Abstract

The adoption of active learning pedagogy and, later, the institution of the employability agenda in Higher Education have resulted in a severe loss of agency for academics and students in the Social Sciences. In this article, we reflect on our experiences of applying active learning methods. We argue that we have been part of a change that has occasioned a loss of key skills development, especially those associated with traditional learning and academic thinking. An overly headlong rush to implement the “new” over the “old” saw the discarding of certain skills central to the active learning agenda. Further, the emphasis on student satisfaction, professionalisation and quality assurance pushed the academic to the sidelines, to the detriment of Higher Education. We, therefore, first critique the skills debate and identify shortcomings in the active learning application that emerged from that debate. We focus on the skills emphasised in practice, how they are portrayed in opposition (instead of complementarity) to academic skills, and how they undermine the agency academics and students really require. Next, we propose a reconsideration of necessary but undervalued skills like reading, listening and note-taking.

Highlights

  • Change in education is necessary and to be expected

  • We argue that the employability agenda instituted in Higher Education (HE) constituted such a moment

  • Employability and skills have been used as an argument by universities and staff alike to tap into active learning pedagogy: “active” students learn better, they enjoy learning more because they feel in charge and they learn skills along the way

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Summary

Reflections on the employability and skills agenda in the Social

Change in education is necessary and to be expected. sometimes the nature of change is so radical as to constitute a rupture. We argue that the employability agenda instituted in Higher Education (HE) constituted such a moment. It was facilitated by an excessively narrow interpretation and application of active learning pedagogy. It constitutes a blind disregard for the notion of universities as sites to develop critically questioning, reflective thinkers It suggests such thought is not itself a skill of utility in a wide range of careers and professions (and for citizens). We deliver our own experience-based thoughts about the process through which learning takes place and argue this process itself reflects the development and employment of transferable skills. We call for academics to reclaim their central place in the academy

Skills in the university
The adoption of active learning for skills development and our critique
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