Active and Engaged Pedagogies
Active learning places students at the centre of the educational experience, emphasizing participation, collaboration, and application of knowledge over passive reception of information.
Spotlight on innovative pedagogy: Challenge Based Learning
Challenge-based learning (CBL) is a collaborative process where students work with peers, academics, and external stakeholders to develop solutions to real-world challenges. This learner-driven pedagogy enables students to define problem dimensions, acquire necessary knowledge and skills, and propose evidence-based solutions.
The CBL framework consists of three phases: Engage (exploring the challenge), Investigate (research and solution development), and Act (implementation and reflection). Challenges address social, technological, environmental, and economic issues of relevance to students and society.
Currently, programmes integrate CBL at multiple levels, from introductory challenges in first year to complex, module-long challenges in final year. Some challenges are interdisciplinary, bringing together students from multiple programmes.
More information on Challenge Based Learning can be found on the Teaching Enhancement Unit website or by contacting teaching.enhancement@dcu.ie.
Scroll down for some examples of Challenge Based Learning from DCU Futures programmes or click the image opposite.
Innovative module transforms DCU Futures Bioprocessing students into brewing entrepreneurs. This hands-on, industry-aligned module invited final-year Bioprocessing students to tackle real-world product development by designing, brewing, testing, and pitching novel fermented beverages.
DCU's Business School Bachelor in Digital Business and Innovation students engaged with Uisce Éireann to address key customer experience challenges. The process combined collaborative research, stakeholder engagement, and solution development, where students studied a business challenge in depth to create innovative, implementable solutions.
Dublin City University's Schools of Biotechnology and Chemical Sciences have brought together students to complete an innovative Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) module that bridges the gap between academic learning and real-world sustainability challenges.
Programmes implementing the DCU Futures philosophy utilize authentic, digital assessment methods including e-portfolios, multimedia presentations, collaborative projects, and interactive orals. These assessment approaches develop skills transferable to professional contexts while maintaining academic integrity.