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V. Foreign Higher Education and Education Systems, International Relations, Bilateral Relations
B. Essays, Commentaries, Statements
Author ARVANITAKIS, James
Title Massification and the large lecture theatre : from panic to excitement / James Arvanitakis
Publication year 2014
Source/Footnote In: Higher education. - 67 (2014) 6, S. 735 - 745
Inventory number 36473
Keywords Studentenschaft : Studienverhalten ; Lehre
Abstract In this article I examine the role of the contemporary university in light of the mass increase in class sizes that has occurred on an international scale. While we may look nostalgically back to a time when lectures numbered a few hundred students and tutorials had as few as ten, massification at undergraduate level is an inescapable fact of academic life today. I argue that this development is an opportunity and a challenge for lecturers and particularly teacher-researchers, who can and have risen to this challenge to strive for better and more creative teaching practices, without compromising the quality of content or delivery. I outline some of the strategies that I have employed with my first year sociology cohort, which numbers over 1,000 students, and the satisfaction and inspiration that comes from successfully reaching out to such a large student population. In addition, I canvas the positive impacts that derive from including students in the course development process, including to the extent that their input contributes to pedagogical research. (HRK / Abstract übernommen) Arvanitakis, James, E-Mail: j.arvanitakis@uws.edu.au