The opening of the new academic year will focus on innovations in education at the UT. From day one, the first year students will follow their programme of courses in the form of the Twente Educational Model (TOM). The generation of young people who now stand at the gates of higher education is more diverse than ever. Their lifestyle and the way they handle information are totally different from that of previous generations. The future student will have a wider variety of different jobs during his career and will then tackle challenges which we now don't even know exist. Moreover, academic knowledge is updating itself faster than ever. To prepare students for the future, the UT is changing course.
The Twente Educational Model focuses on active teaching methods and the self-acquisition of knowledge. By working on projects, students from different disciplines work together. They are the academics of the future and have the skills of a researcher, designer and organizer. Thus, as researchers, they must to be able to critically evaluate existing knowledge and to contribute to the development of new knowledge. As designers, they must be able to integrate scientific knowledge and develop new solutions to complex problems. And, as organizers, they must be able to implement new solutions in a complex social environment.
"Technology and society are evolving faster than ever, we need to anticipate this as a university. We do this with the TOM, by which we educate the problem solvers of the future according to an entirely new concept. The ideas of TOM are closely connected to speaker Prof. David E. Goldberg, emeritus professor of computer sciences at the University of Illinois. He is one of the founders of the Big Beacon Movement and will present, during the opening of the academic year, his vision for transforming education. He is a tireless advocate of innovation in education and is involved with many universities worldwide in the renewal of educational programs, especially engineering courses," according to Rector Brinksma. Goldberg also calls for passion, courage, creativity and initiative from students. That is what they will need to keep themselves afloat in the future and to take into account the necessary changes in the world.
TOM outcome in Electrical Engineering
The first results of the pilot project in Electrical Engineering of the past year illustrate that the TOM education concept works well. It appears that nearly 80% of students passed their first year in one go. This is more than doubled compared to previous years. "You choose for this study programme and then you really go for it. The study is tough, but doable, because subjects are combined and it is more practically oriented," says Pascale van de Ven. She obtained her first year certificate in one year.
University College ATLAS
Top-quality students with a wide range of interests are welcome at the Academy of Technology and Liberal Arts & Sciences (ATLAS), the University College of the UT. This study programme focuses pre-eminently on grooming students for changes in the future. "Our students want to make a difference, to contribute to the changing world, and ATLAS prepares them for that," said Prof. Jennifer Herek, Dean of ATLAS. In this program for selected top students, combining social issues with the latest technical possibilities is the central theme. Students work in teams on large projects in which 'learning and doing' go hand in hand. In this way, students become better researchers, designers and organizers and they learn to communicate effectively across the boundaries of disciplines. Thirty enthusiastic students are the pioneers in a new, intensive programme which trains them to be Goldberg's 'new engineers.'
This afternoon at 1:45 pm, Rector Prof. H. Brinksma will open the academic year, according to tradition, in the Enschede Muziekcentrum. The awarding of the graduation prizes and the central education prize are on the program along with the newest presentation of the Research Honours Twente Graduate School Award. Prof. David Goldberg of the University of Illinois will give the lecture entitled: Emotional Rescue of the University, Surprising Ideas for Moving beyond a Culture of Isolated Understanding. The music is in the hands of the Twente Student Wind Orchestra. More information.
