New lecturers' beliefs about learning, teaching and assessment in higher education: the role of the PGCLTHE programme

Abstract

This study was carried out with new lecturers on a two year Post Graduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education programme in a UK university. The aim was to establish their beliefs about how studying on the programme aligned with their teaching and learning philosophy and what, if anything, had changed or constrained those beliefs. Ten lecturers took part in an in‐depth semi‐structured interview. Content analysis of the transcripts suggested positive reactions to the programme but lecturers' new insights were sometimes constrained by departments and university bureaucracy, particularly in the area of assessment. The conflicting roles of research and teaching were also a major issue facing these new professionals.

Keywords:

• teaching philosophy
• teaching beliefs
• PGCLTHE
• university teaching courses
• new lecturers
• assessment, beliefs and practice

Acknowledgment

This research was funded by a consortium FDTL 4 project (Fund for the Development of Learning and Teaching) entitled ‘Assessment Plus. Using assessment criteria to support student learning’. www.writenow.ac.uk/assessmentplus (accessed 17 December 2008)