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PRONTAK 2013
Opening speech: Prof. Arnold Schoonwinkel
Topic: The new direction in learning and teaching at SU and the impact thereof
Proposed main themes and related main concepts / questions:
1. Introduction: Context
 Learning and teaching at SU: the status quo
o SU is well respected in SA for the quality of its graduates
o Much has to do with the dedication with which our academics perform
their teaching task
o Teaching is still a major portion of each academic’s task
o Before the 1990's the focus @SU was primarily on teaching and one
could become a professor without really doing much research
o Since mid-90's SU's research profile has risen sharply – SU currently
#1 in SA ito research outputs per capita
o Research track record has become essential to be promoted to senior
ranks
o Have we neglected the dedicated university teacher lately??
 Vision
o Stellenbosch University shall be the preferred institution for all South
African students for programme based learning and teaching
o The university and the VR(L&T)'s divisions in particular, will effectively
support teaching functions of academic staff and promote learning by
students and staff alike.
o Our academics will enjoy full recognition for their expertise, ability to
innovate and familiarity with the techniques and technology to optimize
knowledge acquisition of the modern student.
2. The big challenges for the lecturer at SU in the next 5 years
 Student numbers will increase steadily and we will have to find ways to
effectively teach larger classes: first years projected to grow by about 3%
every year towards 2019
 Student diversity will increase: currently we have about 2/3 white students
from generally good ex-model C schools. By 2019 about 50% of first years will
be BCI, many of them coming from disadvantaged schools
 There are some concerns about the levels of communication skills,
numeracy/mathematical skills and attention spans of the current school
leavers
 SU will have to maintain the exit quality of its graduates
 Students expect to learn with multimedia
 Pressure to do research, produce post graduates and to publish.
Is it possible to do a good job and still enjoy your academic career? I think
so, YES! How?
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The T&L strategic priorities
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Professionalisation of the Teaching role
o It should be possible to become a professor based on a teaching
excellence track, even with a lesser research record.
o Criterion 1: Teaching accomplishments
 Experience: # of classes taught, sizes of classes managed,
success achieved by students
 Effectively incorporating other resources: additional material,
input from world of work, student assistants and specific
mentorship interventions
 Student evaluations of teaching
 Peer evaluation of teaching
o Criterion 2: Curriculum development and pedagogical innovation
 Evidence of sustained contributions to the pedagogy of the
subject field
 Innovative approaches to teaching
 Effective methods to encourage student learning and
participation in classes and peer learning sessions
 Active role in continuous programme renewal
o Criterion 3: Educational leadership
 Examples of leadership demonstrated to improve teaching in
particular subject fields
 Service to the academic profession, department and the
community
 Leadership positions taken up in subject expertise field,
department, university committees & task teams
 Raising the university's standing in a particular subject field.
ICT in learning and teaching
o ICT offers new opportunities
 Knowledge is readily available and young people are used to
having information instantly available on the internet
 Teaching as a means of simply conveying information is no
longer effective, nor interesting to the modern student
 However, it is not about ICT as the solution to access for all
knowledge: each subject field has a particular pedagogy, which
can be enhanced by the judicious use of ICT.
o Think programme renewal, including how ICT can be used to:
 Promote student learning (rather than just an alternative way of
teaching)
 Provide complementary perspectives on subject matter, and
using multi media
 Stimulate the bright students with more material, while giving the
struggling students time to review material at their own pace,
place and time
 Offer programmes in a different way to non-residential students
(learn & earn students)
o ICT for better assessment
 Assessment of learning – obvious gains especially when dealing
with large numbers of students. However, there are limitations in
the cognitive complexity of student thinking that can be
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assessed. It is very difficult to securely assess for grading that
leads to final performance marks.
 Assessment of learning during interactive class sessions to
gauge class's understanding and encourage participation.
 Assessment for learning – on-line exercises to help students
master basic material and prepare for classes. Class contact
time then rather used for developing higher cognitive learning.
o ICT in T&L challenges:
 Modern student can use ICT effectively for social media and
getting answers to questions quickly, BUT really understanding a
subject and being a critical thinker is a much greater challenge
 Trap of just providing the same material in E-format (with more
bells & whistles), rather than using ICT to enrich the learning
process
 Substantial effort required to set up a rich E-learning stack, as
opposed to just prescribing a good E-textbook. Less enthusiasm
to update once you have set up the E-learning material.
 Could feel that the students are more ICT literate and the
academic does not want to embarrass himself/herself in front of
the wiz-kids
How are these priorities supported systemically by institutional management?
o New Centre for ICT in T&L established within the V-R(L&T)
organisational structure
o Will have specific support functions in each faculty
3. The relationship between the three roles of the lecturer
 The responsibilities of the SU lecturer
o Teaching, research and community interaction
 Is it necessary to perform all three roles?
o Yes, but one can decide where your strengths lie
o And look for opportunities to combine efforts in these areas
o Careful time management during the different stages of the academic
year
o Keeping track of where you allocate your time and avoiding ineffective
practices
 Which strategies could help the lecturer to create a balance between the three
roles?
o Teaching:
 Make use of training opportunities offered by CTL and ICT in
T&L centres
 Join peer discussion groups in you subject field – within your
department and beyond SU
 Invest in E-learning: will improve the quality of your course,
enthuse students and bring benefits in the long term
 Expect the students to learn by themselves and not only
passively listen to your teaching (student centred in stead of
teacher centred)
 Bring your research results into your teaching (at a level that the
undergraduate student can understand)
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Crystalize all the time – what are the 3 key points a student
should remember from each class and what are the 5 key
insights from the course as a whole?
 Invest more time in setting the test/exam papers for easy
assessment of the essential learning the students must have
achieved – do not set too long test/exam papers.
o Research:
 Set up uncluttered day in the week, periods in the year, for
research for working in your field of expertise – i.e. time slicing
 Gather a group of good research students around your field of
interest to magnify/multiply your research efforts
 Also do some research on scholarly approaches to the teaching
of your particular knowledge field
 Write up you innovative teaching approaches and present it at
conferences/teaching seminars
o Community interaction
 Seek out opportunities for applied research
 Ensure a worthwhile "academic footprint" when you do
community interaction
 Look for opportunities to combine community interaction with
service learning by you students.
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4. Closing
 Take-home message: how can the SU lecturer approach learning and
teaching in a practical and future-orientated manner? Seven tips from my
experience:
1. First get the basics of good teaching right – PRONTAK will greatly help,
and so will experienced colleagues
2. Always look for ways to innovate (its fun and its useful!), without
compromising tried and tested methods and responsible teaching
3. Don't be disheartened by some students who do not latch on despite
your best efforts – ironically there are always those students who want
the “least value for their money"
4. From the very beginning of a module's teaching, make quite clear what
you expect from the students and what the "rules" for the course are
(the study guide) – then apply the rules without exceptions
5. Good teaching will remain the bread and butter function of SU and be
the primary expectation of the majority of our current and future
students
6. Enjoy your teaching role – it is very satisfying to share your field of
expertise with students and see how they respond to your enthusiasm
for the subject and the effectiveness with which you transfer your
insights
7. Good teaching and facilitating student learning is really a great
interpersonal communications skill to master. It is therefore valuable for
your own personal development. These skills are transferable into
many other dimensions of your work life and for the benefit of the
broader society.