Postgraduate Course: Learning and Resilience (EFIE11462)
Course Outline
| School | Edinburgh Futures Institute |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Explore the interplay of learning and resilience through data-driven intrapersonal development. Applying intrapersonal assets to real-world interpersonal and societal issues, you will learn how individual resilience can contribute to thriving learning organisations. This course will cover how to identify and recognise one's own purpose, values and strengths, and use these to develop learning and teaching strategies for educational and societal transformation. |
| Course description |
This course will empower students to critically explore models of resilience through an evidence and research-based perspective. Students will apply this knowledge to the exploration of their own self-data for intra-personal development, specifically how to recognise one's capacity for agency and change. By critically reflecting on both theories of resilience, current issues in education, and their own intrapersonal development, students will use this knowledge to design a project to empower learning organisations and communities to foster greater resilience.
Topics explored during the course will include positive psychology, psychological capital, locus of control, models of resilience, flourishing and thriving society, strengths and the PERMA model, agency and change, and meaning, purpose and value-driven action.
The course is taught across five weeks, with 4-hour sessions each week combining lectures, group discussion on topics such as self-learning in popular culture and self-efficacy and agency, and hands-on "hack yourself" activities focused on data-driven intrapersonal awareness for creative innovation. During these sessions, students will engage in topics such as:
- How can you unlock your own data?
- Discovering your values and understanding value directed action
- Defining purpose and meaning through photo-elicitation experience
- Using the "Failing Forward" approach
- Flourishing and the PERMA model
- Signature Strengths Exercise
- Strengths-based leadership in education discussion
During later sessions, activities will shift to scaffolding activity to prepare students for the 'positive education project' portfolio development, with topics such as: Creating a putting "assets into action" plan; course "re-wirements"; habits and strategies exercise (using the ReWi app as an example); and a resource review. These will culminate in a positive education project resilience portfolio assignment (100%).
Readings and materials on topics including psychological capital, hope and optimism, and locus of control will be undertaken to support students' learning.
Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) - Hybrid Course Delivery Information:
The Edinburgh Futures Institute delivers many of its courses in hybrid mode. This means that you may have some online students joining sessions for this course. To enable this, the course will use technologies to record and live-stream student and staff participation during their teaching and learning activities.
Students should be aware that:
Classrooms used in this course will have additional technology in place: in some cases, students might not be able to sit in areas away from microphones or outside the field of view of all cameras.
All presentations and whole-class discussions will be recorded (see the Lecture Recording and Virtual Classroom policies for more details).
You will need access to a personal computing device for this course. Most activities will take place in a web browser, unless otherwise stated. We recommend using a device with a screen, a physical keyboard, and internet access.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 30 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 8,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 8,
Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 4,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
The course will be assessed by means of the following components:
1) Resilience Education Programme Portfolio (100%)
The course culminates with each student producing a portfolio that develops and critically evaluates the design of an educational experience of resilience. Students will design an education experience aimed at answering big questions within a global context and applying research-supported methods to discover how to apply intrapersonal assets to real-world interpersonal and societal problems.
Students will individually design a portfolio of a resilience education programme. The portfolio format could include a website, recorded video, written guide, videos, images, activities and self-reflection. The portfolio will include a section discussing a critically analysed evidence-based model from the scholarly literature.
The portfolio should be equivalent to a 4,000-word essay. |
| Feedback |
Feedback on any formative assessment may be provided in various formats, for example, to include written, oral, video, face-to-face, whole class, or individual. The Course Organiser will decide which format is most appropriate in relation to the nature of the assessment.
Feedback on both formative and summative in-course assessed work will be provided in time to be of use in subsequent assessments within the course.
Feedback on the summative assessment(s) will be provided in written form via Learn, the University of Edinburgh's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Critically evaluate key theories and current issues relating to learning, resilience, and wellbeing.
- Integrate experiential learning with theory to apply resilience frameworks to academic and professional contexts.
- Critically reflect on values, strengths, and psychological resources, and demonstrate skill in developing, analysing and communicating relevant insights.
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Reading List
Essential Reading:
Allen, J., Robbins, S.B., Casillas, A. et al. Third-year College Retention and Transfer: Effects of Academic Performance, Motivation, and Social Connectedness. Res High Educ 49, 647-664 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-008-9098-3
Hazan Liran, B., Miller, P. The Role of Psychological Capital in Academic Adjustment Among University Students. J Happiness Stud 20, 51-65 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-017-9933-3
Maxwell, J. (2012). Failing forward: Turning mistakes into stepping stones for success. Thomas Nelson Publishing.
Rashid, T., Louden, R., Wright, L., Chu, R., Lutchmie-Maharaj A., Hakim, I., Uy, D. A. Kidd, B. (2017). Flourish: A Strengths-Based Approach to Building Student Resilience. In Proctor, C. (Ed.). Positive Psychology Interventions in Practice. pp. 29-45. The Netherlands: Springer.
Rashid, T. (2015) Strength-Based Assessment, in Positive Psychology in Practice: Promoting Human Flourishing in Work, Health, Education, and Everyday Life, Second Edition (ed. S. Joseph), pp. 519-544.
Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press.
Seligman, M.E.P., Ernst, R.M., Gillham, J., Reivich, K., & Linkins, M. (2009). Positive education: Positive psychology and classroom interventions. Oxford Review of Education (35) 3, 293-311.
Shane J Lopez & Michelle C Louis (2009) The Principles of Strengths-Based Education, Journal of College and Character, 10:4, , DOI: 10.2202/1940-1639.1041
Recommended Reading:
Quinn, R., Quinn, R. (2009) Lift: Becoming a Positive Force in Any Situation. Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Cameron, K., Quinn, R., DeGraff, J. Thakor, A., (2014). Competing Values Leadership: Second Edition. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Resilience,Learning,Flourishing,EFI,Education,Society |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Mark Hoelterhoff
Tel: (0131 6)51 3969
Email: mark.hoelterhoff@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Zoe Hogg
Tel:
Email: Zoe.Hogg@ed.ac.uk |
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