I definitely feel that we have to change that mind set among lecturers where it exists. However, it may only be a matter of degree or the way these things are conceptualised rather than a major shift. For a start, there is a tendency to talk about ‘skills’ but I think the language of skills can be misleading; what we are really talking about is understanding.
With regard to the difference between part-time and full-time students, my experience is that the part-time students are older and this makes a difference in how they approach learning. If I can generalise they are easier to teach because they are much more active as learners – they turn up, they ask questions, they are responsive, they think more about how they go about learning; and they are more tolerant of ambiguity or contradiction. All these things Gibbs talks about. Of course many full-time students are like this too! There is also a broader point about the NSS. Why is it that some students are satisfied with a course; and other students who take the same course are not satisfied? Could it be related to something about the way that some students are approaching learning? There is a feeling that some students don’t take up the opportunities that are available to them; or they don’t “get” what it is all about, so there is a tendency to avoid responsibility for their own learning.
