The emphasis of generic transferable skills in the workplace and demand from Generation Y students is a catalyst for promoting teaching to achieve outcomes, said Dr Joseph Luca, visiting CDU Alice Springs Campus from Edith Cowan University yesterday (21 November).
Associate Professor of School of Communication and Contemporary Arts, Dr Luca presented a lecture detailing the use of new technologies in teaching and examining the move towards a more interactive learning and student-responsible environment within the university sector.
He is also Director of the CREATEC (The Centre for Research in Entertainment, Arts, Technology, Education and Communications), part of Edith Cowan University.
Dr Luca’s presentation discussed methods to improve the process of teaching and learning by creating environments that help build core employability skills demanded by industry.
Authenticity and engagement were two key concepts of successfully teaching Generation X students, he said.
‘The younger students coming into our lectures really don’t want to sit down for an hour,’ he said. ‘They want to be able to question, share ideas, negotiate and be involved and this means didactic teaching is not as effective anymore.'
Podcasting, RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and blogs were also covered to highlight their use as influential communication tools.
Dr Luca will also be presenting various seminars in Darwin later this week.