Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy

Transcription

1 Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy

2 UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST OF SCOTLAND LEARNING, TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT STRATEGY [LTAS] - ( ) Background This Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy (LTAS), as shown in Figure One, draws upon the following UWS institutional context current at the time of its inception (May 2011): 1.1 UWS vision, mission and supporting strategic aims and objectives, particularly, but not confined to, its principal theme of achieving excellence in the student experience; 1.2 Review of the Strategy for the Enhancement of the Quality of Learning, Teaching and Assessment known as SEQLTA (reference); 1.3 UWS Learning Manifesto) of 2010; 1.4 outcomes of the Enhancement-Led Institutional Review held in January March 2011; 1.5 Strategic Analysis of Academic Support Services of January 2011; 1.6 the devolution of quality to Faculties, Schools and Subject Development Groups; 1.7 review of the current VLE system (Blackboard 8.1); 1.8 outcomes of Subject Health Reviews. 2 Development of the Strategy LTAS has grown from initial discussions by a relatively small Steering Group to include much larger numbers in the immediate team and even greater numbers engaging with possibilities and proposals through a dedicated Posterous site. In total, some 120 individual staff and students have been directly involved in the stages prior to formal committee consideration. 3 The LTAS Concept The formal LTAS strategy document is in the form of a diagram in which the underlying presumptions and values are asserted distilled from the items outlined above and statements of guidance regarding the curriculum and its ensuing qualifications are propounded. The final element of the diagram offers key performance indicators that will be used to estimate the progress and the success of LTAS. It is expected that LTAS will represent a period of transition in which UWS extends its SEQLTA achievements in the democratisation of learning into LTAS successor s opportunity to offer learning democracies. Thus, LTAS is the bridge by which UWS will develop its existing approaches into distinctive forms of learning where neither forms of knowledge nor modes of delivery are automatically privileged over each other. 4 UWS Drivers for Change LTAS also forms a response to specific aspects of UWS institutional performance and imperatives in the period since the merger of the Bell College and the University of Paisley. These include, but are not confined to: 4.1 prevailing progression and retention outcomes for students studying at UWS and governmental expectations upon the performance of UWS;

3 4.2 maintaining sound financial management and evident value for money of academic activities; 4.3 Portfolio Review of 2009/10 (programmes) and 2010/11 (modules); 4.4 results of the National Student Survey and attendant opportunities to measure the reaction of students to learning, teaching and assessment; 4.5 the urgency to internationalise the offering (reference) and the beneficiaries (reference) of UWS whilst retaining a meaningful regional and Scottish profile; 4.6 UWS Research Strategy; 4.7 the continued growth of a PG research cohort (reference) and the challenges of supplying a holistic academic offering and fertile research environment for these students where they can grow as potential future staff; 4.8 the need for demonstrable, research informed learning; 4.9 Student Engagement and Guidance Policies; 4.10 the need to retain existing proportions of part-time students (reference) and, in places principally, but not only, in professional education and programmebased offerings; 4.11 the need to ensure that equivalent and consistent learning experiences can be secured across all of our campuses (reference) and into the delivery networks where our programmes are delivered locally; 4.12 results of graduate employment studies and our performance versus other, comparable institutions; 4.13 the need to make level 10 more attractive to students, particularly in subject areas that traditionally find it hard to offer Honours provision due to market forces 4.14 the intention to ensure that our learning is available in a flexible and studentcentred manner. 5 External Drivers for Change LTAS arises at a time of change and uncertainty in Higher Education generally, and in in particular. At the time of its adoption, authors of LTAS have little knowledge of the likely funding and focus of state-supported Higher Education in beyond session 2011/12. Accordingly, there is a need to ensure flexibility in the expression and aspirations of LTAS to enable those charged with its implementation sufficient latitude to deliver, whilst retaining the intentions and imperatives of the analyses conducted in support of the strategy s development. Nevertheless, LTAS must, at the very least, take account of the following, known external drivers: 5.1 QAA Enhancement Themes, particularly those allied to Graduate Attributes; 5.2 good practice (and the validation of our performance in this regard) as highlighted through the Higher Education Academy (HEA) and other, similar bodies; 5.3 perspectives upon the assurance and enhancement of academic quality as promulgated via the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAAHE); 5.4 recognition that many Scottish learners arriving in 2015 will have progressed via s Curriculum for Excellence and will have learning styles, curriculum expectations and certificated capabilities that are, as yet, difficult to ascertain with certainty other than the likelihood of greater inter-disciplinarity and social learning capabilities in their personal portfolios; 5.5 standards of professional, accrediting bodies; 5.6 ongoing governmental policies and funding priorities;

4 5.7 increased use of social media as a means of communication and interaction by students, staff, industry and government; 5.8 Personal Development Planning; 5.9 the economic, social and cultural needs of the communities and colleges served by UWS. 6 Ownership and Implementation The LTAS Steering Group envisages that the LTAS will gather strength from implementation that is owned, developed and delivered by Subject Development Groups (SDGs), Schools and Faculties. Accordingly, and as part of the strategic intent of the Group, a series of development events will run at School level throughout 2011/12 under the auspices of LTAB and which will be designed by the Centre for Academic and Professional Development as a means of enabling Subject Development Groups to operationalise LTAS in the context of their subject, programme, commercial and research objectives. LTAB will oversee the outcomes of these events (by receiving LTAS operational plans) according to a prescribed set of principles and guidelines agreed in September 2011 and reviewed annually thereafter in the context of the achievements section of LTAS. 7 Staff Development LTAB will also agree University-level workshops for key deliverables expected to be secured multilaterally. These will include, in : 7.1 Increasing digital literacies, including development of guidelines for acceptable use 7.2 Multi-campus delivery 7.3 Variety in module assessment 7.4 Learning from work 7.5 Embedding personal development 7.6 University-wide module development 7.7 Variety in Assessment Practice 7.8 Engaging Student in Learning 8 Resources In order to resource the values of local ownership and learning development aspirations of LTAS, and to secure delivery of its curriculum and qualifications expectations, it is proposed that a transitional focussed period of development is pursued that will lead to mainstream adoption of new practices by Such activity will both build upon and extend current initiatives and staff strengths being pursued in several areas of the University. Therefore, it is proposed to: 8.1 seek secondments of a minimum of 1.0 FTE suitably qualified staff per Academic School into CAPD (LTAS secondees) for the period of academic staff who will champion and ensure ownership of LTAS locally. These staff will work in close conjunction with the cross-faculty learning and teaching Heads and the current CAPD Faculty secondees; 8.2 seek secondments from Academic Service areas who will liaise with LTAS secondees to enable local delivery of University resources;

5 8.3 recruit 3 fixed-term e-learning developers (one per Faculty) to work alongside existing resource in CAPD to develop specific technology applications in modules and programmes 8.4 second 3.0 FTE LTAS Learning Development Advisers 2 per Faculty - on a 0.5 FTE basis for 4 years to support student learning within the spirit of the Learning Manifesto; 8.5 expect that staff who are not research active within their SDG plans are allocated 0.1 FTE per individual to support learning development goals agreed by Faculties; 8.6 expect each School to nominate a learning development lead person and allocate PDR objectives and activity planning resource to this task. 9 Conclusion LTAS aims to ensure that UWS can meet its institutional mission of providing distinctive higher education through inspirational learning and teaching and advocates learning and teaching practice that manifestly energises student engagement and academic progressions. In so doing, it seeks to play a role in achieving the UWS vision of inclusive higher education that transforms individuals, communities and economies. Responses to LTAS, LTAS local Operational Plans and subsequent evaluations of performance are expected to be developed within this context and currency. Prof Malcolm Foley (V-P Learning and Teaching) for the: Learning, Teaching and Assessment Steering Group, May 2011

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7 Campus addresses Ayr Campus University Avenue Ayr KA8 0SX Tel Hamilton Campus Almada Street Hamilton ML3 0JB Tel Dumfries Campus Dudgeon House Dumfries DG1 4ZN Tel Paisley Campus Paisley PA1 2BE Tel University of the West of is a registered Scottish charity. Charity number SC