Scholarship at Work at UWA

The following is an exploration of Boyer’s concept of scholarship applied to different roles in UWA. It is not intended to be exhaustive.

Teachers

The Scholarship of Discovery

• Modelling the excitement of the discovery of new knowledge in the discipline
• Fostering a sense of excitement in students about learning something new
• Providing opportunities for students to engage in acts of discovery though a variety of learning activities
• Engaging in action research into one’s own teaching

The Scholarship of Integration

• Making connections, and encouraging students to make connections, across disciplines
• Providing a context for specialist knowledge
• Encouraging students to give meaning to facts by through integration, analysis, and interpretation
• Integrating theory, processes and techniques from education, psychology, management, etc. in one’s own teaching

The Scholarship of Application

• Providing opportunities for students to apply theory, to practice methods or to solve problems
• Encouraging application in ‘genuine’ learning activities, e.g. through projects based in the workplace or in the wider community
• Encourage responsible and ethical application of knowledge in society and the environment
• Applying learning theory to lectures, tutorials and labs in one’s own teaching

The Scholarship of Teaching

• Transforming and extending knowledge rather than just transmitting knowledge
• Promoting active learning by providing opportunities to discover, integrate and apply knowledge and processes
• Fostering students’ ability to learn how to learn
• Modelling problem-solving processes and critical thinking and reading strategies relevant to the discipline
• Recognising ‘teaching and learning’ as an area of scholarship in its own right, worthy of research and publication

Students

The Scholarship of Discovery

• Actively searching for new knowledge through participation in traditional learning activities
• Developing strategies to learn and understand
• Producing original pieces of work for assignments
• Getting to know the university system

The Scholarship of Integration

• Assimilating and accommodating new knowledge
• Striving to understand the whole rather than the parts of a field
• Thinking deeply and discussing with friends about different fields/subjects to find relevant relationships
• Incorporating university life with ‘other’ life

The Scholarship of Application

• Using new knowledge to solve problems outside of the discipline
• Applying new knowledge to solve real-life problems
• Doing community work within and outside the university, based on knowledge acquired through discovery learning
• Contributing to the quality of university life for all students

The Scholarship of Teaching

• Helping fellow students to understand subject matter during and outside of classes
• Facilitating better understanding of student needs among staff through discussions
• Providing feedback to UWA’s teaching and learning
• Explaining the University system to those outside UWA

Researchers

The Scholarship of Discovery

• Selecting areas previously not ‘discovered’ i.e. not published to the best of the researcher’s knowledge, in search of new knowledge
• Formulating a hypothesis to test
• Devising methods to obtain a deeper insight of the chosen field
• Deriving/modifying a theory based on research outcomes
• Pursuing the natural curiosity present in human beings and extending it

The Scholarship of Integration

• Finding relationship between one’s own field of work and those of others
• Collaborating with others in similar fields as well as those not traditionally associated
• Developing a holistic approach to research
• Relating the meaning of new discovery to previous knowledge

The Scholarship of Application

• Choosing areas of research that are of concern to the wider community
• Using new knowledge to solve problems in the human community
• Developing theories from application that can form a basis for further research

The Scholarship of Teaching

• Critically discussing research methods with colleagues
• Facilitating the development of research students’ ability to become independent scholars
• Training technical staff to use new methodology
• Disseminating new knowledge through seminars, conferences, publications, etc.

General Staff

The Scholarship of Discovery

• Researching one’s own or group work practices and seeking better ways of doing things
• Experimenting with new procedures, programs, time-frames and forms
• Seeking feedback from other staff, supervisors, students and clients on practices and approaches
• Contributing to the body of knowledge in one’s profession though seminars and conferences and through publication

The Scholarship of Integration

• Understanding how one’s tasks, job, section, department and faculty fit into the larger picture of the University’s mission and objectives
• Establishing links across departments and with colleagues in similar positions in order to solve problems Gathering and interpreting information about ‘best practice’ in other workplaces

The Scholarship of Application

• Applying knowledge and skills acquired though staff development, formal education and on-the-job training
• Reflecting on knowledge gained through application in order to further improve or streamline work practices
• Applying knowledge to better serve the University community

The Scholarship of Teaching

• Explaining, demonstrating or showing something to a co-worker
• Providing information to new staff, to students or to clients
• Delivering on-the-job training to individuals or groups of staff
• Contributing to the presentation of staff development workshops

Are we, all staff and students, a community of scholars?