Do university students fake learning? Notes from the field on student learning and engagement as a performative practice

Bidragets oversatte titel: Faker universitetsstuderende læring?

Laura Louise Sarauw*, Jan Thorhauge Frederiksen

*Corresponding author

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningpeer review

Abstract

Student-centered approaches to teaching and learning in higher education place strong emphasis on active engagement as crucial to successful learning. However, recent research has uncovered instances where students feign or simulate their engagement – essentially 'faking' the academic participation they believe educators expect. In this exploration, we delve into whether the student-centered ideal of participatory, embodied, and emotionally driven engagement inadvertently fosters 'fake learning'. Drawing on theories of performativity, we critically examine Macfarlane's (2021) binary understanding of 'fake learning', challenging the assumption that mere outward conformity to educator expectations necessarily contradicts genuine learning experiences. The following insights stem from a thought-provoking workshop centered on the theme of 'fake learning' in higher education. They are presented not as a linear argument but as a mosaic of voices, with only a select few representing our own research perspectives. By framing these perspectives as field notes, rather than a classic linear argument ending with a synthesis, we aim to highlight the diverse, sometimes contradictory, viewpoints surrounding learning and engagement as performative practices in contemporary higher education.Keywords: student engagement; performativity; fake learning Received 4 April 2024; revised version received 25 November 2024; accepted 2December 2024. Corresponding author: Laura Louise Sarauw, Roskilde University, Denmark. ([email protected]) Entry 1: A many-faceted inquiry·The aim of these notes is to encourage further critical inquiry into the student-centred approach to teaching and learning in higher education. There is currently an ongoing concern that students may at times simulate the level of active engagement anticipated by their educators. This raises the important question of whether this simulation aligns with the desired educational principles and norms,
Bidragets oversatte titelFaker universitetsstuderende læring?
OriginalsprogEngelsk
Artikelnummer6
TidsskriftJournal of Praxis in Higher Education
Vol/bind6
Udgave nummer5
Sider (fra-til)146-163
Antal sider18
ISSN2003-3605
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 18 dec. 2024

Emneord

  • Fake learning
  • Performativity
  • Students
  • Higher Education
  • student-centred education

Citer dette