Micro-Credential in Strategies of Teaching and Learning
Overview
This micro-credential is designed to facilitate lecturers in enhancing teaching practices in higher education, and enable them to employ a diverse range of pedagogical skills to facilitate learning and design learning experiences. The micro-credential explores the application of various instructional design strategies tailored for different learner groups and disciplines, with the aim of supporting undergraduate and postgraduate learners in achieving specific learning outcomes.
Participants in this micro-credential will develop a critical understanding of how to plan, design, and evaluate learning, teaching, and assessment (LTA) strategies suitable for higher education contexts. They will engage with the literature and international best practice while also engaging with their students and colleagues to develop their practice in this area. They will complete a project culminating in a rigorously developed action plan to enhance their practice.
Details
10 ECTS credits; 24 hours of class time plus peer engagement and independent learning; typically delivered mostly online with some in-person sessions.
Upon successful completion of the Strategies of Teaching and Learning micro-credential, participants may choose to progress to the "Strategies of Teaching and Learning in Practice" micro-credential (5 ECTS credits, see bottom of this page for details) through which the action plan developed in the Strategies of Teaching and Learning micro-credential will be implemented, evaluated and disseminated.
Entry Requirements
Participants must be working in an academic role in TU Dublin where they are teaching for at least four hours per week, or where they are in a management role with direct influence on the assessment practices of lecturers. Participants must have an NFQ Level 8 (or higher) qualification or complete a Recognition of Prior Learning process to demonstrate their capacity to participate in this microcredential.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module the participant will be able to:
- Describe the theoretical foundations that inform advanced pedagogical strategies in higher education, such as constructivism, experiential learning, social learning, and transformative learning theories.
- Critically evaluate diverse pedagogical approaches, assessing their effectiveness, limitations, and implications for practice within varied higher education contexts.
- Design and justify evidence-informed strategies that draw on scholarly literature and contemporary pedagogical frameworks.
- Apply a repertoire of pedagogical methods and instructional approaches to create inclusive, engaging, and learner-centred environments in a university setting.
- Engage in critical reflective practice relating to strategies of teaching and learning.
Assessment
Participants will engage in a three-part project on strategies of teaching and learning in higher education.
First, they will reflect on and gather evidence to inform the design of a module-level learning and teaching strategy — using Brookfield’s Four Lenses to inform their approach.
This will be followed by the production of the strategy itself, and finally, the articulation of an action plan for its implementation, including key prerequisites, resources, timelines, and feedback mechanisms.
Critical and scholarly reflection will be a key feature of the process.
Indicative Syllabus
Foundations and Frameworks
Core theories and theoretical frameworks that inform various learning and teaching strategies.
Interactive Learning Strategies
Pedagogical approaches that emphasize student engagement, including active, collaborative, and peer-to-peer instruction.
Inquiry and Problem-Based Learning
Student-centred methods where learning is driven by questions, real-world problems, and challenges.
Experiential and Project-Based Learning
Practice-orientated approaches to learning, such as service-learning, simulations, and the development of projects and portfolios.
Technology-Enhanced and Flexible Learning
How technology is integrated into learning strategies, including flipped classroom models and various digital tools.
Pedagogical Design and Evaluation
The processes of planning, assessing, and critically reflecting on teaching practices to enhance learning outcomes.
Progressing to Strategies of Teaching and Learning in Practice
The Strategies of Teaching and Learning in Practice micro-credential follows from the Strategies of Teaching and Learning micro-credential. It cannot be taken prior to the successful completion of Strategies of Teaching and Learning, however, it does not need to be taken immediately following the completion of that micro-credential.
In the Strategies of Teaching and Learning in Practice micro-credential, participants will implement a focused, evidence-informed change in their assessment and feedback practices, critically evaluate its impact and disseminate insights to colleagues.
Acting on the plan developed during the pre-requisite Strategies of Teaching and Learning microcredential, participants will design an evaluation strategy to assess the impact of their actions, they will then implement the innovation within their action plan and gather insights, feedback, data etc. in tandem.
They will disseminate their findings to a group of five or more colleagues with the intention to influence the enhancement of strategies of teaching and learning more broadly in their professional environment.
Details: 5 ECTS credits; runs over one semester. Can be taken in any semester, once Strategies of Teaching and Learning has been successfully completed.