| “Our Department of Education Development and
Research studies how people are able to improve
their performance through education. At the core
of this research is the question of how people learn
and how we can influence that learning process
through education and training. Our starting point
is the question of what competencies students
need to have acquired at the end of their courses,
and how we can encourage students to continue to
develop themselves once they have completed
their education. The entire process is studied
within the context of research into developing
expertise. What makes someone an expert in a
particular field? Why do these experts make errors?
How can you influence the development into an
expert? Why is the transition into practical work so
difficult? These questions form the context for all
of our research. They are as much relevant to
higher education as to trainers in the business
world.
We focus primarily on Problem-Based Learning
(PBL) and other innovative teaching methods in
higher education. We transfer the knowledge we
gather about ways of training someone to be an
expert to the PBL system. We examine how people
learn from each other and the extent to which
learning together helps generate greater effort and
better results. We then analyse how, by intervening
in the learning process (for example, by adapting
the teaching materials or improving the testing of
knowledge) we can improve the way in which
students learn. These days we have become
reasonably good at predicting the performance of
individual students within groups and members of
professional teams. We also focus particularly on
students’ perceptions of their learning
environment, the social factors underlying
collaboration and what effects this then has on
cognitive performance. We study the various
aspects of innovative teaching methods and the
development of courses on this subject, and offer
training and consultancy to providers of higher
education.
We apply our knowledge to improving education,
not only normal higher education but also
advanced education, professional master’s
qualifications and workshops. A good example of
this is our research into diversity of expertise
within groups and teams and the effects of this on
working together and learning. This knowledge can
be translated into the so-called multicultural class.
Our teaching staff is finding that a multicultural
group sometimes leads to problems between
students. Due to increasing globalisation, our
student population has changed dramatically in
terms of educational background, knowledge and
their expectations of teachers and what a course
should offer in terms of knowledge and skills. To
remove any difficulties, we have developed courses
for teachers to learn how to cope better with
diversity. These insights are also of use in part to
professional teams in the business world. In our
research we have consistently focused on the
question of how diversity of backgrounds among
members of groups and professional teams is an
influence upon the way the individual learns. With
the knowledge we are building up, we hope to be
able to advise teachers and trainers on improving
education and training.
Our interest in learning within groups is also
demonstrated by our research into the
contribution of web technologies. One of our most
recent research projects involved us working with a
group of teachers to eliminate deficiencies in
mathematics and statistics. Students worked in
virtual groups on projects under the guidance of a
‘remote teacher’. This research has proved to be
very useful for developing courses that enable
students to study from home within ‘virtual
groups’ of other students and work together on
mathematics or statistics projects. This offers
higher education greater opportunities to cope
with the international diversity of new students.
Our department aims to integrate theory and
practice as far as possible. We strive to develop new
expertise on education and the teaching of
professionals. We can then transform this expertise
into training programmes for teachers and
instructors working with innovative teaching
environments.”
Additional functions:
- Member of the Programme Committee for the
Academische School Limburg
- Member of the academic advisory committees of a
number of faculties/projects in Germany and
Switzerland
- Series editor for a number of series of books
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