Complete thesis - Murdoch University

Chapter 8RE as Studio Learning 2005Teaching is more difficult than learning because what teaching calls for is this: tolet learn.(Heidegger, 1968, p 15)The PBL environment the students experienced during 2003 may be considered a creativeone: one of the aims of its development was to enhance divergent thinking and the creativepotential of students. Despite the measure of success of the CreativePBL model, the learningdiagnostics (eg ASI) results indicated at least as strong a bias to surface learning as therewas to deep learning in the student cohort. The literature suggests this is an outcome ofthe (different) learning environments students are exposed to in (different) units. Ultimatelyinnovation introduced a few units may be undermined if traditional approaches are maintainedelsewhere in the students’ programme - so that benefits may only be apparent or areenhanced if the innovation is introduced across the entire curriculum. While this is not somuch of a problem in the SE programme at Murdoch University – by the end of 2003 most ofthe core units in SE had been aligned to some form of task - or - problem-based environment,it is critical in the context of a strategic move away from traditional lecture/tutorial/lab-stylelearning within the Engineering area at Murdoch.This relates to a further issue to be tackled: the need to engage in life-long learning. Thepractitioner studies discussed in Chapter 2 indicated the importance of graduates’ ability tokeep up with changes in knowledge and information requirements (eg Lee (1999b); Snoke andUnderwood (1999)), while the only professional (as opposed to affective) capability cited inthe top twenty engineering capabilities in Scott and Yates (2002)’s study is current technicalexpertise relevant to the work area. Practitioners acknowledge that the speed with whichtechnology evolves, the multiplicity of its impact on society and the ramifications of thatimpact mean that metacognitive and knowledge construction skills as well as adaptability329