Moji Aghajani, assistant professor at Education and Child Studies, makes his teaching multidimensional. "Organise a field trip, invite experts and experts by experience. A good story, told first-hand, is so much more powerful than theory alone."   

Lectures from experts   

Aghajani believes in education being more than just the transfer of knowledge. His courses, Violence and the Brain and Methods in Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, go beyond traditional lectures. Aghajani: "Most lectures are given by guest lecturers who are experts in their fields. Students are fascinated and involved when they are taught by someone who is a real specialist. The lectures thus become more of a dialogue between the expert and the students. I invite colleagues from different universities, sometimes with surprising perspectives, but also experts by experience.”  

Coveted field trips  

An essential part of his courses are the field trips, which offer students a unique hands-on experience. They visit the MRI scanner at LUMC, the SSH labs, the Pieter Baan Centre and Forensic Centre Teylingereind. “There are always more students who want to join than there are places, so we have to draw lots to see who can come along," Aghajani says.  

Impressive perspective  

The field trips introduce students to clinical research and forensic psychology. Especially the visits to Teylingereind and the Pieter Baan Center make a deep impression. “In Teylingereind there are young people, often not much younger than the students themselves. Students realize how drastic it is to be stuck there for years. Their image of delinquents changes: they are not 'bad' people, but often young people from difficult home situations with a lot of poverty.”    

Experts by experience 

During one of the lectures, all students get the chance to speak to a former inmate, someone who spent three years at Teylingereind. “He talks about how important perspective on rehabilitation is. His words are so much more powerful than theory alone.” 

Passion and recognition  

Aghajani's approach takes a lot of time and organization. “Every year it's a lot of work to organize the lecturs and plan the field trips . If I'm very honest: I need more than the hours I get for it. But when students are enthusiastic, the course gets good reviews and guest lecturers are happy to come back, it really feels like a reward. The fact that the Methods in Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience course recently won the Inspiring Education Prize further confirms that our approach is appreciated by the students, and that's ultimately what you do it for.”