STUDENT ENGAGEMENT: MORE THAN BELLS AND WHISTLES

Abstract

Student engagement is the time, effort and energy that students spend on all educational activities that enhance their learning ability. The improvement of student engagement is the principal aim of the Learning in Law project embarked upon by the Department of Mercantile Law at the University of the Free State (UFS), South Africa. One of the aims of the project, which is run in collaboration with the university’s Centre for Teaching and Learning, is to help lecturers develop innovative teaching methods and techniques to ensure in-class student engagement. As modern-day students are used to fast access to information, entertainment and social activity via their mobile devices, new teaching methods to catch and hold their attention and promote participation are needed. This contribution not only makes the case for new ways of teaching law in a changing higher education environment, but also suggests specific steps and techniques to be considered, drawing from the experience of the UFS’s Department of Mercantile Law.