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Studying and Learning
How you learn at university or college is different to how you currently learn at school.
The ways you are taught, but also the style in which you learn are key differences when studying at higher education. Higher Education often requires students to learn more independently and the number of contact hours they are actually ‘in the classroom’, whether that be lectures, seminars, labs or practicals, can be less than half of what you would be used to at school. This means students have to be responsible for their own learning and outside of these hours they have to structure their own time to make sure that required reading and assessments are completed.
Our aim this month is to give you an insight into how teaching and learning works in higher education and the differences between teaching styles.
Something to Watch
Take a few minutes now to think about the ways you are taught at school - can you write a list of the different methods teachers use to help you learn subject knowledge or practice skills and techniques? For example, a teacher may set you a group project to work on with others in your class and present at the end. Finding and evaluating information from books and the internet will develop your research skills, while presenting your work will help develop your communication and public speaking skills.
In higher education the focus of studying and learning shifts from being led by a teacher telling students what they need to know to reach a certain grade in assessment, to studying independently. It is up to the student to look up topics they aren’t sure about, or use their own time to practice skills and techniques they may need to develop further.
Independent study may sound a little daunting at first, but it can actually be a lot of fun! At university or college you’ll be studying a subject you have a passion for and have a genuine interest in, and you’ll be given support by tutors and lecturers to help guide your learning in the right direction.
Find out what University of York students had to say when we asked them how teaching and learning is different from school to university.
Something to Read
We’ve seen that teaching at higher education tends to differ from school in that they are there to act as a guide to support you learn and direct your own study. But what exactly are these teaching methods? Let’s have a look at how students are taught in a little more detail.
Lectures
A lecture is normally a long presentation given by a member of academic staff about their research, ideas and theories to a large group of students, typically taking place in a large hall. Lectures are designed to give an overview of a topic and usually help guide independent learning and understanding of a particular topic. Generally, lectures are there to give information and interaction is limited, students would not normally ask questions in the middle of a lecture but wait to ask the lecturer at the end.
Seminars
Seminars are lessons that involve a smaller group of students meeting with an academic tutor (similar to a teacher), to discuss a subject in depth. The discussion could expand on the topic of a lecture or your own reading. Typically, you would be expected to prepare for a seminar by doing allocated work in advance. Seminars are more informal than lectures and provide a good opportunity to ask lots of questions.
Labs and practicals
Labs and practicals are an essential part of many courses that require hands-on learning, using pieces of equipment or carrying out experimental methods. You’ll probably have practicals if you are studying a course in: sciences, engineering, music, and health-related subjects such as medicine or nursing. Students may carry out their practical work individually, in pairs, or as a small group before submitting a written report recording their findings and reflections.
Fieldwork
Fieldwork or field trips can be a compulsory or optional part of some courses. Fieldwork involves travelling to a specific location to put new knowledge into practice. Similar to labs and practicals, fieldwork is designed to develop hands-on techniques in a specific area or setting. Depending on the course, field trips may be for a day, a month or longer. They may also take place in the UK or abroad.
E-learning
E-learning can be a useful teaching method used in higher education to teach students who cannot travel to university or college. Sometimes called ‘distance learning‘, students are taught online using materials provided by tutors: live/pre-recorded lectures, online activities and tests, virtual meetings, and research projects. Some courses at UK universities and colleges are taught exclusively online, meaning students across the country can study the same course at the same time from their own homes.
You may have come across some new terms/words in this section, or you may be familiar with them already - why don’t you put your knowledge to the test and see if you can match descriptions to the correct teaching method?
Something to Do
There are many different courses and subjects you can study in higher education. Some may be similar to subjects you are currently learning, while others might be more unique.
In this section you will explore what it is like to learn at higher education by sampling a taster lecture by Dr Ruth Penfold-Mounce, a Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of York.
After Ruth’s lecture, you will have the opportunity to reflect and answer some questions. This will give you an idea of what a seminar could be like at university, where you can share your own thoughts, views and opinions with others.
Activity 1: Taster lecture
Dr Ruth Penfold-Mounce delivers a lecture giving an insight into her research on posthumous celebrity careers - celebrities still earning money and very much in the spotlight even after their death.
Activity 2: Share your thoughts
After a lecture, you’ll typically have a seminar scheduled into your timetable. This could be the opportunity to go over the previous lecture in more detail, talk about some reading you did independently or answer some questions to share your opinions.
Listening to your fellow students, speaking about your ideas and working collaboratively is a vital part of learning and sharing knowledge at higher education.
With this in mind, have a go at answering the questions on the Padlet to share your thoughts and opinions after listening to Ruth's lecture. Do you agree with what others have put? Do you see it another way? Your responses will be completely anonymous.
Something Learned
Our aim this month was to give you an insight into how teaching and learning works in higher education and the differences between teaching styles. We’ve learned that at higher education, the responsibility for learning shifts to the student with self-directed learning an essential element of their time at university/college. We’ve also explored how students are supported to learn through the many different teaching styles used. We’ve even had a little taster of what a lecture looks and feels like, and even undertook our own self-directed learning to prepare for the following seminar!
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Have you got a question about anything covered in this page? Post it on this padlet and one of the team will help you.
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