Multiple identities – student or teacher? by Catherine Foley

By edwardwhite Comment Closed

Background
Students on the BA (QTS) in Primary Education juggle conflicting roles right from the beginning of their programme. On the one hand they are undergraduate students with all that entails – getting to grips with being away from home, managing their social lives and budgets, learning how to become academically independent. On the other, they are expected to be professional at all times – becoming a trusted member of a primary school’s staff whilst on placement, being a role model and working towards professional standards. Whilst they study their specialist subject (art, English, music or mathematics) at honours level, they also have to develop subject and pedagogical knowledge across the entire primary curriculum as well as psychology, child development and difficult issues such as safeguarding. Tutors on the BA Ed have long been aware of these tensions and the challenges they present for students, and the students themselves echoed these difficulties through their programme feedback and the Staff Student Liaison Committee. One of the challenges for staff is that, like any University programme, the tutors don’t ‘live’ the whole programme – it is only the students who really experience the programme and in particular the transitions from one phase of the programme (University-based sessions, school placements) to the next.

 PLanT Project
With this background, we leapt at the opportunity presented by the CQSD/RUSU Partnerships in Learning and Teaching Projects Funding Scheme. These are small-scale initiatives addressing the enhancement of teaching and learning priorities as identified by students and staff. After discussions at SSLC meetings and via email, a volunteer group of students currently in Years 2, 3 and 4 of their degree met and put together an application. As well as the tensions outlined above, they were particularly interested in the profile of their degree across the University and of teacher training more widely, and how to communicate the high level of academic rigour and professionalism involved.

The students have led the project from the outset, planning and carrying out the data collection and analysis. My role has been to meet with them from time to time to support their discussions, book rooms for focus groups, and provide a sounding board for their approaches and evolving findings. They have carried out focus group meetings with all four year groups and kept photo-journals to illustrate the varied demands of the programme. The funding has been used mainly for their time, and partly to fund refreshments for the focus groups.

Although funding for this academic year’s projects is now closed, with claims being made by the end of May 2014, further details of this year’s application process can be found at http://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/FundingOpportunities/TLDF/cqsd-PLanTProjectsScheme.aspx and our experience would suggest it is well worth looking out for such opportunities in the future!

Partnership in teaching and learning conference
Being involved in the RUSU conference on Tuesday 18th June allowed the students to present the initial stages of their project to academic staff nominated under the Excellence Awards, other students from across the University and Student Union Officers. My role in the conference was minimal, allowing the students to share their passion and enthusiasm for their degree as well as the project itself. Particularly impressive was the fact that two of the students came straight from their school placements where they had been teaching all morning, perfectly illustrating the tensions explored within their project. Further information about the conference, joint funded by a project involving the HEA and NUS, can be found at http://www.rusu.co.uk/news/article/6001/Partnership-in-Teaching-and-Learning-Conference-a-Success/.

 Next steps
Having gathered their data, the students are currently analysing results to draw out themes and put together a report for the programme management team and the Institute of Education’s DTL. They will be providing materials to be shared with prospective students at Open Days to ensure they get a full picture of the nature of the programme, and presenting their results at SSLC. We hope that their findings will impact not only their own programme and other programmes at the IoE, but more widely across the University – in particular on those departments running vocational programmes which might share some of the tensions.

One of the real pluses of the project for me as a lecturer has been the opportunity to work closely with a group of students across different year groups on a common theme, an approach we aim to build upon in the future. We are looking forward to getting their final recommendations as they pull the project together.

As they complete this stage of their project the students aim to summarise their findings for this blog, so watch this space! They will also be presenting at the T&L Showcase on the 17th June, 1pm-1.50pm.

Supporting Postgraduate Study by Dr Cathy Tissot and Dr Carol Fuller

By edwardwhite Comment Closed

At an away day prior to our Periodic Review, staff had an opportunity to have some creative dialogue around how we can better support our postgraduate students. This came up as a response from some thought provoking feedback from our current students when asked how we can improve. International students, students with English as an additional language, and particularly part-time students who are in full time employment were the ones we were particularly keen to support in more flexible ways. The part-time students in particular are taught outside of traditional teaching hours and often live at a distance to UoR so it is not easy for these to access library and student study support services. Students new to postgraduate study can often lack confidence in their writing skills, for example, and this group voiced interest in having support mechanisms that were accessible and readily available to them outside of traditional hours.

What’s the solution? Discussions lead us to conclude that we could make better use of Blackboard and Mediasite (this is video capture platform that allows you to view a PowerPoint while simultaneously watching the recorded presentation).  Drawing on feedback from students plus ideas based on experience of common issues, staff drew up a list of ideas for short, bespoke video clips. The idea was that these could be included on Blackboard, across all courses, and in a folder special designated ‘study support’. Students can access these whenever they need or refresh their skills at particular times, for example, when writing an assignment. This way the resource is available when students need it, not when we can timetable to deliver it. It is therefore very much a student led resource. All the videos were also transcribed to make them fully accessible to all students.

The videos are short, focused and specially filmed. Here is a flavour of some of the areas we covered:

  • APA Referencing
  • Using Endnote
  • Making a complaint
  • Writing a literature review
  • Doing a presentation
  • Avoiding plagiarism
  • Word for academic purposes, plus many more!

Here is a link to an example of one of these (you will need your username and password to login – which is in the top, right hand corner. The videos can be found in the Internal Folder – the Institute of Education – Student Study Support, near the bottom of the list) and if you have any ideas as to what else we could cover (or want to volunteer to do one) we would love to hear from you!

Word for academic purposes

History Education by Dr Elizabeth Matthew

By edwardwhite Comment Closed

Still smiling at the end of their introductory seminar in June, these students are pioneering an exciting addition to the BA History programme, allowing them to test and develop their interest in teaching careers before applying for postgraduate teacher-training.

Thanks to Faculty of Arts and Humanities Teaching and Learning ‘Think Space’ funding, and much appreciated support from colleagues in Chemistry, the Institute of Education, and the Student Employment, Experience and Careers Centre, the History Department has launched a new, optional, 20-credit, Part 3 module—History Education.

On two-week individual placements in local secondary schools over the vacation, the students will observe History lessons, then research and plan a lesson to give jointly with a mentor on the school staff. Back at the university in the autumn, they will submit placement logs, reports on their independently planned lessons, and give oral presentations on their placement experience.

We hope these students will gain a real advantage in the increasingly tough competition for Postgraduate Certificate in Education and Graduate Teacher Programme places. While some may pursue different employment options, the module will increase choice and enhance personal career-development opportunities.

Matching students to placements entailed a selection process. Completing a CV and covering letter, then attending for interview, provided useful experience for all applicants. After CRB checking, the successful candidates gave very positive feedback on the pre-placement seminars. Run jointly with the Institute of Education, these not only allowed the students to bond as a group over introductions to the module and the History curriculum in schools. They also offered vital advice about professional behaviour in schools, lesson observation, lesson planning—and food for thought about the different pros and cons of the PGCE and GTP routes to qualified teacher status. So far, informal reports on placements in progress have been very enthusiastic.

Reading Arts Education Forum Launched

By edwardwhite Comment Closed

The Institute of Education’s move to the refurbished London Road site has provided an opportunity for the University to show a willingness to become more actively involved in the cultural life of the town. By way of seizing this opportunity, all schools and arts organisations within a 30 mile radius were invited to attend an early evening meeting at London Road on March 27th. The purpose of the meeting was to establish a new network for teachers and artists concerned with education to share their practice and expertise and find new ways of collaborating on projects. The event was introduced by Dr Andy Kempe, Senior Lecturer in Drama Education and a recent recipient of the University’s Teaching Fellowship Award. Dr Kempe welcomed the 40 or so attendees and explained how he and his colleagues in the IoE were feeling invigorated by the recent re-location and were excited by the possibilities it afforded. Not only is the site superbly equipped to train new teachers in the arts, it represents a beautiful and indeed secure location for exhibitions, workshops and festivals involving children, young people and a range of community groups. Dr Kempe expressed his personal desire to see the campus buzzing as staff and students of the university, teachers and pupils from local schools, and artists and arts groups made London Road a hub for cultural and educational activity.

Following this introduction, attendees were given a tour of the new facilities, in particular those spaces designed for specialist education in art, music and drama. The whole of the IoE’s team of arts educators were on hand to answer questions and hear suggestions regarding how the facilities might be utilised to serve the local arts education community. Attendees were then invited to add comments and suggestions to four discussion boards which carried the following questions:

  • How might the University help your school develop its arts education programme?
  • How do you think the London Road site might best be utilised to develop arts education in the Reading area?
  • Would it be useful for the Reading Arts Education Forum to meet regularly? If so, what business should it attend to?
  • How useful would it be for Reading Arts Education Forum to issue a regular e newsletter? What sort of items could it carry?

The collated responses give a wholly enthusiastic to the idea of establishing the Arts Education Forum for Reading and produced a number of ideas that will help IoE staff start to formulate plans for a vibrant future. Around 40 individuals turned up to the meeting and several others sent apologies and asked to be kept informed of its outcomes and intended future developments. A Wiki has already been set up in order to provide schools and arts groups a place to share news of events and initiatives and plans are afoot to work with outside:inside on a ‘Learn’ festival in the autumn.

The IoE is certainly determined to contribute to the continuing development of teachers and artists through an expanding programme of courses, workshops and summer schools which, it is hoped, will involve staff and students from across the University. New modules have been written to add to the existing MA in Education suite so from September 2012 candidates will be able to specialise and work towards a MA in Arts Education. In the words of one respondent to the discussion boards the aim is to ‘Excite! Push! Stretch! Inspire!’

Andy Kempe