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SBE ABL Pillars

Last updated on 12 March 2025
Active Blended Learning at SBE is built on three pillars: Activate, Connect, and Empower. When we innovate our teaching activities, we keep these pillars front of mind. Below you can read more about what they mean, why they matter, and how we bring them to life in the classroom.


Activate

Students take an active role in their learning. We come to campus to interact, discuss, debate, and collaborate. Online resources are used to prepare for these experiences and to review learning materials afterward. Activation ensures our time together is meaningful and impactful.

The ‘Activate’ pillar is guided by these core design principles:

  1. Multi-Format Content – Course materials are available in different formats (e.g., text, video, interactive tools) to encourage student engagement.
  2. Early Assessment – Students complete assessment early in a course to help instructors understand their needs and adjust learning and teaching.
  3. In-Person Learning Focus – Face-to-face interaction is central to education, especially for creative tasks that require discussion, collaboration, and hands-on activities.
  4. Diverse Assessment Methods – Courses use different types of assessments, ensuring that evaluation methods align with learning goals and provide a well-rounded understanding of the subject.
  5. Accessible Learning Resources – Reference materials are available online so students can revisit and reinforce their knowledge throughout their program.

Program-Level Commitment: At least 50% of learning in each program takes place on campus.


Connect

Our learning communities are inclusive and professional. We learn in diversity and from diversity - we connect to each other and to the world.

The ‘Connect’ pillar is guided by these core design principles:

  1. Real-World Connections - Educators facilitate connections to real-world contexts through industry interactions and teaching with contemporary examples
  2. Canvas as a Backbone - Canvas is used as the backbone of course delivery, creating a familiar structure across courses, to build connection to both content and teachers
  3. Structured Communication - Communication with students is open but structured, with clear guidance given in each course on who to contact, when, and how
  4. Professional Behaviour - Accountability structures are in place for encouraging professional work behaviour, including responsible teamwork, dedication to deadlines, and respectful communication
  5. Student and Peer Feedback - Students practice giving constructive feedback to teachers and their peers, ensuring continuous improvement

Program-Level Commitment: Teaching staff are connected to one another, to students, and to support structures, with the aim of sustaining a diverse, resilient, and innovative learning community.


Empower

We balance freedom with responsibility. We empower students to exercise their independence and personal ambition, so that they can explore possibilities within supportive boundaries.

The ‘Empower’ pillar is guided by these core design principles:

  1. Clarity of Objectives - Teachers set clear objectives for on- and off-campus education and specify the role of learning technologies
  2. Workload Management - Course planning considers the workload for both students and lecturers
  3. Pacing with Milestones - Study pace is regulated with 'check in points' to recognise dedication to cumulative learning and to disincentivize procrastination
  4. Planning for Well-Being - Learning activities are planned in a way that respects mental and physical well-being, for example with breaks and clear schedules that support prioritisation
  5. Technology enables Independent Learning - Tools and resources are offered to allow students to revisit critical course material, enabling independent and self-paced learning

Program-Level Commitment: In the early stages of a program, learning activities are closely monitored and synchronous, gradually transitioning to more independent and asynchronous activities over time.

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