Exploring synergies between learning and teaching in engineering : a case study approach

Understanding how we take in, process and present information as part of the learning process, provides clues on how specific teaching methods can be utilised to maximize learning. The literature suggests that a mismatch between learning styles or preferences and teaching styles and approaches may present a barrier to learning and contribute to attrition. This paper presents some early findings of an ALTC Associate Fellowship program, involving three universities, which uses a case study approach to explore the interactions between students’ learning styles on the one hand, and lecturers’ teaching styles, goals and philosophies, on the other. The paper also initiates discussions on how teaching approaches may be tailored to address the diversity of students’ learning styles over the duration of the engineering program, to enhance their learning experience and outcomes.