The expression "authentic situation," which is used to define a learning situation within an academic context, initially brings to mind the idea of having students experience inside the classroom some sort of general routine involving the functions that they will be tasked to perform during their career once they have finished their studies or, more generally, during key moments in their future life as citizens. On a greater scale, this expression can also refer to a learning context that provides students with the opportunity to develop certain skills in an active way. For higher education teachers wishing to use this pedagogical method, an authentic situation may sometimes bring its share of challenges and questions. Isn't this learning context almost exclusively suitable for students in technical fields? Does an authentic situation prevent the mastery of certain fields of knowledge to focus mainly on expertise? How to ensure that projects developed within the framework of an authentic situation always meet their objective, such as allowing students to achieve efficient and complete learning? The authors answer these legitimate questions and offer in this book the results of their experience with the authentic situation involving around thirty groups of students. After noticing the benefits associated with this pedagogical method, the authors bring together a theoretical framework, tools and practical advice for teachers of all higher education subjects to use as they see fit.

Year: 2013

Author: Anne-Marie Duval, Mélanie Pagé