Education style

Common educational principles of core courses

40-45 hours of teaching, including guest lectures by visiting researchers and practitioners, as well as field visits.

The courses offered reflect the research undertaken by researchers at the university.

1200 pages curriculum of mainly academic literature, but should also include specific and up to date policy reports and other case material to be used in exams. Maximum 300 pages can be non-academic literature.

Three building blocks: 1) Classroom (20 hours), 2) Practice (10 hours) and 3) Dialogue (10 hours) (see explanation further below).

Interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary structure.

Integrated use of methodology and methods as part of practical elements.

Clear orientation towards current and future context of the West Nordic Region, including governance and sustainability.

Combination of written and oral exams.
 

The three common educational building blocks of core courses

Classroom (20 hours): This is the traditional type of teaching and class discussion of a fixed curriculum to be read in advance of classes. Classroom teaching will introduce different topics, but most importantly will be used to reflect upon and discuss the other activities such as guest lectures and field visits to lift these activities to a higher academic and analytical level. 
 

Practice (10 hours): This type of activity can be any kind of practical experience with the specific topics that are part of the course. It can be writing a blog, making (YouTube) videos, posters, public speaking, analyses for newspapers, or a radio programme about the different topics (cf. portfolio teaching and examination). Preparation time is allocated as part of the course and supervision is provided for by the teacher. It can be any kind of dissemination or work with new knowledge gained through own interviews or observations. Research design, methodology and methods discussions are central to this building block. The lecturer functions more as a supervisor than a teacher
 

Dialogue (10 hours): This block refers to activities where teachers and students engage in dialogue with society, e.g. political, business, and civil society actors. It is envisaged that students help prepare these dialogue meetings and also present problems and challenges learned in class and initiate dialogue with the practitioners. Afterwards, in the classroom and in practical activities teachers and students reflect on the dialogue activity and include these reflections in the final examination.