Institute for Teaching and Learning. Annual Report 2004 ITL

Transcription

1 Institute for Teaching and Learning Annual Report 2004 ITL

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3 Institute for Teaching and Learning The University of Sydney Annual Report 2004 The mission of the ITL is to work with members of the University community to enhance and help assure the quality of teaching and student learning experiences. Copyright Institute for Teaching and Learning Design and layout: Rachel Williams Photos: Publications Office Institute for Teaching and Learning, Level 3 Carslaw Building (F07), The University of Sydney NSW 2006 Telephone: , Facsimile: , itl@itl.usyd.edu.au, Web:

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5 Contents Introduction... 1 Highlights... 2 Key strengths... 2 Key challenges... 2 Projects... 4 First Year Experience... 4 Evaluation and Quality Assurance... 4 Graduate Attributes... 6 Research-led Teaching and Scholarship of Teaching... 7 Flexible and Online Learning and Teaching... 7 Internationalisation, Global Citizenship and Diversity... 9 Programs Principles and Practice of University Teaching and Learning (3-day program) Graduate Studies in Higher Education Master in Education (Higher Education) PhD Program Research Higher Degree Supervision Development Program Seminars and workshops Further development activities Committee work Synergy Research and development seminar program Research Publications Staff of the Institute Appendices Strategic Plan ( ) Attendance at ITL working groups ITL university-wide surveys: SCEQ, SREQ, PREQ and CEQ Semester 1 Student Feedback Summary Semester 2 Student Feedback Summary Principles and Practice of University Teaching and Learning Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies (Higher Education) Flexible Online Learning ITL membership of university and faculty committees/working groups ITL publication output... 36

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7 Introduction The University of Sydney demonstrates a strong commitment to ensuring the quality of teaching through world-class evaluation systems and an increasing emphasis on teaching professional development, especially for new academic staff (AUQA Audit Report for University of Sydney 2004, p. 4). The primary role of the Institute for Teaching and Learning (ITL) is to work collaboratively with the University community to enhance and to assure the quality of learning and teaching. Implementing world class evaluation systems and teaching professional development are key aspects of ITL work. In 2004 the ITL continued to work on strategic initiatives identified in its strategic plan for and to support Colleges, Faculties, Schools, Departments and individual members of academic and other staff in achieving the teaching and learning goals and objectives in the University s Strategic Plan and Faculty Teaching and Learning Plans. The ITL continued to pursue its goal to be a leading academic development unit in the world during Among the indicators of success in reaching that goal are the national and international benchmarking of programs and projects with leading research universities in Australia and overseas, invitations to present work and lead academic development and quality assurance workshops at leading international conferences, and invitations to publish descriptions of our work in monographs edited in Australia and overseas. In this context it is pleasing to note that in 2004 our work attracted the attention of one of the leaders in the field of higher education studies who wrote: Not since the University of Gothenburg in the early 1980s has a single university teaching development institute had such an extensive impact on thinking in Europe about university teaching and learning, and how to improve it, as has the University of Sydney s ITL. The Institute for the Advancement of University Learning at the University of Oxford aspires to research-informed educational policy and practice and looks up to the ITL as a model (Graham Gibbs, Professor of Higher Education, Oxford University). In 2004, the ITL continued to work on issues identified in the University s Academic Board Phase 1 review carried out in The results of the review were very positive, yet there were a few areas that needed addressing, specifically: heightening the profile of the Institute across the university, strategies to recognise achievements in the ITL, initial steps in the development of an advanced teaching leadership development program, and increasing collaboration with faculties to mount tutor training programs for neophyte teaching staff. Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

8 Highlights ITL work was commended in the AUQA Audit Report of the University of Sydney. 33 academics successfully completed the ITL s Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies (Higher Education). 20 staff successfully completed the Masters Unit of Study Designing Flexible Learning environments. ITL collaboration and benchmarking with Oxford University resulted in the University of Sydney being invited as the chosen Australian University to participate in an international consortium investigating leadership and management of teaching in research-intensive universities. The Academic Board approved the Graduate Attributes Policy on which the ITL had worked extensively with faculty academics. Four out of the seven academic staff presented keynote addresses in international conferences. ITL Working Groups continued to flourish with a favourable mention in the AUQA Audit Report of the University. Key strengths The close working relationship between the Pro-Vice Chancellor (Teaching and Learning), the Director and the Chair of Academic Board, as well as membership of the Teaching and Learning Committee and Academic Board have been clear strengths of the ITL during 2004, ensuring that its activities have been strategically aligned with the University s mission. The ITL endeavours to ensure that its work is well integrated into institutional teaching and learning structures and there is considerable evidence, including from the University s AUQA report, that this is the case. The ITL s strong, internationally recognised research output provides a solid, scholarly and evidence base for its academic development work related to teaching and learning enhancement in the University. Further, we believe that the ITL s research record has contributed to enhancing the credibility of ITL staff in some sectors of the University of Sydney research-intensive environment. ITL - University of Sydney 2 Effective management, strong leadership, ongoing quality enhancement and the stability of staff has provided a congenial and collegial working environment that has enabled the ITL rapidly to take on new challenges as they have arisen. Key challenges A current key challenge is that the ITL has become vulnerable due to the loss of key academic staff. The Director has now taken up a position in the UK, one senior lecturer is on secondment overseas and another is on secondment to the office of the Pro-Vice Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) to work on ICT in teaching and learning initiatives across the University. At the same time, the ITL is being asked

9 to take on additional challenges, for example, to provide support to the University s strategic focus on assessment and to improve postgraduate pedagogy. Currently, we do not have the staff or resources to pursue these, and it is difficult to decide what, if any, of our current projects should be stood down to make way for new initiatives. Our work is now closely aligned with the strategic priorities for teaching and learning in the University but to maintain this requires constant vigilance. Without a Director who is on key committees and regularly talking to College PVCs, Deans and other senior personnel, we can easily get out of touch. We need to adapt rapidly to changing circumstances, for example, when the University s priorities change, or when key personnel change (for example the PVC (Teaching and Learning). Maintaining morale at such points is a challenge. A key weakness is the ITL s lack of appropriate accommodation. Activities have grown but accommodation has remained constant resulting in the continual juggling of resources and accommodation to meet changing demands. This is a time-consuming process. As one member of staff remarked recently, we are a small centre doing the job of a large one. Research support and the growth of new projects, for example teaching leadership initiatives, would be facilitated by the existence of structures and systems to ensure that the ITL receives income from research publications, PhD completions, and Graduate Diploma and Masters level enrolments. For several years we have tried to ensure that the ITL receives income earned through this work and in 2004 the Director made collaborative efforts to set up systems for this. However, to date such systems have proved elusive and no income has been received. This needs to be pursued in The existence of an ITL Director with an internationally recognised research track record and prior experience of managing an academic development unit has been a key strength of the Institute in recent years. It is a credit to the ITL that the Director has now been offered the position of Director of Research and Evaluation in the UK s Higher Education Academy. At the same time, it is to be hoped that an experienced and internationally recognised new Director will soon be appointed to lead the ITL into the future. ITL staff are concerned that there should be no loss of impact in the transition to a new directorship. Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

10 Projects The First Year Experience In 2004, the ITL University-wide working group on the First Year Experience (FYE) worked to enhance the experience, orientation and transition of first year students so that: a) students will be familiarised with the University s physical environment, academic culture and support services; b) students sense of purpose and direction will be developed by promoting their understanding of what their courses involve; where their course will lead them; and what their learning in those courses will involve; c) students engagement with the University, including with their peers, will be promoted and supported; d) and students learning will be enhanced by developing their knowledge and skills, including generic skills, and by taking into account students diverse backgrounds and abilities. In 2004 working group representatives have been responsible for developing detailed faculty-based initiatives and strategies incorporating the above key principles to enhance the students first year experiences. The ITL provided a blank template to assist in the development of plans and every faculty has now developed an Academic Orientation and Transition plan for the FYE, to be integrated into their Faculty s Teaching and Learning Plan. These plans have been placed on the ITL website as a resource for the whole university community. As well as working on and sharing faculty plans, topics discussed in working group meetings have included: the teaching of culturally diverse first year groups, research into tutors and demonstrators language skills and SCEQ results and their implications for the enhancement of the first year experience. Evaluation and Quality Assurance During 2004 the ITL continued to provide support to the University community in the evaluation and enhancement of teaching through various initiatives. ITL - University of Sydney 4 Degree Program Evaluation The ITL was responsible for the collection and reporting of data on current students experiences of teaching and learning in their degrees using the Student Course Experience Questionnaire (SCEQ) and the Student Research Experience Questionnaire (SREQ). The surveys report data on the educational experiences of undergraduate and postgraduate coursework students as well as research higher

11 degree students. This information supports the university s teaching quality assurance processes and informs key institutional and faculty-based, strategic teaching and learning enhancement initiatives. The ITL has continued in its role of managing the University s participation in the national Graduate Destination Survey (GDS) and Course Experience Questionnaire (CEQ) as well as the Postgraduate Research Experience Questionnaire (PREQ). In 2004 the ITL supported the University in the use of data from these surveys in its preparation for the AUQA audit of the University. Unit of Study Evaluation In 2004 the ITL continued to work in supporting faculties in using the Unit of Study (USE) system first introduced in The Unit of Study (USE) system provides a university wide resource and the growing use of the system represents a major development of the existing ITL evaluation service. The USE system provides one way by which faculties can implement University s policy on the evaluation of Units of Study. The system links students experiences of individual units of study with their experiences of courses and degrees as revealed in the SCEQ. By the end of 2004, the USE system had been implemented systematically by most faculties and USE surveys were in use in all but two of the 18 faculties. This represented a considerable increase in work for the ITL Teaching Evaluation Service with 62,075 Unit of Study Evaluation surveys being processed in This figure does not included the Degree course surveys or the individual feedback surveys discussed below. The ITL continued to work with faculties through the Evaluation and Quality Assurance working group to support them in planning internal systems to manage unit of study evaluation and the reporting and planning of curriculum development initiatives using the USE data. Feedback for Individual Teachers The ITL continued to support staff choosing to gather feedback on their own teaching through the Feedback for Teachers Service. This aspect of the ITL Teaching Evaluation service includes standard scannable surveys, standard and customisable open response surveys, resources to support collegial peer review of teaching and teaching resources, and resources to support data collection processes such as focus groups and structured group interviews. In 2004 the ITL planned and commenced a project to revise the existing standard surveys and develop new surveys to support staff gathering feedback in flexible learning modes, small group teaching, laboratory teaching and distance education settings. It is envisaged that these new resources will be available for use by the end of Evaluation and Quality Assurance Working Group The Evaluation and Quality Assurance working group includes a nominee appointed by the Dean of each Faculty, members of the ITL and the Pro Vice Chancellor (Teaching and Learning). The EQA working group facilitates consultation on the Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

12 university s quality assurance activities and provides another forum in which staff of the university can collaborate in interpreting and using evaluation data to support teaching improvement. Through this group the ITL supports faculties in using evaluation and quality assurance data to develop their teaching and learning plans and in planning curriculum initiatives and strategies to address aspects of the student experience. This group has also provided the impetus for numerous teaching research and development initiatives across the university and informs much of the ITL s own research-led academic development work. Rewarding Excellence In 2004 the ITL again supported the university s excellence in teaching and research higher degree supervision awards. The ITL provided seminars for intending applicants and support for colleagues in preparing their applications. In addition the ITL again supported the university community in preparing applications for Australian University Teaching Committee awards. Graduate Attributes The aim of the Graduate Attributes project was initially to review the existing policy statement of generic graduate attributes and the implementation of this policy, with a view to enhancing the achievement of such attributes. The development of the revised policy and the faculty interpretations has been a collaborative undertaking between the ITL and members of the academic community. The Graduate Attributes working group has drawn on a conceptual framework identified through research conducted at the University and existing best practice internationally. As part of the revision process in 2004, the Project has sought extensive consultation, both on the faculty statements through disciplinary and professional networks identified by the faculties, and of the central statement through peak national higher education bodies. The aim of the consultation process was to ensure the relevance of our statement of generic attributes to future employers of our graduates and to society-at-large. In 2004 the new policy of Generic Attributes of Graduates of the University of Sydney was approved by Academic Board. This revised statement embodies the University s scholarly values as a research-intensive university with a global outlook. The revised institutional statement of generic attributes also allows for disciplinary interpretation of the attributes, and in 2004 the faculties worked to develop and implement their own interpretive statements based on the institutional statement. The University s efforts in developing generic attributes were affirmed in the AUQA audit report. The report noted that the project was still in its early days and further work is now needed to support systematic implementation. This is the focus of the Project s activities in ITL - University of Sydney 6

13 Research-led Teaching and Scholarship of Teaching The ITL has continued to support the University s strategic initiatives to strengthen the links between research and teaching including encouraging and rewarding the scholarship of teaching. In 2004 the ITL negotiated a benchmarking relationship with Monash University to compare performance on dimensions of the research-teaching relationship identified by both benchmarking partners. A report was prepared and presented to the Research-led Teaching working group. It was pleasing to note that this relationship was commented upon favourably by the AUQA review report of the University of Sydney. The Research-led Teaching and Scholarship of Teaching working group continued to identify areas of university activity that needed to be addressed if the links between research and teaching were to be strengthened. The Report on performance indicators for research-led teaching prepared by the group in 2003 was presented to Teaching and Learning Committee who recommended to Academic Board the adoption of the suggested statement on what the University understands by research-led teaching including a set of key principles for research led teaching and the scholarship of teaching. In March 2004 Academic Board adopted the statement as University policy. ITL staff continued research on ways in which research-led teaching is understood in different university contexts and on students experiences of research in the University of Sydney. Flexible and Online Learning and Teaching Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in teaching and learning at the University of Sydney are most commonly realized as e-learning and videoconferencing. These technologies are being used at the University to support a predominately campus-based student learning experience, along with some postgraduate distance programs. During 2004, the ITL continued to support the University s ICT in Teaching and Learning Initiative in the Office of the PVC (Teaching and Learning). Staff of the ITL maintained close collaboration with colleagues in the Office of the PVC (Teaching and Learning) which enabled information sharing and the identification of support needs for this initiative. One early response was the design and development of the Teaching and Learning with ICT (T&LICT) website which provides teaching staff with a one-stop directory of University services available to support unit and course design. The site is divided into 5 areas: Deciding, Designing, Developing, Learning and Evaluating, and there is a consistent emphasis on quality improvement and best practice to support student learning. Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

14 Within the ICT in Teaching and Learning initiative in the Office of the PVC (Teaching and Learning), ITL staff worked closely with the Flexible Online Learning Team (FOLT) in planning and conducting three college-based E-Learning Showcases and three central mixed-mode Beginner E-learning workshops. Over 50 staff of the University attended these workshops on Camperdown campus in Staff of the ITL and FOLT collaborated to review and revise the content and sequencing of the Beginners Workshops and new materials were added. Participant evaluation of the beginner E-learning workshops continued to be very positive. In supporting the University s ICT infrastructure, policy and planning, the ITL maintained representation on key ICT-related university committees including the Centre for Regional Education Orange (CREO) Taskforce, and the Access and Support Working Party (ASWP). ICT in Teaching and Learning Working Group In the second half of 2004, the ITL established the ICT in Teaching and Learning working group. This working group is chaired by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Teaching & Learning) and comprises 17 faculty representatives, staff of the ITL and the ICT in teaching and learning initiative, the University Library and Information and Technology services (ITS). The working group aims to: provide a forum for the ITL to work with the faculties, and to help faculties share information; allow the ICT representatives to work together to determine their new roles and policies within their faculties; support representatives in their new role within their faculties; provide a means for faculties to give feedback or comments to the PVC (Teaching & Learning) and for the PVC (Teaching & Learning) to consult with faculties; be supported by evidence-based research from both internal and external sources; provide a forum to create synergies between the three University colleges. At the two meetings that were held in 2004, faculty representatives discussed their roles within their faculties, outlined key ICT in Teaching and Learning projects and gave structured advice to the PVC (Teaching and Learning) on their perceptions of the present state-of-play of ICT integration within the teaching and learning programs of the University. An early working group evaluation elicited positive appreciation for the group, in terms of its clear aims, and its value as a worthwhile forum sharing ideas to support the leadership role in the Faculty. ITL - University of Sydney 8 Academic Development for ICT and E-Learning The ITL has maintained its academic development support for the use of ICT in teaching and learning via its website and through e-learning consultancy services to faculties, project teams and staff.

15 Key projects have included blended learning in the schools of Biology, Electrical and Information Engineering and the Faculty of Veterinary Science. This has included advice on curriculum development, sustainability and quality assurance processes for ICT in Teaching and Learning that aligns with existing faculty teaching processes. Videoconferencing In February and November 2004 the ITL, in collaboration with the University s Information Technology Service (ITS), ran two Effective Teaching with Videoconferencing workshops. More than 50 university staff participated in the two full-day workshops, and 18 participants completed the hands-on micro-teaching sessions. These sessions were very highly evaluated by participants. In late 2004, the preparation of a draft strategic plan was underway to guide research and development activities for teaching and learning with videoconferencing in Research into ICT in teaching and learning ITL staff coordinate and participate in university-wide research groups and special interest networks such as those set up in the Faculty of Education CoCo centre (eg. ELNet comprising industry and university representatives). The ITL is represented on the executive committee of the Research on E-Learning in Higher Education Special Interest Group. As demonstrated in the publications section of this report, staff of the ITL continued to communicate and publish individual and collaborative research into ICT in teaching and learning. Our perspectives on the field are reflective, critical and scholarly, and our on the ground development work is informed by the latest evaluation and research into ICT in teaching and learning, to which we made a significant contribution in Internationalisation, Global Citizenship and Diversity While not of the status of a formal project, in that there is no working group set up to specifically address these issues, questions of cultural diversity in teaching and learning are an ongoing focus of ITL work. Although some key staff with expertise in these areas were on leave for part of 2004, a comprehensive website was set up with resources such as the ITL s own report on Diversity and Inclusive Teaching, bibliographic references and teaching tips. Working groups such as the FYE and Graduate Attributes have helped promote greater awareness of these issues on a number of levels, and a higher level of structured activity is planned for Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

16 Programs Principles and Practice of University Teaching and Learning In 2004 over 109 University of Sydney academics from various faculties and other non-academic areas, including the Library, attended Principles and Practice of University Teaching and Learning courses. Since the University adopted a policy of making the ITL s three-day program mandatory for new staff, the program has continued to be offered regularly throughout the year with an average intake of 40 participants and regular waiting lists. For example, the June 2004 program was taught by two ITL academics on location at the University of Sydney Broken Hill campus for the Faculty of Rural Health, where the program was modified to suit their academic needs, with particular emphasis on indigenous issues and flexible learning. It was very well received. The program continues to receive excellent feedback. The averaged evaluations (Agree and Strongly Agree categories) of the 2004 programs indicated that 95% of participants thought that the learning was useful in their work ; 95% felt that the facilitation in the program supported their learning ; 89% indicated that the program met their needs, and 94% were satisfied with the overall program. Graduate Studies in Higher Education The Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies (Higher Education) continues to meet the aims of providing university teachers with opportunities to reflect on educational theory and student learning research from the perspective of their own teaching experiences through the scholarship of teaching and learning and to support staff in developing their professional expertise as university teachers in order to better understand and enhance the learning of their students. All units of study are offered through the Faculty of Education and Social Work and are taught by staff of the ITL. The quota for the course remains at no more than 35 participants per intake. 35 university staff graduated from the Certificate course in ITL - University of Sydney 10 Increasingly the graduate programs taught by the ITL integrate appropriate pedagogical uses of ICT to support flexible learning processes. Units of Study in the Graduate Certificate program integrate online discussions, course information, , assignment submission, and electronic access to readings via the Library s online CORRS service via a WebCT interface.

17 Master in Education (Higher Education) A small number of academic staff proceeded to the Masters program. Three units of study were taught by ITL staff in 2004: The Academic Profession: Challenges and Changes in Higher Education (Semester 1). Three academics completed this independent study unit guided by an ITL staff member. This provides advanced leadership study of aspects of higher education and the context for learning and teaching. Individual Professional Learning Portfolio. (Semesters 1 and 2). 5 staff completed the Research Higher Degree Supervision Development Program as a pathway to achieving this unit of study (see below). Designing Flexible Learning Environments (EDPR6012), ( Semester 2). This unit attracted 20 university staff participants, and modelled the integration of both online and video-conference components. Eight participants on the Cumberland campus joined twelve participants at the Camperdown campus via a series of live videoconference sessions. This unit of study also provides a significant site for the critical evaluation of ICT resources supporting Units of Study within the University. PhD Program ITL staff continued to supervise PhD candidates, one of whom completed a degree during Research Higher Degree Supervision Development Program The Academic Board s new policy on Postgraduate Research Higher Degree Training Supervision at the University of Sydney approved in November 2003 included the integration of the ITL Research Higher Degree Supervision Development Program as a requirement for supervisor registration. This had a big impact on the ITL Program during 2004 with the result that there was a considerable increase in academics who registered for the program. There was also an increase in the numbers of academics who completed the program. By the end of 2004, 340 supervisors were registered on the program, 25 of whom had completed and received their certificates. The ITL supported academics work on the program through the well attended introductory workshop held twice in the year, monthly on-line sessions where academics can come together to work on the online modules and a workshop to support supervisors in completing the Recognition Module; the assessment part of the program. Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

18 In 2004 a revision of the introductory section of the program was made to take account of the changes in language that had come about through government policy on research training (including the name of the program which changed from Postgraduate Supervision Development Program to Research Higher Degree Supervision Development Program) and to explain more clearly how the component parts of the program fit together. Seminars and Workshops Workshops and seminars continued to be conducted upon request. These were either connected with specific projects such as Teaching Excellence Awards (for both undergraduate teachers and postgraduate supervision), or were at the specific request of Faculties and Departments. Development programs facilitated in collaboration with faculty academics were implemented for tutors in the big faculties (Economics & Business, Science, and Arts). ITL staff were asked to present on teaching and learning issues at Faculty retreats, University-wide events, and external events such as the Griffith University Teaching and Learning Forum on Imagining New Forms of Assessment and the Charles Sturt University Professorial Forum. A major academic development initiative was the very successful Vice-Chancellor s Forum on Excellence in Teaching: Learning to Inquire held in November. This session, attended by approximately 80 staff, featured Dr Bob Hudspith, of McMaster University, Canada as keynote speaker. It was followed by a discussion between faculty representatives who discussed plans for implementation. Following the Forum Dr Hudspith also offered his services to faculties on request. ITL - University of Sydney 12

19 Further activites Committee work Institute staff continued to serve on many University committees during These included: Academic Board, Teaching and Learning Committee, and Teaching and Learning Committees of various faculties (for a full list see Appendix 7): In addition to membership, ITL staff make regular contributions to the work of other University and Faculty based committees through workshop and seminar presentations and submissions. Synergy Following a consultation process with faculties, and in the light of suggestions made in the ITL s Academic Board Phase 1 Review, in 2004 Synergy was revised to reflect a more current set of discussions around the scholarship of teaching and learning happening across the University. One major development in 2004, was the inclusion of Synergy within the University s Scholarship of Teaching Index. Two issues were published in Both editions featured articles from across a range of disciplinary areas, discussing a range of teaching, learning and pedagogical innovations. Some of these included empirical research; others were reflections on practice; others were more conceptual in their orientation, yet others still, reported on the outcomes of innovations. Synergy also profiled the work of individuals who were contributing substantially to improving teaching and learning at a more strategic level. It also profiled the work of the ITL. In 2004, the Synergy website was also revised to include a discussion forum, with the idea that this would aid authors towards publication. Research & Development Seminar Program The ITL continued to run a successful program of fortnightly research and development seminars during In each semester we held three research and three development seminars; twelve seminars in all. Research seminars provided a forum for academic and research staff of the ITL to test ideas, share works-in-progress and conference papers. Topics in 2004 included: issues in indigenous research; improving learning by managing cognitive load; trans-disciplinary research; and metaphor, academic identity and online teaching. Development seminars continue to be collegial informal gatherings where ITL staff, and colleagues from allied units across the University, come together to share information and progress about relevant policy and infrastructure developments, projects, and other activities. Development Seminar topics in 2004 included for example: the QA & ICT Project; the Graduate Attributes project; Getting the most out of the SCEQ Data. The seminar program continues to attract a small group of interested people from faculties and colleagues from local universities. In Semester 2 advertising was expanded to embrace a new Friends of the ITL mailing list (including working group representatives and graduates of our teaching programs). Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

20 Research During 2004, ITL research continued to be published in prestigious international journals, book chapters and refereed and other conference presentations. The number and level of these publications and the number of research grants has steadily grown. This research continues to provide a scholarly basis for broader discussions of teaching and learning in the ITL s academic development work. In the past two years two staff have completed their PhDs and made subsequent progress in their research careers (one obtaining an ARC Discovery Grant) and two members of staff are in the final stages of completing PhDs. ITL staff are frequently consulted in regard to national and international research projects, for example, ESRC projects in the UK. In 2004 one member of staff became a member of an international group working towards a European Union funded project on higher education and working life, another was invited by Pearson Education Ltd to be a reviewer for the annual ICT in education prize and one member of staff was an international reviewer for the Australian Research Council. ITL staff continued to examine PhD theses for Australasian Universities. ITL staff have gained international recognition for their research and this has resulted in invitations to present keynote addresses, provide consultancy and present seminars and workshops in institutions worldwide. For example, in 2003 to 2004 four ITL staff were invited to give a total of eleven keynote addresses in conferences in Australia and overseas. In 2004 ITL staff presented their work at Anglia Polytechnic University, Coventry, Exeter, Oxford, Westminster and Warwick Universities and The Open University in the UK; the Scottish Quality Assurance Agency, UK; Linköping University, Sweden; Queen s University, Canada; Victoria University of Wellington, and Unitec, New Zealand; and Griffith University. One member of staff has been appointed as co-editor of the key prestigious international journal focusing on academic development issues (the International Journal for Academic Development) and another became associate editor of the British Journal of Educational Psychology in Achievements Dr Christine Asmar continued to research and publish on issues of cultural diversity and internationalisation in higher education. In September she was invited to give the opening keynote address on Cultural difference in western universities: Intercultural and internationalised responses to a changing world at the Improving Student Learning Symposium: Inclusivity and Diversity, Birmingham, UK, followed by an invited research seminar at Manchester City University. She also co-authored a paper at the Founding Meeting of The International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning in October at Bloomington, Indiana. ITL - University of Sydney 14 Dr Simon Barrie continues to investigate the attributes of graduates of research higher degrees and also students and teachers experiences of teaching and learning through his research in the evaluation and quality assurance of teaching. He has several research articles in press.

21 Associate Professor Angela Brew continued her work on the relationship between teaching and research and completed a book entitled Research and Teaching: Beyond the Divide during a period of study leave spent in the UK in She presented a keynote address at the prestigious international colloquium Research and teaching: closing the divide? in the UK in March and was invited to give seminars in the Universities of Exeter, Oxford, Westminster, and Anglia Polytechnic University in the UK; Linkoping University, Sweden; and Queen s University, Canada. Dr Rob Ellis pursued a research project with staff in the Faculty of Veterinary Science, the School of Biology and the School of Electrical and Information Engineering into blended learning. He obtained a large ARC grant in 2004 with Professor Peter Goodyear of the Faculty of Education and Social Work and Associate Professor Michael Prosser, Director of the ITL. Kim McShane furthered her qualitative PhD research study investigating academic identity and online (and blended) teaching, by progressing with her writing and publishing and presenting her research in international fora. A period of Special Studies Program (SSP) in the first half of the year enabled her to make significant progress with the interpretative analysis of interview transcripts, participants teaching metaphors and online teaching artefacts. In April 2004, she presented a paper (coauthored with Tai Peseta) at the American Association of Research in Education (AERA) Annual Meeting in San Diego, USA. In May-June 2004 she worked with colleagues in the Centre for Academic practice (CAP) at the University of Warwick, where she discussed institutional flexible and online learning policy and development strategies and presented on her research. Associate Professor Michael Prosser continued his collaborative research on the relationship between university teachers understanding of their subject matter and how they approach their teaching. He continued ARC Discovery Grant research looking at how university teachers conceive of their research and how this relates to their teaching. Dr Ann Applebee worked with colleagues to develop and pilot unit of study evaluation (USE) questions on the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICT) in teaching and learning and continued her investigations and research into developing blended learning communities, reporting on the organisational initiatives undertaken at the University of Sydney as they continue to address the issues of coordinating information and communication technologies (ICT) in a devolved teaching and learning system. Tai Peseta continued to make substantial progress on her PhD research, which experiments with auto-ethnography, fiction and narrative as a way of exploring the context, politics and knowledge work of the scholarship of academic development. She organised and led a symposium at the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED) conference in Canada which led to the establishment of the Challenging Academic Development (CAD) Collective - an international listserv designed as a forum for academic developers interested in new theoretical and methodological perspectives to understand the scholarship of academic development. Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

22 Publications Book Ravelli, L. J. and Ellis, R. A. (Eds.) (2004). Analysing Academic Writing: Contextualised Frameworks. London: Continuum. Chapters in Books Brew, A. (2004). Writing for Development. In Kahn, P & Baume, D. (Eds) Enhancing Staff and Educational Development, (pp ). London: Kogan Page,. Brew, A. (2004). Conceptions of Research: a phenomenographic study. In M. Tight (Ed), The RoutledgeFalmer Reader in Higher Education (pp ). London: RoutledgeFalmer. Ellis, R. A. (2004). Supporting Genre-based Literacy Pedagogy with technology - the implications for the framing and classification of the pedagogy. In Ravelli, L. J. and Ellis R. A. (Eds.) Analysing Academic Writing: Contextualised Frameworks (pp ). London: Continuum. Articles in refereed journals Asmar, C. (2004). Innovations in scholarship at a student-centered research university: An Australian example. Innovative Higher Education, 29, 1, Asmar, C., Proude, E. and Inge, L. (2004). Unwelcome sisters? An analysis of findings from a study of how Muslim women (and Muslim men) experience university. Australian Journal of Education, 48,1, Barrie S.C. (2004). A research-based approach to generic graduate attributes policy. Higher Education Research and Development. 23 (3), Brew, A., & Peseta, T. (2004). Changing supervision practice: a program to encourage learning through feedback and reflection. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 41, 1, Ellis, R. A. (2004). Student approaches to learning science through writing. International Journal of Science Education, 26, 15, ITL - University of Sydney 16 Ellis, R. A. and Calvo, R. A. (2004). Learning through Discussions in Blended Environments. Educational Media International, 40, 1, Ellis, R.A., Calvo, R.A., Levy, D., Tan, K. (2004). Learning through discussions. Higher Education Research and Development, 23, 1,

23 Ginns, P. & Barrie S.C. (2004). Reliability of single item ratings of quality in higher education: a replication. Psychological Reports, 95, Heng Kiat Tan and Prosser, M. (2004). Qualitatively different ways of differentiating student achievement: a phenomenographic study of grade descriptors. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 29, McShane, K. (2004). Integrating Face-to-face and Online Teaching: Academics role concept and teaching choices. Teaching in Higher Education, 9(1) pp Prosser, M. (2004). A student learning perspective on problem-based learning. European Journal of Dental Education, 8, Trigwell, K. and Prosser, M. (2004). Development and Use of the Approaches to Teaching Inventory. Educational Psychology Review, 16, Full length published and refereed conference papers Applebee, A.A., Ellis, R.A. & Sheely, S. (2004). Developing a blended learning community at the University of Sydney: Broadening the comfort zone. In Beyond the Comfort Zone. Refereed Proceedings of the 21 st Annual ASCILITE Conference, Perth, Western Australia, pp Barrie S. C. (2004). Academics Understandings of Generic Graduate Attributes: A Framework for Assuring Quality. Proceedings of the third Australian Universities Quality Forum (AUQF) Adelaide Australia 7-9 July, pp Ginns, P. (2004). Quality Assurance and Improvement of the Research Higher Degree Experience at the University of Sydney. Paper presented at the Australian Universities Quality Forum, Adelaide, July 7-9, pp Marcus, G., Taylor, R., & Ellis, R.A. (2004).Implications for the design of online case-based learning activities based on the student blended learning experience. In Beyond the Comfort Zone.. Refereed Proceedings of the 21 st Annual ASCILITE Conference, Perth, Western Australia, pp Other Publications in Refereed Journals Brew, A. (Ed.). (2004). International Journal for Academic Development, 9 (1) [edited refereed journal issue]. Barrie S.C., & Prosser, M. (Eds). (2004). Higher Education Research and Development, 23 (3) [edited refereed journal issue]. Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report

24 Unpublished Conference Papers Angelo, T.A. & Asmar, C. (2004). Developing Teaching Scholars: Comparing goals, theories and approaches of SoTL programs in Australia, New Zealand and the US. Paper given at Founding Meeting of The International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning, Bloomington, Indiana, October. Asmar, C. (2004). Context in Academic Development: Insights from an International Study. Paper given at Academic Staff Development Units in New Zealand (ASDUNZ) Colloquium, Victoria University of Wellington, 1-2 December. Barrie S. C. (2004). Can we agree what the qualities of our graduates should be? Using conceptions of graduate attributes for research-led systematic curriculum reform. Proceedings of the conference of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. Ottawa, Canada, June. Brew, A. (2004). Developing the relationship between teaching and research: balancing institutional and pedagogical priorities. Paper presented at the Conference of the International Consortium for Educational Development, Ottawa Canada, June. Brew, A. (2004). Closing the gap between teaching and research at an institutional level: a case study. Invited paper presented at Research and teaching: closing the divide? An International Colloquium, Marwell Conference Centre, Colden Common, Hampshire, UK, March. Brew, A. & Peseta, T. (2004). Is research higher degree supervision teaching or is it research? What difference does it make? Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, Ottawa, Canada, June. Ginns, P., Ramsden, P., & Conrad, L. (2004). Associations between research students experiences and learning outcomes. Paper presented at the 12th Annual Improving Student Learning Symposium, Birmingham, UK, 6-8 September. McShane, K. (2004). Reflections on Using Metaphor in Interpretative Research. Paper presented at UTS Faculty of Education Post Graduate Conference, March. Page, S. & Asmar, C. (2004). The Indigenous Academic Experience: Preliminary insights from a survey of Australian universities. Paper given at International Educational Research Conference, Australian Association for Research in Education (AARE), Melbourne VIC, 28 November 2 December. ITL - University of Sydney 18 Peiris, S. & Peseta, T. (2004). Learning Statistics in First Year by Active Participating Students. Poster presented at UniServe Science Conference, The University of Sydney, 1 October.

25 Peseta, T. (2004). Staging the Scene: reflections on academic development as an anthropological encounter. Paper presented as part of the symposium Liminality, identity & hybridity: on the promise of new conceptual frameworks for retheorising faculty/educational development at the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED) Conference, University of Ottawa, Canada, June. Peseta, T., Manathunga C., Barrie S. & Sutherland K. (2004). Liminality, identity and hybridity: on the promise of new conceptual frameworks for re-theorising faculty/educational development. Proceedings of the conference of the International Consortium for Educational Development. Ottawa Canada June. Peseta, T. & McShane, K. (2004). On being reflexive: journal writing and researcher subjectivity in the PhD. Symposium paper presented at American Association for Research in Education (AERA) 2004 Annual Meeting. San Diego, USA, April. Research and Development Grants Evaluations and Investigation Project Grant ($144,351): Australian Chemistry Enhanced Laboratory Learning Project. Project Leaders: Buntine M. (contact person), Barrie S., Bucat B. Crisp C. George A., Jamie I, & Kable S. Administering Institution: The University of Adelaide. Australian Research Council Discovery Grant ($228,000): Learning through online and co-present discussion in higher education: expectations, experiences and outcomes. Prof P Goodyear; A/Prof MT Prosser; Dr RA Ellis. Administering Institution: The University of Sydney ( ). Australian Research Council Discovery Grant ($120,000); Relations between academics understanding of their subject matter and their experiences of research and teaching; Prosser, M., Ramsden, P., Martin, E., Trigwell, K. Administering Institution: The University of Sydney ( ). Carrick Institute for Teaching for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education; Strategies for the Effective Dissemination of Project Outcomes; McKenzie, J., Lowe, D., Prosser, M., Freeman, M., Kandlbinder, P., Housego, S., Golja, T. (2004). Institute for Teaching and Learning - Annual report