Examining Pedagogical Partnerships in Liberal Arts Institutions

With increased awareness by higher education institutions to improve teaching and learning for undergraduate students, pedagogical partnerships have been implemented in higher education institutions to assist in this process. Pedagogical partnerships can be defined as a “reciprocal process through which all participants have the opportunity to contribute equally, although not necessarily in the same ways, to curricular or pedagogical conceptualization, decision-making, implementation, investigation, or analysis” (Cook-Sather, Bovill, & Felton, 2014, pp.6-7). This research synthesis analyzes student-faculty pedagogical partnerships in United States undergraduate college courses by defining pedagogical partnerships, best practices, and challenges associated with pedagogical partnerships. Furthermore, this study developed recommendations for implementing a pedagogical partnership into a liberal arts institution through synthesized research findings and experiences participating as a pedagogical partner at Illinois Wesleyan University.