Anna Borovova: "I want more courses like this!"

The 45 MA students who participated at the course Sustainable Business Models, used video as a means to disseminate their results. Educational technology has high priority at NHH.

07.11.2014 - Astri Kamsvåg

"The goal is to engage students using a variety of learning activities", says Associate Professor Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen who is responsible for the course.

Anna Borovova, an MSc student from Russia, is thrilled with the course. "I have never taken an interactive course like this one before. Using video to present the results of our investigations, is such a good way to learn. Telling our story in just three-four minutes really forced us to focus. I've learned so much. I was very anxious to see what the other students had made, and I was so impressed by the quality and variety in all the films. I'm amazed by how much it's possible to communicate in such a little amount of time!" Anna says.

She won the "Dialogue Award". "Anna is the one who contributed most to the discussions on the course blog, which is run by the students themselves", says Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen. The other awards were "Blogger Award" and the "Best Movie Award". Pedersen had put a lot of effort into the course, including the ceremony announcing the winners in each category. The trophies he handed out had nice inscriptions. The Blogger Award went to Krastina Georgieva-Ilkova because she was the student who was the most productive contributor of posts to the course blog, and Best movie went to Mette Karine Broch, Kristine Holm Sylta and Cassandra Fredrickson Torgnes. The course participants voted for this category.

Challenging
"The feedback that I got from the students in the course is that they find these learning activities motivating and challenging. They have been very enthusiastic and have worked hard. The course requirements demand intellectual engagement and a lot of effort. Also, it doesn't help to have a very good project, if the students are not able to communicate the essence to other people. I'm convinced that having these skills will be of great help for the students in their careers", comments the Associate Professor.

The students should choose a company, small or large, Norwegian or international, and look at the company's sustainability in relation to its business model. Among the chosen firms were Yara, Tesla, BIR, IKEA and Nøstebarn. The course runs from August till the end of November and gives 7.5 study points. Throughout the course students investigate the case companies' sustainability in depth.

The students could use the technology of their own choice in their dissemination. Most videos were filmed with cell phones or ipads and edited with imovie. The students worked in groups and produced 17 films in total. In addition to the films, each group submitted an accompanying term paper and they also contributed regularly to the course blog. Approximately 40% of the students were international students.

Read more about Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen

Read the course description

Best movie went to Mette Karine Broch, Kristine Holm Sylta and Cassandra Fredrickson Torgnes.

Foto: Astri Kamsvåg

The Blogger Award went to Krastina Georgieva-Ilkova

Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen and Anna Borovova, winner of Best dialogue.

Foto: Astri Kamsvåg

Associate Professor Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen announcing the winners.

Foto: Astri Kamsvåg