The development Research and Projects Centre (dRPC) is one of six universities and knowledge institutions in Nigeria selected to participate in the international Learning Mindset initiative, an innovative higher education collaboration led by the Learning Mindset Lab at Leiden University.
The Learning Mindset initiative was developed in response to major shifts taking place within higher education systems globally. Increasing student populations, changing learning environments, the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence, uneven student motivation, and growing uncertainty about the future of work and society have created new demands on universities and educators. The initiative seeks to address these challenges by promoting autonomous learning, an approach that encourages students to take ownership of their education by connecting learning to their personal goals, values, and aspirations.
At the centre of the initiative is the Learning Mindset Lab, an award-winning educational innovation team affiliated with Leiden University. The Lab works across Europe and Africa to develop evidence-based teaching approaches and practical learning tools that help students become more reflective, motivated, and effective learners. Its work combines research, co-creation, reflective learning methodologies, game-based learning, and ethical approaches to the use of artificial intelligence in education.
The programme’s approach is grounded in collaboration. Rather than introducing externally designed models into universities, the initiative works directly with educators, researchers, and students to co-design learning tools and teaching approaches that fit local realities and institutional contexts. This collaborative model has supported the growth of partnerships across Africa, particularly in Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria.
In Ghana, the initiative partnered with the Department of Education at the University of Ghana, where students engaged with reflective learning journals and contributed to joint research outputs that helped shape the programme’s evolving methodology. The programme later expanded into Kenya through partnerships with institutions including University of Nairobi, Kenyatta University, and Maasai Mara University.
Nigeria represents an important phase in the initiative’s expansion across the continent. dRPC was selected alongside institutions including the University of Nigeria, National Open University of Nigeria, National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Bayero University Kano, Tai Solarin University of Education, and the University of Lagos to participate in the initiative’s collaborative network.
The Learning Mindset initiative develops practical tools that can be integrated into university teaching and learning systems. These include reflective learning journals, personalized learning planners, values and goals mapping exercises, game-based learning activities, and AI-supported reflective learning tools designed to strengthen student engagement and independent thinking. Among the initiative’s flagship tools are “Make This My Course,” which guides students through personalized reflection and goal-setting processes, and “Know Your Values,” which helps students identify the motivations and aspirations that shape their learning journeys.
The initiative also integrates research and knowledge production into its work. Through its small grants programme, participating institutions contribute to the development of innovative teaching techniques, implementation plans, datasets, and research publications that strengthen evidence on higher education transformation and learner autonomy. Future plans for the initiative include expanding partnerships across Africa and Europe, supporting additional universities, organizing annual co-creation workshops, and building open science repositories for collaborative educational research and innovation.
dRPC’s participation in the Learning Mindset initiative reflects its long-standing commitment to research, systems strengthening, institutional development, and collaborative knowledge generation. Through this partnership, dRPC contributes to a growing international effort to strengthen learner-centred education, improve teaching and learning systems, and support more reflective, autonomous, and future-oriented learning environments across Africa.
