26 May, 2023

The 26th of May saw the conclusion of the National Forum funded Open Course “Fostering Excellence in Research Led Entrepreneurship Education Digital Badge” delivered by the Hincks Centre for Entrepreneurship Excellence and led by Rebecca Robinson.

The Hincks Centre would like to firstly thank the participant for their valuable discussions, interesting views, valuable experiences and thought-provoking contributions. These discussions were facilitated by our colleagues whom have experience in entrepreneurship education in terms of practice, research and area of interest.

Rebecca Robinson, an entrepreneurship researcher form the Hincks Centre introduced the first discussion on the “The What, Why and How of Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurship Education” where debate on effective entrepreneurship education strategies and the challenges educators experience in entrepreneurship education emerged. Some findings from the NEAR2 research was highlighted as it echoed the sentiment of the participants. The topic of teaching business failure created great interest among participants, so much so that participants wanted to organize a separate workshop outside the 4 original scheduled sessions for the digital badge.

Our second facilitated discussion on “Entrepreneurial Competencies and Mindsets” was led by Dr. Breda O’Dwyer, Director The Cantillon Academy in MTU. Questions such as value creation for entrepreneurs and educators was discussed along with our impact and responsibility as educator to influence the mindset. Breda posed questions to the groups on the fixed and growth mindset as well as challenging the participants on what they know as educators about the entrepreneurial mindset. The challenging questions stimulated thought-provoking discussions in which participants opened up about their experiences and opinions.

The topic of our third scheduled session was “Responsible Entrepreneurship and Sustainability” delivered by Dr. Helen McGuirk, Head of the Hincks Centre for Entrepreneurship Excellence in MTU. Helen introduced the participants to the EntreComp and GreenComp Frameworks and how to integrate into their teaching for effective teaching practices. A very interesting scenario was provided for discussion in breakout rooms. Helen asked, what are the sustainability challenges that students in the future will likely face, and how can we equip them with the necessary education and skills to tackle these challenges effectively?

Our final discussion was facilitated by Dr. Mukesh H.V who is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Commerce, Manipal University, India and previously a Visiting Scholar of the Hincks Centre in MTU. Mukesh discussed his interest and research in this area of the “Key Considerations and Methods in Assessing Entrepreneurship Education” where he got the group thinking about the appropriate assessment methods that can be used in about, for and through EE, the ways in which traditional assessment practices align or don’t align with the student’s entrepreneurial goals and intentions and the best assessment methods for better feedback.

The next step to is to grow a national network of peers for the promotion and development of entrepreneurship education at higher level. You can register your interest HERE if you want to become part of this Network.