Sari Lindblom-Ylänne

How approaches to teaching are affected by discipline and teaching context

Two related studies are reported in this article. The first aimed to analyse how academic discipline is related to university teachers’ approaches to teaching. The second explored the effects of teaching context on approaches to teaching. The participants of the first study were 204 teachers from the University of Helsinki and the Helsinki School of Economics and Business Administration and 136 teachers from the University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University who returned university teaching inventories. Thus, altogether there were 340 teachers from a variety of disciplines in Finland and the UK. The second study involved only the Finnish sample. The results showed that there was systematic variation in both student‐ and teacher‐focused dimensions of approaches to teaching across disciplines and across teaching contexts. These results confirm the relational nature of teachers’ approaches to teaching and illustrate the need, in using inventories such as the Approaches to Teaching Inventory, to be explicit about the context.

The effect of study strategies on learning from text

Abstract This study focuses on study strategies used spontaneously by high-school graduates when learning from text in a medical school entrance examination. The effectiveness of these strategies was assessed in terms of success in qualitatively different essay-type tasks. All subjects (N = 503) were given a short questionnaire about the strategies they used when learning from text, and their test results were analyzed. In addition, notes of a sample of 200 subjects were analyzed. The first hypothesis was that any strategy aimed at learning a minor detail enhances its learning, whereas a central idea is learned regardless of strategies. The second hypothesis was that underlining is related to success in a task requiring synthesis of the text. Third, concept mapping was hypothesized to be successful in a task which calls for critical review of the learned materials. The results supported all hypotheses.

From reflection to action? Barriers and bridges between higher education teachers’ thoughts and actions

Within higher education, reflection has been seen as a prerequisite to quality teaching and developing as a teacher. However, little empirical research exists concerning the link between teacher reflection and action, which defines the extent to which the teacher’s reflection-based views are channelled to the benefit of the students. This article focuses on this link, as manifested through interviews with 76 university teachers. The findings shed light on practical challenges and obstacles along higher education teachers’ path from reflection to practice, and indicate that, despite the strong emphasis on reflection, it is far from being a self-evident tool for developing a teacher’s practice. Besides the pedagogical perspective, this link also appears essential from the viewpoint of the teacher experiencing teaching as rewarding. Issues that arise when theories of learning and reflection are applied to the context of the development of university teacher are considered.

Dissonant Study Orchestrations of High-Achieving University Students.

This study focuses on the dissonant study orchestrations of high-achieving university students. Advanced psychology students’ dissonant study orchestrations were compared with previous findings of advanced medical students orchestrations. Further, the relation of study orchestrations to study success was examined. The subjects were 28 advanced psychology students at the University of Helsinki, Department of Psychology who returned a task booklet of learning; of these, 24 students completed a questionnaire concentrating on the students’ interests, expectations and evaluation of the curriculum. All students were high achievers who had gone through a demanding selection process. The subjects completed three questionnaires concentrating on their study practices, conceptions of knowledge, expectations, and evaluation of the instruction in the Department of Psychology. The results showed that seven out of 28 students expressed a dissonant study orchestration. The results further showed that students’ individual study orchestrations were not related to study success. A comparison between advanced medical and psychology students showed that although the profiles of dissonant study orchestrations were technically similar among medical and psychology students, content analyses revealed that reasons for the development of dissonant study orchestrations were different.RésuméL’étude est centrée sur les dissonantes ‘orchestrations de leurs études’ par de bons étudiants d’Université. Les auteurs comparent les ‘orchestrations dissonantes’ d’étudiants avancés en psychologie à des résultats antérieurs d’étudiants avancés en médecine. Ils examinent ensuite les relations entre ‘orchestration des études’ et réussite dans les études. L’étude a porté sur 28 étudiants de psychologie avancés du département de psychologie de l’Université d’Helsinki ayant rempli un livret concernant leur approche de l’apprentissage, leur régulation et leurs conceptions de l’apprentissage. Parmi eux, 24 étudiants ont rempli un questionnaire concernant leurs intérêts, leurs expectations et l’évaluation de leur curriculum. Tous les étudiants étaient de très bons étudiants ayant été soumis à un processus sévère de sélection. Les sujets ont rempli trois questionnaires concernant leurs pratiques d’études, leurs conceptions de la connaissance, leurs expectations et l’évaluation de leur formation dans le département de psychologie. Les résultats montrent que 7 des 28 étudiants expriment une orchestration dissonante de leurs études. Les résultats montrent également que l’orchestration des études n’est pas liée à la réussite. La comparison entre les étudiants avancés de médecine et de psychologie montre que les profils d’orchestration sont techniquement similaires chez les deux catégories d’étudiants. En dépit de cette similarité, les analyses de contenu révèlent cependant que les raisons du développement de l’orchestration des dissonances dans les études sont différentes.

Faculty Development in Research‐Intensive Universities: The role of academics’ conceptions on the relationship between research and teaching

The study reported in this article explores conceptions of the research–teaching relationship held by faculty members in two research‐intensive universities. To elaborate a model for research‐intensive teaching that can be considered in faculty development, a total of 16 members from 4 different disciplines were interviewed. The rich diversity in the views on the research–teaching nexus is described from four different perspectives. First we spell out the respondents’ thoughts about what constitutes research for them. We then describe the consequences of this conceptualisation for the goals and strategies they put forward for their teaching. This analysis is deepened in the third section where we discuss the underlying reasons our respondents expressed for the importance they attach to research for high‐quality teaching. Finally, we present how the respondents believe teaching might contribute to their research. This study confirms a number of previously reported findings on the relationship between research and teaching. It also reveals two striking features of research‐intensive teaching in research‐intensive universities: (1) it is more research‐ than student‐centred, and (2) the link between research and teaching is fundamentally based on and directed towards a mature epistemological disposition. It is argued that these two features have to be explicitly considered in faculty development. Deze bijdrage exploreert de opvattingen over de relatie tussen onderzoek en onderwijs van academici in twee onderzoeksintensieve universiteiten. Zestien academici uit vier verschillende disciplines werden geïnterviewd. De analyse was gericht op het ontwikkelen van een model over de onderzoek‐onderwijs relatie dat in onderwijskundige vorming van academici kan worden gebruikt. De grote diversiteit in de antwoorden kan vanuit vier invalshoeken worden beschreven. In eerste instantie gaan we in op wat ‘onderzoek’ betekent voor de respondenten. Vervolgens beschrijven we de gevolgen van deze conceptualisering voor de wijze waarop ze hun onderwijs vormgeven. Een dieper begrip van de relatie wordt in een derde deel bewerkstelligd. We beschrijven de redenen die respondenten aanreiken om het belang van onderzoek voor kwalitatief hoogstaand onderwijs te onderbouwen. Ten slotte, gaan we na of volgens onze respondenten het onderwijs ook een bijdrage levert aan hun onderzoek. Deze bijdrage bevestigt bevindingen in vroeger onderzoek over de relatie tussen onderzoek en onderwijs. Tegelijkertijd reveleert het twee kenmerken van onderwijs in onderzoeksintensieve universiteiten: (1) het is meer onderzoeks‐ dan studentgeoriënteerd en (2) een nauwe band tussen onderzoek en onderwijs is gericht op verwerven van een gesofisticeerde epistemologische positie. Een effectieve onderwijskundige vorming van academici in onderzoeksintensieve universiteiten houdt expliciet rekening met deze kenmerken. L’étude présentée dans cet article explore les conceptions de la relation enseignement‐recherche entretenues par des membres du corps enseignant de deux universités de recherche. De façon à élaborer un modèle de l’enseignement en contexte de recherche pouvant être envisagé du point de vue du développement pédagogique, un total de 16 personnes provenant de diverses disciplines ont été interrogées. La riche diversité des points de vue au sujet de la relation entre enseignement et recherche est décrite selon quatre perspectives différentes. Premièrement, nous décrivons les pensées des répondants au sujet de ce que constitue, à leurs yeux, la recherche. Ensuite, nous décrivons les conséquences de cette conceptualisation pour les objectifs et les stratégies que les répondants mettent en oeuvre dans le cadre de leur enseignement. Cette analyse est approfondie dans la troisième section où nous discutons des raisons profondes exprimées par nos répondants à l’égard de l’importance que ceux‐ci accordent à la recherche soutenant un enseignement de qualité. Finalement, nous présentons les façons selon lesquelles les répondants croient que l’enseignement peut contribuer à leur recherche. Cette étude confirme un certain nombre de découvertes rapportées précédemment au sujet de la relation entre la recherche et l’enseignement. Elle soulève aussi deux dimensions importantes de l’enseignement axé sur la recherche en contexte de recherche : (1) celui‐ci est davantage axé sur la recherche que sur l’apprenant, et (2) le lien entre la recherche et l’enseignement repose fondamentalement sur, en plus d’être dirigé vers, une disposition épistémologique mature. Ces deux dimensions doivent être considérées de façon explicite dans le cadre du développement pédagogique.

Emotions and confidence within teaching in higher education

Teaching is connected with a variety of emotions, but research on this area is scarce in the field of higher education. The present study explores the role of emotions and confidence within six different teacher profiles. Furthermore, the study aims to analyse emotions that arise during participation in courses on university pedagogy. Altogether 97 university teachers were interviewed. The method of content analysis was used to identify descriptions related to emotions and confidence. The results implied that teachers with consonant learning-focused profiles had the most positively charged emotions regarding teaching. However, those with consonant content-focused profiles had neutral or negative feelings about teaching and about the development of teaching. Confusion characterised those who were in a developmental phase in their teaching. Furthermore, the results showed that the emotional aspect was evident in the pedagogical training of university teachers.

What Makes a Student Group Successful? Student-Student and Student-Teacher Interaction in a Problem-Based Learning Environment

This study investigated student-student and teacher-student interaction in a problem-based course and looked at study success in relation to group dynamics and approaches to studying. Data for this study were provided by 31 law students who were enrolled in a course in legal history at the University of Helsinki in February 2001. The students were divided into three small groups that were tutored by one teacher. Both the students and the teacher were interviewed. The interaction between the students and their teacher, and the group dynamics of each subgroup, were observed during the tutor sessions. The results showed that the student groups were very different from each other in terms of study success, group dynamics and communication between the group members. One group achieved significantly higher grades than the other two groups. There was only one clear difference between the three groups. The interviews and observations showed that the students in the best group participated more evenly and actively in the discussions than students in the other two groups.

Raising Students' Awareness of Their Approaches to Study.

Studying law in Finland requires a great deal of independent studying for extensive examinations. To succeed, students have to have good self‐regulation and study skills and be aware of their conceptions of learning and knowledge as well as of their approaches to study. Experiences from study counselling at the Faculty of Law, University of Helsinki, show that some students confront difficulties in adapting to this kind of learning environment. The participants of this small case study were 11 law students who received study counselling from the author. The students completed the Reflections on Learning Inventory (RoLI) (Meyer, 2000d). The students analysed their conceptions of learning and knowledge as well as their study practices with the author on the basis of the results of the RoLI. The results showed that the RoLI functioned very well as a diagnostic tool in study counselling. By analysing their own results of the RoLI, students became more conscious of their conceptions of learning and their approaches to studying, and they were able to develop more efficient and functional study practices in their learning environment.Studying law in Finland requires a great deal of independent studying for extensive examinations. To succeed, students have to have good self‐regulation and study skills and be aware of their conceptions of learning and knowledge as well as of their approaches to study. Experiences from study counselling at the Faculty of Law, University of Helsinki, show that some students confront difficulties in adapting to this kind of learning environment. The participants of this small case study were 11 law students who received study counselling from the author. The students completed the Reflections on Learning Inventory (RoLI) (Meyer, 2000d). The students analysed their conceptions of learning and knowledge as well as their study practices with the author on the basis of the results of the RoLI. The results showed that the RoLI functioned very well as a diagnostic tool in study counselling. By analysing their own results of the RoLI, students became more conscious of their conceptions of learning and their appro...

Using a research instrument for developing quality at the university

The University of Helsinki, along with the other European universities, is facing challenges for enhancing the quality of teaching and developing quality assurance systems with comparable criteria. To tackle these aims the university started to develop a student feedback system with a solid theoretical feedback and valuable practical implications. The present study describes the process of developing a research instrument and a questionnaire as a part of a research project The Students’ Approaches to Learning and their Experiences of the Teaching-Learning Environment(s) (LEARN) at the university. The work carried out at the University of Helsinki clearly demonstrates the value of using the LEARN questionnaire: at the same time it is a valid research instrument and a practical tool for enhancing the quality of students’ learning. Different faculties at the University of Helsinki have used the instrument for research purposes, in their quality work and in student counselling. Furthermore, the software that enables the systematic use of the instrument has been developed and it will be used across the University of Helsinki.

Selecting Students for Medical School: What Predicts Success during Basic Science Studies? A Cognitive Approach.

This study focuses on differences between multiple-choice science tests and a learning-from-text (LFT) test, and how these tests predict success in basic medical studies. The subjects (N = 503) were applicants to the Helsinki University Medical Faculty. All of them had to take an entrance examination in order to be considered for admission to a 6-year study programme combining medical school and graduate studies. The entrance examination consisted of three traditional multiple-choice science tests and one LFT test, the latter designed to measure deep-level processing of text. A follow-up study was conducted in order to see how the different tasks were related to the grades and pace of studying of those who were accepted onto the programme.As hypothesized, there were very high correlations among the three multiple-choice tests, but no correlations between the LFT subtasks and the multiple-choice tests. LISREL analyses showed that the LFT Synthesis Task, designed to measure the ability to pull together the essentials of a text, was the best predictor of academic progress during basic science studies.