Theology and Religious Studies Looking Outwards

A workshop on knowledge transfer as a strategy for learning and assessment in the

TRS curriculum

Our workshop programme

• Session 1: teaching and learning case studies

• Session 2: elearning resources and possibilities

• Session 3: research project case studies

• Session 4: putting ideas into practice…

‘Looking outwards’…what do we mean?

• Manchester 2015 agenda: a University that `will have a defined and internationally recognised role in and contribution to society locally, nationally and internationally’

• Has led to funding…

• ‘Learning Tasks Looking Outwards: Encouraging Social Responsibility in the Religions and Theology curriculum’

• Four undergraduate units:– Postcolonial Christian Theology– Studying Sacred Spaces– Religion, Culture and Gender– South Asian Diasporas

What are we trying to achieve? What are the key objectives and

challenges?

• Participant pre-workshop comments/ questions

Pedagogy

• Issues of design and assessment of group projects outside the academy

• Assessment criteria• Ideas for virtual learning• Dissemination media• At what levels are these kind of activities most

appropriate/ effective in terms of student learning?

• How to get students involved in outreach and impact programmes?

Skills and employability

• How could we develop students' employability/ skills through our teaching?

• How TRS graduates and academics can use their knowledge and skills to work with businesses as they navigate an increasingly religiously and culturally diverse UK / world

• Does the framework of Learning Objectives, aimed at inculcating transferable skills, develop autonomous learning skills?

Partnerships and practicalities• What is the scope (practically and ideally) for running

collaborative outward looking learning projects between institutions (and even internationally)?

• Issues around interdisciplinary and inter-institutional co-operation and planning.

• Sharing of resources across institutions, especially activities for students.

• Can we run an UG course based entirely on the outreach agenda?

• Community involvement & academic framework• How to involve partners constructively at each stage of

development of projects

Research impact & REF

• Relationship between this and impact/REF (if any).

• How can teaching and learning activities be aligned to increase the social impact out of research projects? (without using students as 'slave labour')

• External funding opportunities.

Big issues• How might we think otherwise about learning

and teaching? • How might we get HEIs to think otherwise

about learning and teaching?• Notion of religious education as vehicle for

social cohesion - potential funding for projects to bring theology into social sphere

• What are the ethical issues involved in this?

Some practicalities• Ideas car park• Template for small group

working in final session• Andy Boakye– Photos– Narrative of the day,

building on ideas raised and small group work