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Wissenschaftsdidaktik

Wissenschaftsdidaktik can be understood as a didactical sub-discipline that is also a genuine part of scientific-disciplinary work. It treats science as an epistemic and social practice and thus also takes up subject-cultural features, that are mostly (or have to be) ignored in general higher education didactics. Wissenschaftsdidaktik investigates questions in regards to generating and transferring scientific knowledge, knowledge critique and education through science as well as communication and mutual understanding in academic contexts.

 

Theoretical research on Wissenschaftsdidaktik

  • Book series on Wissenschaftsdidaktik
    As a concept with tradition and future, but still without its own systematic research and scientific community, the theoretical study of Wissenschaftsdidaktik is an important task. In 2021, we succeeded in launching a book series with the transcript Verlag on Wissenschaftsdidaktik. Four volumes have now been published in open access, edited by Gabi Reinmann and Rüdiger Rhein. Further volumes - also by guest editors - can and should be published in the series.

    • Reinmann, G. & Rhein, R. (Hrsg.) (2024). Wissenschaftsdidaktik IV. Wissenschaftskommunikation. Bielefeld: transcript.
    • Reinmann, G. & Rhein, R. (Hrsg.) (2023). Wissenschaftsdidaktik III. Perspektiven. Bielefeld transcript.
    • Reinmann, G. & Rhein, R. (Hrsg.) (2023). Wissenschaftsdidaktik II. Einzelne Disziplinen. Bielefeld: transcript.
    • Reinmann, G. & Rhein, R. (Hrsg.) (2022). Wissenschaftsdidaktik I. Einführung. Bielefeld: transcript.
       

  • Publication projects on Wissenschaftsdidaktik as a didactical sub-discipline
    In various publication projects, we are working theoretically on the further development of Wissenschaftsdidaktik, analyzing the relationship to university didactics as general didactics and dealing with the “international relatives” of Wissenschaftsdidaktik, such as SoTL (#LINK#), Decoding the Disciplines and Threshold Concepts.

    •  Co-founder and member of the Editorial Board: Journal für Allgemeine Didaktik [Journal for general didactics]: The “Journal für Allgemeine Didaktik” (JfAD) is a periodical with a double-blind peer review process and sees itself as a scientific forum for the anchoring and further development of general didactics in exchange with educational and social sciences, subject-specific sciences and subject-specific didactics. The focus here is on teacher training, adult education and higher education and didactics. As a periodical, the JfAD is cross-methodological, interdisciplinary and internationally oriented. It publishes original empirical, theoretical-conceptual, historical and discursive articles in German and English.
    • Individual publications on the topic:

      • Reinmann, G. (2024). Wissenschaftsdidaktik.Impact Free 56 (pdf)

      • Reinmann, G., Rhein, R. & Herzberg, D. (2023). Generative KI als Treiber von Wissenschaftsdidaktik – ein vorläufiges Positionspapier. Impact Free 54 (pdf)

      • Reinmann, G., Schmidt, M. & Vohle, F. (2022). Hochschulehre in der Mathematik – ein wissenschaftsdidaktisches Gespräch. Impact Free 47  (pdf)

       

       

Writing didactics research

Scientific writing is highly connected to the research and communication culture of a discipline. Writing didactics research can therefore be understood as a part of Wissenschaftsdidaktik research. At HUL, we deal with writing didactics issues in various constellations. The Writing Center accompanies its work with a self-reflective researching stance for example in regards to how writing can be integrated as a learning tool in individual subject cultures, which lecture formats prove to be productive for this, what AI-controlled text generation programs such as ChatGPT mean for academic writing, etc. In other projects at HUL, we are working on issues relating to the teaching of (discipline-specific) language at universities, e.g. as part of the Literacy in Diversity Settings research center. As academic writing is a central element of the academic knowledge process, there are close links to the research area of “research-based learning” (##Link##).

 

      • Freise, Fridrun; Schubert, Mirjam (2022): Wie aus der "Langen Nacht" eine digitale "Woche" wurde. In: Journal für Schreibwissenschaft JoSch. Jg. 13, Ausg. 23, S. 44–52. [DOI: 10.3278/JOS2201W]
      • Ewing, Susannah; Le Vot, Valérie (2021): Didaktische Chancen und Grenzen digitaler Begleitung von akademischen Schreibprozessen. Erfahrungsbericht aus der fremdsprachlichen Schreibpraxis. In: Fridrun Freise, Mirjam Schubert, Lukas Musumeci und Mascha Jacoby (Hg.): Writing Spaces. Wissenschaftliches Schreiben zwischen und in den Disziplinen (S. 15-27). Bielefeld: wbv (Theorie und Praxis der Schreibwissenschaft, 9). [online hier verfügbar]
      • Freise, Fridrun; Schubert, Mirjam (2021): Den Disziplinen entgegengehen. Passgenaue schreibdidaktische Unterstützung von Lehrveranstaltungen in den Geisteswissenschaften. In: Regina Graßmann und Stefanie Schmitt (Hg.): Schreiben in den Fächern. Ziele - Ergebnisse - Perspektiven. (S. 116-133) Berlin, Bern, Bruxelles u.a.: Peter Lang (Textproduktion und Medium, 18).
      • Freise, Fridrun; Schubert, Mirjam; Musumeci, Lukas; Jacoby, Mascha (Hg.) (2021): Writing Spaces. Wissenschaftliches Schreiben zwischen und in den Disziplinen. Bielefeld: wbv (Theorie und Praxis der Schreibwissenschaft, 9). [DOI: 10.3278/6004793w] [online hier verfügbar]
      • Musumeci, Lukas; Schubert, Mirjam (2021): Writing Spaces weitergedacht: Schreibzentren als Räume der Produktivität und Bildung. In: Fridrun Freise, Mirjam Schubert, Lukas Musumeci und Mascha Jacoby (Hg.): Writing Spaces. Wissenschaftliches Schreiben zwischen und in den Disziplinen (S. 179-187). Bielefeld: wbv (Theorie und Praxis der Schreibwissenschaft, 9). [online hier verfügbar]
         

 

Transfer perspective

      • Writing center
        The Writing Center at the University of Hamburg, located at the HUL since 2023, offers students and teachers various formats, like workshops, teaching collaborations, events and advice about academic writing to promote this fundamental skill of scientific work.
      • ProfCast
        Since 2023, we have been conducting Wissenschaftsdidaktik conversations in podcast format with professors at the University of Hamburg: Twice to three times a semester, we talk to academics who want to share their teaching experiences, report on how they design their teaching, solve problems and achieve goals, what leeway and limits they experience and how they combine teaching, learning and research.
      • Decoding the Disciplines is an approach that encourages teachers to reflect on their university teaching in order to develop it further. Since Prof. Dr. David Pace, co-developer of the approach, was a guest at HUL for a workshop on the topic (introductory lecture), we have been meeting about every two months in an interdisciplinary group of teachers to apply the decoding approach in practice. We also offer to present the approach in work areas.
      • Collaborations on Wissenschaftsdidaktik
        We offer members of the faculties of the University of Hamburg the opportunity to cooperate with the HUL on subject-specific questions. (Link to practice network)
      • Wissenschaftsdidaktik in the Master Higher Education
        In the module Wissenschaftsforschung [science research] of the Higher Education degree program, Wissenschaftsdidaktik is not only discussed conceptually, but also related to disciplinary teaching practice in reflections with regard to Wissenschaftsdidaktik.