Rigour and stretch refers to how the curriculum, pedagogy and assessment stretch students to develop independence, knowledge and skills that reflect their potential.
Engaging students in research is one of the key ways that Northumbria promotes rigour and stretch in the curriculum. Northumbria’s Research Rich Learning Policy is explained in the video below:
Northumbria is committed to integrating research into teaching from the foundation year right through to postgraduate study.
Developing a research rich curriculum has the potential to transform the way students engage with learning, by involving them actively as co-creators of knowledge. It can develop students’ critical curiosity in learning, rather than encouraging them to be passive consumers of knowledge. It also helps them to develop independence and autonomy, and skills in collaborative learning and leadership. All of these skills are central to Northumbria’s Graduate Attributes.
These skills should be developed incrementally, starting with the foundation year and moving into level 4 teaching. All Northumbria academics need to consider how research-rich learning is embedded in modules and across programmes as part of the approval process.
Northumbria’s Research Rich Learning Policy describes the different ways that research is integrated into teaching at Northumbria, to engage students actively with learning, from the first year through to postgraduate study.
Please click on the links below to find:
Examples of Research Rich Learning
The Teaching Quality Enhancement Fund (TQEF) has many examples of pedagogical research supported at Northumbria University, including projects engaging students with research.
Research Rich teaching can also be more rewarding for academics, because students start to become active partners in their research, and can start to contribute to the development of knowledge. Your approach will be influenced by the discipline you teach. However, research-rich learning can be as effective in professional disciplines like architecture and design, as in more traditional humanities and social science disciplines.
