International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
Volume 3, Number 1, January 2009
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to current issues pageEssays About SoTL
Excerpt
(Re)Considering the Scholarship of Learning: Inviting the Elephant in the Room to Tea
This essay argues that the SoT(L) field has mistakenly equated learning solely to teaching and the teaching classroom, and has systematically ignored the other moments and opportunities within higher education institutes where learning and scholarly learning occurs—particularly within academic support and development programming. Therefore, we endeavour to discuss what we see as the elephant in the SoT(L) living room—learning, scholarly learning, and the Scholarship of Learning—and examine the ways in which learning and the Scholarship of Learning can be brought back into the SoT(L) discussion through an examination of academic support and development programming. Through the creation of a new theoretical and diagrammatic SoTL framework, this essay presents a more integrated, enhanced, and expanded understanding of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, and does so to further dialogue and to recognize the Scholarship of Learning as a strong and important contribution to the SoTL literature.
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Full ArticleBios
Ashlee Cunsolo Willox
University of Guelph
Guelph, Ontario, Canada
ashlee@uoguelph.ca
I am currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Rural Studies in the School of Environmental Design and Rural Development at the University of Guelph, focusing on environmental philosophy, ecological ethics, sustainability, and the connections between humans and the more-than-human world. My other area of research is in learning theory, adult education, and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. Before beginning my Ph.D., I worked in an integrated Learning Commons at the University of Guelph for seven years—first as a student peer helper and then as professional staff—and held positions as a supplemental instruction peer helper and co-supervisor, as a writing assistant, and finally as a learning specialist. I have also had the opportunity to move into the classroom, as both a teaching assistant and a course instructor, and look forward to continuing to unite my experiences in academic support and development with the teaching classroom to inform and further student learning, pedagogy, and research.
Dale Lackeyram
University of Guelph
Guelph, Ontario, Canada
dlackeyr@uoguelph.ca
I am currently finishing a Ph.D. in Nutrition and Physiology in the department of Animal Science at the University of Guelph. Simply stated, I develop animal models to understand human disease, such as irritable bowel disease. During both my master’s and doctoral programs I have worked as a learning specialist within the Learning Commons at the University of Guelph. My personal experience as a student peer helper and then as professional staff, teaching assistant and course instructor has provided me with a glimpse into the tremendous capacity for change and improvement that learners contribute to academia. As a researcher within my discipline, I am intrigued by the reciprocity between research and learning and its capacity to inform curriculum and pedagogy.