A look back at the Unframed Teaching Seminar (UTS)

The Instructional and Learning Innovation (ILI) department of Rennes School of Business aims to support and facilitate open, active and innovative pedagogy.

Among their main objectives, the department aims to:

• develop meaningful teaching practices that encourage student involvement and interaction
• legitimise all learning perspectives for inspiring and inclusive teaching; and
• test, share and promote pedagogical innovations through new technologies and tools.

On 10 June 2022, the ILI department organised its first Unframed Teaching Seminar for permanent and adjunct faculty, an event which aimed to focus on innovative and active pedagogy in higher education, whilst considering the challenges and future prospects.

With its motto of “Unframed Thinking” and its focus on pedagogical innovation, Rennes School of Business is always looking for ways to think outside the box and do things differently. This seminar was therefore consistent with the School’s mission of finding new ways to train the innovative and responsible managers of the future.

On the programme:

• An opening by Thomas Froehlicher, Director General and Dean, Céline Azemar, Academic Dean and José Parra, Pedagogical Innovation Manager at Rennes SB.
• A conference on Neuro-learning transition in higher education pushing boundaries towards hybrid pedagogy with Sandrine Duverne.
• A roundtable with the School’s different Heads of Department on the Perspectives of the fundamental pillars needed to drive hybrid pedagogy at Rennes School of Business.
• A series of collaborative workshops for the professors to work together on subjects linked to the conference.

In parallel with the strengthening of pedagogical innovation and the actions carried out in favour of inclusion and digital accessibility, Rennes SB is strengthening its academic excellence with the recruitment of 40 new professor-researchers by 2023.

For José Parra, Pedagogical Innovation Manager at Rennes SB:

“One of our main goals is to push boundaries in terms of instructional and learning excellence. We certainly believe that teaching should empower students to take ownership of their learning by exploring new fields, seeking answers to questions we will be asking tomorrow, enhancing their creativity, and becoming more responsible. This is time for innovative and active pedagogy in the light of neuroscience findings to keep enhancing students’ engagement and motivation which is one of the challenges we are facing today. This is a special moment for all of us since we can meet experts from different fields, have peer-to-peer sharing and question our teaching practices.”

More information about the Instructional and Learning Innovation department