Enhancing the learner experience

02 September 2011

Since the last mailing there have been two significant appointments in relation to Learning & Teaching:

• PVC (Learning & Teaching) – Shirley Congdon
• DVC (Academic Development) – Prof Barry Winn

The year ahead sees some critical changes as we pilot School Enhancement Plans and explore new ways of working to enhance the learner experience and thereby improve attainment, retention and satisfaction. Shirley is planning a series of L&T Open Forum sessions to keep you up to date, to discuss issues that need addressing and to share successes; the first will be in early October so keep an eye open for further details.

We are also looking at how we can best communicate key points relating to Learning & Teaching. Reviewing our weekly tips mailings etc will be part of this process; so, we are suspending the weekly mailings for the time being. Don’t forget you can keep up to date via Twitter or through the Centre for Educational Development’s home page – http://www.bradford.ac.uk/educational-development/

We anticipate that during 2011/12 much of the Centre for Educational Development’s work will be with academic schools; however, to complement this, we are offering a seminar programme that focuses on developing a number of key roles and the professional development of staff involved in teaching and learner support. The Seminar Programme is now available - http://www.brad.ac.uk/educational-development/professional-development/teachingseminars/ - and we are pleased that we have already been approached by two schools to deliver bespoke sessions for them.

Don’t forget that we are currently offering sessions for making the most of the new enhancements to Blackboard so that you can get your modules into tip top shape for the start of term – see http://www.bradford.ac.uk/lss/it-services/changes/bbcourses.php

Finally, we are also recruiting for the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education Practice - http://www.brad.ac.uk/educational-development/professional-development/pgcertinhepractice/

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 10:02

View this 'Thought'

01 July 2011

Apologies for the interruption to regular weekly tips; I’ve been playing catch-up since the LTA Showcase and am now busy preparing for the Outduction dissemination event - http://www.outduction.ac.uk/bradford-conference.php

Following feedback from the recent survey we conducted to establish how we can best support your CPD, we are gradually embedding ADEPT within the Centre for Educational Development’s web presence. Those who use Twitter will know that we have changed our identity to @UoBCED. You will also notice that the Weekly tips blog has a new look. Furthermore, if you take a look at the Course and module design section of our web site - http://www.brad.ac.uk/educational-development/course-and-module-design/ - you will see how we are embedding ADEPT’s online resources into the site.

This week is a busy week as it sees two significant educational conferences:

HE Academy Annual Conference
We are delighted to see that 3 papers from University of Bradford have been accepted for the conference. This week’s tip is to browse the conference handbook and, where possible, take the opportunity to join the conference as a virtual participant. Links to both and full details are on the conference web site - http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/annual-conference

Assessment in Higher Education Conference
Bradford also has a paper at this conference for the PASS project - http://www.pass.brad.ac.uk/ - which is exploring programme assessment strategies (as opposed to module assessment strategies). Full details are on the conference web site - http://www.cumbria.ac.uk/AboutUs/Services/CDEPP/Events/Home.aspx

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 22:10

View this 'Thought'

Apologies for the interruption to regular weekly tips; preparations for the Learning, Teaching & Assessment Showcase are filling my time at the moment. This week I’d like to remind you of two things:

£1.5 million Teaching Development Grants
The Higher Education Academy is offering bid-based development grant funding to stimulate evidence-based research and encourage innovations in learning and teaching that have the potential for sector-wide impact. Grants are aimed at subject lecturers more than experienced educational researchers £28,000 is ring fenced for new academic staff (anyone with less than five years experience in a full time permanent post).

If you need support in developing your submission or wish to discuss a potential application, please contact the Centre for Educational Development on ext. 3286 or email ced-sec@bradford.ac.uk

Phase one closes 15 June 2011 Full details - http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/funding

Learning, Teaching & Assessment Showcase

Full details - http://www.brad.ac.uk/educational-development/professional-development/conferences/2011/

Bookings are now open for our Learning, Teaching & Assessment Showcase. We’re delighted to welcome David Boud, Professor of Adult Education in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Technology Sydney as our keynote speaker with a paper entitled “Assessment 2020: Creating Sustainable Assessment for Long-term Learning”. We have received a healthy number of poster proposals and abstracts of these should be available on the web site from tomorrow. The conference will also address more immediate changes to how we do business and engage with students for delivering the Bradford Offer; your attendance at the conference will play a crucial part in this.

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 20:22

View this 'Thought'

As we approach assessment weeks and the end of the semester, this week’s tip is to have a look at the e:Vision documents relating to module surveys and making marks available.

• e:Vision documents - http://www.bradford.ac.uk/admin/SAINT/traindocs.php#evision

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 20:20

View this 'Thought'

We have had several email exchanges regarding plagiarism this week during which it was mooted that we should focus our efforts on designing out the opportunity for plagiarism rather than the breaches. This week’s tip is to look at Turnitin’s re:marks for March 2011, particularly its featured article:

• 7 Tips to Encourage Original Work - http://pages.turnitin.com/index.php/email/emailWebview?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonuKnNZKXonjHpfsX57e8uXKeg38431UFwdcjKPmjr1YYJRNQhcOuuEwcWGog8yRxZCOGRdYdN6Q%3D%3D

You might also want to revisit:
• Weekly tip 74 - Plagiarism - http://portfolio.pebblepad.co.uk/bradford/viewasset.aspx?oid=96682&type=blog
• Weekly tip 50 – Reducing the risk of plagiarism in just 30 minutes! http://portfolio.pebblepad.co.uk/bradford/viewasset.aspx?oid=247380&type=thought

22 Comments, 22 New Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 20:19

View this 'Thought'

01 April 2011

The Academic Integrity Service (AIS), managed by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) with JISC, has today published a report to enable higher education institutions to review and develop their policies relating to student plagiarism. We are pleased that materials produced by the Centre for Educational Development are offered as examples of good practice. Today’s tip is to read the report:

• Report at http://bit.ly/dH7aIm

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 16:09

View this 'Thought'

25 March 2011

There have been a number of discussions recently to consider what the Bradford Offer for 2012 should look like. Building on this work, staff in the Centre for Educational Development are looking further ahead to what the curriculum will look like in 2020 – you will hear more on this at the annual conference on 14 June 2011; I hope you have the date in your diary. In the competitive world we live in, it is important that we seize every opportunity to ensure we offer an exciting, engaging and relevant curriculum. This week’s tip is to reflect on the imperative for transforming curriculum and I offer the following to stimulate thinking:

* Transforming curriculum design - transforming institutions - http://www.jisc.ac.uk/publications/briefingpapers/2011/bpcurriculumdesign.aspx#downloads

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 21:41

View this 'Thought'

17 March 2011

The implementation of a whole institutional approach to ESD in the curriculum commenced in 2006/7, so how are you embedding ESD? This week’s tip is to look at the Bradford case studies outlining how colleagues have interpreted and translated ESD from the UNESCO statement in many different ways.

* ESD@bradford Case Studies - http://www.brad.ac.uk/academic-development/ecoversity/case-studies/

You’ll find more detail about the University’s approach to ESD in the curriculum on the Academic Development Unit's web site - http://www.brad.ac.uk/academic-development/ecoversity/

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 21:33

View this 'Thought'

10 March 2011

If you missed any of the previous tips, you'll find them at http://portfolio.pebblepad.co.uk/bradford/viewasset.aspx?oid=96682&type=blog

Do you sometimes find it hard to engage your students? Do you lack the creativity to do things differently? For me, one of the thrills of talking to others involved in learning and teaching is picking up ideas that I might use with my students. Sometimes, though, it’s easy to say, “That wouldn’t work in my subject area”. Today’s tip is to be inspired by others and release your creativity.

* Watch the 4 short videos from the CAPITAL centre to see how drama is being used to engage students in Law and Chemistry - http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/capital/
* Watch Sir Ken Robinson’s keynote speech “Do schools kill creativity” - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY – you may not agree with all he says, but he’s bound to stimulate your thinking.

How could you use creative arts within your subject?

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 21:47

View this 'Thought'

07 March 2011

The University’s Academic Policy Framework was recently updated, so this week’s tips is to read the updated version so that you are familiar with the strategy and consider how your teaching reflects this.

http://www.brad.ac.uk/academic-development/strategiesandpolicies/academic-policy-framework/

0 Comments | Post Comment

Posted by admin ADEPT at 09:26

View this 'Thought'