Rediscovering Practice and Inquiry in Academic Education: Experiences in a European University Environment

Abstract: I describe the design and implementation of a series of university MSc courses in Switzerland and in Italy on the topic of Cosmic Structure Formation whose goal has been to provide to the students a formative experience using interwoven research practice and fundamental scientific content. The course educational framework, which is based on the ISEE Inquiry Framework, emphasizes science, as much in teaching as in research, as a set of practices, rediscovering and actualizing in modern terms the original pivotal role which these practices had in education in ancient times. In particular, the courses focus on formative, intuitive, student-centered and dialogic learning in opposition to the informative, mnemonic, teacher-centered and monologic teaching of frontal lecture based instruction, which is still the dominant teaching framework in university education, at least in Europe. I describe how course activities are designed in such a way as to mirror authentic research, including all aspects which are usually not practiced in lecture-based courses and standard laboratories (e.g., generating and refining questions; making and testing assumptions; developing one's own research path; and sharing, explaining and justifying ideas and results with peers). Finally, I discuss the major outcomes of the courses and the main challenges which were faced in order to provide to the students a truly transformative experience which could allow them to improve both as learners and future scientific researchers, as well as members of a larger community.