Book Overview
Released in February 2025 the contemporary and insightful text “Teaching and Learning with Innovative Technology in Higher Education: Real Life Case Studies” edited by Roushan, Polkinghorne and Patel, draws together a range of examples of practice representative of disciplines across the Higher Education landscape.
Organised into seven chapters, totalling 32 case studies, the book elaborates on key topics pertinent to the sector including, for example, equity and student experience within a rapidly evolving environment. The book is framed in the challenging economic climate Higher Education has found itself in since the COVID-19 epidemic. From initial struggles it shows how academics have overcome these challenges to deliver world class teaching and learning for their students through the use of innovative and relevant technologies.
In the introduction the editors neatly summarise each chapter and subsequent set of case studies which aids readers in identifying applicable content for their own practice. For example, in Chapter 2, Case Study 2.1 advocates active digital engagement for online learning and in Chapter 3, Case Study 3.5 the development of solutions to help re‑engage students who have low attainment, sharing techniques to support students around issues of attendance. These provide the reader with insights into how to develop their own strategies to address issues affecting all Higher Education through innovative technological approaches. In a threefold approach, as well as embracing the different subject disciplines and secondly themes, it also addresses specific inclusive tools and techniques to undertake this enterprise, which in turn can support student success and belonging.
Case Study Summary
To illustrate this further, our case study ‘Enhancing the Student Experience with Technological Added Value’ (6.4) embraces all three of these elements. In Higher Education the use of technology is promoted heavily, we initially consider, perhaps in a controversial way the overuse of technology and student disengagement with gimmicky approaches through the inclusion of technology. For example, the overuse of quizzes or the use of QR codes in class to access key learning materials. Keen to support interactive relationships with our students and their learning, we focus on how technology can support applied learning and provide career readiness. As such the example we draw upon is specific to the subject discipline of Computing and uses Tinkercad to provide skills and knowledge that will be vital to graduates in their aspirations in regards employability. Tinkercad can be used to rapidly prototype electronic circuits as well as 3D models. This is essential when companies are looking to bring products to market quickly and at low overall cost, whilst ensuring quality is assured. For example, a student could use this technology to make an automated plant watering system for when people are away on holiday or automating and modernising older industrial machinery at low cost without the need to replace existing equipment. These are key skills and attributes that we teach on the BSc Computer Science course - https://www.shu.ac.uk/courses/computing/bsc-honours-computer-science/full-time. The chapter ends with the approach of academics using technology mindfully and using the ’right tool for the job’!
Concluding Comments
We hope you find this blog and related book useful in the development of your own practice. How will you try to mindfully apply innovative technology to your own teaching and specialisms? We share this as an example of application and good practice with you to also model a collaborative approach between colleges, institutes and schools. What could you do to collaborate outside of your own work area to advance the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)?
Link to chapter and book
eBook - https://tinyurl.com/ybtrhvsb
eChapter - https://tinyurl.com/368spanf
Author Details
M.Marriott@shu.ac.uk – Course Leader, School of Computing and Digital Technologies, College of Business, Technology and Engineering, Sheffield Hallam University
a.kellock@shu.ac.uk – Associate Head, Sheffield Institute of Education, College of Social Sciences and Arts, Sheffield Hallam University
