The third annual conference of the National Academy for Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning (NAIRTL) was held at Trinity College Dublin on 11-12 November 2009, and was attended by over 300 delegates. The theme--"Research-Teaching Linkages: Practice and Policy"--was timely and generated some fascinating papers, workshops and debates, demonstrating that the research-teaching nexus is not only to the forefront of, but crucial to, current national discussions on the impact and future of higher education. Moreover, the importance of the research-teaching nexus is now central to dialogue surrounding strategies of investment in third-and fourth-level Ireland. This publication provides insight into some of the innovative, inspirational and highly effective methods used by third and fourth-level teachers in classrooms, laboratories and centres for teaching and learning both nationally and internationally. The success of NAIRTL, and the continued interest in its grant initiative, awards programme for excellence in teaching, workshops and conferences, publications and other activities points towards the importance of the objectives of the National Academy in the modern Irish educational landscape. Research, teaching and learning are in fact inextricably linked, and that linkage is a critical part of the education continuum; NAIRTL, through its activities and its support of research-teaching linkages on four levels, encourages teachers to speak about their own research, engage students in authentic research, investigate the inculcation of a research ethos and conduct research into teaching and learning itself. The latter--the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning--has universally and undeniably demonstrated the positive impact of that relationship at all educational levels. A key aspect of this conference was the interactive roundtable discussion involving representatives of the major educational funding bodies in Ireland. This publication contains the following papers: (1) Completing PhDs: The Perils and Enduring Promise of Deep Study (Jon Butler); (2) Enhancing the Student Experience through the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (Carolin Kreber); (3) Developments in Postgraduate Education and their Implications for Research Supervision (Anne Lee); (4) Moving Forward with Research-Enhanced Teaching: Perceptions of Undergraduate Students and Academic Staff (Brad Wuetherick);(5) Research and Professional Development Plan (RPDP) for PhD Students (Emer Cunningham, Janet Carton and Claire Rosten); (6) Creating an "Interdisciplinary Moment" in Graduate Education: The Theory and Philosophy Summer School (Alfred Moore); (7) Visions of Effective Doctoral Supervision: Disciplines and Traditions in a Time of Change (Jacqueline A. Potter, Mary Creaner, David Delany and Joan Lalor); (8) Lesson Study: Researching Learning about Teaching from Research Mathematics Lessons (Dolores Corcoran); (9) Workshop: Research--Teaching Linkages: Beyond Definitions (Or how to pitch your research proposal to maximise the integration of research, teaching and learning) (Marian McCarthy, Jennifer Murphy and Stephen Cassidy); (10) Learning by Doing: Introducing Research Skills to Geography Undergraduates (Niamh Moore); (11) Bauhaus, Crown Hall, FAU: A Comparative Investigation of the Curriculum Design in Schools of Architecture (Sarah Mulrooney); (12) Children and Global Diversity: Collaborative Development of Learning Materials (Jacqui O'Riordan, Shirley Martin, Deirdre Horgan, Ruth Murray and Caroline Shore); (13) Transforming Subjectives in Teaching and Learning: Bridging the Teacher-Learner, Theory-Practice Dialectic (Meabh Savage); (14) Making Connections for Mindful Inquiry: Using Reflective Journals to Scaffold an Autobiographical Approach to Learning in Economics (Daniel Blackshields); (15) Ireland's Multicultural Classrooms and Initial Teacher Education: The Convergence of Culture and Pedagogy (Maria Campbell); (16) Technological Change in Assessing Economics: A Cautionary Welcome (Brendan Kennelly, John Considine and Darragh Flannery); (17) First Year Students' Mathematics Learning Experiences at National University of Ireland Maynooth (Ciaran Mac an Bhaird and Ann O'Shea); (18) Forging Research-Teaching Linkages Through Action Research: An Example of Facilitating the Development of Competency in Critical Reflection (Catherine Lowry-O'Neill); (19) Exploring an Undergraduate Public Health Learning Environment through the Teaching for Understanding (TfU) Framework (Fiona MacLeod); (20) Certification as a SOTL Process: Some Steps Along the Way (Marian McCarthy); (21) Good Beginnings are not the Measure of Success: Using and Outcomes Logic Model to Track the Progress of the Irish Integrative Learning Project (C. Anthony Ryan, Bettie Higgs and Shane Kilcommins); (21) PAISAGE--Portal Audiovisual Intercultural sobre el Aprendizaje de Gaelico y Espanol (Pilar Alderete-Diez and Dorothy Ni Uigin); (22) The Teaching for Understanding Framework (TFU) and the Sherlock Homes Investigative Model (SHIM) for Teaching Undergraduate Arts Economics Students: A Pedagogical Case (Daniel Blackshields); (23) Developing Research Skills Among Undergraduate Students: Case Studies from the Humanities and Sciences at Dublin City University (Francoise Blin and Sheelagh Wickham); (24) Untying the Accountancy Knot: The Design, Development and Implementation of Interactive Animations and Simulations to Support Underperforming 1st Year Accountancy Students, Including Those with Dyslexia (Frances Boylan, Pauline Rooney, Fionnghuala Kelly, Jennifer McConnell, Alice Luby, Elaine Mooney, Rebecca Maughan, Dan Shanahan, Daniel King and Tony Kiely); (25) Using Prediction Markets to Create an Active Learning Environment in Large Groups (Patrick Buckley and John Garvey); (26) Crossing Borders through Cyberspace: A Social Work Education Electronic Exchange Project across the Atlantic (Janet Carter Anand and Kris Clarke); (27) Enhancing Rural Development through Graduate Programmes--An Ethiopian Case Study (Nick Chisholm, Mike FitzGibbon, Una Murray, Stephen Thornhill, Tsega Gebrakirstos, Anteneh Belachew); (28) Integrative Learning: Learners Design and Reflect on their "Economic" Behaviour to Coursework Assessment (John Considine); (29) Supporting Therapists' Engagement in Evidence Based Practice through an Interprofessional Post-Qualification Master's Programme (Janice Crausaz, Gill Chard and Clare O'Sullivan); (30) Problem Based Learning in Graduate Nursing Education (Caroline Dalton, Elaine Drummond, Lynne Marsh and Maria Caples); (31) Fostering Interpersonal Skill Development in Online Programmes (Kay Dennis); (32) A National Doctoral Programme for Structured PhD Training (Oonagh Dwane and Martina Prendergast); (33) Cognitive Level of First Year University Science Students (Odilla E. Finlayson, Lorraine McCormack and Thomas J.J. McCloughlin); (34) Multi-Disciplinary Graduate Education at Tyndall (Jim Greer and Orla Slattery); (35) How We Use Values-Exchange in NUI Galway (Barbara L. Griffin, Martin Power and Jane Sixsmith); (36) A Blended Learning Enquiry Based Module: Best Practice of Evaluation Skills in Health Promotion (Barbara L. Griffin, Verna McKenna and Lisa Pursell); (37) Formal PhD Training Experienced by National University of Ireland Maynooth Geography Students (Adrienne Hobbs, Elaine Burroughs and Jackie S. McGloughlin); (38) The Implementation and Evaluation of Peer Learning Programmes in Third Level Science Modules (Jennifer Johnston and Maeve Liston); (39) Focus on Patient Safety: How Lifelong Learning begins between Pharmacy and Medical Students at UCC (Aislinn Joy and Laura Sahm); (40) Nursing Students Design "Glossy" Magazine (Jacinta Kelly); (41) Teaching Historical Research--A Thing of the Past (Jacinta Kelly); (42) DCU Business School Next Generation Management (Theo Lynn, John Connolly, Gerry Conyngham, Aoife McDermott and Caroline McMullan); (43) Preparing Students for Postgraduate Research? Techniques for Improving the Quality of the Undergraduate Dissertation (Kay McKeogh and Proinnsias Breathnach); (44) Promoting Integrative Learning through Student Assignments (Kevin McCarthy); (45) Teaching and Learning Education for Sustainable Development (Amanda McCloat and Helen Maguire); (46) Research Awareness and Readiness Evaluation (RARE) of Undergraduate Chemistry Students at DIT (Claire McDonnell, Christine O'Connor, Sarah Rawe, Michael Seery and David Kett);(47) An Assessment of Ultrasound Scanning Competencies of Radiology Residents: Is There a Role for Improved Sonography Training? (Claire Moran, Patrick C. Brennan, Dermot Malone and Louise A. Rainford); (48) Post Graduate Students Experience Thematic Review (Anne Morrissey, Joseph Stokes and Gary Murphy); (49) Development of a Structured MD Research Curriculum (Shanthi Muttukrishna, Geraldine Boylan and Ray Noble); (50) A Focus Group Investigation of the Learning Opportunities Available in a 1:1 and a 2:1 Model of Clinical Education (Aileen O'Brien and Anne O'Connor); (51) Development of an Online Data Handling Module for Postgraduate Life Science Students (Sandra O'Brien, John Kelly, Ambrose O'Halloran, Fiona Concannon); (52) Enhancing Student Learning on Placement through the Implementation of a Case Based Interprofessional Model of Education: Perspectives of Students, Therapists and Regional Placement Facilitators (Marie O'Donnell, Alison Warren, Mairead Cahill and Olive Gowen);(53) Student Research Skills Development on a Level 9 Taught Programme in Engineering: Experiences and Reflections (Aidan O'Dwyer);(54) The Transfer of the Seven Principles of Universal Design to Diverse Domains (Ciaran O'Leary, Damian Gordon and Deirdre Lawless); (55) Ranking Graduate Competences: Perspectives from Employers and Academia (Catherine O'Mahony); (56) Supporting the Supervisors of Research Students in Higher Education (Catherine O'Mahony, Alan Kelly, Niall Smith, Pat Morgan, Carol O'Sullivan and Willie Donnelly); (57) Professional Attitudes among Final Medical Students in Cork: An International Comparison (Eoin O'Sullivan and Anthony Ryan); and (58) Application of the Teaching for Understanding Framework in Topographical Anatomy (Deniz Yilmazer-Hanke). Individual papers contain tables, figures, references and appendices.