Contents
Presenter
Suyin Haynes – Lecturer, Journalism
Talk
This lightning talk will explore practical approaches to module co-design evidenced through a new MA Journalism module launched this year, titled Reporting Identity and Underrepresented Communities.
In Teaching to Transgress (1994), bell hooks wrote: ”When I teach, I encourage my students to critique, evaluate, make suggestions and interventions as we go along […] the important lesson that we learn together[…] is one of mutual engagement.” Given the drastically decreasing levels of student
motivation and engagement (Williams, 2022), and the still-emerging impacts of Covid-19 on student wellbeing, the above philosophy of radical pedagogy has never been more urgent.
The praxis curriculum paradigm emphasises human emancipation through critical pedagogy (Freire, 1970; hooks, 1994; Warren, 2016). This lightning talk will look at practical applications of this paradigm in a case study of co-creation in the journalism department in Spring Term 2025. The module in question was titled Reporting Identity and Underrepresented Communities and was taught on the MA Journalism course for one term. It was proposed, designed and developed in collaboration with students at several key points, including:
- Alumni consultation and input on curriculum proposal, overview and session breakdown, with reference to the ladder of participation principles (Arnstein, 1969)
- Co-created reading list in collaboration with students taking the module, indicating a practical application of decolonial praxis (Bhambra, Gebrial, and Nişancıoğlu, 2018; Schucan Bird and Pitman 2019)
- A student-created module manifesto, demonstrating anti-oppressive pedagogy (Cullen, Kurchik and Scoles, 2024; Fahs, 2019)
- Co-created assessment criteria through discursive and polling techniques, showing how this can activate students’ learning strategies and involve them in the academic community of practice (Fraile, Panadero and Pardo, 2017; Meer and Chapman, 2016)
Incorporating qualitative evidence and reflection from students, this talk will show the benefits of applied radical pedagogy in co-creational module design practice to engage and motivate students, to encourage them to see themselves as stakeholders in their own learning, and to empower them as active agents for change beyond the classroom.
References
Arnstein, S. (1969). ‘A Ladder Of Citizen Participation.’ Journal of the American Institute of Planners, 35:4, 216-224.
Bhambra, Gurminder K., Gebrial, D., and Nişancıoğlu, K. (2018). Decolonising the University, Pluto Press.
Cullen, C., Kurchik, M., and Scoles, J., (6 December 2024). ’An Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching Manifesto.’ The University of Edinburgh [Online, accessed 9 April 2025]. https://blogs.ed.ac.uk/teaching-matters/an-interdisciplinary-learning-and-teaching-manifesto/
hooks, b. (1994). Teaching to Transgress: Education as the practice of freedom, Routledge.
Fraile, J., Panadero, E., and Pardo, R. (2017). ’Co-creating rubrics: The effects on self-regulated learning, self-efficacy and performance of establishing assessment criteria with students.‘ Studies In Educational Evaluation. 53. 69-76.
Fahs, B. (2019). ’Writing with Blood: The Transformative Pedagogy of Teaching Students to Write Manifestos.‘ Radical Teacher, 115, 33–38.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Seabury Press.
Meer, N. and Chapman, A. (2015). ‘Co-creation of Marking Criteria: Students as Partners in the Assessment Process.’ Business and Management Education in HE, 1–15.
Schucan Bird, K. and Pitman, L. (November 2019). How diverse is your reading list? Exploring issues of representation and decolonisation in the UK, Higher Education
Warren, D. (2016). Course and learning design and evaluation, in Pokorny H and Warren D (2016) (Editors) Enhancing Teaching Practice in Higher Education.
Williams, T. (9 June 2022). ‘Class attendance plumets post-Covid’. Times Higher Education. [Online, accessed 9 April 2025] https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/class-attendance-plummetspost-covi
