Implementation of Educational Renewal

HAS University of Applied Sciences

HAS University of Applied Sciences is a smaller university offering a focused and socially relevant range of degree programs. As a smaller institution, it is important to remain relevant and visible to society. HAS formulated a new vision for education centered on collaboration: between the professional field, research, and education, and across academic disciplines. Flexible and adaptive education are the guiding principles. Everyone at HAS is enthusiastic. Yet it proved difficult to put this into practice. When exactly is education adaptive? What is flexible enough?

How flexible and adaptable are we?

HAS asked Turner for help in putting this educational vision into practice more quickly. A concrete ambition and a dashboard proved to be effective tools: by translating the vision into concrete outcomes and indicators, it quickly became clear exactly what adaptive and flexible education entailed, and how high HAS wanted to set the bar for itself. Progress was assessed on a number of specific aspects— —through self-assessments for faculty and staff. The goal was to initiate a dialogue about progress and the learning process itself.

Getting Started with the Work Program

It also quickly became clear what key conditions were necessary to realize the vision. Together, we put together a work plan that HAS could use to get started on its own: key “design principles” for the curriculum and an Education & Quality team to support the degree programs. This is how a learning organization came into being.