A Discipline-Based Undergraduate Skills Module

Abstract

This paper describes the development and evaluation of a discipline-based skills module at Level 1 in the undergraduate psychology curriculum. The module combined generic and subject-specific skills teaching, linked skills provision with the personal tutor system and included practical exercises to promote deep learning and improve study skills. Student feedback showed that workshops and tutorials on essay writing were the most valued part of the module. The module assessment (a coursework essay about skills in higher education) was the part that most students asked to change. The response of psychology tutors was mixed and many tutors initially expressed misgivings about teaching generic skills. Following feedback from both students and tutors, the module developed to allow closer integration between generic skills and subject-specific teaching. Student progression across the psychology programme as a whole was not markedly higher after the introduction of the module by comparison with before, but other factors may also have affected student progression during that period. The module was designed to support student learning in psychology but, with adaptations of content, the approach of linking skills provision with subject-specific teaching and the personal tutor system could be applied in a range of other disciplines.