Project introduction and background information
The adoption of Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) in higher education is growing. However, integrating it into existing curricula can be challenging. Teachers often face issues such as not knowing where to start, finding CBL information, selecting relevant information from the available literature, and tailoring it to their specific courses. Particularly with regard to CBL implementation, literature is still scarce. To address these challenges, we created Challenge Up, a free web-based CBL tool that assists teachers in gradually adjusting their courses towards CBL in a structured way.
Challenge Up is the result of a two-year collaborative project by the UT Teaching & Learning Fellows, the Centre for Education Learning & Teaching (CELT), and the UT’s Mendix software development team. It has been sponsored by the 4TU.Centre for Engineering Education.
Objective and expected outcomes
Challenge Up helps teachers bridge the gap between the current and desired CBL levels of their courses. Based on the teacher's input, the tool first establishes the current and desired CBL levels of a course. Then, it delivers tailored and practical advice to bridge that gap. It offers guidelines, templates, and references to other literature.
Results and learnings
Challenge Up is useful not only for CBL beginners but also for more advanced CBL users, as it considers all levels of CBL. The tool draws recommendations from a database of CBL experiences from teachers at the University of Twente who have experimented with CBL. A poster on Challenge Up won the Best Poster Award at the 1st National Challenge-Based Learning Conference (June 15, 2023) in Eindhoven.
Practical outcomes
Challenge Up and relevant background information can be found in the links below: