Abstract

Under the Bologna Process, in progress in Europe since 1999, major changes should be introduced in the organisation of Higher Education (HE), concerning both the degree structure and the organisation of the teaching and learning environment. Although the Bologna process has a strong political root it has been a motor to speed HE reforms in many European countries, namely in Portugal. One of the Bologna guidelines refers to the student-centered approach to teaching and learning and the design of the curricula based on competences and learning outcomes. In order to achieve these guidelines, teaching and learning strategies need to change as, until recently, we faced a traditional teaching model. This model is centred on the teacher with the predominance of information passing style in lectures and where assessment do not have a visible effect on students’ learning path. Indeed, the pursuing of excellence in teaching and learning in HE, an emerging issue at Portuguese institutions, has been a motive for long discussions in academia. Topics such as teaching and research nexus, students’ autonomy and self-regulation learning strategies, inquiry-based learning and e-learning have been in the centre of such discussions. The authors explore in the paper the importance of promoting effective teaching and learning in HE by addressing: i) a theoretical framework on the subject, and ii) three studies showing the problems faced by the new generation of learners and teachers in Portugal.