Research-Infused Curriculum - How does IATL do it?
IATL is the nest for education innovation at Warwick and aims to advance the academic discourse on the Research-Infused Curriculum and to create models for its implementation.
Discover how IATL achieves this and explore practical examples that can benefit you and your Department:
Developing Research-Infused Pedagogies
Democratising the Sharing of Research
The IATL inquisitive teaching and learning approach often leads students to develop new ideas, new approaches, new questions, and answers as part of their module’s learning journey.
To support this, IATL has developed a streamlined processLink opens in a new window for students to summarise their novel projects and ideas, often developed as part of their assessment, into interdisciplinary abstracts. As part of their assessment submission, students have the option to submit their abstracts to various platforms, such as the IATL Assessment ExhibitionLink opens in a new window, ICUR Link opens in a new windowand ReinventionLink opens in a new window.
This process provides all IATL students with the opportunity to share their interdisciplinary research outputs with larger audiences, exploring and integrating research and engagement practices into their curriculum.
'Beyond Disciplines' Research Ethics
As students engage in multi-, inter-, trans- disciplinary research as a core component of their curriculum, it is crucial they receive comprehensive guidance and timely support in navigating the ethical dimensions of their work.
Collaboratively, IATL and HSSREC have devised a streamlined processLink opens in a new window designed to effectively assist students on this journey. Through this process, students are guided in critically reflecting on the ethical implications of their projects and are facilitated in efficiently applying for and obtaining ethical approval within a condensed timeframe.
Student Devised Assessment Practices
IATL recognises the symbiotic relationship between radical learning beyond disciplines and research. Indeed, such way of learning entail students and staff exploring issues and topics in new ways that bring together and merge disciplinary viewpoints as well as experiential knowledge and socio-emotional learning, often leading them to novel ideas.
IATL’s assessment strategies Link opens in a new windowrecognise this fertile ground for research offered by our modules and present students with the opportunity of developing their own ideas and projects as part of their assignments. The Student Devised Assessment (SDA) is a prime example of this and throughout the years has given and gives to students the possibility of delivering their own inter- and trans-disciplinary research projects, and to communicate them to a variety of audiences, enhancing the impact of and engagement with their work. Thus, the opportunity to undertake inter- and trans- disciplinary research is built into IATL modules, democratising research opportunities as they are organically embedded in the curriculum and accessible to all IATL students.
Celebration of Assessment
The remarkable multi-, inter- and trans- disciplinary work that students produce on IATL modules can be permanently displayed and shared with wider public via the IATL Assessment ExhibitionLink opens in a new window.
This innovative, pioneering space exists to celebrate outstanding student work, regardless of mark received, and to encourage a longevity in the assignments that continues well beyond the time and space of the modules' academic life.
We encourage all UG and PG students who have taken an IATL module to consider showcasing and celebrating their work in such space – highlighting that while produced on an assessed module, the value of the work can extend far beyond the classroom. Again, explicitly recognising the value of student novel projects supports them in exploring practices of research and engagement.
Preparing the Inter- and Trans- Disciplinary Researchers of the Future
IATL has assembled a team of departmental colleagues renowned for their expertise in leading our teaching and learning initiatives, including the creators of ICUR and Reinvention and current and past IATL Directors of Studies.
Together, they have developed an innovative module Link opens in a new windowaimed at facilitating student exploration of research methodologies crucial to successful inter- and transdisciplinary research endeavours. This module not only empowers students to chart their own investigative paths but also fosters collaboration with peers and faculty from diverse disciplinary backgrounds.
By taking the module, students actively participate in shaping the University's research ethos, and they not only enhance their disciplinary proficiency but also recognise the value of their unique perspectives and experiences in enriching inter- and trans- disciplinary research practices.
Ultimately, this initiative aims to cultivate confident and adept inter-, and trans- disciplinary researchers poised for the challenges of the future.