Higher Education

Staff and educational development, the systematic support for improving education and learning, has moved in recent years to center stage within further and higher education around the world--a phenomena reflected in the booming membership of professional development bodies. This book provides a detailed consideration of the fundamental issues in staff and educational development, analyzing the context in which it functions, the roles undertaken by practitioners, and also ways in which staff and educational development can be promoted and managed in senior and institutional levels, as well as on an individual basis. Written in an engaging, accessible style, it is rooted in practice, with a wealth of case study material and practical advice, the book covers areas such as: developing institutional policy and strategy for development; how professionals learn and develop; leading an educational development unit; programs in learning and teaching in higher education; areas of specialist expertise; and careerpathways.

Collaborative working is increasingly becoming a key feature of academic life in Higher Education. Traditionally, university culture supported individual research and scholarship. Today, the academic role has shifted from a focus on the individual to a focus on the group or team. Collaborative Working in Higher Education takes the reader on a journey of examination, discussion, reflection and suggestions for developing practice via a broad overview of the key aspects of collaboration and collaborative working, informed by focused case studies and an international perspective provided by contributing authors.

This Guide focuses on ‘Enquiry-based Learning’ (EBL) – on curricula designed around processes of enquiry. It is informed by reports emerging from a programme of staff development that supported lecturers as they each carried out a small-scale project designed to impact on the learning of their students.Covers approaches to learning that include problem based learning, field work, student enquiries and so on.

"As students of mathematics or its applications progress, courses focus increasingly on mathematical theories and applications themselves, and less on how to study these complex ideas.
Studying Mathematics and its Applications aims to bridge this gap by focusing on the essential skills needed by students, helping them to study more effectively and successfully. The book leads the student through tasks, demonstrating how to use examples and cope with symbols and encouraging them to use these tools to apply mathematics and construct proofs. Offering practical advice on assessment and modes of study, this book is an invaluable companion to any Mathematics or Applications of Mathematics course."

An inspirational treasure trove of ideas for turning your tutorials from good to great. Encouraging reflective practice, this book is grounded in learning theory yet is eminently practical for all lecturers looking to revitalise their teaching.

It is becoming increasingly clear that the notion of 'removing barriers' offers a limited foundation for widening participation to higher education. Drawing on realist social theory, we consider how decisions to participate or not participate form part of a process to establish a modus vivendi or 'way of life' for oneself. We explore factors that affect how individuals pursue courses of action around entry into potentially alien educational contexts. Our analysis suggests that interventions designed to widen participation should take account of different modes of reflexive deliberation, underpinning social and cultural structures, and a range of notions of human flourishing.

In this study, we investigate the interplay between context and agency for three early-career academics as they seek to develop their teaching. Our analysis is conducted in light of Archer's realist social theory, framed by critical realism. We argue that it is possible to see ways in which Archer's account of the interplay between structure and agency is evident in the practice of these academics, with the influence of contextual factors mediated by their concerns and reflexive deliberations. We thus open up a range of questions for further research and points of departure for the development of practice.

This report outlines a literature review of the role and effectiveness of specific approaches to reflective practice in programmes for new members of academic staff. Rather than focusing on a simple notion of ‘reflective practice’ we operate at a more detailed level by considering specific forms of reflective thinking as applied to given aspects of practice. This literature review has as broad aims to:

• Ascertain the role and effectiveness of specific approaches to reflective practice in programmes of initial professional development for new members of academic staff.
• Trial and evaluate a review methodology based around practitioner collaboration.

The review was funded by the Higher Education Academy between October 2005 and May 2006. The Academy clearly has an interest in the subject of this review, given its role in accrediting programmes for new academic staff and in framing national standards within the UK. It is clear also that the effectiveness of these programmes is an issue of wide interest within the sector.

The Effective Learning and Teaching in Higher Education series is packed with up-to-date advice, guidance and expert opinion on teaching in the key subjects in higher education today, and is backed up by the authority of the Institute for Learning and Teaching. This book covers all of the key issues surrounding the effective teaching of maths- a key subject in its own right, and one that forms an important part of many other disciplines. The book includes contributions from a wide range of experts in the field, and has a broad and international perspective.

Purpose – The complexities and challenges inherent in research often require collaborative rather than solitary or team-based forms of working. This paper seeks to open new perspectives onto the nature of collaborative research and onto strategies for developing the capacity of researchers to engage in it.

Design/methodology/approach – The paper outlines a speculative model of collaborative working in higher education that is rooted in critical realist perspectives, using it to ground a conceptual analysis of a stage model of expertise for collaborative working taken from the researcher development framework (RDF) developed in the UK by the organisation Vitae.

Findings – The paper highlights the contribution that theory can make to the practice of researcher development, drawing out the relevance of personal engagement, professional dialogue and collaborative vehicles to support shared practice in pursuit of mutual goals. In this way, it identifies gaps within the stage model that pertain to relational, disciplinary, situational and other elements. The paper articulates insights for the development of the capacity of researchers for collaborative working that prioritise dialogue that is situated within given contexts for research. The analysis draws out implications for the development of collaborative capacity of such notions as corporate agency and collaborative reach.

Originality/value – This paper articulates a novel approach to conceptualising capacity for collaborative research and offers a theoretical critique of a given descriptor taken from Vitae's RDF. As such it assists in developing the scholarly basis for the field of researcher development.

This paper provides guidance on the scope and construction of aims and intended learning outcomes, and on links with the wider programme. It concentrates on aspects of writing aims and learning outcomes that experience from reviewing documentation and from working with colleagues indicates are often most problematic. Thus while we introduce how to write aims and learning outcomes, we focus in more detail on broadening the scope of aims and on indicating level in an intended learning outcome. In addition, we consider in the first appendix the relationship between intended learning outcomes and standards of performance, allowing us to distinguish between outcomes that are set for typical or threshold standards. Further appendices provide guidance on both possible skills and other attributes, and on verbs to be included in intended learning outcomes.

Professionalism is a focus for student learning in many disciplines. It is known, furthermore, that interpersonal interactions between staff and students constitute an informal curriculum that has a significant influence on students. But the origins of this informal curriculum are not fully apparent. This article offers a multiple case study that explores the genesis of tutors' facilitation practices in small group medical teaching. Facilitation practices were seen to develop in response to a wide-ranging set of social, professional and critical concerns, affecting notions of professionalism promoted to students. Most tutors exhibited a mode of reflexivity that was extended in time and reach, with tutors also progressing mutual actions through communal deliberation. We thus identify ways in which the informal curriculum is grounded in both the primary agency and the corporate agency of tutors. In looking to promote professionalism, it is essential that curricula are staff- as well as student-centred.

This briefing note is intended to outline some of the difficulties that arise when using research-led learning (including enquiry-based learning), indicating possible responses. We address three specific areas of challenge: course design, assessment and staffing. We focus on learning that involves students engaging in research or in aspects of the research process, rather than on other forms of research-led learning (e.g. research methods courses or curricula based around research interests of staff). These latter forms of research-led learning are often taught in more traditional formats, and in such cases pose fewer demands.

This briefing note is intended for new academic staff who are taking a programme of initial professional development. We offer a range of insights stemming from a review of research on the use of ‘reflective practices’ in such programmes (see this review amongst my other papers here on may academia.edu site).

This briefing note is intended for staff within higher education whose students engage in reflective processes as part of their learning. We offer a framework that tutors may employ to help shape the way in which their students carry out such processes. The framework was developed during a review of research studies
pertinent to reflective pratice for new academic staff (see under 'Papers' on here on my academia.edu site).