In general, my teaching and learning philosophy is evolved over time starting with teaching and learning philosophy based on behaviourism at the early stage of my career (2003 – 2005), followed by teaching and learning philosophy based on cognitivism before I pursued my PhD study (2005 – 2007) in which Universiti Teknologi Malaysia has implemented Outcome-Based Education (OBE) throughout the programme. During my PhD study in the field of chemical engineering in Technical University of Denmark (DTU) (2007 – 2011), I have been exposed to the concepts of learning by doing, learning by mistakes, higher level thinking, team-based learning and active learning which made my teaching and learning philosophy changed drastically from teacher centred learning to student centred learning after I successfully finished my PhD study (2011 – 2014). During this time, my teaching and learning philosophy was changed to constructivism. At the middle of 2014, my teaching and learning philosophy was changed again to social constructivism (2014 – 2018) after I am taking into consideration the effectiveness of the team-based learning, peer learning and cooperative learning. Starting 2018 until now, I am implementing the use of technology in teaching and learning activities.

Collaborative learning methods require learners to develop teamwork skills and to see individual learning as essentially related to the success of group learning. The optimal size for group learning is three to four people. Since the average section size is 30 to 40 people, collaborative learning methods often require teacher to break students into smaller groups, although discussion sections are essentially collaborative learning environments. For instance, in group investigations students may be split into groups that are then required to choose and research a topic from a limited area. They are then held responsible for researching the topic and presenting their findings to the class. More generally, collaborative learning should be seen as a process of peer interaction that is mediated and structured by the teacher. Discussion can be promoted by the presentation of specific concepts, problems, or scenarios; it is guided by means of effectively directed questions, the introduction and clarification of concepts and information, and references to previously learned material.

Course content is constructively aligned by taking into consideration cognitive, psychomotor and affective domains with teaching methods and assessments. Constructivists believe that assessment should be used as a tool to enhance both the student’s learning and the teacher’s understanding of student’s progress. It should not be used as an accountability tool that serves to stress or demoralise students. Types of assessment aligned to this epistemological position include reflective journals/portfolios, case studies, group-based projects, presentations (verbal or poster), debates, and role playing, which are formative assessments together with summative assessments such as quizzes, tests, assignments and final examination. In addition, to assess the team-based activities, self and peer rating are used at the end of every single problem, project, or assignment.

My personal teaching philosophy is based on the social constructivism with technology. The central idea of social constructivism is that human learning is constructed and knowledge is constructed through social interaction and is a shared rather than an individual experience. Social constructivism suggests that learners learn concepts or construct meaning about ideas through their interaction with others, with their world, and through interpretations of that world by actively constructing meaning. Learners construct knowledge or understanding as a result of active learning, thinking and doing in social contexts. Assigns a leading role to individuals’ activity in the learning process, unlike previous educational theories mostly based on the passive and receptive role of the learner. It also recognizes the great importance of the symbol systems, such as language, logic, and mathematical systems, which are inherited by the learner as a member of a particular culture. Learning and teaching is a collective process in which we are both teachers and learners at the same time and are thus better able to understand the information we have constructed by ourselves.

Since 2018, we have emphasized the use of technology in teaching and learning activities. It should be noted that, technology is not fully used in teaching and learning methods, rather than helping the effectiveness of the pedagogy. Now, we implemented combination of blended learning with cooperative learning/cooperative problem-based learning in our teaching and learning activities.

My goals of student learning are more on achieving 21^st century learning goals, which are:

• Students choose to effectively demonstrate work as a member and a leader in a team during Active Learning / Cooperative Learning / Problem-Based Learning process activities.
• Students able to communicate with confidence in oral and written modes to convey ideas to experts and peers through presentations and e-learning platform.
• Students able to explain topics learned independently and with peers, yielding insight and information indicating interest in the subject.
• Students able to analyse sustainability related problem and recommend engineering based solutions to overcome the problem based on the three pillars of sustainability development using Cooperative Problem-Based Learning.
• Students able to think creatively and critically in solving complex chemical engineering problems independently and in team.

The experience I offer my students is intended to nurture the confidence, curiosity and humility to be challenged intellectually, to fulfil personal and professional aspirations, and to interact respectfully with those from a variety of backgrounds. I hold to the conviction that the best learning includes both synthesizing existing knowledge and producing new knowledge. I lay the foundation for students to understand the joys, inspirations, boundaries and goals of ethical and humane scholarship, engaging with the past and participating with others in the creation of an inclusive future.