Exploring the teaching environment in a higher education geoscience programme

Abstract

This paper explores the teaching environment among the teaching staff in thegeoscience programme at UiT The Arctic University of Norway. The findings in this paper are based on a large baseline study conducted in 2018. This paper operationalises the teaching culture by analysing the teachers’ ideas, collaborations, and attitudes towards teaching. In-depth interviews with selected teachers provide insights into the individual teacher’s conceptions of teaching and teaching experience in the department. The study focusses on how the teaching environment is constructed and perceived in the department. Teachers’ tacit or implied notions influence the teaching environment, and we explore how this becomes visible, at one specific department. Combining survey data and interviews provides insights into the structures and culture in the department. We show that a supportive teaching environment has been established at the department. The teachers often discuss teaching and alignment of courses. However, most of the discussions are limited to small sub-disciplinary groups within thedepartment. This creates a barrier for discussing teaching and alignment of courses across thecurriculum. The analysis also shows that the teachers receive little feedback on their teaching. The paper further discusses how the department can use the existing structures to improve theteaching environment, the culture for feedback and alignment of courses in the programme