The University of Edinburgh. Teaching Programme Review 2010/11. Social Work 24 & 25 February 2011

Transcription

1 The University of Edinburgh Teaching Programme Review 2010/11 Social Work 24 & 25 February Introduction 1.1 Quality Assurance context The Teaching Programme Review of Social Work at the University of Edinburgh is part of the University s Quality Assurance procedures, and is complemented by the Senatus and College Quality Assurance Committees monitoring and reporting, and by the External Examiner system. 1.2 Scope of the review The Teaching Programme Review (TPR) considered the provision of the BSc (Hons) in Social Work The TPR consisted of: The University s Standard Remit for Teaching Programme Review The Subject Specific Remit for the review The Analytical Report prepared by Social Work in advance of the review The visit by the Review Team to Social Work The TPR Report produced by the Review Team Following the Review, action by Social Work and others to whom recommendations were remitted Social Work submitted an Analytical Report to the review team with the following appendices: Guidance on Marking and Commenting Notes of meetings of the Service User and Carer Forum Framework for Social Work Education in Scotland Student profile data Student progression data Notes of Staff/Student Liaison meetings 2009 & 2010 Notes of Course Review meetings 2009 & 2010 Description of the Tutor Role in Practice Learning 2 Course monitoring reports 2008/9 & 2009/10 Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) response to Annual Monitoring Return of 2008/09 Selection for entrance to Honours , Candidates Information Handbook Description of BSc Programme Structure 1

2 List of Social Work staff Programme handbooks 2008/9 & 2009/10 TPR of Social Work 2004, report and response External Examiner reports 2006/7 2009/10 SSSC Review Report 2009 Edinburgh University Reflective Overview of TPRs College of Humanities and Social Science Learning and Teaching Strategy During the visit the following additional information was submitted by Social Work: List of Administrative Duties for BSc Social Work Degree Board of Examiners meetings and minutes 2009/10 Social Work Course Evaluation Procedure National Student Survey 2010 Social Work Response Statement on Practice Learning Statement regarding the Social Work Service User and Carer Forum Student timetables Student progression statistics Second Year, Semester 2 Courses information The members of the review team were: Doctor Martin Reekie, School of Engineering, University of Edinburgh (Convenor) Doctor Alison Harold, Education & Workplace Development Adviser, SSSC (external member) Professor Joyce Lishman, Head of School of Applied Social Studies, Robert Gordon University (external member) Mr Scott Wortley, School of Law, University of Edinburgh (internal member) Ms Judith Payen, Business School, University of Edinburgh (student member) Mr David Robinson, Registry Academic Services, University of Edinburgh (Administrator) During the visit the review team met the following people: The Head of School of Social and Political Science The Social Work Management Team Directors of Studies for pre-honours students and Tutors for Honours students Practice Learning Organisers and representatives from agencies used for the provision of student placements Pre-Honours and Honours students Postgraduate Tutors The Head of Teaching and Course Organisers School e-learning Development Worker and Computing Officer External Examiners (by conference call) 2

3 Convenor s of Audit and Quality Assurance & Enhancement Social Work secretarial staff Members of the Board of Examiners Representatives of the Service Users and Carers Forum During the visit, meetings took place to examine the following issues contained in either the standard or subject specific remits: School priorities and how these relate to Social Work Academic and pastoral support for students Student placements Views of Pre-Honours students Views of Honours students The work of Postgraduate Tutors Aims of the BSc, assessment and curriculum planning Technical support for staff and students Views of the external examiners Quality assurance and enhancement Student administration Accommodation for teaching Role of the Service User and Carer Forum 1.3 Institutional context Social Work is one of six subject areas located within the School of Social and Political Science. In addition to the BSc, the subject area provides a postgraduate Master of Social Work (MSW) which also prepares students for entry to the profession. Both programmes are approved by the SSSC. The subject area also provides a number of taught masters level programmes and has a significant number of postgraduate research students. 1.4 Physical location and summary of facilities Social Work is located in the Chrystal Macmillan Building in George Square. The subject area moved into this newly refurbished building in summer 2008 and now benefits from up-to-date accommodation for academic and administrative staff along with access to a limited number of rooms that can be used for teaching. The move to the new building also provides significantly improved disabled access Due to constraints on available space within the Chrystal Macmillan Building, Social Work must bid for centrally bookable rooms in the Central Area for lectures and tutorials. This is a significant constraint within which Social Work must operate when it comes to the planning and delivery of teaching As Social Work is located in the Central Area, students and staff have easy access to the learning resources located in the newly refurbished Main Library in George Square. 3

4 1.5 Date of previous review The previous review took place in Analytical report The preparation of the Analytical Report was co-ordinated by Dr Joe Francis, Head of Social Work and Ms Ruth Forbes, Social Work TPR Liaison. 2. Summary 2.1. The reviewers have confidence that teaching, learning and assessment in Social Work are soundly based, that the academic standards are equal to those of the University of Edinburgh s peer institutions, and that procedures for quality assurance and enhancement adhere to accepted Scottish and UK good practice. 2.2 The review team commended both the staff and students in Social Work for the positive and open way in which they approached the TPR process. 3. Management of the student learning experience 3.1 The review area s approach to the management and resourcing of teaching The review team wished to commend the staff in Social Work for their impressive commitment to, and enthusiasm for, teaching. 3.2 Key Features of the learning and teaching provision The review team commended Social Work for the way in which it linked research being undertaken in the subject area to its teaching at undergraduate level. This enabled students to develop an active, reflective and critical approach to their learning The review team commended Social Work on the way in which the joint teaching of BSc and MSW students was organised. This enabled students to benefit from the diverse backgrounds, knowledge and experience that each of the them brought to their studies The review met both pre-honours and Honours students. During these discussions, it became evident that there was universal dissatisfaction among students that there was no social work course delivered to them in Semester 2 of Year 2. The students felt that the lack of a social work course in this semester impaired the continuity of their programme, left them disconnected from the subject area and did not prepare them well for entry to the first of their Honours years The review team had met with the Head of School who had explained that the School was committed to ensuring that all students in the School took one core social science course in each of the pre-honours years. It was for this reason that students on the BSc took the Social and Political Enquiry 2 course in Semester 2 of Year 2 rather than a social work course. The Head of School had also explained that this 4

5 arrangement benefited BSc students in their Honours years as it allowed them to make a link between the analytical apparatus of social science and the decision making process in social work. Indeed, the review team had noted that some students had indicated that the benefits of this arrangement had only become apparent to them in the Honours years The review team recognised that the School had provided pedagogical reasons for the core course requirement and that this arrangement could benefit social work students in their Honours years. The review team could not, however, ignore the fact that the current arrangement was deeply unpopular with social work students. The review team recommended that Social Work and the School should review year 2 of the undergraduate programme taking into account student concerns, the aims of the School, and the need to properly prepare students for the Honours years. 3.3 Key features of the student population and implications for learning and teaching The review team noted that the vast majority of students entering the BSc were in the over-21 age category, female, white and domiciled in Scotland The trend towards an increasing number of students entering the BSc via the FE College or Access Course routes was noted. The review team noted that students entering via this route tended to require additional support and, although it placed significant demands on scarce staff resources, Social Work continued meet these demands. 3.4 The extent to which the review area engages and supports students in their learning The review team commended the students in social work whom they found to be committed, articulate and enthusiastic about their studies The review team commended Social Work for the DoS system in the pre- Honours years and the Tutor system in the Honours years. A recent initiative to provide more continuity for students in terms of retaining the same Tutor for more than just one Honours year was noted as a welcome addition to an already excellent system of pastoral and academic support The review teams found that some students were unclear about the respective roles of the DoS and secretarial staff when it came to course registration in the pre- Honours years. The review team recommended that Social Work should clarify the roles of academic and administrative staff to ensure that students and staff fully understood the course registration process in the pre-honours years. 3.5 The extent to which the review area promotes the development of graduate attributes The review team commended Social Work for the positive work it had undertaken in engaging with the Service User and Carer Forum. The review team 5

6 found that Forum had a positive influence on the readiness to practice of graduates of the programme The review team recommended that Social Work should examine ways of building on the already successful work with the Service User and Carer Forum. Social Work should seek to further embed the Forum in the process of readying students for practice. Social Work should also examine ways of taking the views of the Forum into account when making decisions about the future development of the programme. 3.6 The effectiveness of the review area s approach to managing the learning environment The review team commended the work of both the e-learning Development Worker and Computing Officer in supporting staff and students with Virtual Learning Environments, the provision of IT skills training and general technical support The review team were shown examples of accommodation allocated to Social Work for tutorials by the University s Room Booking Unit. There a significant number of problems associated with these rooms. These included access to rooms situated up several flights of stairs in Buccleuch Place and inflexible classroom layouts in rooms situated in David Hume Tower. The lack of break-out facilities for skills work was also a problem. The review team were conscious of the fact that, given that the study of Social Work necessitated the development of practical skills, it was unfortunate that Social Work did not have access to suitable teaching space. The review team recommended that the University should examine how best to ensure that Social Work was provided with flexible and accessible accommodation that was suitable for skills teaching. 3.7 The effectiveness of the institution s approach to promoting equality, diversity, sustainability and social responsibility and effective learning for all of its students The review team noted that Social Work s move to the Chrystal Macmillan Building had addressed many of the disabled access issues that had been highlighted in the previous TPR. The steps being taken by Social Work to further develop its relationship with the University Disability Office and improve the support that it provides to students with disabilities, particularly those with sensory impairments, were noted. 3.8 The extent to which the review area supports and develops staff to promote effective learning for students The review team noted that all academic staff were registered with the SSSC and that they were required to participate in a specified amount of continuing professional development to maintain their registration. Staff participated in a wide range of activities such as participation at conferences, seminars and workshops, along with filling representative roles in professional organisations in order to maintain their professional expertise. 6

7 4. Management of quality and standards 4.1 The effectiveness of the review area s approach to monitoring and quality assurance The Review team commended Social Work on its course review systems. The review team noted the recent steps taken by social work to clearly delineate between courses to improve the quality of monitoring and student feedback The review team noted that the SSSC had held a Review and Renewal of Approval event with Social Work in April This had led to SSSC approval of both the BSc and MSW to be extended for a further 5 years. The review team had included a representative of the SSSC as a full member and this had proved most beneficial to the TPR process. The review team noted that there was a significant amount of overlap between the SSSC Approval and TPR processes. The review team recommended that the University and the SSSC should examine whether the TPR and approval processes could be linked in future years. 4.2 The extent to which the review area s monitoring and quality arrangements take account of all students The review team commended Social Work on the organisation of the placements for students. The review team noted the considerable effort that was made to ensure that the matching, preparation and observation processes were of the highest quality. 4.3 The extent to which the review area takes account of external reference points The review team noted extremely positive view provided by the external examiners and the way in which Social Work had sought to feed these comments into their internal review processes. 4.4 The effectiveness of the review area s approach to setting and maintaining academic standards The review team noted that a completely revised curriculum was approved by both the University and SSSC in The effectiveness of the review area s approach to the management of assessment, progression and achievement The review team commended Social Work for the professional way in which it operated its Boards of Examiners. The review team were particularly impressed by the fair, rigorous and transparent approach taken to the assessment of student placements The review team commended Social Work for the consistency and quality of feedback provided to its students. It was noted that the external examiners had 7

8 remarked both verbally and in their written reports on the high quality of the feedback provided to students The review team noted some comments from students regarding the late return of a formative assessment. The review team was of the view that incidents such as this one could undo the good work on assessment that was taking place across Social Work. The review team recommended that Social Work should review whether the agreed turnaround time of three weeks was being properly adhered to for the return of formative and summative assessments The review team noted that there had been some problems associated with the introduction of a new Honours course, Social Work in Communities. Students had commented unfavourably on the organisation and coherence of the course. The review team were concerned that this should be the case given that Social Work knew well in advance that this was a new course which was to be delivered for the first time in 2009/10. The review team suggested that Social Work should reflect on the lessons to be learnt from the introduction of new courses and how these could inform future co-ordination and planning The review team noted that Students had also expressed concerns regarding the marking of coursework for the new course. The review team suggested that Social Work should use the experience gained in the introduction of new courses to review its processes for the moderation of marks with a view to ensuring fairness in the marking system The review team noted that students were required to hand in a hard copy of their assessments at the Chrystal Macmillan Building. They were required to do this even though they might have already submitted an electronic copy of their work. The review team had received some comments from students that the need to visit the University presented them problems in relation to childcare and additional travel expenses. The review team felt that, given the profile of the student population in Social Work, this might be a problem faced by a significant number of students. The review team suggested that Social Work should review the policy for the submission of assessed work with a view to accepting an electronic copy for deadline purposes with hard copy being submitted by post The review team noted that, whilst pre-honours students had expressed their satisfaction with the way that coursework for courses taken within the School of Social Science was returned to them promptly, they found the quality of the feedback to be too general and lacking in detail. The review team suggested that the School of Social and Political Science should examine whether it was sacrificing the quality of feedback in order to ensure that coursework was returned to students in a timely fashion. 8

9 5. Management of enhancement and sharing good practice 5.1 The extent to which the review area takes deliberate steps to manage quality enhancement The review team recognised that Social Work had robust systems for quality assurance. The review team suggested that Social Work should identify separate members of staff who would have responsibility for quality assurance and quality enhancement respectively The review team noted that, in line with the College Learning and Teaching Strategy, problem based learning was at the heart of the approach to the delivery of the BSc. 5.2 The extent to which the review area engages with Quality Assurance Agency enhancement themes and other sector themes as appropriate (e.g. Higher Education Academy) The review team noted that Social Work had used the Scottish Government sponsored Change Academy as a vehicle to undertake the comprehensive revision of the BSc that had been approved in The review had had a particular emphasis on the QAA Enhancement Theme of assessment. 5.3 The extent to which the review area identifies and shares good practice The review team noted that Social Work had adopted a more team oriented approach to teaching in the Honours years which had enhanced the sharing of good practice between staff The review team noted that staff in Social Work were engaged in providing continuing professional development to the workforce and that this provided them with the opportunity to share good practice with colleagues external to the University. 6. Subject specific remit items 6.1 The effectiveness of the Subject Area s approach to the issue of Accessible Learning The review team noted the positive steps that Social Work had made to involve the University s Disability Office in the process of ensuring that the curriculum was accessible to students with a wide range of disabilities and, in particular, those with sensory impairments. 6.2 How the Subject Area is taking into account the newly published College Learning and Teaching Strategy The review team noted that Social Work had demonstrated that it was providing a high quality learning experience, where teaching was informed by research and which produced graduates equipped with the range of skills required for the practice of their profession. This work closely matched the overarching aims identified in the 9

10 College Learning and Teaching Strategy, however, the responsibilities of Social Work and the School in its implementation could be clarified. 6.3 How the Subject Area is responding to the results of the most recent National Student Survey The review team noted that Social Work had taken steps to address the issue of the relatively poor scores it had received in the National Student Survey (NSS). Improvements had been made in the areas of assessment, feedback, maintenance of contact with students during placements, and the promotion of a sense of community amongst staff and students. The review team anticipated that these changes would lead to improved results in the 2011 NSS. However, and particular in the event the NSS results do not improve significantly, the review team expected that Social Work would continue to examine closely the drivers behind the responses submitted by students. 6.4 The sustainability of teaching and balance between undergraduate and postgraduate provision The review team recognised that the relatively small social work team had to balance the competing demands of teaching, research and administration. The review team noted that it might be argued that the provision of both undergraduate and postgraduate routes into the profession exacerbated these tensions. The review team noted, however, that the provision of the two programmes had widened participation and had benefits in terms of students from a variety of backgrounds bringing different life experiences to Social Work. 6.5 The relationship between the TPR and the review process of the Scottish Social Services Council The review team noted that the University and the SSSC would continue to examine whether there was scope for greater linkage between the TPR and SSSC approval processes. 6.6 The requirement to deliver 200 days of practice learning The review team recognised that Social Work had to commit significant resources to meeting the requirement to ensure that its students gained the required number of practice learning days. The review team noted that the practice learning element was one of the great strengths of the undergraduate programme in terms of preparing students for their chosen profession The review team was concerned at the proportion of staff who were currently on fixed term contracts. 6.7 The joint teaching of undergraduate and postgraduate students The review team noted that a strength of the programme in the Honours years was that undergraduate and postgraduate students from differing backgrounds were 10

11 brought together in an environment where they could benefit from each other s variety of life experiences. 7. Summary of commendations and recommendations 7.1 Commendations The review team commended both the staff and students in Social Work for the positive and open way in which they approached the TPR process (2.2) The review team commended the staff in Social Work for their impressive commitment to, and enthusiasm for, teaching (3.1.1) The review team commended Social Work for the way in which it linked research being undertaken in the subject area to its teaching at undergraduate level (3.2.1) The review team commended Social Work on the way in which the joint teaching of BSc and MSW students was organised (3.2.2) The review team commended the students in social work whom they found to be committed, articulate and enthusiastic about their studies (3.4.1) The review team commended Social Work for the DoS system in the pre- Honours years and the Tutor system in the Honours years (3.4.2) The review team commended Social Work for the positive work it had undertaken in engaging with the Service User and Carer Forum (3.5.1) The review team commended the work of both the e-learning Development Worker and Computing Officer in supporting staff and students with Virtual Learning Environments, the provision of IT skills training and general technical support (3.6.1) The Review team commended Social Work on its course review systems (4.1.1) The review team commended Social Work on the organisation of the placements for students (4.2.1) The review team commended Social Work for the professional way in which it operated its Boards of Examiners (4.5.1) The review team commended Social Work for the consistency and quality of feedback provided to its students (4.5.2). 11

12 7.2 Recommendations (listed in order of priority) The review team recommended that Social Work and the School should review year 2 of the undergraduate programme taking into account student concerns, the aims of the School, and the need to properly prepare students for the Honours years (3.2.5) The review team recommended that Social Work should examine ways of building on the already successful work with the Service User and Carer Forum (3.5.2) The review team recommended that Social Work should review whether the agreed turnaround time of three weeks was being properly adhered to for the return of formative and summative assessments (4.5.3) The review team recommended that Social Work should clarify the roles of academic and administrative staff to ensure that students and staff fully understood the course registration process in the pre-honours years (3.4.3) The review team recommended that the University and the SSSC should examine whether the TPR and approval processes could be linked in future years (4.1.2) The review team recommended that the University should examine how best to ensure that Social Work was provided with flexible and accessible accommodation that was suitable for skills teaching (3.6.2) The review team suggested that Social Work should reflect on the lessons to be learnt from the introduction of new courses and how these could inform future coordination and planning (4.5.4) The review team suggested that Social Work should use the experience gained in the introduction of new courses to review its processes for the moderation of marks with a view to ensuring fairness in the marking system (4.5.5) The review team suggested that Social Work should identify separate members of staff who would have responsibility for quality assurance and quality enhancement respectively (5.1.1) The review team suggested that Social Work should review the policy for the submission of assessed work with a view to accepting an electronic copy for deadline purposes with hard copy being submitted by post (4.5.6) The review team suggested that the School of Social and Political Science should examine whether it was sacrificing the quality of feedback in order to ensure that coursework was returned to students in a timely fashion (4.5.7). 12

13 7.3 Summary of responsibility recommendations Recommendation Responsible body 2,3,4,7,8,9,10. Social Work 11. School of Social and Political Science 1. Social Work and the School of Social and Political Science 5. University Director of Academic Standards and Quality Assurance 6. University Estates & Buildings 13