John Cowan Podcasts

Professor John Cowan entered academia after a successful career as a structural engineering designer. His research at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, where he was the first Professor of Engineering Education in the UK, latterly concentrated on student-centred learning and the learning experience. On moving to the Open University in Scotland, he encouraged innovative curriculum development and campaigned nationally for rigorous formative evaluation in higher education. Now in his 90's his passion, interest and care for student-centred learning now spans over 60 years. During that time he has placed an ever increasing emphasis on preparing students to exercise stewardship over their lifewide development while at University, and in lifelong learning thereafter. Over many decades John inspired many higher education teachers. In reviewing this book, Becoming and Innovative Teacher’ Professor John Biggs wrote’"...a delightful and unusual reflective journey...the whole book is driven by a cycle of questions, examples, strategies and generalizations from the examples. In all, it is the clearest example of practise-what-you-preach that I have seen."  

This sums John up very well!
 
In this informative and entertaining series of audio podcasts recorded in 2010, John draws on his experiences as a higher education teacher to illustrate how he has tried to motivate students. 

​!1 podcasts to br posted during January 2026

​John believes that the whole of life holds potential for learning and personal development - their coni=tinued formation as a person. He also recognised that higher education did not embrace his rich and comprehenseive view of learning and development. In this talk he elaborates the sort of pedagogical practices that would encourage and support learners lifewide learning and development.

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