VIP Approach at the University of Strathclyde: A Pilot Evaluation Report 2015-16

The potential for enhanced knowledge creation through collaborative group effort has been reasonably well established within educational discourse. This stands in direct contrast to former traditional models, where knowledge was treated as a transmitted commodity from ‘expert’ to ‘student’. Such transmission models have long been viewed as broadly ineffectual, especially as regards the teaching of primary Science, Technologies, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM) subjects. The Vertically Integrated Project (VIP) approach may offer pedagogical advancement in terms of STEM teaching and learning in Higher Education (HE). Established within the University of Strathclyde some five years ago, an initial University-wide evaluation of the programme was piloted in Session 2015-16. Students’ perceptions of their participation in VIP generally very positively reported within the pilot evaluation. Key messages centred on students’ perceptions of the benefit of participation in the unique collaborative real-world study afforded by the VIP approach and their desire for the programme architecture to expand even further both laterally and vertically across the University.