What is TOM?

All our programmes consist of modules. Each module of 15 ECTS has a theme with all sorts of subjects and learning activities, such as feedback sessions with students or workshops and lectures. In this module, the knowledge and skills offered are strongly connected with the project. One module covers one quartile (half a semester). The different aspects of a module are related to the study programme and often interconnected. Central to each module is a team project in which students address a real-world problem. This way, students put scientific theory into practice. Challenging and exciting! 

MODULE STRUCTURE

A bachelorprogramme consists of 12 modules. The first eight modules represent the core of the programme. In module 9 and 10 the student have elective space to choose modules for broadening or deepening their knowledge, for example with a High Tech Human Touch module, a join in module or study abroad. More information about the possibilities can be found on the minorwebsite. In the last two modules (11 and 12) students work on their graduation assignment.

Mandatory contact hours
Students can be challenged to work on their study full-time by providing well thought-out and stimulating assignments. However, studying full-time is not the same as filling up the entire schedule with forty hours of mandatory presence on campus. We prefer having room for personal planning available, which is why weeks should not be scheduled full-time with contact hours. Starting in the 2015-2016 academic year, bachelor students in their first year need to be offered at least 20 contact hours with a teacher, tutor or student assistant per academic week. This is one of the performance agreements made with the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (see www.utwente.nl/bestuur/publicaties)

Coherence and integration

One of the guiding principles of TOM is that we no longer have courses. An important TOM pillar is a strong coherence between the module-units mutually and with the project. The module is one unit. Knowledge and skills that are offered in the module units are integrated with each other and essential for completing the project.

Variation in teaching methods

Variation in teaching methods keeps students alert and increase the chance that students with different learning styles can still succeed. The different educational activities are all designed around one carefully defined theme, which ensures an internal coherence. The module becomes more meaningful because of it: students understand the bigger picture. Because all module units are required to achieve the learning objectives of the project, the module is an integrated whole and can be viewed as one large course in project setting.

Courses of learning

In all of the Twente bachelor programmes, academic reflection focuses on the relations between science, technology, and society, in order to stimulate a reflexive and responsible academic attitude. 10 EC of the total 15 EC academic Bildung in each programme consists of REflection on Science Technology and Society (RESTS). The programme management chooses in which module or modules this subject is incorporated.

The strength of the Twente approach is in the close connection between education in academic reflection and the discipline-specific content of the programmes. Rather than offering generic courses in history, sociology, philosophy or ethics, the University of Twente chooses to use the concrete content of the individual programmes as a starting point and a basis to build upon. For Twente academics, reflection on the relations between science, technology, and society belongs to their central competences. Raising reflexive questions ‘from within’, as a natural element of the work in a specific field is fully integrated in their academic training.

The technical degree programmes participate in a joint mathematics course of learning. The content and design of this can be found on Blackboard (EWI-TOMLEERLIJN-MATHABCD). Every year, the programme director of mathematics and the programme directors of the participating programmes ensure that the mathematics course of learning is attuned to the content of the programmes as much as possible. The same goes for the joint Methods and Technologies course of learning for the social sciences.

Shared Modules

Some programmes share module units or entire modules with each other. This can be because of efficiency reasons but it can also be interesting regarding the content. For example, Technische Bedrijfskunde (Industrial Engineering Management), Business & IT en Technische Informatica (Technical Computer Sciences) share the first introductory module (module 1) to give the students an impression of the scope of this cluster. Also in module 4 students from Technische Natuurkunde (Technical Physics) work together with students of Technische Wiskunde (Technical Mathematics) on reproducing historical experiments. They need each others expertise to complete the project.

The Module Map shows which modules are shared. 

PROJECT

In order to encourage that students are involved in their own learning and that they study actively and nominally, it is of the utmost importance that the education offered is appealing. For that reason the core of a module is shaped by a project: an activity that challenges students to independently gain knowledge and skills. The size of a project is not predetermined. However, the University of Twente’s aim is that TOM develops into a model in which students do not just apply knowledge and skills, but that they also gain them in the project.

The extent to which a project is structured depends on the particular programme, the location of the respective module in this programme and the learning objectives of the module. During a structured project all students are given the same assignments and the theory is offered in other module units that run parallel to the project. This knowledge is applied in the project. During an open project a lot of information is available within the context of the project, possibly preselected by teachers, and students can take on several activities that are required to successfully complete the project. Students can determine whether they want to employ the preselected sources and learning activities provided by the teachers to achieve the learning objectives, or select other sources or activities on their own. Proper tutoring is key here. During the project the students will receive feedback regarding the content from the teachers.

An important goal of TOM is that students become a ‘T-shaped professional’. It is therefore recommended that students from different bachelor programmes work together in a project team several times. In Module 7 students from Technische Bedrijfskunde (Industrial Engineering Management) and students of Business & IT work together in setting up their own business. The knowledge of the TBK students is necessary to set up the company but the programming skills of the BIT students are needed to launch the business online. Read more about this module in My TOM.

Student-driven Learning (SDL) means that students take a certain control over their own learning process. To better prepare students for an uncertain future, the aim is to have them at the helm of their education as much as possible. Therefore, our goal is to develop modules in which students can make their own choices, for example when it comes to planning and educational activities. This approach to learning should lead to students with a flexible and entrepreneurial attitude. Of course, students’ choices are made in close consultation with their teachers: we’re a strong believers in personal mentoring. Because of this, the role of the teacher changes as well. The teacher provides feedback on the result and the learning process of the student and encourages the student to gain new experience and explore unknown subjects. Such an entrepreneurial attitude better prepares students for the labour market.

In a Student-driven module students can determine for themselves whether they need the offered sources and learning activities in order to achieve the learning objectives – where proper tutoring is of the essence. Some people think that such open modules are better suited further along in the degree programme instead of during the first year. However, it is important that there’s an upward trend in the programme, increasing the control the student is expected to take of his learning. Others think that the first module can already be this open. However, a proper safety net is important. The intensity of the tutoring decreases as the student progresses in the programme. In both cases coordination on this aspect between the various module teams within the programme is necessary.

With our Student-driven modules and open projects our students have the opportunity to take the reins themselves. Students are therefore expected to take on an active study and work attitude and reflect upon their work themselves. What do they have to pay more attention to and/or spend more time on? Which activities do they have to complete to attain the learning objectives? Which sources do they need, which role do they take on and in which setting do they perform their project assignment? Making these decisions and therefore being self-directed is something we want our students to learn. At the start of the programme the tutoring is intense while later on this gradually decreases.

The University of Twente wants to train highly skilled professionals who are able to critically assess, combine and apply scientific knowledge, and to add new knowledge. According to the UT’s vision on teaching, students must learn to function in three roles to achieve this: being a researcher, a designer, and an organizer. The best way students can learn this, is by taking on these roles in the curriculum by working on projects as soon as possible. Throughout their studies, students can discover which roles suites them best. They become adept in a certain field of learning, but will also discover where their true strengths are lying – professionally and personally.

Why TOM?

The Twente Educational Model is a response to many of the challenges that higher education faces. Our ever-changing society requires different knowledge and skills than before. Many of the professions that people have today did not even exist twenty years ago. There is also no way of predicting what our students will be doing twenty years from now. We do know that flexibility will be required: our students will probably work in a more complex and rapidly changing environment and their jobs will be less secure and less permanent than today’s jobs. That is why we want to educate students to become entrepreneurial “T-shaped professionals.” They know all the ins and outs of their field of study and can contribute to its development. They are also capable of venturing off the beaten path and applying their knowledge in a broader context, in collaboration with other disciplines and with society.

Using high-quality source materials that students can easily acquire and supplementing these with a unique learning experience can be a challenge. The University of Twente wants to utilize these sources in its education and invite students to integrate sources in their academic experience. The ability to find, critically assess, combine and use new information is an important skill in the twenty-first century. Our campus in particular is a place where knowledge can be shared, where it is possible to collaborate with fellow students and where “live” interaction between teachers and students takes place.

Before the implementation of TOM, the University of Twente faced the challenge of increasing its study success rates while operating on a lower budget. We aspire to have at least 70% of our students obtain their bachelor’s degree within four years. In 2015, all bachelor’s programmes include at least twenty contact hours a week during the first year of study. These contact hours are the on-campus learning experiences, for which a teacher, student assistant or tutor is present. By offering education in an efficient manner, for example by offering lectures to multiple degree programmes simultaneously or by using online learning materials, we want to reduce the costs and increase the quality of education.

Meer informatie? Zie de UT-website van TOM.