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The ‘independent learner’ is a key construct within discourses of educational policy and practice in the UK. Government policy statements stress the importance of developing learner independence, and higher education pedagogical practices tend to rest on the assumption that students are independent learners. This paper draws on research with undergraduate students in a post-1992 university to offer a critical appraisal of the discourse of the independent learner. The paper examines students’ perceptions of independence in both their first year of undergraduate study, and in the later years of their degree courses. Support for learning and issues related to asking for help are discussed. Whilst students tend to both expect and want to be independent, it is suggested that dominant constructions of the independent learner are gendered and culturally specific, and as such are inappropriate for the majority of students in a mass higher education system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study builds upon the concept of alignment within the curriculum (due to Biggs) and suggests, in the context of two current examples, an integrated methodology for effectively aligned development activities within universities. Higher Education institutions face important challenges. Firstly, quality enhancement of the curriculum is now an institutional concern, if not a priority, in the face of governmental pressure and in a competitive environment. It is no longer a matter of individual endeavour. Secondly, we now have a basic pedagogy for adult learning, and should put that into practice systematically. And thirdly, staff are now faced with the demand to commit themselves to professional development, and to determine what that means in terms of their particular profession. This paper considers these challenges, and relates them to the argument for an integrated methodology for institutional, staff and curriculum development, which aligns these activities rather more effectively than hitherto. At the same time, it advocates a logical model for curriculum development, as a complementary tool of alignment for student-centred curriculum development. The argument is illustrated by recent work in the Open University in the UK and in the Universidade de Aveiro in Portugal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]