The Graduating Project: A Cross-Disciplinary Inquiry-Based Capstone in Arts

Abstract Australian academics and students are discovering the value of final-year capstone units. Often designed as inquiry-based projects, capstones can engage students in authentic work that interests them personally, while building on their disciplinary knowledge and graduate capabilities. However, for some academics dealing with less academically accomplished students, the focus on student-directed activity that is inherent in inquiry-based learning can be a cause of concern. The cross-disciplinary inquiry-based capstone in Arts at an Australian university discussed in this chapter should allay some of those concerns. The cohort at this university includes a high proportion of non-traditional and first in the family students, many from non-English speaking backgrounds. The success of this capstone stems from student teams selecting and designing their own projects, often drawing on knowledge(s) and concerns relevant to their own diverse communities. The flexible framework and guided inquiry approach sees tutors step back – becoming facilitators rather than experts – and this in turn builds students’ confidence in their capacity to plan and execute their projects. The range and quality of student projects carried out in this capstone (many of which involve close links with local communities and advocacy organisations) attest to the value of cross-disciplinary, inquiry-based and student-managed capstone units.

[1]  Philippa Levy,et al.  How do first-year university students experience inquiry and research, and what are the implications for the practice of inquiry-based learning? , 2012 .

[2]  C. Hmelo‐Silver,et al.  Scaffolding and Achievement in Problem-Based and Inquiry Learning: A Response to Kirschner, Sweller, and Clark (2006) , 2007 .

[3]  Hasan Tinmaz,et al.  Implementing Project-Based Learning And E-Portfolio Assessment In an Undergraduate Course , 2006 .

[4]  Janis Bailey,et al.  Capping them off! Exploring and explaining the patterns in undergraduate capstone subjects in Australian business schools , 2014 .

[5]  William Heard Kilpatrick,et al.  The Project Method , 1918, Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education.

[6]  Nicolette Lee.  Design as a learning cycle: a conversational experience , 2006 .

[7]  John B. Biggs,et al.  Teaching for Quality Learning at University: What the Student Does , 1999 .

[8]  Lynn Clouder.  ‘Being responsible’: students’ perspectives on trust, risk and work-based learning , 2009 .

[9]  S. Kift,et al.  Capstones : transitions and professional identity , 2011 .

[10]  Ronda M. Smith-Nelson,et al.  Educating for an Entrepreneurial Career: Developing Opportunity- Recognition Ability , 2011 .

[11]  Thomas A. Angelo,et al.  Enablers and constraints to the use of inquiry-based learning in undergraduate education , 2011 .

[12]  Carol Collier Kuhlthau,et al.  Guided Inquiry: Learning in the 21st Century , 2007 .

[13]  L. Helle,et al.  Project-Based Learning in Post-Secondary Education – Theory, Practice and Rubber Sling Shots , 2006 .

[14]  M. Healey.  Linking research and teaching: exploring disciplinary spaces and the role of inquiry-based learning , 2005 .

[15]  Richard E. Clark,et al.  Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching , 2006 .

[16]  Ronald Barnett,et al.  Supercomplexity and the Curriculum , 2000 .

[17]  Rachael M. Field,et al.  Curriculum renewal in legal education , 2013 .

[18]  Nicolette Lee,et al.  Project methods as the vehicle for learning in undergraduate design education: a typology , 2009 .

[19]  Carolin Kreber.  The University and its Disciplines: Teaching and Learning within and beyond disciplinary boundaries , 2008 .

[20]  S. Kift,et al.  Transition pedagogy: A third generation approach to FYE - A case study of policy and practice for the higher education sector , 2010 .