the various roles which might figure in a professional enterprise, e.g. translation project manager, translation technologist, terminology researcher, translator and reviser. They will complete the translation task, as a group, recording and reflecting upon their experiences as they proceed.
Project Team: Dr Maeve Olohan, Dr Sandra Torres  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: language, translation

Values & Worth: an EBL approach to encountering and constructing collections

The project aims to create a reflective and investigative learning object based around the notions of 'Value' and 'Worth' which will be explored and examined in terms of what makes an object valuable (Determiners of Value); how an object is viewed in a collection (artefact, Art or commodity); who decides what is valuable (Professionals, academics, connoisseurs, consumers, general public) and finally what some of the problems might be with ascribing value. The project hopes to produce a template for enquiry that can be used in any collection visiting context.
Project Team: Janet Tatlock  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: museum, art, value, artifact, object

Incorporation of Enquiry-based Techniques into a Team-Based Programming Project.

This proposal is aimed at improving and developing students' planning, inquiry and presentational skills, within a team-based project. This will be achieved by re-structuring the existing framework of the module to include substantial elements of enquiry-based learning. By encouraging the students to devise their own activities, it is anticipated that they will perceive a greater sense of ‘ownership’ of the work carried out, and help lead to higher levels of achievement and enthusiasm. Another expected outcome is that the module leaders will also benefit by learning how to apply similar techniques to other areas of their teaching, where appropriate.
Project Team: Dr David Armitage, Geoff Rubner  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Keywords: engineering, project, programming, computer systems

Building Capacity for EBL through Staff Development

The aim of the project is to facilitate the process of restructuring two third year courses: Concurrency and Theory of Games and Game Models in the School of Computer Science. We intend to achieve this by developing capacity of two ambassadors in EBL approaches. These ambassadors will work with practitioners who have incorporated EBL for their courses through workshops and face-to-face meeting. This project will enable students to engage in the course material more actively, provide students with opportunities to manage their own enquiry, facilitate learning partnerships between student groups through peer-review/assessment, improve student motivation in learning and develop improved resources that encourage students to develop independent learning skills.
Project Team: Graham Gough, Peter Jinks, Alan Williams, Andrea Schalk, Marjahan Begum, Adrian Albin-Clark  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: computer science, project, ambassadors

Refining EBL for Scientific Problem Solving

This project aims to provide a deep evaluation and refinement of a scientific skills course, which was changed to an EBL format in 2006-07, so that the module may develop in ways that enhance student learning. Students' experiences and opinions in the 2006-7 and 2007-8 cohorts will be analysed to improve not only delivery but the ways in which student feedback is obtained. The barriers to wholehearted student participation and learning will be identified, in the expectation that they can be decreased so that all students find effective ways of improving their confidence, knowledge and skills. The current set of activities will be critically assessed to determine whether they can be improved or replaced. The insight gained will be disseminated such that it can assist others wishing to use EBL for scientific topics.
Project Team: Dr Michele Warren, Dr Paul Connolly, Dr Alison Pawley, Susan Gregory  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: science, experience, evaluation

Life Sciences go to the movies

This project aims to develop problem-based learning exercises based around popular movies to support level 1-3 tutorials in Life Sciences degree programmes. Students will work in tutorial groups to view carefully selected films, discuss their content (with tutor as facilitator). They will then conduct research and meet without their tutor to devise and produce group oral or poster presentations suitable for peer and/or non-scientist audiences, concerning the scientific and ethical content of the film. Examples of suitable films include Awakenings (Parkinson's disease and the ethics of human experimentation) and GATTACA (human genome project and eugenics). It is anticipated that the use of movies as a teaching medium will engage students due to its novelty and entertainment value, will stimulate discussion of a broader range of topics than might be elicited by a conventional text-based PBL scenario, and will act as a stepping stone to criticism of 'more serious' scientific writing.
Project Team: Dr Richard Prince  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: film, critical writing, ethics, presentation, pbl, scientific

Critical Project Development Skills in the History of Science, Technology and Medicine

The Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine (CHSTM) provides service teaching to several hundred students from disciplinary backgrounds across the humanities and the social, physical and life sciences. By adopting an EBL approach to the delivery of its modules, the centre hopes to equip the students with the necessary skills essential for historical project work as well as other transferable skills such as independent learning and critical thinking.
Project Team: Dr James Sumner, Dr Flurin Condrau, Dr David Kirby  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: science, history, research, technology, medicine, project

Linking Teaching and Research: Using Faculty research seminars to enhance EBL activities in final level tutorials

A selection of seminars presented by external experts, relevant to degree programmes across the Faculty, will be recorded using video and/or audio technology. These recordings will be used to develop frameworks for tutorial EBL activities by the project team and other interested staff, including programme directors and final level tutors. Involvement of seminar presenters would be encouraged, and materials developed would be shared with them. Students might conduct literature research and work in groups to explore links with the curriculum, ethical issues, relevance to society, methodologies, or the applications of technology. Outcomes would be to provide frameworks for the development of activities that link research with the curriculum, to give students access to renowned bio-scientists and their work, to enhance the EBL experience and transferable skills of students, and promote the sharing of resources between institutions.
Project Team: Carol Wakeford, Tristan Pocock, Ian Miller  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: research, video, tutorial, ethics

Developing personal professionalism and career awareness early in the medical curriculum through Enquiry-Based Learning

A recent report on Medical Professionalism highlights the need to define 'career journeys', embed a commitment to professionalism and foster understanding of inter-professional roles. This project will establish an enquiry led educational framework to promote self awareness and professional development in phase 1 medical students. Using EBL tools we aim to encourage understanding of health professional roles and help students explore their own suitability for a career pathway.
Project Team: Val Wass, Sarah Smithson, Alex Langhorn, Andrew Whitmore, Thomas Kelley, Judy Stokes, Marie Shelley  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2007a
Keywords: medical, medicine, careers, professional, development

Teaching Foundations for Interaction Design using an Enquiry-Based Learning Approach

Re-development of a Human-Computer Interaction module from being lecture based to collaborative and project-driven. Students will engage in collaborative observation and discovery in analysis of real world examples of interactive technologies and gain first hand experience applying tools and techniques used by industry. This new delivery approach to Human-Computer Interaction will prepare students with a better understanding of the foundations for interaction design and create a more relevant learning experience.
Project Team: Dr Victor Gonzalez, Pranoy Bhattacharjee, Luis Castro-Quiroa  Faculty: Manchester Business School
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: Human-Computer Interaction, HCI, labs, projects, design, collaboration

Development of team-based simulation of retail sourcing decisions

Development of a retail sourcing simulation tool to enable students to work in role-playing teams to develop a range of complex retail buying skills. Student will compile Reflective Journals alongside the simulated activity.
Project Team: Professor Margaret Bruce, Dr Alison Ashton, Dr Charles Cui, Pierre-Luc Emond  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: retail, business, simulation, teamwork, role-play, journals

Material and Textual Cultures

As part of the development of the MA in Medieval and Early Modern Studies, a core course is being designed that will give students practical awareness of the different types of literary text prevalent during the Late Medieval and Early Modern Periods. The course will be predicated upon EBL approaches and will encourage independent learning, project-based skills and an appreciation of the complexity of textual cultures from 1300-1700. It will also give students a range of practical skills and enable them to have input into JRUL exhibitions.
Project Team: Dr Jerome de Groot, Dr David Matthews, Dr Anke Bernau, Stella Halkyard, Joel Swann, Matthew Yeo  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: medieval, early modern, textual cultures, independent learning, project-based skills

EBL supporting student dialogue and collaboration across faiths, genders, sexual orientations and other diversities in Religion & Theology

This project aims to support students’ experiential learning of issues and challenges in inter-faith dialogue and other inter- dialogues on course unit ‘Religion, Culture and Gender’. Outcomes include student development of research-based approach to projects, finding complex solutions through group work and harnessing diversity for induction and knowledge creation.
Project Team: Katja Stuerzenhofecker, Elaine Graham  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: theology, religion, gender, culture, diversity, groupwork

Engaging with Early Christian Communities: An Enquiry-Based Learning approach

Development and evaluation of two different models for introducing EBL to ‘The Rise of Christianity’ course unit. Model 1 is a series of ‘Contentions’, bibliographically supported packages of primary and secondary source material that students can use to understand and contribute to ‘classic’ debates. Model 2 is that of source analysis, a presentation (oral and web-posted) of analytical description of primary source material. The project will develop templates for each model that can be cascaded to other disciplines and will contribute to the on-going development of strategies for supporting independent research by students in the History of Christianity area.
Project Team: Kate Cooper  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: christianity, history, research, resources, theology

EBL for the year abroad learning log for languages degrees

Pilot project for language-based year abroad students to help them engage with native speakers and make the most of their year abroad to develop language skills as well as other key skills: problem-solving, research, communication, information compilation and presentation skills. The Blackboard VLE will be used throughout the project for two-way communication between the University and the students abroad.
Project Team: Dr Catherine Franc, Dr Floriane Place-Verghnes, Dr Darren Waldron  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: languages, French, year abroad

Enhancing Postgraduate Employability through EBL: Academia-Industry Collaboration in Subtitler Training

This project will develop a new EBL component for delivery of subtitler training on the MA in Translation and Interpreting Studies with a view to bridge the academic/professional divide and enhance the employability of postgraduate trainees. The project seeks to encourage a research-based approach to the management of professional performance within a highly client-centred fragmented industry.
Project Team: Dr Luis Pérez-González  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: subtitling, translation, employability, postgraduate, professional, research-based

Bridging the Gap – an experiential Enquiry-Based Learning approach in Mental Health Education

This project aims to implement and evaluate an innovative EBL approach which encourages students to both reflect on their clinical practise and make explicit links between their clinical experiences and theoretical knowledge base. The project will develop online learning and supporting resources.
Project Team: Lindsay Rigby, Ian Wilson, Dr Philip Keeley, Andrew Hall, Kate Dunne  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: nursing, clinical practise, groupwork

Does the Progress Test support and encourage EBL? A study of students’ preparation for the test in two medical school which use Problem-Based Learning

This comparative and evaluative project will take place in Manchester and Peninsula Medical School who both use PBL as the main method of learning. The Progress Test is a multiple-choice paper which is administered to medical students in all year groups simultaneously and assesses the objectives of the entire education programme in the hope of discouraging the ‘pass and forget’ mentality prevalent in other assessments. A better understanding of students’ preparation for the Progress Test will enable redesign of the assessment if necessary, in order to ensure constructive alignment and support deeper learning.
Project Team: Chris Harrison, Valerie Wass, Louise Wade, Karen Mattick  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: progress test, pbl, assessment, medical

Encouraging engineers to read: A book-based final year assessment

It is proposed to initiate a student-driven learning activity based around the directed reading of a book relevant to the broader context of chemical engineering. Students would then undertake formal assessment of the material covered in their book. The learning process would be managed via structured group activities including formal discussion groups. Benefits would include: (i) first view books as accessible and to have the inclination and interpretative tools to engage with them as a basis for lifelong learning; (ii) the opportunity for individual students to direct their learning towards areas of specific personal interest, through selection from a diverse pool of relevant books; (iii) a redirection of the teaching ‘burden’ such that staff too are encouraged and enabled to make time for reading, with this otherwise luxury having the legitimate and tangible outcome of being directly connected to teaching.
Project Team: Dr Grant Campbell and Dr Paul Grassia  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: reading, discussion groups, chemical engineering, lifelong learning, personalized learning

Incorporating Enquiry-Based Learning in Experimental Laboratory Projects in Chemical Engineering

This project aims to embed EBL into experimental laboratories in the third year of the Chemical Engineering undergraduate degree. Problem statements will be developed which are less prescriptive and support students to actively research, plan, design, perform and report their experimental work.
Project Team: Leo Lue, Esther Medina-Ventura, Paul Grassia, Robert Clegg, Simon Perry  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: experiment, labs, laboratory, chemical engineering

Second CS

The School of Computer Science will establish a private island in Second Life to create a secure space for first year CS students to collaborate. In addition to using Second Life as a rich collaboration and discussion platform, students will be able to use free materials in Second Life to learn how to build parts of the virtual environment for themselves using the Second Life scripting language.
Project Team: Adrian Albin-Clark  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: Second Life, virtual worlds, collaboration, online learning, programming

Green City Projects: facilitating cross-faculty communities of practice in environment and sustainable development research for Manchester City Council

This project seeks to foster cross-university collaboration between dissertation and team research project components of taught masters and other level 4 programmes. Students will use EBL as research-based learning to develop solutions independently or in discipline teams on real projects for the City. Disciplines will share experiences in online action learning sets and compare results in a plenary.
Project Team: Professor Colin Hughes, Julia McMorrow, Peter Smyntek, Jonathan Sadler, Mark Baker  Faculty: TEAM, Engineering and Physical Sciences, Humanities
Funding year: 2008
Keywords: TEAM, green city, Manchester, sustainable development, environment, research, projects, groupwork, interdisciplinary

Innovative Ways to Teach Innovation: Introducing Enquiry-Based Learning to Manchester Business School Undergraduate Teaching

This case study describes the development and evaluates the use of Enquiry-Based Learning (EBL) on undergraduate (UG) teaching in Manchester Business School (MBS).
Project Team: Paul Dewick  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: Organisations, Management, Technology’,
Case Study (PDF, 280.6Kb)

Group Intelligence, Creativity and Learning

The B.Sc. Information Technology Management for Business (ITMB) is a new type of degree designed to meet the needs of major employers in the business-led IT sector. Employers identified the need for graduates who understand IT within a business context and who can work creatively within an ever-changing environment. This report presents the results of the first-year Enquiry-Based Learning (EBL) project reporting on how it assisted in meeting employer objectives of greater student creativity and participation in team work.
Project Team: Linda Macaulay, Yin Leng Tan and Rico Chow  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: Business,ITMB,Thinktank, brainstorming,
Case Study (PDF, 763.9Kb)

Enquiry-Based Learning Use of Papyri in the Teaching of Classical Studies

This project formed part of a new core course entitled ‘Theories and Mythology’ and involved the production of new digital images of papyri and manuscripts from the John Rylands University Library (JRULM).
Project Team: Emma M. Griffiths  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: Classical Studies,literary theory, ,
Case Study (PDF, 140.1Kb)

Students Facilitating and Validating Peer-Learning

This case study describes the challenges encountered in engaging students in the facilitation and validation of peer-learning on the level-two module Religion, Culture and Gender.
Project Team: Katja Stuerzenhofecker  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: Peer-learning, Religion, Culture, Gender
Case Study (PDF, 170.7Kb)

Values and Worth: An Enquiry-Based Learning Approach to Encountering and Constructing Collections

The initial aim of the project was to produce a reusable learning object based on EBL principles that encouraged a reflective approach to collections in museums, art galleries and other environments in a real or virtual setting and provided a framework for the construction of new individual or team collections; these ‘new collections’ might also be real or virtual.
Project Team: Janet Tatlock, Samantha Lackey and Jolene Debert  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: reusable learning object,collections, GLO,virtual workshops
Case Study (PDF, 474.8Kb)

Linking Teaching and Research: Using Research Seminars to Enhance Enquiry-Based Learning Activities in Faculty of Life Sciences Tutorials

This project aimed to link teaching with cutting-edge research in the biological sciences by using Faculty research seminars as a basis for the development of enquiry-based tutorial activities, incorporating video clips of the seminars.
Project Team: Tristan Pocock, Carol Wakeford and Ian Miller  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: seminars,tutorial activities,biological sciences, Final Level projects
Case Study (PDF, 240.2Kb)

Critical Project Development Skills in the History of Science, Technology and Medicine

We have developed a short course using an enquiry-based approach to orient final-year students, some of whom have little or no prior experience, in techniques of archival research, critical source investigation, and the management of an extended writing project in the history of science, technology and medicine.
Project Team: James Sumner, Flurin Condrau and David Kirby  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: archival research, medicine, technology, science, science writing, public policy
Case Study (PDF, 219.9Kb)

Progress Report: Generation of EBL Materials to Support Second-Level Practicals and Final-Level Tutorials

Phase II of the Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS) CEEBL project in 2007-8 aimed to generate Enquiry-Based e-Learning resources by Final-Level project students, themselves using an enquiry-based approach in project work.
Project Team: Carol Wakeford and Tristan Pocock  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: project work, biology, e-learning
Case Study (PDF, 285.2Kb)

Developing Personal Professionalism and Career Awareness Early in the Medical Curriculum through Enquiry-Based Learning

This work describes the development and introduction of a pilot Career Awareness teaching session into the year-two medical student timetable. A total of 275 students took part in the pilot and their responses to questionnaires have informed the recommendations that we make.
Project Team: Alex Langhorn, Sarah Smithson, Judy Stokes, Thomas Kelley and Val Wass  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2007
Keywords: Career Awareness, medicine, career,
Case Study (PDF, 152.9Kb)

E-learning Tool Development - Ketso Online

This project will develop an e-learning tool that will enhance the potential for creative learning and increase the effectiveness of on-line collaboration. This will be achieved by using the Ketso model developed by Dr Joanne Tippett, University of Manchester. Ketso™ is a hands-on kit for collaborative group work, which can be used for a wide range of creative and educational applications. The idea for this project is to prototype and test a highly visual software application that complements and extends Ketso by enabling online, collaborative student work using the Ketso methodology. This e-learning tool will be trialled with undergraduate and postgraduate students in the University of Manchester.
Project Team: Joanne Tippett  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: eLearning
Case Study (
Warning: filesize(): stat failed for ../casestudies/65.pdf in /afs/mcc/common/WWW/DocumentRoots/5/ceebl/projects/search/results.php on line 67
PDF, 0Kb)

Humanitarian Aid in Engineering (postgraduate)

There is evidence that volunteers who help in disaster situations are often ill-prepared for this task. Engineers need knowledge and skills not only from other branches of engineering but also related to the social, political and economic environments in which they may be working. This proposal is to develop a new programme, drawing expertise from across, and possibly outside, the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences that would enable Engineering graduates to be equipped with the appropriate skills needed to work for aid agencies. Unlike other similar humanitarian aid programmes in the UK, this course will be specifically designed to offer the practical training necessary to work effectively and collaboratively with aid organisations. The project team intends to work with aid agencies, in particular Engineers against Poverty, to ensure the relevance of the programme; but it is also hoped that these collaborative relationships will generate sponsored places and practical placements in the future.
Project Team: Rosemary Tomkinson, Rob Young  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: engineering

Capacity building for EBL: development and deployment of training courses for staff and students

Based on the project team’s past experience (particularly with teaching the interdisciplinary bioinformatics and bio-health informatics masters courses and the undergraduate level first-year CS tutorial module), they believe that EBL provides significant advantages for interdisciplinary teaching. The School of Computer Science is therefore keen to deploy EBL widely within the new masters programme it is currently developing – Computing for Scientists (CfS). This masters programme is designed to 1) develop generic computing and quantitative skills for scientists from a wide range of backgrounds; and 2) provide more specialist training on specific computing skills required within particular subject areas. The course would therefore be suitable, for example, for biologists who wish to develop mathematical and computational skills, or medically trained scientists who wish to develop specialist health informatics skills.
Project Team: Andy Brass, Uli Sattler, Graham Gough, Alex Walker, Amanda Banks and Pete Jinks  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: computers

Injecting Into the Groin: Aim to Improve IV Drug Users Care

In my third year of my degree I had a four week placement with a GP in Heywood. During this placement I was introduced to Dr Taylor, as I attended his drug clinics because I have an interest in the area. At Dr Taylors GP practice there are around 160 IV drug users. Drug users suffer massively with problems of venous hypertension in their lower limbs due to injecting into their groin. Such problems include deep vein thromboses, infection, venous insufficiency, and consequently ulcers, which may result in amputation of the limb. Firstly, I will design a questionnaire to find out which of the patients inject into their groin, and how often they do so. I will then collaborate the results, and take photographic evidence of the effects of injecting into the groin. I aim to meet with an Interventional Radiologist, at Wythenshawe Hospital, and a Vascular Surgeon at Royal Oldham Hospital, to see if showing them my findings will help to improve the care they give such patients. I propose that using the skills of the interventional radiologist, stenting the veins in the legs of the patients would improve blood flow, and consequently reduce the number of problems the patients experience.
Project Team: Chloe Goodall  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: undergraduate research drug users medicine

New, Experience-Based Learning for Systems Biology

In the existing PhD curriculum for Systems Biology, the central course on Integrative Systems Biology is taught in a linear fashion, with lectures and tutorials. Though successful in terms of transferring knowledge, students have reported not feeling fully equipped to work as beginning Systems Biologists themselves. This project intends to improve the way this course is delivered by recasting it into an experience-based learning unit. The new course unit will train students to solve representative problems of quantitative biology. It will also encourage them to reflect on the process of modelling, thereby mastering it and appreciating its value before entering experimental and theoretical laboratory work.
Project Team: Gerold Baier and Hans V. Westerhoff  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: biology

SedWorks: A 3-D visualisation software package for acquiring key professional skills through virtual field work

The aim of this project is to develop a software application that will create a 3-D, virtual geoscience world (SedWorks). The application will help students acquire scientific content, cultivate critical-thinking skills and hone their problem-solving ability, while also providing them with the opportunity to participate in and practice the activities undertaken by professional earth scientists. This is a collaborative project between the eLearning team at the University of Manchester and School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences (SEAES). The software will run as a standalone application for Mac OS X and Windows in addition to web and mobile deployment. This project will provide students with the opportunity to engage interactively with real-world scientific questions by gathering evidence, formulating explanations, evaluating alternatives and justifying explanations. This learning tool will also represent a significant step forward in the integration of eLearning and EBL methods into the teaching of undergraduate geoscience.
Project Team: Merren Jones, Philip Boulton and Alison Hamilton  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: geoscience

Enriching Students’ Learning Experience of Fundamentals of Structural Behaviour through EBL

The aim of the proposed project is to enrich the student learning experience of the fundamentals of structural behaviour course unit by introducing EBL-style teaching methods. This pedagogic change will be achieved in the first instance by devising a set of idealised problems, based on real-life civil engineering projects. These real-life scenarios are intended (1) to help students to appreciate the link between the subject curriculum and real life; (2) to develop their problem solving skills through constructing suitable mathematical models; (3) to enhance their understanding of fundamental civil engineering concepts; and (4) to enable them to master solution techniques. The project team also seeks to produce two learning guides: “How to Study Structural Analysis 1” and “How to Study Stress Analysis 1”. These guides are intended to facilitate student-centred learning. The third task will involve the introduction of a computer-aided structural analysis package (Oasys GSA) into the semester 1 Design unit. The structural analysis package will then be used to support the EBL activities that will take place in semester 2. The final task will include expanding the usage of PASS sessions by introducing EBL group activities as a means of encouraging greater student participation in the scheme.
Project Team: Tianjian Ji, Adrian Bell, Tom Swailes and Yong Wang  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: structural behaviour engineering

‘What is Science for?’

‘What is Science For?’ will be introduced in 2009-2010 as a new compulsory course unit (5-credit equivalent) for second-year undergraduates in the Faculty of Life Sciences. The aim of the course unit is to increase students’ understanding of the broader social and ethical context of science. The course will involve both face-to-face and electronic learning components, utilising enquiry-based learning techniques such as student-led discussions, peer review and assessment in virtual and campus-based learning environments. In future years, the project team aim to extend the applicability of the course unit across the other Faculties.
Project Team: Sarah Chan, Rebecca Bennett and John Harris  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: ethics science

Becoming Global

The project aims to design, develop materials and establish an eLearning environment for the enquiry-based Becoming Global course (10-credit, Level 1 undergraduate course) in readiness for trialling in the 2010-11 academic year. The course will provide students with a structured understanding of intercultural dialogue; a stimulating set of diverse case studies exploring key 21st century issues from multiple perspectives in keeping with the principles of intercultural dialogue, education for intercultural citizenship, and internationalisation of higher education; and a substantial collaborative enquiry-based project experience in which they explore a key issue in the context of the institution, a local community, a nation or globally. To achieve this, the team will use a blended-learning approach in the design of the Going Global course unit that will also consider the implications of the Web 2.0 agenda. The project will also work collaboratively with the team from the Global Citizenship and Community Learning project in order to develop a shared eLearning resource entitled Intercultural Dialogue. It is anticipated that this resource will eventually be made more widely available.
Project Team: Richard Fay, Susan Brown, Xiaowei Zhou, Caroline Whitehand, Sarah Hubbard and Kate Sapin  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: global citizenship

Community Engagement, Inter-Cultural Dialogue and Global Citizenship

The project involves developing and piloting a University of Manchester accredited unit of study with a working title of Community Engagement and Global Citizenship with funding from CEEBL and contributions from Global Xchange (a British Council/VSO partnership). The intention is to develop a unit that will be available to students from across the university and that will involve small groups of students working together in teams with local community workers/leaders on community-led projects. It is hoped that the unit will not only be of interest to community workers, volunteers and community leaders locally but across the globe. This global reach is intended to enrich the learning experience of students, develop a potential external funding stream and further enhance the international reputation of the University. It is also anticipated that the partnership with Global Xchange will enable further discussion to take place regarding the potential for our students to engage in their international exchanges, perhaps as an optional follow-on to the unit.
Project Team: Kate Sapin, Ann Shacklady-Smith, Tom Miscioscia, Richard Fay, Joanne Tippett and Susie Miles  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: global citizenship

The Place of Finding: Enquiry-Based Learning in Archaeology

The aims of this project are to reveal the process of discovery as a life-skill; create a more diverse learning environment—encouraging engagement, developing comprehension and improving performance and retention; broaden an appreciation of the relevance of the past to the present; develop qualities of ethically aware citizenship; and enhance student employability and extend skills in the profession. These will be implemented through the key vocational and project-based modules which relate directly to employability and further research: Vocational Skills I, II and III (taught at each year of the undergraduate programme), the Long Essay (Year 2), the Dissertation (Year 3), compulsory fieldwork (Years 1 and 2), and the MA module: Research Skills. EBL methods will be embedded in both face-to-face taught and virtual elements of courses: delivered through interactive, dynamic class-based exercises, individual e-based resources and discussion forum, as well as field and laboratory-based workshops. The project team will utilise innovative technologies including class-based staged problem-solving using ‘clickers’; online wikis, blogs and moderated debate forums; hands-on laboratory, museum and experimental centre based workshops; and multi-media to create innovative assessments, disseminated through ‘theatre-based’ performances, web pages or temporary exhibitions.
Project Team: Melanie Giles and Hannah Cobb  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: archaeology

Embedding EBL in MMT: Using Web 2.0 to address Sustainable Fashion and Textiles

The intrinsic nature of the fashion and textiles industry, which is driven by the need to persuade consumers to frequently buy-in to a new trend, poses many sustainability challenges. As such the Management and Marketing of Fashion Textiles (MMT) programme team is tasked with addressing the issue of sustainability in fashion, from a subject point of view, as well as developing the creative, collaborative, problem solving skills required by our graduates. Although each of these issues is currently addressed to varying degrees in the programme, there is a need to provide a cohesive focus on these issues. The introduction of EBL techniques into the programme, with a particular focus on sustainable fashion, intends to fill this gap and offers the programme the opportunity to develop a strategic point of difference to differentiate from other undergraduate programmes in the same/similar sector. Thus the general aim of this project is to enhance the taught provision of the MMT programme by offering a model for the use of EBL in other areas of the programme; facilitating change in the structure and delivery of the programme; improving cohesion and integration across subjects in this multidisciplinary programme; strengthening the credibility of the programme by incorporating current themes and using techniques reflective of the industry; and responding to student feedback by offering a more student-focused style of learning. Students will be encouraged to make their own decisions in problem solving activities and encouraged to make decisions about how and when they engage in their learning. The use of the virtual Web2.0 environment as an EBL tool offers this autonomous learning approach.
Project Team: Liz Barnes, Lucy Ting, Omera Khan and Stephie Tsai  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: fashion sustainability web2.0

Aspects of Vedic and Greek Poetics

In this project I will study the synchronic poetics of the Rg-Veda, the oldest collection of hymns in Sanskrit, and offer notes towards its relationship to poetics in other Indo-European languages, with special reference to Ancient Greek and Latin. As these three languages, amongst others, derive from a common source and share cognate forms, institutions, etc., so they also show elements of a poetic language that can often be proved to have been inherited from a common source, namely Indo-European (circa 4000BC). To exemplify this relationship and common inheritance, I propose to read closely a few of the hymns from the collection, above all those concerning the ancient myth of the dragon-slaying, which, following work by the American scholar Calvert Watkins, can be linked to such forms as heroic song in ancient Greece, as well as myth and saga in Anglo-Saxon England. However, I will focus on the Sanskrit evidence, and seek to explicate some of the formal techniques employed by the poets, especially concerning lexical fields, and derivational morphology. The outcomes would include a closer appreciation of poetics in an ancient language; a clarification of inherited and innovated poetics, both in Sanskrit and in its wider relationship to Greek and Latin especially; and an exploration of some of the formal linguistic means by which the poets practised their craft. These means include, but are not limited to, the use of various meters, semantic relationships, and syntactic expressions, all of which characterize the respective poetic grammars. This study I would disseminate primarily through a cross-disciplinary event I am organizing, jointly run between Classics (in which department I am enrolled), and South Asian Studies (for whom I currently run a group for grammar support in Sanskrit). The event is at the moment named ‘Sanskrit Day in Manchester’, and will include seminars on Sanskrit and Indo-European by Prof. David Langslow (dept. of Classics, Manchester), as well as sessions on reading hymns of the Rg-Veda, one of which I am co-teaching and in which I would be able to share some of the finds of my study. It should be emphasized that this event is being jointly organized, so the expected attendance will show a breadth of disciplines represented. This event will be coinciding with a conference on Sanskrit to be held the following day, namely the Sanskrit Tradition In The Modern World. Further discussion of my study within Manchester could be held in the undergraduate reading group for Classical languages, which I began and currently run, as well as at upcoming conferences and language schools I am to attend in Leiden, Netherlands, and Berlin, Germany.
Project Team: Jesse Lundquist  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: undergraduate research vedic greek poetics linguistics classical languages

The Plath Enigma: tracing the changes in Sylvia Plath’s literary work in relation to those that occurred within her own life

We aim to investigate how Sylvia Plath’s literary work changes throughout the course of her life, and to derive (through a detailed biographical study of Plath) where her major influences were taken from. We plan to develop upon the consensual belief that her father, Otto Plath, and husband, Ted Hughes, both played major roles in Plath’s development as a poet - and to investigate how these two influences eventually mould into one in Plath’s pinnacle poem, ‘Daddy’. We also aim to find links between Plath’s ‘Ariel’ and Hughes’ ‘Birthday Letters’, hopefully shedding further light upon the couple’s relationship and marriage. We would also like to consider the current literary criticism on Plath and offer our own evaluation in relation to our findings. Through an analysis of both Plath’s and Hughes’ work we hope to further understand the claims against Hughes made by many feminist critics stating that he was a cruel husband. We would also like to evaluate Plath’s feelings towards Hughes in relation to her feelings towards her own father. We shall question whether Hughes was a poor husband or whether Plath’s own opinion of him was clouded by her own mental state. We expect to find particular relevance in Plath’s heritage and upbringing along with her early experiences of living in America. Through her journals we hope to find some prerequisite of her later mental breakdown, and additional evidence shall be sought through an analysis of her Letters Home. We aim to approach this research project with a totally neutral stance and to allow our own findings to influence our opinion of both Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes. Similarly, our presentation and report will hold the same neutral stance. We also aim to investigate both sides of any debates that may arise, as the current literature on the Plath-Hughes debate is massively divided.
Project Team: Joe White and Katie Watson  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: undergraduate research sylvia plath ted hughes poetry

A Comparative study on factors influencing attitudes towards Oral Health Care using community sample studies from a developed and developing country

This project aims to compare the various factors that influence peoples' attitudes towards their overall oral health using sample studies from the United Kingdom and Zimbabwe. It is also intended to find out if these factors qualify the null hypothesis that individual attitudes towards their oral health care vary according to the level of economic development in a country. Data for this research will mainly be obtained through the use of a questionnaire exploring the level of oral health care importance and awareness in these two communities. In order to obtain an unbiased result, an equal number of participants of varying age groups, socio-economic backgrounds, gender and ethnicity will be used in both surveys.Data obtained from this study will be quantified graphically to explore trends relating to the aim of the study. In order to gain a better insight on the Oral health service in Zimbabwe I intend to use video coverage and interviews, from dental care professionals serving the community (with consent). I chose the community of Zimbabwe as it is home for me and will be visiting over the Easter Break 2010. I have also worked in a Zimbabwean dental community and anticipate the results from this study to have interesting outcomes.
Project Team: Makhosazana Mguni  Faculty: Medical and Human Sciences
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: undergraduate research dentistry developing country

Molecular evolution of visual pigments in the wandering spider Cupiennius salei

Animals absorb light with proteins called opsins, and having a suite of opsins absorbing light at different wavelengths allows for colour vision. Three opsins were recently identified in jumping spiders, and during my placement project at the University of Vienna, I set out to isolate and characterise homologs to these in another species, Cupiennius salei. A homolog for the Rh2 gene was identified, and one section in the middle showed a remarkable diversity in its genetic make-up, suggesting multiple gene duplication events, with possible functional divergence (i.e. different versions of the same gene would be able to absorb light across a broad spectrum).Two possible explanations are that either different DNA sequences are the result of gene conversion events, whereby sections of gene are accidentally swapped or copied within the cell nucleus, or alternative splicing, whereby the building blocks of the protein are assembled in different orders. I am hoping to build on my work in Austria by analysing the structural diversity of the protein across a much broader sequence to give a more accurate picture of the phylogenetic history of the gene. This will involve both statistical analyses to test for possible functional divergence and 3D modelling of the protein to examine the protein structure in space. Furthermore, I intend to examine the so-called ‘untranslated region’, the section of the the gene which does not actually reflected in the protein, which will elucidate possible gene conversion and alternative splicing events. The grand pattern of invertebrate opsin evolution is one of repeated duplication and deletion. C. salei seems to provide a striking example of this pattern; (at least) one long-wave opsin seems to have been lost, whilst one seems to have multiplied many times to take its place. Furthermore, data on spiders and their relatives are currently severely lacking, so as well as filling in a large gap in the evolutionary tree, work such as this can also help resolve issues regarding the overall relatedness of groups such as arachnids and millipedes/centipedes.
Project Team: Thomas Ellis  Faculty: Life Sciences and Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: undergraduate research spiders opsins light animals absorption

Investigating the role of embodiment in space metaphors, and the restrictions it has on innovation

The aim of this project is to identify to what extent space metaphors must be grounded in embodiment. A basic frame exists for the space metaphors under investigation, however; the particular variant adopted may differ. An inter-disciplinary investigation into particular space metaphors will be taken, thus semantic, pragmatic, and etymological considerations will be taken into account. Phonological restrictions on space metaphors will be investigated as an alternative to the embodiment approach.
Project Team: Maya Zara  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2009
Keywords: undergraduate research space metaphors liguistics

‘Speed Ph.D.’ – An Enquiry-Based Learning ‘Induction’ Workshop for Postgraduate Research Students

The early days of any research degree programme are challenging, particularly in transitioning from a structured undergraduate degree programme to what can appear to be a far less structured research programme or, for example, in coming back into higher education (HE) after many years in employment. There is also a great deal of information disseminated to researchers during the induction period, a proportion of which is inevitably lost through ‘information overload’. The aim of this work was to apply an Enquiry-Based Learning approach to develop an interactive, engaging and memorable induction, which also raises and addresses further issues than the typical approach of multiple presentations accompanied by hard copy information. The ‘Speed Ph.D.’ workshop that emerged from this aim and is described here was developed at the University of Manchester and first used in June 2004. Speed Ph.D. has subsequently been adopted and adapted by the University of Leeds, Durham University and other UK HE institutions.
Project Team: Tony Bromley, Jim Boran, Heather Sears
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 98.3Kb)

Encouraging Engineers to Read: A Book-Based Final Year Assessment

This paper describes an initiative within the final year of the MEng Chemical Engineering programmes at the University of Manchester, in which students were required to identify a suitable book, broadly related to Chemical Engineering, and read it and be assessed on it. Meanwhile, a similar number of academic staff also read the books in order to prepare the assessments. The reading was supported by a programme of lectures and discussion groups to engage students with the book as a concept and with the nature of reading more generally, in order to enhance and empower their own reading. The examination included assessment of these generic aspects as well as the students’ technical mastery of their specific books. Feedback on this initiative was extremely positive, as many found it a refreshing alternative to traditional forms of teaching and learning employed in Chemical Engineering. They also remarked that it encouraged enhanced skills in communication and greater empowerment to read as the basis for lifelong-learning.
Project Team: Grant M. Campbell, John Blunden-Ellis, Frank C. Manista
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 193.3Kb)

Incorporating Enquiry-Based Learning in Experimental Laboratory Projects in Chemical Engineering

This report describes a project to embed Enquiry-Based Learning methods into the experimental laboratories (CHEN 30002: Laboratory Projects 3) in the third year of the undergraduate Chemical Engineering programme at The University of Manchester. Experimental projects offer tremendous possibilities for developing problem statements that enable students to learn, not only practical laboratory techniques and safe working practices, but a broad range of transferable skills, such as group and project management and communication. We have redesigned the module so that the problem statements given to the students are less prescriptive. In addition, we provide a more supportive environment that permits the students to actively research, plan, design, perform and report their experimental work. This allows the students to take greater ownership over the project, thus enhancing their learning experience. Overall, we found that the project was successful in making the students more independent learners.
Project Team: Leo Lue, Esther Ventura-Medina, Paul Grassia, Robert Clegg and Simon Perry  Faculty: Engineering and Physical Sciences
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 72.8Kb)

EBL for the Year Abroad: A First Review

In 2008-9, French Studies piloted a project aimed at encouraging students to gain linguistic and cultural knowledge during their compulsory period abroad. With a small group of nine volunteers, we proposed to work on socio-cultural topics using Enquiry-Based Learning methods to encourage students, not only to observe their linguistic environment, but to engage with native speakers. However, we encountered problems of motivation and communication for which we propose future recommendations in order to prepare our students for the tasks proposed.
Project Team: Catherine Franc and Floriane Place-Verghnes  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 113.4Kb)

Experiences Applying an Enquiry-Based Learning Approach to the Teaching of Human-Computer Interaction

This report presents the approach followed to improve and reorient a module introducing the fundamental principles of the interaction between humans and computers. This project aimed to achieve a better and more contextualized understanding by students of the theoretical foundations of the discipline called Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Through a number of activities, projects and presentations, students connected those foundations with their own practice, professionals’ practice and other people’s practice. The students moved from learning from ‘textbook’ examples to learning by doing. They investigated, designed, prototyped and evaluated an interactive technology with the support of real users of these products and professionals from industry. Overall, the approach was successful and enhanced the learning experience. However, more work is required to systematize the approach and achieve a better balance between the associated costs of implementation, learning benefits and students’ satisfaction.
Project Team: Victor M. Gonzalez  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 1271.6Kb)

Changing the Subject: When ‘Enquiry’ gets Personal

This article seeks to give a brief account and evaluation of an innovative, collaborative project in theological education in the UK – the Professional Doctorate in Practical Theology (DPT), on which there are currently some 50 students in three universities (Anglia Ruskin with the Cambridge Theological Federation, Birmingham and Manchester. The University of Wales Lampeter has validated but currently not recruited). After a brief review of the rationale for such programmes, and their affinity with the philosophy and practice of Enquiry-Based Learning, I used some of the material from candidates on the DPT at Manchester to illustrate how the subject of the ‘enquiry’ of EBL in the context of a professional doctorate is not simply a candidate’s own institutional or work-based situation, but necessarily their own subjectivity as an emergent ‘reflective practitioner’. This adds new dimensions and exciting possibilities for further research, to emergent claims that professional doctorates are a form of ‘action-research’. Indeed, within the Doctor of Practical Theology, the talk is of practice- or enquiry-based research leading to changes in theory and practice, not only in the public contexts of academic scholarship and workplace settings, but in the researcher’s own continuing professional and personal development.
Project Team: Elaine Graham  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 143.6Kb)

EBL Supporting Student Dialogue and Collaboration across Faiths, Genders, Sexual Orientations and Other Diversities in Religions & Theology

This case-study describes the continued evaluation and development of a level-two module, Religion, Culture and Gender. The main aim of this project was to support students' experiential learning of issues and challenges in inter-faith dialogue and other inter-dialogues. The emancipatory theories of feminism that underlie the module are reflected in the pedagogical approach of EBL, which emphasises the active role of the learner in knowledge construction and the link between theory and experience. These are further reflected in the participatory approach taken in the evaluation.
Project Team: Richard Benda, Anna Snape and Katja Stuerzenhofecker; Louise Goldring and Norman Powell  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 149.5Kb)

Green City Projects: Facilitating Cross-Faculty Communities of Practice in Environmental and Sustainable Development Research for Manchester City Council

The Green City Project aimed to promote cross-disciplinary student collaboration on environmental and sustainable development projects in partnership with Manchester City Council (MCC). From February 2008 until May 2009, students from five different programmes worked on projects that included the energy efficiency benefits of green roofs, commercial recycling and examples of best practice in sustainable construction. Organising cross-disciplinary student collaboration on projects was challenging and less successful than anticipated as a result of the different timeframes and expectations from each School. However, most students expressed a desire to work with peers from different disciplines and felt that such cross-disciplinary collaboration could have benefited the outcomes of their projects.
Project Team: Peter Smyntek, Colin Hughes, Julia McMorrow, Jane Raftery  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 112.9Kb)

Settlement Project: Teaching Master Planning in a Studio-Based Course with Hands-on Tools for Learning

In this second year undergraduate course, students spend a semester developing a master plan for a challenging site at the neighbourhood level. Working in groups, they learn to assess the site and develop an integrated plan for its future, considering ecological and social sustainability, design quality and the historical and wider contexts of the site within the urban fabric. The Settlement Project has traditionally been taught as a studio-based course for around 25 students. This case-study describes the successful transformation of the delivery of this course to a much larger cohort of 70 plus students, whilst maintaining effective formative and summative feedback and peer-supported learning. Engagement of all students during class time is facilitated through use of an innovative, hands-on tool for group discussion, decision making and reflection called Ketso.
Project Team: Joanne Tippett  Faculty: Humanities
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 275.3Kb)

What is Science For? Incorporating Ethics Education into the Life Sciences Curriculum at Manchester

The importance of integrating ethics into the educational curriculum is increasingly recognised across a range of disciplines. In medicine, for example, ethics is an essential component of the recommended tertiary curriculum, while in other areas, such as law and engineering, there is growing demand for professional ethics education. Recently this trend has begun to extend to the sciences, particularly biological science, from which many new sources of social controversy have emerged. Educators and science researchers, alike, are beginning to acknowledge the need for an ethics component in tertiary science education. This development is entirely a welcome and appropriate one, not only because of the issues posed by contemporary science research, but the problems that are faced by humanity at large for which science is placed to address (e.g., the challenges of globalisation, the need for sustainability and the ever-developing notion of social responsibility). These issues all argue in favour of the cultivation of a new generation of scientists with greater ethical awareness. The need and the demand for ethics education in the science curriculum generate a requirement for suitable educational materials and tools to fill this niche. These materials must not only encompass relevant content, but be appropriate for the manner of delivery and the learning environment provided to science students. As such, some of the methods of Enquiry-Based Learning may be particularly appropriate to ethics education in this context. This report describes the development and pilot-phase implementation of a new undergraduate course within the Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS) at the University of Manchester, supported by CEEBL, and aimed at incorporating a compulsory element of science ethics education into the curriculum in a relevant and achievable format. The course includes elements of EBL and makes use of online learning tools to increase coverage, delivery and student interaction. Preliminary evidence indicates a positive response to the course from educators and students, and it is planned that the course will continue in future years and perhaps expand to other Faculties and institutions.
Project Team: Sarah Chan
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 86.2Kb)

Data-driven EBL: Embedding Research in Life Sciences and Tutorials

The three-year Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS) CEEBL project aimed to generate enquiry-based e-learning resources using Final Level project students, who, themselves, used an enquiry-based approach in their project work. These resources focused mainly on supporting practical classes and employed a data-driven approach, where appropriate, in order to enhance research skills in students, i.e., analysis, evaluation and critical review skills. In addition, the FLS Final Level tutorial programme was revised to provide a consistent student experience and incorporate novel EBL activities. In 2006-7, 32 students opted for e-learning projects (ELPs), with 33 in 2007-8, and 30 in 2008-9. These students attended a dedicated course, BIOL30300 ELP, to train them in project skills and promote creative and critical thinking. They developed a range of e-learning resources to supplement FLS practicals, tutorials and other FLS course units. A variety of software and additional technologies were used to create a range of learning designs, such as scenario-based resources and problem-solving activities that students evaluated on their chosen target group. Although students produced individual projects, they worked in project groups in a blended fashion (i.e., online and face-to-face) to support each other and critically review their project materials. Contribution to online discussions was used by supervisors to help assess Project Performance (20% of the project mark). Project scores were comparable with those obtained by laboratory project students. High quality e-learning resources were compiled and hosted on Blackboard and were made fully searchable.
Project Team: Tristan Pocock and Carol Wakeford  Faculty: Life Sciences
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 235.7Kb)

Does the Progress Test Support and Encourage Enquiry-Based Learning? A Study of Students’ Preparation for the Test in Two Medical Schools which use Problem-Based Learning

The progress test (PT) is an exam used in several medical schools that have a Problem- Based Learning (PBL) curriculum, which is intended to encourage deep learning in students by a method of enquiry. Little is known about student attitudes to or preparation strategies for the exam. Quantitative methodology was used to compare students’ approaches to PTs in two UK Problem-Based Learning medical schools (Manchester and Peninsula) with contrasting assessment programmes: Manchester has PTs twice a year with additional knowledge tests; and Peninsual has PT four times a year. A validated 42-item questionnaire was completed by 1053 students (640 Manchester Medical School, 413 Peninsula Medical School). Comparative statistics (Chi square) were used. Manchester students were significantly more motivated to prepare throughout the year (p<0.001). Peninsula students placed more value on other knowledge tests and tended to prepare at the last minute (p<0.001). Students at both schools expressed ambivalence towards the PT’s effectiveness in monitoring improvement in their knowledge. At both schools, the preferred revision strategies were published multiple choice questions (MCQs) and textbooks. The PT does not necessarily support the deep Enquiry-Based Learning behaviour intended by PBL. The learning environment, assessment frequency and presence of other assessments significantly influence student preparation strategies.
Project Team: Chris Harrison, Val Wass, Karen Mattick and Louise Wade  Faculty: Medical Health Sciences
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 68.2Kb)

The Manchester Dental Programme (TMDP): Notes on Staff Focus Groups

As part of the evaluation of process of TMDP, two focus groups of TMDP Implementation Group were convened. The Focus Groups were held after two consecutive meetings of the TMDP Implementation Group (11th June 2008 and 2nd July 2008). The first focus group focused on the aims and objectives of TMDP and its development, and the second on the how progress had been made to that point and the immediate challenges in the future. The methodology behind the focus groups is based on Realist Evaluation (Clarke and Dawson 1999), where the informal theory of how the programme will benefit the students is explored and then influences the nature of the subsequent evaluation and sources used for the evaluation. This report also draws upon the project bid and a series of meetings with TMDP Evaluation Team. The aims and objectives of the programme will be described, followed by the mechanisms through which they intend to achieve them. Consideration is then made of the approaches that are being used to evaluate these mechanisms. The experiences, issues and concerns of the group are then expressed. This document is open to response and correction from TMDP Evaluation Team and for their use in reflections on and reporting of TMDP.
Project Team: Norman Powell, CEEBL; Elizabeth Theaker and Iain Mackie  Faculty: Medical Health Sciences
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 167.8Kb)

Bridging the Gap: An Experiential Enquiry-Based Learning Approach in Mental Health

This project involved the iterative development and application of an Enquiry-Based Learning approach in a pre-registration mental health nursing degree programme. The Enquiry-Based Learning (EBL) approach was ‘blended’ with a group supervision model, which was intended to encourage students to reflect on their clinical practice, as well as to identify, explore and resolve clinical, theoretical and ethical dilemmas. This model departs from the traditional model of using scenario developed by academic tutors; instead, students identified their own clinical cases and brought these to a supervision group. This involved students applying their clinical knowledge, previous experience and understanding of evidenced-based and practice guidelines to the identified clinical issues. Such reflective, evidenced-based practice has been highlighted as an essential skill required by all qualified mental health practitioners (Department of Health 2004) To establish the most effective, acceptable and feasible method of delivering this model the authors compared a face-to-face group approach with an e-learning group approach. The evaluation suggested that a hybrid model that combines the best features of both a face-to-face and e-learning approach is the preferred option for students.
Project Team: Lindsay Rigby, Ian Wilson, Tim Walton, Dr John Baker, Kate Dunne and Dr Phil Keeley  Faculty: Medical Health Sciences
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 119.7Kb)

How Could We Model Enquiry- Based Learning? Functional and Values-Based Perspectives on Student-Centred Education

We would like to share with you some personal perspectives on Enquiry-Based Learning (EBL). This paper presents an evolving model of teaching and learning practices, which places different forms of EBL in relation to traditional teacher-centred methods. It attempts to capture the variety of EBL, allowing for a continuum from more tutor- to student-centred learning and teaching practices. We present models from two perspectives: a functional model from a practitioner's viewpoint, through to a learning developer’s aspirational values-based model for change. The paper describes the original functional two-axis model of EBL (McMorrow 2008) and how teaching practices map on to it, including some projects supported by the Centre for Excellence in Enquiry-Based Learning (CEEBL). We show how this could evolve from two axes to three, and then acknowledge our on-going debate about an additional three-axes model, intended as a flexible overarching educational framework to recognise the connection between practice and values inherent in how we teach. The paper concludes by suggesting a possible synthesis of the three models and inviting input into its evolution.
Project Team: Adele Aubrey, Julia McMorrow
Funding year: 2010
Case Study (PDF, 290.8Kb)