Renewing the Trinity Education
Posted on: 07 April 2016
A University-wide project to renew and refresh Trinity’s education provision is underway. The Trinity Education Project is one of the central initiatives of the Strategic Plan 2014-19. Its overall purpose is to ensure that the undergraduate curriculum is developed in such a way that enhances Trinity’s reputation for excellence. The focus is on delivering first-class programmes and a distinctive student experience, and equipping our graduates with skills that enable them to be career ready.
“The current plan is to renew and refresh our education. We need to think about how best to teach our students in a period where technology is yielding a diverse range of learning and teaching methods. We also need to think about the architecture and content of our programmes, about how we can create more opportunities for student engagement with industry, business and cultural institutions and about how and when we assess our students”, explained Professor Linda Hogan, Vice-Provost/Chief Academic Officer, and sponsor of the Trinity Education Project.
“We have begun the process of renewing the Trinity education in order to take account of the transformational changes that have occurred in higher education internationally but also to ensure that Trinity’s reputation for excellence is maintained and enhanced in the decades to come. This project is not about saving money nor reducing the range of subjects on offer. First and foremost, it is about the students and the quality of education we offer. Trinity has always made changes to ensure that we are at the frontiers of learning and the current plan to renew our education is part of that tradition,” the Vice-Provost continued.
The project is led by the Vice-Provost/Chief Academic Officer and was preceded by a phase of extensive research on the best educational programmes internationally. The work has been benchmarked against similar reform programmes in peer universities and our existing programmes have been reviewed by panels of leading academics from around the world. The project is structured around seven strands each of which has representation from across the campus. The strands are focused on stakeholder management and communications; curriculum principles and architecture; assessment; internships and study abroad; technology enhanced learning; learning spaces; and differentiation and positioning.
A series of themed fora have been running since January as part of the project’s six month College-wide consultation on specific critical themes. These sessions have generated much discussion and valuable feedback. Video clips on the Assessment and Learning Spaces strand fora, as well as a project overview, may be viewed here and other updates will be added as the project progresses. In addition, the Senior Lecturer, Dr Gillian Martin and Project Manager, Fedelma McNamara have visited all of the Schools as part of the consultation process.
Trinity’s education is already rooted in a curriculum inspired by current research and scholarship. Our programmes combine disciplinary expertise with the acquisition of a broad range of critical skill and this change initiative seeks to build on the excellent work already being done throughout the University, whilst looking to the future to meet new opportunities and challenges.
To find out more about the Trinity Education Project, and dates of the remaining fora, please visit the website.