Foundations of University Learning and Teaching (FULT) Workshop

18 & 19 April 2016

Concourse, Universiti Teknologi Brunei

Twenty-seven academic staff from different programme areas attended a two-day Foundations of University Learning and Teaching (FULT) workshop on the fundamentals of learning and teaching held from 18-19 April 2016 at Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB). The FULT workshop included 4 modules, namely: Learning at University and Good Communication Skills with Students; Curriculum Planning and Design; Assessment; and Effective Teaching Strategies. This is the fourth in a series of the professional development course coordinated by Centre for Communication, Teaching & Learning (CCTL) and is compulsory for all academic staff of UTB. This workshop was conducted as part of ITB’s strategic initiatives to enhance staff quality and promote innovative teaching practices.

The series of FULT workshop facilitator is Dr Peter Looker, Head of the Teaching, Learning and Pedagogy Division of Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Dr Peter Looker in the workshop emphasised the crucial role of feedback in various areas such as student learning, course alignment, effective teaching strategies and the use of tutorial rooms that promote a more interactive learning. In addition, he underscored the importance of the teacher’s assessment task that ensures meaningful feedback to promote learning. Dr Peter Looker is a distinguished academic and has run similar training courses for more than a decade in many higher education institutions. One of his key recommendations was to encourage collaborative learning by reconfiguring traditional classrooms where students sit in rows and the teacher teaches mostly through lectures into tutorial rooms that are designed to engage students in learning in a technology-rich learning environment.

UTB regularly conducts teaching and learning workshops for the academic staff to enhance effective teaching learning methods in their classes. These sessions gives opportunity to the academic staff from different background to discuss the best method to deliver their classes so that effective teaching and learning takes place with the focus on the students.