Higher education in coastal sciences and management: Establishing a partnership between education and industry

The Discipline Network in Higher Education 'Coastal Sciences and Management ' was a venture established in July 1996 with the Department for Education and Employment in England and Wales. The Discipline Network was aimed at he lping academic staff within a given discipline to undertake dissemination a nd curriculum development activities to increase the employability of gradu ates. The Network was run at a regional level, in north east England in 199 6-1998, and at national level in 1998-2000. It contributed to circulating i nformation on existing programmes of study, received advice from potential employers on the validity of curricula and proposed improvements in the con tent and the delivery of courses, in particular those delivered through fie ld exercises and outdoor teaching sessions. The Network was multidisciplina ry in its approach to establishing the new partnership and students were ac tively involved in workshops and working groups. It concluded that innovati ve approaches to teaching should be reflected back into curricula and that a national strategy for improving curricula accordingly should be set up. A Charter for Fieldwork (position statement) and a Review of Regional Resour ces were presented.