The student as producer: learning by doing research

Abstract

The idea of encouraging students to engage in research activity, becoming ‘knowledge producers’ rather than consumers of an educational ‘product’, is central to a number of recent initiatives aimed at tackling the historic dichotomy between research and teaching in higher education. This chapter examines the development of research-based learning in higher education and analyses the experience of one university which has introduced a research bursary scheme for undergraduate students. This case study is used to identify the implications of research-based learning for the practice of Learning Development. This chapter also identifies the key issues students doing research will need to become familiar with, including methods of collecting and analysing data, and an understanding of the nature of research within the context of their discipline