The 7th annual Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) conference took place on-site at EHL Hospitality Business School on February 4, 2025. The theme for this event was the inclusion of many versions of partnerships in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) that contribute to student success. The partnerships could be faculty-student, faculty-faculty, or faculty-technology. As no man (or woman) is an island, working together is key. SoTL seemed like the ideal venue for discussing how HEI stakeholders can encourage partnerships that would improve engagement, motivation, and, potentially, academic results.
Empowering Students as Pedagogical Partners
After a few opening remarks from the organizer, Dr. Sharon Flynn from the University of Galway gave the keynote address entitled "Students as Pedagogical Partners: Learnings from Two National Projects in Ireland". With over 27 years of experience working in higher education in Ireland, Sharon is currently the National Coordinator of the ambitious N-TUTORR program, an innovative collaboration across the technological higher education sector to transform the student experience. Between 2019 and 2022, she was the project manager of the Enhancing Digital Teaching and Learning (EDTL) project, working with senior academic leaders across seven universities in the Irish Universities Association.
In her session, Sharon shared details of the projects that emphasized the two roles students play as pedagogical partners: Student Interns/Student Champions and 'Students as Partners in the Innovation and Change Fellowship Program'.
The first role in her EDTL project was the initiation of student interns as part of the partnership process. These 6-month paid internship positions allow students to make a real difference as they are full members of the project team, not simply workers doing administrative tasks. In the most recent project, similar to student interns, Sharon explained the concept of 'Student Champions'. This role, too, is a paid position where the students are members of the team who liaise with student groups, run student-led social media, and support activities.
The second initiative that Sharon presented was the 'Students as Partners in Innovation and Change Fellowship Program'. In this innovative project, students (minimum 2) and faculty members (minimum 1) collaborate on drafting project proposals suggested by either stakeholder and focusing on one of the six pillars. In phase one, 130 projects were chosen and funded at €5,000 each. As Sharon continued, many participants in the session started to wonder if they could set up similar partnerships in their own HEIs. What an enriching start to our SoTL day.
Rethinking Student Feedback
The next session was presented by Dr. Sebastien Fernandez, a SoTL aficionado and Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior. He is part of the team of peer pedagogical coaches at EHL and is keen on developing new pedagogical approaches in his teaching. He intrigued us again this year with a session with a provocative title, "And what if we SIMPLY stopped listening to students?". Yet, we soon learned that moving one word changes the sense of the presentation. As he spoke, we understood what he meant.
Imagine if the title read: "What if we stopped SIMPLY listening to students?" This, of course, has another meaning. To expand on these titles, Sebastien focused on one typical way we listen to students, i.e., the infamous student evaluation on teaching (SET). In this session, the participants chose between four approaches to gauge student feedback that were more participative in nature: Brainstorming, Nominal Focus Groups, Student Evaluation Team Focus Groups, and 'Targeted' Focus Groups. In small groups, we discussed which of the four methods would be most relevant and how to implement them in our courses.
Adapting Teaching Strategies for Gen Z and Alpha
The third session, “Facing the Challenges of Teaching Generations Z and Alpha,” focused on how faculty members and academic staff could adapt our teaching and interactions based on the generations in our HEIs. Ms. Gaby Probst, the head of pedagogical development at the School of Management in Fribourg, led this session.
She began by summarizing the potential generational differences regarding how we learn and, subsequently, how we teach. She also introduced two ways of learning: Analogue-based learning, which is predominantly paper-based, and traditional versus technology-based learning, which is more interactive and includes the use of technological tools.
Each participant shared how they preferred to learn when they were in HEIs. After all, we tend to teach the way we like to learn. Then, participants tried to identify what this current generation, and those that will follow, needs. Discussing these differences in small groups and what we could do to reduce the gap was fascinating.
Building a Peer Coaching Culture
The first session after lunch, entitled "A Recipe for Success: Develop your Peer Coaching System," was led by Ms. Karen Earl Erpelding. Karen obtained a Masters in Educational Psychology in 2021 and the HES-SO Pedagogical Counselor certification in 2024. She has been part of EHL's pedagogical Peer Coach (PPC) program and has actively supported numerous colleagues in their teaching adventures since then.
Her presentation for SoTL began with the differentiation between a Peer Pedagogical Coach and a Pedagogical Counsellor. The most significant difference is accountability; PPCs do not judge; they do not evaluate; instead, their sole goal is to help colleagues who would like help to improve their teaching and learning. Participants were given pedagogical scenarios and asked to imagine what they would do if faced with the same situations. This led to animated discussions! Who knew pedagogical scenarios could be so inspiring?
Exploring GenAI for Teaching and Learning
Following the partnership with peers, Dr. Guillaume Tschupp shared his expertise working with an innovative partner, Generative AI in HEIs. Dr. Tschupp is a lecturer at the Haute École Pédagogique du Valais, specializing in digital education and e-learning. He explores the potential of artificial intelligence to support teachers, engage students, and enhance pedagogical practices. Guillaume is dedicated to providing practical and accessible ideas to address the challenges of modern education.
In this session, he began with a brief demo of what is possible, showcasing some of the tools he has used that work well and add pedagogical value. After that, Guillaume guided participants through a few hands-on tests, during which they experimented with some of the methods presented. Nonetheless, he also pointed out the potential academic integrity issues and how they can be addressed. Finally, Guillaume wrapped up by facilitating a short discussion on the potential of using these tools in HEIs in the future. Don't forget: AI is an aide, not a replacement.
Investigating GenAI in Academic Writing
Dr. Laura Zizka presented the final session. As a Peer Pedagogical Coach, she conducts seminars and workshops on teaching and learning topics with students and staff. Thus, in this session, Laura offered an example of the most traditional SoTL application that included an in-class activity leading to several academic publications.
She demonstrated how a question in teaching or learning can culminate in contribution(s) to the extant literature. Her project investigated the potential pitfalls of using Generative AI in academic writing. Her findings complemented the previous session, where Guillaume presented the tools that could be used (if used effectively). In her classroom activity, Laura aimed to show students how a Generative AI like ChatGPT works and how to analyze the output.
Participants were asked to run the same prompt and then compare their output with others. They found the same or similar ideas and, often, the same references. This confirmed that students who only look at their own output could be led to believe that it is 'good enough' when, in fact, it is (too) similar to the work of their fellow students who enter the same prompt into the same Generative AI. What an eye-opener!
SoTL: A Continuous Journey of Inquiry and Exchange
At the end of the day, the core question for SoTL participants remains: What problem/issues/questions have I identified in teaching or learning that can be investigated and elaborated upon for a SoTL project? To conclude, whether we are discussing current teaching and learning practices or future teaching and learning practices, the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning conference will continue to be a venue for exchange and sharing. If you are interested in teaching and learning, would like to share best practices or your most significant concerns, or would like to meet some of the most remarkable faculty members ever, come and join us in February 2026 for our next conference.
