Higher education pedagogy

Learn more about pedagogy and how different theories of teaching and learning work across higher education. Here, academics offer insights into a variety of pedagogies, drawing on their own teaching experience alongside research, to provide practical advice on what instructional methods work best for different university contexts, disciplines and classes.

Two students working on a laptop together

From static to dynamic: how a Moodle plugin makes tutorials more interactive

Transforming quizzes from static assessments into live learning tools, JazzQuiz enables real-time feedback, anonymous participation and adaptive teaching, fostering deeper engagement, dialogue and understanding

Ying Feng

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

How can we teach students about social value?

Students increasingly expect universities to reflect their social conscience. Business schools must go beyond profit-focused teaching, embedding social value, impact measurement and experiential learning, says Robert A. Phillips

Robert A. Phillips

The University of Manchester

Taking pedagogy to the provost’s office

The skills that make effective teachers – adaptability, empathy, presence and reflection – also shape impactful university leaders. Here, Bill Owen shares leadership lessons he learned in the classroom

William J. Owen

University of Northern British Columbia

Young male student looking thoughtfully at a laptop

Solving the soft skills crisis using artificial intelligence

Employers seek transferable skills such as communication and cultural awareness, but how can universities translate these aspirations into meaningful, scalable learning experiences for students? AI personas offer possibilities

Kieran Williamson

University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha

Faced with GenAI, educators’ engagement capacity matters more than ever

As universities prepare students for a future shaped by GenAI, the challenge is to use technology as a co-pilot while fostering skills that AI cannot replace: critical thinking, creativity and ethical reasoning

Thomas Menkhoff

Singapore Management University

A scaffolded approach to teaching with GenAI

As GenAI continues to reshape higher education, this four-phase framework by Rena Beatrice Alcalay offers educators ways to guide students to use these tools critically and ethically, fostering agency, bias awareness and deeper engagement in philosophical writing assignments

Rena Beatrice Alcalay

Technical University of Munich

Five ways to centre faculty development at your university

Teaching quality can be an institution’s biggest asset, improving student retention and boosting reputation. So why not move faculty development to the centre of institutional strategy?

Salah Al-Majeed, Hayat El Asri

Al Akhawayn University

UC Earth Science Garden at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand

How a campus garden is tackling declining 3D spatial skills in geoscience students

Making geology more tangible can spark curiosity in the field and help students learn the skills needed to address global issues such as climate change, resource management and natural hazards. Kate Pedley walks through an interactive garden

Katherine Pedley

University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha

Why slowness is a superpower in creative education

Good ideas often appear in the quiet moments we don’t count as work. David Thompson argues for protecting incubation time and for helping students rediscover the value of disconnection

David Thompson

University of Lincoln

Spotlight guide: Make mental health a university priority

Make good mental health a university priority

With poor mental health now rife across higher education, what can be done to create a supportive campus environment that strengthens well-being and resilience among university students and staff?

Laura Duckett, Campus contributors

Campus

Two language students reading a physical document

Content is king in EAP teaching

Content-based instruction is reshaping English for academic purposes teaching by making subject matter central to language learning. Garth Elzerman and Catherine Sari share four strategies for creating deeper, more purposeful engagement in the classroom

Garth Elzerman, Catherine Sari

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

An image representing the inner workings of the human brain

‘We must replace critical thinking with intuitive critical thinking’

Developing students’ basic critical thinking skills is not enough – intuitive critical thinking is needed in order to expand cognitive capabilities and understand real-world issues, explains Patrik K. Meyer

Patrik K. Meyer

University of Zurich

Critical thinking in teaching and research

Practical strategies and advice for university educators and researchers to develop and teach the skills to analyse, evaluate, understand and communicate knowledge in an information-saturated world

Eliza Compton, Campus contributors

Campus

Teaching critical thinking is not enough – we must design for and assess it, too

Students are often told to think critically, but they need to be shown how – and evaluated on it. To truly embed critical thinking in higher education, educators must align teaching, assessment and expectations from the ground up

Nicole Pitterson

Virginia Tech

A university student standing outside a campus building

Four ways to help students develop critical thinking skills

Students’ success increasingly depends on their ability to demonstrate critical thinking and research skills. Here are four ways to help them develop these complex abilities through effective data analysis training and course design

Justin Fendos

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

How to get students asking better questions

Better questions can spark deeper discussions, boost engagement and develop critical thinking. These practical strategies – from questioning frameworks to encouraging peer review and self-directed assessment – can build a more curious, enquiry-driven classroom

Gareth Owen

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Black male student looking thoughtfully at laptop screen

When AI asks: ‘Why?’ and facilitates critical thinking

Chatbots can be used at scale to mimic the Socratic method in university assessment and guide students to reflect on their thinking and reasoning process

Meryem Yilmaz Soylu

Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities

‘Design is what industry demands of our engineering graduates’

By shifting focus from analysis to design, educators not only better align electronics engineering education with industry needs but also ignite students’ creativity and problem-solving capabilities, writes Ji-Jon Sit

Ji-Jon Sit

Nanyang Technological University

Beyond the buzz: how AI can be a coach, not a competitor, in the university classroom

Placing teaching tasks along a spectrum between AI and human strengths can help university educators make use of the best of both worlds

Meena Jha, Michael Cowling, Josiah Koh, Kwong Nui Sim

Central Queensland University, RMIT University, Western Sydney University

(Re)learning critical reading in the age of GenAI

Rather than pretending students can – or even should – avoid GenAI to become critical readers, we need to develop their critical reading skills so they can successfully interrogate AI-produced materials

Brendan Carey

The University of Exeter

Four stages to develop problem-solving skills

Use this four-step framework to help your students work through problems and develop their analytical and creativity skills

Houry Melkonian, Vicki Brown, Cris Burgess

The University of Exeter

A headless person wearing a suit with a speech bubble for a head holding a phone

What can higher education learn from social media?

This collection explores how social media can be used to develop skills, shape pedagogy and foster online learning communities, as well as support academics in building their professional profiles and extending the reach of their research

Laura Duckett, Campus contributors

Campus

A woman looking relaxed sitting at her desk

The Chinese framework that can build student resilience

The HeXie framework can help students solve problems and build a sense of unity with their environment – an essential skill in uncertain times. Discover the theory behind it and how to nurture it to support student resilience

Dan Wang, Yuchen Wu

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Diverse group of students on social media

Engaging and influencing learners in the digital age of higher education

Educators and influencers share a common goal: engagement. So, what strategies can university teachers take from social media platforms that have mastered the art of audience capture?

Riley A. Scott, Jaimee Stuart

The University of Southern Queensland , United Nations University Institute in Macau

What social media can teach lecturers about student engagement

Apply insights from how social media captures attention to help students stay focused in class and motivated to learn

Natalie K. D. Seedan

The University of the West Indies

Young male student looking perplexed with mobile phone

Fighting falsehoods at the speed of the scroll

With students subjected to a steady stream of memes and manipulated narratives, teaching media literacy isn’t something university educators should do; it’s something they must. Cayce Myers offers advice for a misinformation age

Cayce Myers

Virginia Tech

A lecturer observes her students reading

The subtle curriculum: how to embed ESG in business education organically

Are we marginalising environmental, social and governance considerations in treating them as optional extras? Here’s how to subtly integrate them into business courses

Daniel Muravsky

University of the West of Scotland

Bringing GenAI into the university classroom

How to use generative AI to improve teaching, rethink assessment, reduce course admin and equip students with AI literacy and other career enhancing skills

Campus contributors

Campus

Spotlight guide: Back to the basics of pedagogy

Back to the basics of pedagogy

Techniques and methods to enrich your teaching - and your students’ learning outcomes

Campus contributors

Campus

Tap into game dynamics in nurse training

Learn lessons from the gaming world to structure nursing courses, strengthening student engagement and improving pass rates

Caroline Barau, Magali Vergnes

Université Paris-Est Créteil

Medical students working on a project together

How reflective remediation can set medical students up for success

A workshop designed to help struggling students reflect on their mid-term assessment shortcomings led to 86 per cent of participants passing their end-of-year exam. See how it worked

Ellen Lowry

The University of East Anglia

Four jigsaw puzzle pieces display a mortarbord

Five tips when embedding gamification in the classroom

Gamification and game-based learning can centre students in the learning experience and improve university enrolment rates. Here’s how to get started

Gustavo Espinoza Ramos , Gunter Saunders

University of Westminster

A student zombie scrolling social media on his mobile phone

To combat ‘zombie scrolling’, integrate social media into your teaching

Transform Gen Z students from mindless scrollers to mindful scholars with this guide to maximising the features of each social media platform in university teaching and learning

Daniella Sieukaran

Dalhousie University

Go beyond play and engage students with game-based learning

Use the power of games and game elements to engage students in learning and deepen their understanding. Here’s how

Kenneth Wai-Ting Leung

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

How to get your students writing stellar social policy analysis reports

Policy analysis equips social work students with the skills to critically assess, influence, and advocate for equitable policies. Read how to demystify the process

Adrian Man-Ho Lam, Mathew Wong Yee Hang

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

An illustration of a mortarbord balanced on a globe

The future of liberal arts may belong to the Global South

With American universities under threat from a hostile government, where will liberal arts education thrive? Perhaps it’s time for a reimagining

Abderrahim Agnaou

Al Akhawayn University

A team discusses at Post-It notes on a wall

Communication skills needed for public policy and how to teach them

Effective public policy requires clear communication and public engagement. Here’s how to equip future policymakers with the necessary skills

Lisa Lim

Nazarbayev University

Get yourself unstuck: overthinking is boring and perfectionism is a trap

The work looks flawless, the student seems fine. But underneath, perfectionism is doing damage. David Thompson unpacks what educators can do to help high-performing students navigate the pressure to succeed and move from stuck to started

David Thompson

University of Lincoln

Ready your teaching for the AI era with this six-part framework

AI can help educators reclaim what they love most about teaching – but they need to approach it with an intentional mindset. The six steps of the THRIVE framework can guide the way

Patrick Lynch

Hult International Business School (Ashridge)

Young Asian female students giving presentation

Machine v human skills: what do we teach now?

Human-centred abilities such as curiosity, adaptability and self-reflection are rising in importance as AI threatens to automate routine tasks. Here are ways educators can prepare students for the workforce of the future

Lynda Wee

Nanyang Technological University

A virtual illustration of a book guides a student working on a laptop

What do students want from AI-assisted teaching?

In an age of AI, educators and students need ways to ensure the technology complements learning rather than detracts from or homogenises it

Omar Merlo , Nai Li

Imperial College London

A group of students working on a project together in a classroom

Three ways to get students using GenAI in project-based learning

How to use project-based learning to address ethical concerns and improve students’ AI literacy, including key questions to ask yourself before introducing the tools

Ka Ho To

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

A practical guide to creating a linguistically inclusive classroom

Here’s how to embrace the cultural and linguistic perspectives of your students and prepare them to thrive in an interconnected world

Eilidh Singh, Amanda Wallace

Simon Fraser University

A group of students having a discussion in class

How to use think-pair-share to improve classroom discussions

Educators can modify the think-pair-share strategy to help students craft more detailed responses and take greater ownership of discussions. Learn how

Xingyi Ouyang

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

AI-proof project-based assessments by making them context-specific

Project-based assessments rooted in real-world, institution-specific contexts help reduce over-reliance on GenAI by emphasising collaboration, oral defence and critical thinking. Learn how to design one effectively

Oliver Jarvest , Ying Zhou, Simon Sheridan

Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

A close-up of a hand painting on a canvas, a paint palette in the background

Use art to cultivate business students’ understanding of climate change

Find out how a transdisciplinary project using drawing and art deepens business students’ understanding of sustainability, inspiring them to become climate champions

Ryan Man

Hong Kong Baptist University

A logistics student working at her laptop

Active, applied and authentic learning: a model that builds skills and agency

Learn how the AAA model improved student engagement and learning outcomes in a logistics and supply chain programme, and how its principles apply across disciplines

Irfan Ul Haq , Hung Nguyen

RMIT University Vietnam

University professor teaching with laptop

Flip-Zoom-open: how Covid and AI transformed my classroom

Maybe the uncertainty of the pandemic resulted in a few positives to university teaching? Here, Perry Binder reflects on lockdown’s seismic shifts

Perry Binder

Georgia State University

Students and a teacher having a discussion in the classroom

Teaching your first course? Follow these steps

Just landed your first adjunct teaching role and don’t know where to start? Here’s how to make the most of your strengths, design a clear syllabus and deliver engaging, manageable sessions

Daniel Martínez, Robert Sanford

Independent academic

Prometheus concept of technological innovation

Cultivating a responsible innovation mindset among future tech leaders

The classroom is a perfect place to discuss the messy, real-world consequences of technological discoveries, writes Andreas Alexiou. Beyond ‘How?’, students should be asking ‘Should we…?’ and ‘What if…?’ questions around ethics and responsibility

Andreas Alexiou

University of Southampton

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