How can a 'Sense of Belonging' inform your teaching strategy? Reflections from a core Business unit

Abstract

This paper reflects on how a ‘sense of belonging’ is cultivated for both the teaching team and the students in a large, core first year Business unit. In the Innovative Business Practice (IBP) unit students develop their personal brand and professional identity through strength-based science, and also pitch creative solutions to social problems. This cross-disciplinary unit is taught using an activity-based approach. The team of tutors are being trained as facilitators which creates a sense of belonging and community within the teaching team. A blended delivery approach utilising Crowdicity, idea management software, facilitates networked learning, and helps students develop their digital skills as well as interact with one another, the teaching team and industry experts.

Keywords

• belonging
• blended delivery
• networked learning
• first-year students