THE OXFORD TUTORIAL:Thanks, you taught me how to thinkEdited by David PalfreymanWith contributions from: James Clark, Richard Dawkins, Robin Lane Fox,Richard Mash, Peter Mirfield, James Panton, Roger Pearson,Penny Probert Smith, Christopher Tyerman, Alan Ryan, Suzanne Shale, Andrew Smith, and Emma Smith(C) David Palfreyman and the Contributors, 2008Published by OxCHEPS, 2008 (second edition)Oxford Centre for Higher Education Policy Studiesc/o New College, Oxford, OX1 3BN, UK.http:/oxcheps.new.ox.ac.uk/Sponsored by Blackwells, Oxford, OX1 3BQ, UK. Printed by Alden, Oxfordshire, OX29 OYG, UK.ISBN 978-0-9547433-7-6This English second edition is also available on-line from the Papers Page (Item 1) at the OxCHEPS website.Chinese edition, 2008, from Peking University Press, Beijing, PR China.PREFACEThe Oxford Tutorial has an almost mystic, cult status. It is Oxfords premium product for which, via college academic fees, it commands a premium price. But the Tutorial has its critics, both within and beyond Oxford. Is it an anachronism in the mass higher education system of the twenty-first century? Is the traditional tutoring of Oxfords undergraduates now too labour intensive and too expensive a burden for the University and its colleges as State funding of higher education declines? Do the dons want to escape the heavy burden of twelve hours per week of tutorial teaching and redirect valuable time into research as the key factor in achieving the plaudits of a successful academic career? Is the Tutorial a sacred cow to which Oxford pays mere lip-service as it quietly shifts to small group teaching? Or is it a pedagogical gem, the jewel in Oxfords crown, to be preserved at all costs as the best way to challenge, stimulate and truly educate Oxfords high-quality young in the crucial lifelong-learning skill of sound analysis and critical thinking? If Oxford lets the Tutorial wither, will it be failing future generations of talented undergraduates who need the intensity of the demanding tutorial teaching methodology to ensure their intellectual resources best serve them in their careers and in turn Society? Moreover, how does the Oxford Tutorial fit with the concept of a Liberal Education, and anyway just what is higher education?This little book brings together experienced Oxford Dons from across the academic disciplines who discuss their personal belief in and commitment to the Tutorial as an utterly essential element in all Oxfords degree subjects. It is hoped that students new to Oxford will find these essays helpful in sharing with them, as the consumers, what the Dons, as the producers, are trying to achieve, while stressing that the whole process is both a team effort and also one that is not fixed in format since it allows tutor and tutee to vary the nature of the Tutorial to optimal effect. Thus, it can be at the same time a process which falls apart if either undergraduate or teacher short-changes the tutorial experience. Yet, as the sometime President of Magdalen College, Oxford, noted when reviewing the 2001 first edition of this book in the Times Higher (13/9/02, p 23): the tutorial is renewed, flexible, dynamic and popular (and he added, even though this news often appears unwelcome to our national educational bureaucracy!). The sub-title (Thanks, you taught me how to think) comes from a former student writing to one of our Contributors after achieving a good degree result. An American student similarly wrote to me: You taught me how to not only research and support my arguments but also how to present them and respond to questions thoroughly and thoughtfully Its funny, I often think of the book you handed me to read on the day of our initial meeting and the boy who said thank you, you taught me how to think. I couldnt agree more. The Oxford tutorial system was without question the most academically and personally enriching experience of my life. Thank you. The Editor and the Contributors are grateful to Blackwells, the justly world-famous landmark Oxford bookshop since 1879, for support in the production and distribution of the 2001 first edition and again for the 2008 second edition of this book, which pays due tribute to another special feature of Oxford in the form of the tutorial as the trademark of the University and its colleges. We are also pleased that this Oxford book has been printed by the Alden Group as another historic local business dating from 1832.CONTENTS1.Higher Education, Liberal Education, Critical-thinking, Academic Discourse, and the Oxford Tutorial as Sacred Cow or Pedagogical GemDavid Palfreyman, MA MBA LLB FRSA, Bursar, New College, and Director of OxCHEPS2.A Liberal Education: and that includes the Sciences!Alan Ryan, MA D.Litt. FBA, Warden, New College3.Teaching Law, Learning La