Video & autocorrection

Initial situation

The structure of the “Corporate Law and Accounting” course, as it is currently presented, was chosen in order to allow the students of the annual “Corporate Law” course to have at their disposal at the same time the accounting notions necessary for a good understanding of it.

To this aim, the semester optional course has been spread out over the year and divided into 3 modules, which are based on the topics covered in the (annual) “Corporate Law” course. The chosen format is a hybrid one, mixing distance work in e-learning and face-to-face exercises. As the students participating in this course have heterogeneous knowledge in mathematics and accounting, it was important for the teacher to offer them an “à la carte” formula from which they could select according to their needs.

The goal is to radically change the typical role of a Bachelor’s student (passive recipient of information) by giving him/her a more active role as a collaborator in different projects. The institutional project is a platform that encourages and promotes collaborative projects between students and faculty with the primary objective of improving the institution.

Project implementation

The 1st module is introduced by an ex-cathedra lecture. Then, for each module, students have online access, from the Moodle platform to a series of short videos (∼ 5 min) made by assistants and students in the context of an academic internship, under the supervision of the teacher. The lecture and videos form the theoretical basis of the course.

To implement the theoretical knowledge, students have access to a series of self-correcting exercises on the Moodle platform, with detailed feedback for more complicated questions. The exercises can be repeated as often as desired.

For each module, one or two face-to-face sessions are organized during which more complex exercises regrouping the different notions covered are realized. The students, who form groups of 4 or 5 people, are thus led, for example, to establish or analyze the balance sheets of a company that evolves over time. Participation in each exercise represents a bonus (0.5 good) on the test grade, which is the last step of each module.

At the end of each module, students have a 45-minute e-assessment that they complete on their own computers, still on the Moodle platform, but through a secure web browser (Safe Exam Browser). For each of these assessments, there are two sessions one week apart, one main session and one remedial session. Students who wish to participate in the first and second sessions may do so, but registration for the remedial session cancels the grade obtained in the previous session. The final grade is the average of the grades obtained for each module (test + bonus).

The Institutional Project is an optional program based on the principle of co-creation. It provides a framework in which students can work in close cooperation with faculty members on projects in the following three areas: event organization, faculty or university development, research projects or mentoring.

If a faculty member has an idea concerning one of these three areas, he/she contacts the academic leader of the institutional project with whom he/she proceeds to write the project description. One of the most important parts of the project syllabus is the specification of student learning outcomes. The projects should be an opportunity for practical application of the topics learned during the academic program or for the development of skills based on the knowledge acquired in the Bachelor program.

The proposal is then sent to the eligible student population (students in the second part of their Bachelor’s program). Students apply for the project and are selected by the organizing members. After the students are selected, the project begins and the students work with their teachers or supervisors. At the end of the project, in addition to getting credits, students can receive a participation certificate.

Thoughts and advice on implementing a similar project

It is important to assign a teacher to lead the project, dedicated to managing project proposals and ensuring their quality in terms of student learning outcomes. The perseverance and patience of the project leader in presenting this pedagogical innovation to his or her colleagues are essential. Some colleagues will only discover the interest of this project through practice.

Thoughts and advice

The production of the instructional videos forming the theoretical basis of the course represented a significant investment of time for the teacher in charge of the course.

The access to the course page on the Moodle platform is open, which allows students to view the videos and/or do the exercises according to their needs, even if they do not wish to take the exam.

ID 18 - Marcel Paulssen’s institutional project

Student feedback

“The institutional project I participated in is, in my experience, a unique academic experience as one has the opportunity to participate in a more hands-on way in the management of an event, to increase one’s organizational and interpersonal skills, to delve into logistical and budgetary management issues, and to be confronted with real-life problems and tasks that would otherwise remain impractical.” “It appealed to me right away. I didn’t do it for credit, but to put my theory into practice. I wanted to do something concrete and useful that would leave a mark.” “Unlike ex cathedra lessons, we were three students facing one teacher, it is a very privileged relationship. We discovered research from the inside, by doing it. It’s a stimulating way to learn. “The institutional project I participated in was related to the Sustainable Futures course at Geneva’s Summer School. As such, our supervisors were two of the professors teaching the two-week course. Unfortunately, due to their limited availability, we had very little contact with them and most of the work was done with the international affairs office. I would have liked to have had the chance to interact more with the creators of this very interesting course, as both were very inspiring and could have taught us a lot by assisting them given the topics taught throughout the summer sessions.”