UG-Flex Project Blog

Report back on conference "A new deal for part-time and distance students" 12 Oct 2011

2011-10-25T14:14:00.002+01:00

The UG-Flex project was represented at the recent conference looking at part-time, distance and flexible study in Higher Education by Annette Devine (Office of Student Affairs) and Emma Williams, (Planning and Statistics).

Speakers included Claire Callender and Tricia King (Birkbeck), Ed Leser (Chief Exec. Student Loans Company), Kate Butland & Peter Mulligan (UCAS) and Bill Jones (Universities Association for Lifelong Learning)

A summary of the main discussion and issues follows below. Reading them it is interesting to note that the strategic and infrastructure issues raised are ones that the UG-Flex project at Greenwich has been grappling with. I think it is worth emphasizing that by tackling the core organisational functions and infrastructure implications of flexible learning, Greenwich is 2+ years further down the road towards changing its institutional mindset.

The public value of HE (social mobility and economic benefits) and individual benefit are recognised;
Growing importance of part-time study – demographic downturn in younger HE entrants, up-skilling/re-skilling of workforce in current economic climate, financial austerity;
Part-time students will have access to non means tested loan up to £6,750 and with access to loans the expectation (by Government) is that more students will opt for part-time, distance learning, work-based learning;
Expectation of increased employer input into HE courses;
Part-time learning are no longer obscured in policy statements;
Flexibility and responsiveness – students should be able to study where, when and how it suits them;
Student experience – part-time students are not just full-time students doing it slower;
New providers emerging (FE and private) and cheaper modes of delivery (online);
Personalised learning needs to be addressed: APL/APEL, accelerated learning, unitisation, credit transfer

Issues

Uncharted territory – no-one can predict student behaviour: It is difficult to predict part time & distance learner behaviour for 2012 entry. It is noted that part time student numbers have been reducing over last 10 years or so. At Birkbeck any shift in this trend will not be known until late in the planning cycle as many apply late as direct entrants.
Diverse profile of part-time students
No level playing field with full time students in terms of funding:
A cap of £6,750 imposed on part time students for fees loan regardless of intensity of study
Part time students only qualify for fees loans if studying more than 25% FTE
Grants will be removed for part time students (exception for students with disabilities)
Only a third of part-time students will be able to access loans for fees: those with Level 4 qualifications will not be able to access tuition fee loans.
Part time students will have to start to pay back their loan 3 ½ years after the start of their course regardless of completion status or income levels.
Full time and part time study are different and the course structure/content for part-time study needs to be individualised.
There are concerns that fees will be set pro-rata, where in the past they may have been discounted.
Will part-time students take the risk when perception is one of debt?
Employer reluctance in current economic climate to fund re-skilling through HE
Flexible learning has to be an integral aspect of institutional strategic change and aligned to admissions, learning and teaching and e learning strategies and associated staff development
Addressing core organisational function and infrastructure implications inc support services, library and IT for part time students.

Other points

Part-time students will be able to apply to the Student Loans Company (SLC) through same process as full-timers – currently only deal with 16-20k per year;
SLC have no idea what the uptake will be but expect it within the range 16,700-150,00 and demand profile expected to be different from full-time;
UCAS currently undertaking major admissions process review to provide a flexible sustainable approach to all modes of study. Report expected in March 2012;
According to UCAS Potential part-time students want information on the following:

fees
how to apply
loans and repayment
course duration
method of course delivery (e.g. evening/weekend etc.)
contact hours

Presentation slides from conference speakers are available on request from c.eustance@gre.ac.uk

CURRICULUM DESIGN MARKETPLACE

2011-10-10T21:51:00.000+01:00

The UG-Flex Project has been working to deliver four key requirements articulated by stakeholders back in 2009.

These were:

1. Systems and processes designed around student need
2. Better support solutions for programme validation and review
3. Trusted, high quality course information
4. Better communication channels

See below for feedback from some of our stakeholders commenting on the impact they think the project has had:

View from a school manager
View from strategic academic planning perspective
View from member of project steering group

Comments sought on options for Greenwich's academic calendar post 2012

2011-09-14T19:13:00.000+01:00

My thanks to members of the University of Greenwich Teaching Fellows Group for inviting me to give a short presentation today on the research the UG-Flex project has conducted so far into options for Greenwich's academic calendar post 2012.

I've posted up a copy of the "work in progress" diagrams and statement of requirements on this blog and welcome any additional comments and observations. Your input really will help inform the content of the paper that will appear on our new VC's desk on the 1st October.

Claire Eustance
UG-Flex Project Manager

c.eustance@gre.ac.uk x8918

UG-Flex at the CAMEL on Wheels in Cambridge

2011-08-03T11:27:00.001+01:00

Last week's CAMEL meeting in Cambridge marked the start of the final year of the UG-Flex project.

Appropriately the focus was on: sustainability - evaluation - dissemination

The activities over the two days were extremely useful. As always it was an opportunity to reflect and share progress and challenges and added to this, there was a timely opportunity to reflect on strategies for embedding and sustaining outputs and outcomes. I found this session an (unusually) reassuring indication that because UG-Flex has tackled problems from an institutional perspective and sought solutions that are equally as institutionally grounded and mainstream, this has ensured sustainability has been integral from the outset. While embedding and sustaining change is always a challenge, for UG-Flex at least it is not an overwhelming one.

The session on evaluation was equally useful in clarifying impact and benefits in relation to different stakeholder groups. It reinforced that UG-Flex's decision to focus on targeted training and awareness raising activities in the final 12 months is appropriate.

The final session on "the book" - our vision [increasingly likely I hope to become a reality] for writing up what we have learned on curriculum design / institutional change - rounded off a productive 2 days.

Thank you to Amayas and his colleagues at CARET in Cambridge for a fantastic CAMEL.

The cycle tour and supper at Christ's College were an added bonus, not withstanding my rather sore derriere the next day!

I have heard rumours that video clips have been posted on You Tube (Search: dcb09 Cambridge camel).

Blended Learning Conference

2011-06-30T14:57:00.000+01:00

A few weeks ago UG-Flex was at the International Blended Learning Conference at the University of Hertfordshire. The project manager contributed to a session called "Enhancing the Blended Learning Experience through Flexibility" and described how we had used aspects of Peter Checkland's soft systems methodology to help stakeholders identify to barriers to flexibility at Greenwich through rich pictures.

A report on the session, along with photos of the rich pictures produced by participants can be found on the Design Studio:
http://jiscdesignstudio.pbworks.com/w/page/41879113/Flexible-learning-rich-pictures

The Design Studio - a useful resource for curriculum design

2011-06-30T14:43:00.000+01:00

The Design Studio is a developing toolkit which draws together a range of existing and emergent resources around curriculum design and delivery and the role technology plays in supporting these processes and practices.

The Studio will provide access to project outcomes and outputs from UG-Flex and other projects in the JISC Curriculum Design and Delivery programmes as they are developed and will continue to be sustained as a community resource after the programmes finish.

Disseminating Good Practice & Knowledge Transfer

2011-06-30T14:38:00.000+01:00

I am such a fan of the Viewpoint project! There is so much potential in the methodology they have developed to support curriculum teams to review their courses/programmes.

UG-Flex has been working with colleagues in Greenwich's Educational Development Unit (EDU) to help them to build the Viewpoints materials into their work with teams who are embarking on a programme review.

The beauty of Viewpoints is that the materials guide the discussions expose issues and questions. This means programme teams don't feel they are being lectured to and facilitators aren't overburdened with expectations.

On Monday 6th June six members of Greenwich's EDU team travelled over the City University (our extremely generous hosts) to join with colleagues there to take part in a train the trainer session run by Alan Masson and Catherine O'Donnell (our extremely generous and knowledgeable trainers) who had travelled over especially from the University of Ulster.

As well as a hands-on taster session using the Viewpoints materials, Alan and Catherine circulated a comprehensive Viewpoints Handbook and provided lots of advice and handy hints.

Alan's presentation can be viewed on their slideshare site and photographs of the outputs can be viewed on flickr.

The Handbook and all of the curriculum design resources are available to download free of charge at http://viewpoints.ulster.ac.uk/resources

I think I can safely say that my colleagues in EDU are now adopters (maybe even fans) of Viewpoints. I got some great feedback afterwards and I look forward to seeing the plans for school-based activities and incorporation in Greenwich's teacher training courses put into practice.

Going beyond the obvious – talking about challenge and change (Programme Meeting 11 May 2011)

2011-05-25T15:44:00.001+01:00

The JISC Curriculum Design Programme Meetings have become something of a milestone for the UG-Flex project. The recent trip to Birmingham for the latest meeting provided an opportunity for reflection on our project in the context of challenge and change. The question that framed the day was how can we convey, in a useful context, what we have learned and what has changed at Greenwich to others?

One thing that emerged from the activities and sessions was that UG-Flex is one of the projects that has delivered (and continues to deliver) a combination of technical outputs and softer change outcomes. So in our case we need to think about what outputs and outcomes such as “better dialogue around flexibility and curriculum design and delivery” actually look like and how to describe them to different audiences? Equally how can we convey meaningfully what improved processes and systems around course information / data look like and what impact they have had? To ensure we capture the breadth of what UG-Flex has achieved, it is likely that our approach will encompass case studies as well as multimedia tools and written guides and training.

The meeting was also a chance to talk to colleagues from other projects about their respective approaches to evaluation. These discussions were extremely useful in helping UG-Flex to re-evaluate its own approach, and proved the argument that there is something positive to take from every situation! A paper on our evaluation approach for the remainder of the project will go to the next Project Management Group meeting.

Feedback on the VOXUR video unit pilot

2011-04-28T15:31:00.000+01:00

Feedback on VOXUR Unit loaned by T-SPARC to UG-Flex.

Overview

The T-SPARC project kindly loaned one of their VOXUR units to the UG-Flex project at the University of Greenwich over a two month period from December 2010 to January 2011. Oliver Jenkins from T-SPARC gave an introduction to the unit, guidance on usage and some top tips at a workshop at Greenwich in early December 2010, which was attended by 8 members of staff.

While on loan to the UG-Flex project the VOXUR was demonstrated and trialled at an e-centre meeting and by at least six members of staff on an ad hoc basis. The most concerted period of use was in January 2011 when it was used to collect feedback from students on assessment and feedback and over 270 clips of video feedback were collected.

Feedback

Colleagues at Greenwich were invited to give feedback (in confidence) on the unit in particular on

1. Ease of use
2. Support/guidance/documentation requirements
3. Benefits and challenges of using video to collect information (i.e. feedback) compared to other methods questionnaires, focus groups etc
4. Benefits and challenges of using VOXUR unit specifically (compared to e.g. static units at one end to flip camera, hand held devices at the other)
5. Their plans for using the feedback
6. Other comments
1. Ease of Use
There was general agreement that the VOXUR was easy to use from the start (i.e. their first time). Increased use lead to greater familiarity with the unit.

One user (SUUG member of staff) who used the unit over a series of days observed of new users (students) that at first there was a tendency for them to look at the keyboard rather than at the camera.

2. Support/Guidance/Documentation Requirements

The view from Greenwich is that the guidance material produced by VOXUR (and supplied by BCU along with the unit) was very good. The tips from Oliver Jenkins were very helpful as well and provided a good perspective based on “hands on” experience.

Suggestions from users:

- Could Oliver’s tips be written up in a short “handy hints” guide?
- A very short document that summarises the main keys to use for key functions, possibly on laminated card, would be welcome.

3. Benefits and challenges of using video to collect information (i.e. feedback) compared to other methods questionnaires, focus groups etc

A key benefit noted is that the VOXUR unit offers a new method of engaging. The unit did elicit considerable interest among students and it was evident that students wanted to have a go.

The most extensive period of usage at Greenwich was with students and it was observed that while many users spoke freely, a significant number wanted clarification about how their feedback would be used. Some students did not want to be associated with specific comments they had made personally, which negated the impact of video capture somewhat. These students said that they were more comfortable being “generally” associated with the collective views expressed. On this note, only one student chose to cover the camera and record their views by audio alone.

A drawback noted by at least 3 users who tried out the unit was that the method of capturing feedback is relatively time consuming, although not substantially more so that other methods.

4. Benefits and challenges of using VOXUR unit specifically (compared to e.g. static units at one end to flip camera, hand held devices at the other)

It was observed that the portability of the VOXUR unit has pros and cons - a bigger unit would have been difficult to transport although students might have been more inclined to use a more enclosed unit.

From discussions among colleagues introduced to the VOXUR a view emerged of some risk that the VOXUR unit “over complicated” the method of capturing verbal feedback on video. One user commented “I would have been just as happy with a flip camera”.

Some reservation were expressed about how useful the VOXUR’s functionality to ask structured questions and organise the responses will prove to be as a method for capturing and conveying qualitative feedback from students. Given the relatively limited usage by Greenwich, it is not possible to comment with any certainty on the scope of the VOXUR to produce more quantitative outputs (e.g. statistical data). However, initial reaction is that this would not a preferred option.

5. Future use of information

The majority of users of the VOXUR took part in short trials which were not intended for future use.

The exercise to capture student feedback on assessment and feedback in which over 270 clips of video feedback were collected was undertaken as a pilot and the evidence will be used. The intention is to produce a short video compilation of no more than 2 – 3 minutes. (Some reservation was voiced about how easy it will be to compile a single video from the clips, say compared with editing and compiling a video clip from more free flowing feedback that has captured previously using a flip camera.)

In addition, the SU in collaboration with the EDU will look through the assembled clips in order to identify five or six key messages that will be used to inform future policy / activity.

6. Other comments

A number of observations were made on the VOXUR in terms of value for money:

One user commented “It is supposedly unique but I’m not sure how difficult it would be to replicate.... I just feel it is prohibitively expensive... the difference between a top of the range Mac and the VOXUR in terms of functionality and editing software just doesn’t seem to justify forking out another £4,000.”

Users at Greenwich concur that the VOXUR trial has been a very useful exercise and we would like to put on record our thanks to T-SPARC, Paul Bartholomew and Oliver Jenkins for their interest and generosity.

UG Flex at the SEUG Conference in Durham

2011-01-17T16:28:00.006Z

A rare guest appearance from Duncan Reeder on the UG Flex blog! Finally!!!

Friday the 14th of January saw Dave Mutti and myself make the six hour (!!!) round trip to Durham, to present to the Sungard European User Group (SEUG) annual conference. SEUG brings together Banner institutions from around Europe, and we wanted to use the conference as a way of finalising our research into methods of configuring terms in Banner for flexibility.

Presenting on the final day of a three day conference, we were a bit worried no one would show up. We were even more concerned when we learned that some delegates were just getting in from the Gala dinner, while we were boarding the train from London!!

Luckily we had good representation from five different institutions. It was great to get some insight from other Banner institutions on how certain configurations can limit or enhance flexibility. We also learned that the configuration model we regard as being the most flexible is in use at Nottingham Trent University, which will lead us to get in contact with them soon.

So a good days work then. It was also a good opportunity to give some recognition to JISC, and point out that all our work would not have been possible without the framework the project provides.

And finally great to see Durham - just beautiful!

HEA publication "University Management of Work-based Learning"

2010-12-15T15:34:00.001Z

http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/assets/York/documents/ourwork/employability/employeelearning/EEL_UniversityManagementOfWBL.pdf

I have finally tracked down this HEA publication that came out in August 2010. It includes a chapter on "Reorientating institutional systems to support the flexible learner" by M. Noble, S. Frame & C. Eustance and includes some of the early insights from the UG-Flex project.

Interesting to see how UG-Flex has progressed since.

T-SPARC comes to Greenwich

2010-12-15T12:13:00.000Z

I’ve had good feedback from colleagues who attended the VOXUR training session run by Oliver Jenkins from BCU's T-SPARC project last week. VOXUR really is straightforward to use. It is such a clever concept that it is not that surprising that one question asked was whether there are other products that do the same thing cheaper/easier still? The answer appears to be no!

It was very encouraging to note that my colleagues were as intrigued as I have been by BCU’s innovative work that seeks to shift the focus on curriculum design from a single concluding approval event to the wider thinking and processes that underpin curriculum approval and review.

All in all a worthwhile session. Thanks Oliver and Paul from BCU for your generosity in lending UG-Flex one of your VOXUR units until the end of January. Thanks also to my colleagues for taking the time to attend. All suggestions of similar sessions UG-Flex might run are very welcome.

Project, Cluster & Programme Meetings, Presentations and Progress

2010-10-21T16:17:00.000+01:00

September and October 2010 will go down as busy, productive months for UG-Flex despite the blows of Browne's Review and Osborne's axe.

Validation & Review Enhancements Go Live
Monday 20th September saw the formal launch of UG-Flex's enhancements to the University's Authorised List of Programme. To recap, one of the recommendations that came out of the project's investigation into validation & review processes was to design an accessible and accurate way for staff to view any programme’s approval and review status and history, to review progress and plan activity accordingly.

A training needs survey has been conducted to ensure that staff would receive information and guidance most appropriate for their needs, and as a result a series of short 'how to' crib sheets have been produced and face-to-face training conducted. An issues log has been set up to record comments; feedback, suggestions etc and plans are in place to monitor the impact of these enhancements next year.

Birmingham CAMEL
Tuesday 28th September saw Claire & Duncan in Birmingham for a 2-day CAMEL meeting with colleagues from other projects in our cluster. It was a timely opportunity to reflect on our projects at the mid-way point and I felt pretty upbeat in being able to report on the completion of our "quick win" piece of work (hmmm) as well as the initial outcomes from our consultation with staff on the changes needed to deliver a better experience to students who do not study via one of the University's "standard" modes.

Our group work to identify the themes that have emerged from our projects so far and produced a huge, complex, 'wicked' mind map. I came away recognising that all of the projects have generated a huge amount of new information, knowledge and insight over the past couple of years. (Note to self to remember that just because I have experienced this incrementally having lived with it day to day, the knowledge and evidence produced is not necessarily common-place or even acknowledged in many cases!)

The highlight of the sessions on student engagement for me was Birmingham City's Student Academic Partners project (superb) and since then I've been doing my best to bring it up in conversations with as many colleagues at Greenwich as I can.

Project Meetings at Greenwich
The week of 10th October saw meetings of the UG-Flex Steering Group and the Management Group. In both cases challenging but useful discussions followed Duncan and my presentation on 'Improving the experience of students on "flexible" programmes - the problem and possible solution'. The next step is to raise awareness and hopefully build wider support in advance of my presentation to the University Executive (gulp) in early November. Interesting times at Greenwich generally with impending change of VC in 2011.

JISC CDD Programme Meeting in Nottingham
The same week saw Duncan and me on the train again, this time to Nottingham to attend the joint design and delivery programme meeting. UG-Flex was busy and contributed to the sessions on ‘Project Perspectives on Quality Assurance and Enhancement’ and ‘Students as Change Agents’, and both went pretty well. Both keynotes from Peter Findlay (quality & QA in HE) and Betty Collis (learning from a workplace perspective) were thought-provoking and I enjoyed the closing plenary. Regrettably as I try to recall the key messages, I find they have been swamped by thoughts of Browne and Osborne.

The same goes for the JISC Learning & Teaching Experts Group I attended in Birmingham on 20th October. Our cluster presented on some of the themes and learning outcomes that have emerged from our projects so far. Hard to quantify? Probably. Tecchie? Definitely not, but nevertheless significant and I hope colleagues in the sector agree and stick with us. I'll leave the last words on this to Stephen Brown, Cluster B's critical friend, "on the day when so much madness was unleashed on HE I think our presentation stood out as a beacon of good sense."

An unusually long post - so thanks for reading!

Engaging Students in their own learning - good practice

2010-10-19T14:05:00.000+01:00

It's been a busy time for the UG-Flex Project team with a Steering Group and a Management Group meeting and visits to Birmingham and Nottingham for a cluster meeting and a programme meeting in recent weeks.

Further posts on these events will follow, but first I wanted to shared Birmingham City University's (BCU) inspiring practice on involving their students in creating a learning community.

BCU have drawn on the philosophy embedded in Futurelab's 2006 'Learner Voice' handbook and have thought in detail about how students are engaged in learning development on a spectrum ranging from passive - active - co-dependent - independent.

BCU's Student Academic Partners Scheme has sponsored 30 educational development projects designed to develop specific aspects of learning and teaching practice. The innovation that takes it further along the spectrum (or "ladder") of engagement is the requirement that projects must be a genuine and equal partnership of staff and students, with the latter being the initiator. The student/s negotiate their own role in the project and are paid for up to 125 hours of work. Already some notable benefits have emerged.

I would really recommend you take the time to find out more at: http://www.birminghamcitysu.com/saps/

Reflections on University of Greenwich annual e-learning conference "Future Learningscapes: a 21st Century Challenge

2010-07-14T11:49:00.000+01:00

Last week's e-learning conference was enjoyable and (echoing the unofficial theme of the day) provided me with some food for thought.....

I enjoyed the keynote by Grainne Conole from the Open University and in particular I recognised a lot in her description of "a ha" moments. In short - there are so many resources out there but it takes an "a ha" moment for an individual to bridge the gap between promise and reality in how they could use and benefit from them.

Like Grainne I haven't had an "a ha" moment with SecondLife - although CNWL's presentation at the same event has made me want to take a closer look http://secondlife.com I'm also going to check out language learning community website www.busuu.com and the TED talks at http://www.ted.com/.

University of Greenwich asks "How Flexible Can HE Be (Are We?)?

2010-06-30T12:46:00.001+01:00

On 10th June some of my colleagues from the University of Greenwich spent the day considering flexibility in education, focussing on flexible access, recruitment and admissions.

The day is well documented elsewhere, http://www.gre.ac.uk/offices/elu, but I just want to take this opportunity to note Professor Simon Jarvis's - our DVC for Academic Development - vision of on how Greenwich is - and should - respond to flexible learning.

Flexibility needs to have boundaries;
Greenwich must raise aspirations, standards and quality and have the expectation of success;
Greenwich should look at how it deals with credit accumulation and transfer;
Greenwich could be more flexible in using facilities "out of hours";
Greenwich should embrace "collaborative learning" and invest in technology to deliver a "real time feel" with podcasting and computer aided assessment and feedback;
Despite a tough economic climate, Greenwich needs to pursue work based learning opportunities in partnership delivered through Foundation degrees, sandwich placements, internship, apprenticeships and flexible study packages such as Applied Professional Studies;
"Graduate attributes" will be a major plank of teaching and learning strategies and this may place some constraints on flexibility;
Greenwich should build its CPD activity through short courses, block mode delivery and accumulation of credit over time towards a qualification;
Flexibility requires appropriate processes and systems to support it.

I believe that UG-Flex has a role in encouraging further debate on these issues,with a view to the development of a University-wide strategy on flexible learning in the near future.

University of Greenwich "Balanced Academic Workload Model" pilot project

2010-06-29T11:29:00.001+01:00

A significant issue for UG-Flex's stakeholders is the extent to which the academic staff contract can support greater flexibility in pace, place and mode of delivery. We know from the discussions that took place at the last Programme Meeting in May that other projects in the CDD programme are pondering the same kinds of questions.

So the UG-Flex project will be watching with great interest a pilot project that has started at the University of Greenwich, led by our Personnel department, to test a method of modelling academic workloads that draws on practice developed through a national "Managing Academic Workloads" project based at Salford University. The intention is to feedback the outcomes later in the 2010/11 academic session, with a view to wider roll out at Greenwich from in 2011/12.

UG-Flex has been working to ensure that lessons from this pilot are shared and considered in a broader context of enabling greater flexibility in curriculum design. We are well placed since the main sponsor, Russell Brocket, our Director of Personnel, is also a member of the UG-Flex Project Steering Group and gave a presentation on the pilot at our last meeting in early June. Another champion, Mike Sharp, is member of our Project Management Group.

Further details of the background, principles and main features of the model can be found at http://www.gre.ac.uk/offices/personnel/ppga/baw

A report back on the 'Viewpoints' Project Illuminate Session

2010-06-16T14:32:00.000+01:00

The UG-Flex project manager took part in a fascinating Illuminate session on 9 June led by members of the ‘Viewpoints’ project team from the University of Ulster.

Viewpoints is seeking to develop a series of user-friendly reflective tools for staff that will embed a learner-centred approach to curriculum design based on best practice principles.

I was interested to hear how the project started out by running a series of development workshop sessions initially intended as a rapid prototyping approach to developing tool requirements. These have proved so effective that the intention is to continue to develop the workshop format and use the online tool to support the face-to-face work.

The workshops are short and sweet (1 – 2 hours) and use best practice resources to help practitioners reflect on and develop their curricula. Information is organised into topics and issues and actions recorded on a large laminate sheet. The plan is to develop an online tool that mirrors this approach, using drop down menus etc. (Balsamiq was cited as a useful piece of software that they have been using).

The project team shared feedback from staff that indicates there are opportunities to use Viewpoints's approach and tools to support academic development for new and existing staff; team building and collaboration and also as a non-threatening way to support course review processes. Challenges were cited in the way ideas developed at workshops were recorded and the current limitations they had found in using the tool to support the development of new courses. (They found that new courses were usually already partially developed by the time they reach the initial validation phase.)

Clearly the Viewpoints project is taking a very different approach to enhancing curriculum design compared to the UG-Flex project. And yet, what we have found at Greenwich is that our focus on improving our systems and business process in order to support more flexible curriculum design has helped to raise expectations about the quality of support and help staff should receive when they develop or review the content of their programmes. In this respect the work the Viewpoints project team has done so far is illuminating and potentially incredibly useful and I look forward to sharing it with my colleagues from the Educational Development Team and Learning & Quality Unit at our ‘Curriculum Development’ Away Day at Hever Castle in July.

For more on the Viewpoints Project go to:

https://www.slideshare.net/viewpoints; http://www.youtube.com/viewpointsproject; http://viewpointsproject.blogspot.com/; http://jisccdd.jiscinvolve.org/

Keeping up with developing practice emerging out of JISC's curriculum design programme

2010-05-18T11:43:00.000+01:00

The 12th May 2010 Programme Meeting in Birmingham of the 12 projects that make up JISC’s Curriculum Design Programme looked at key challenges in delivering a flexible curriculum agenda.

Discussions and presentations focused on the management of course information, timetabling and academic workload. These are all areas that are being addressed at the University of Greenwich and the UG-Flex project is a part of the broader debate and dialogue and plays a role in pulling together the key players through project meetings and consultation activities.

For example, our director of Personnel is leading a project to develop and pilot a new academic workload model at Greenwich (as part of the wider “Managing Academic Workload” project coordinated from Salford University) and we are looking forward to a presentation on this at the next UG-Flex Steering Group meeting in June.

I find the JISC programme meetings often produce interesting discussions and opportunities for reflection. This meeting proved to be an opportunity for me to reflect how my communication priorities and techniques will need to change now we’ve faced up to the fact that UG-Flex won’t and can’t solve all of the issues it has surfaced. I think there is an imperative for UG-Flex to work even harder to share knowledge and information with colleagues at Greenwich on the emerging practice and ideas on technology supported innovations in curriculum design emerging from the other projects.

To this end, I'm posting a list of resources for keeping in touch with the developing practice emerging out of the curriculum design programme.

http://delicious.com/ugflexproject I’ve used this social bookmarking service to collect together details of the web sites and/or blogs of the 12 curriculum design projects. As well as the projects in our cluster, I am finding University of Ulster’s Viewpoints project, Strathclyde’s PiP project and Bolton’s Coeducation project very interesting and relevant at the moment

http://www.netvibes.com/dcb09#DCB_09 Another resource created by a colleague from Cardiff where it is possible to keep track of most of the CDD project blogs (and Circle, Twitter feeds etc.). Unlike delicious bookmarks, Netvibes also gives you a “quick view” of the content of the blogs so you can be a bit more selective.

http://jisccdd.jiscinvolve.org/ The JISC CDD programme’s own blog and gives a broader perspective of curriculum design and delivery issues. And as well as more links to the 12 curriculum design projects they have links to the curriculum delivery projects.

2010-05-13T11:31:00.000+01:00

UG-Flex was at the SEDA 2010 spring conference in Leeds last week.

The timing coincided with the general election and the immediate aftermath, but on the whole we all managed to focus on the original aim of exploring issues and practice in relation to “communities of learning”.

Along with others members of our Curriculum Design Cluster Group (from City University, Birmingham City, Cambridge and Cardiff universities) I took part in a session we called “The CAMEL trail” that aimed to share our experience of being in a community of learning/practice organised using the CAMEL model http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/camel Go here for some very useful resources on CAMEL, with contributions from other Greenwich University colleauges who took part in the original CAMEL pilot.

Our audience at SEDA included a mix of practitioners who were considering applying the model to their own practice along with representatives from funders who asked some probing questions about the impact to our projects and ultimately the value of adopting aspect of the CAMEL model.

I think we all did a good job in responding! One example I gave in relation to UG-Flex focussed on how experiences shared by colleagues from other institutions had helped me over the past year to plan a pro-active approach to engaging with new senior management at Greenwich and as well as other stakeholders. Without these insights shared in our CAMEL sessions I think there is a good chance I would have focussed on other pressing issues and I believe the project would have been adversely affected as a result.

Discussions in the session led to some conclusions that there would be benefit in exploring how the CAMEL approach might help to deliver a more consistent approach to the management, co-ordinatio and support of projects in HEIs across the board. I would certainly support this.

I also attended a talk given by Aaron Porter – president-elect of the NUS and I suspect in Parliament soon after that - on “the importance of the learner voice”. This was a timely reminder that I need to keep pursuing closer collaboration between UG-Flex and the SU at Greenwich.

I also attended a session“webinars as a best practice model for engaging members in a online community of practice”. I want to try out this or a similar approach as a way to capture and convey the issues UG-Flex is trying to tackle at Greenwich to a wider audience.

Incidentally I was introduced to “Second Life” – the online 3D virtual world community – and decided that this is a step too far for me. I’ll stick with blogging and tweeting.
____________________
SEDA stands for the Staff and Educational Development Association http://www.seda.ac.uk/

Article in "Greenwich Line" [University of Greenwich's staff newspaper] March 2010

2010-04-29T13:59:00.000+01:00

“Computer says no…”

How the university is pulling its systems into the new decade and why staff are being asked to help

Any staff involved in the creation and administration of new courses at Greenwich will have had a “Computer says no” moment. Want to start the programme in January? Computer says no. Want to offer a single course by itself? Computer says no. Want to stop a student who has paid a year’s fees in June being asked to pay again in September? Computer says…

The refrain is from a sketch in BBC’s Little Britain where, irrespective of the task, IT presents a hurdle. Dr Claire Eustance has been recruited to project manage the modernisation of the systems which support curriculum development. She says: “Today the demand is for flexible learning, which means being able to offer choices, from intensive short courses to part-time and distance learning. But our systems were designed for the traditional model of three-year programmes starting in September.”

It’s not just IT systems like Banner that throw up problems. Dr Stuart Ashenden, Director of Academic Planning at Medway, is looking at the implications of keeping campuses open at weekends as demand for intensive training courses grows. “At the moment there is no catering provision, for instance, if we are here at the weekend. All sorts of services currently close down at 5pm on Friday.”

General administrative systems have got left behind too. Academics, when taking new courses to be validated by internal and external authorities, find their work is duplicated at each stage. Different versions of the same document lead to confusion. “Paperwork which probably made sense years ago now seems unnecessary. We need to create new systems which allow proper work flow management,” Claire says.

The scope of the project

The project, called UG-Flex, short for ‘University of Greenwich Flexible Learning Project’, runs for three years until July 2012. The project team is based in Information & Library Services and is concentrating on the areas it can affect, namely information systems. Claire says lots of wider issues are being raised, for example the tendency for departments to work in silos, or finding that things can get done based on who you know rather than need, and that these are being recorded. “We are passing them on to other managers and projects,” she says, “sometimes with recommendations. But we need to focus on the areas where we can make a difference.”

How you can get involved

Claire wants to hear from any member of staff who has a stake in making these systems work. “What we don’t want is for people to feel at the end of the project that burdensome new procedures are being imposed on them. Let’s get it right, and then the impact will be of a burden being lifted. The result of UG-Flex could be inspiring and transformational.”

Staff can get involved by attending a workshop – go to the website below for details – or contacting Claire on x8918, c.eustance@greenwich.ac.uk

Lots of information is available on the project website including a blog and twitter feed: www.gre.ac.uk/ils/ugflex

Analysis as a tool to avoid decisions

2010-04-20T14:53:00.000+01:00

A slide from a presentation by Salford on change management. It makes you realise that you are not alone!

UG-Flex at the AUA Conference 2010

2010-04-01T14:48:00.000+01:00

Two members of the UG-Flex Project Team attended their first AUA Conference this week.

Highlights were few and far between (Lows: no show of Lord Robert Winston as key note, taxi drivers and the rain – Highs: great curry and a few potentially useful contacts). Still, we agree that there were some sessions that were interesting/informative/useful.

I found Michelle Morgan’s session on “Supporting student transition” extremely thought-provoking. She suggested approaching the student lifecycle through a series of phases - Pre-arrival; Orientation; Induction; Reinduction & Outduction and this made complete sense to me. She also offered a wealth of experience and advice that I’ll make sure I share with colleagues in the Education Development Team at Greenwich. In response to my question, Michelle was emphatic that her model applied to students whatever their mode of study or background. Reflecting on this I am inclined to think that careful thought is needed about the content and format of information given to different students. As Michelle herself said, there is a balance to be struck between meeting students’ needs and avoiding overloading them with information.

I’m still reeling slightly from reaction to the paper I gave with Duncan at the same conference on “the role of administrators in revealing and enhancing curriculum design processes”.

The aim of the paper was to describe why UG-Flex believes it is necessary to capture and act on the expertise of administrators alongside academic staff to reveal and enhance systems and business processes in order to deliver a more agile and diverse curriculum, how we set about doing this and the benefits/challenges/impact so far.

Among our 40+ audience (much more than we expected!) a diverse range of views emerged ranging from “curriculum design is nothing to do with me and I don’t want it to be” to “yes we’re involved but in a clearly structured manner as defined by clear processes and procedures that don’t need to be reviewed” (yeah, right!) and a few more who felt “yes, it is absolutely right for administrators to have a view on and be involved in curriculum design processes and this is why....”

Reflecting on what was a bit of bruising experience, I think what is so interesting and personally unexpected was the extent to which so many in the audience – administrators in HEIs - didn’t recognise UG-Flex’s definition of curriculum design as a process that needs to take in account the complex set of dimensions concerning both the learning students will achieve (i.e. pedagogical issues) and how that learning will be facilitated/supported/structured/delivered/funded. Of course we’re not alone in this definition and I’d be interested to hear from others in the JISC CDD programme on whether this is something that needs to be addressed by JISC / others?

If I do this again – I did half mention going back to an AUA conference in a few years to share the outcomes and outputs of the UG-Flex – I would definitely do a better paper and I’d put much more thought into my definition of “administrators” – I was over simplistic (and I say this as someone with an academic background who is now essentially an administrator...) Also I’ll never ever underestimate the complexities of the “them and us” mentality and how this manifests itself in our HEIs.

Claire Eustance, UG-Flex Project Manager

Greenwich CAMEL meeting 24-25 March 2010

2010-04-01T12:37:00.000+01:00

Greenwich played host to colleagues from our JISC CDD 'Cluster B' at the fourth CAMEL meeting on the 24 -25 March.

In two lines:

Strengths: Honesty, Candour, Supportiveness, Greenwich & views, Thames Clipper, Old Brewery, Trafalgar Tavern, Peter Findlay, M&S biscuits, visit from Harriet.

Limited Confidence: Wireless access, coffee, lunch, weather.

In more detail then......
We had a packed programme, however because our cluster has bonded so well as a group it felt right to wade in straight away. Short project updates from T-SPARC, PALET, CourseTools and PREDICT were followed by a longer “pants down” session dwelling on the challenges and issues faced by the UG-Flex project. Personally I found being able to offload in confidence incredibly cathartic so thank CAMELLERS (is that right?) for your input and feedback.

Amyas lead the next session that looked at the scope for developing a generic process template and I think we made a good start. It feels like a big ask to develop a template / model that can cope with the diversity of practice and processes across different institutions. This said, it makes total sense to share resources and knowledge so I remain hopeful and positive.

Evaluation is proving to be a tricky area for our cluster and the final session of day one didn’t disappoint! I found the most useful element of the discussion was the consensus view that it is ok that each project has and continues to develop an approach to evaluation that they find most useful / beneficial, rather than trying to restrict themselves to a particular line/direction.

Day two started with a session on dissemination activities, facilitated by Pam. We went a long way towards identifying the content of the cluster’s forthcoming paper at the SEDA conference in May. The discussion was also a timely opportunity to reflect on how our CAMEL works as a community of practice and why it works well.

For the final session we welcomed Peter Findlay, Assistant Director at QAA for HE who had been commissioned by JISC to speak informally to our cluster. Peter had been notified in advance that as a cluster we were particularly interested in his views on:
- the attitudes QAA audit teams might be expected to take towards re-modelled/new procedures and processes for programme approval & review;
- where he thought the "limits of acceptability" might be placed in relation to institutions reviewing mechanisms for approval and review;
- what QAA practices might look like in one, two, three, five years time, taking into account potential reviews likely to course specifications, institutional audits as well as the impact of Higher Ambitions framework?

It was an incredibly informative and affirming session. Peter explained the current QAA approach to audit in an accessible way. Given the sour taste left at Greenwich by last year’s QAA audit, I was encouraged to hear that QAA embraces innovation and I have also been pondering since on Peter’s comment that QAA audit is actually about peer review.

I got further insight into the tendency of institutions (noted in our CAMEL discussion) to react defensively to the QAA later that day during a subsequent session Peter conducted with some of my senior Greenwich colleagues. The atmosphere was rather more reserved and Peter’s comments on the QAA’s future direction and audit approaches were noted with a mixture of interest and wariness. (Ouch!)

All in all a useful and busy CAMEL! Roll on our visit to Birmingham.

Enhancing their curriculum - two HEIs to watch?

2010-02-09T14:02:00.000Z

I found two articles in today's Education Guardian interesting.

"Brave new curriculum" by Kirsty Scott is about Aberdeen University's overhaul of their curriculum in an attempt to break into the world's top 100 universities (it is currently placed 129).

They had a major consultation - with industry, politicians, students, parents and staff to discover exactly what constitutes an ideal graduate. This is apparently someone who is "intellectually flexible", a critical thinker and a team player; someone who could see their discipline in a wider context; someone who was, above all, employable.

Aberdeen took its lead from the University of Melbourne (29 in top 100), which initiated a radical restructuring exercise in 2007 to broaden out its undergraduate curriculum; what became known as the Melbourne model. Harvard, Hong Kong and Yale have all undergone similar reforms. Instead of tearing up the syllabus as Melbourne did, the Aberdeen has made modifications - keeping its traditional four-year degree, but alongside their core discipline, new students will be required to study at least one course each year in topics including risk in society, science and the media, the health and wealth of nations, and sustainability. They can also choose sustained study programmes that will run parallel to their main subject, in languages, science or business.

There are also flexible entry and exit points have been introduced for students, allowing them to take a break in a course, or leave with some form of qualification if they don't finish their degree. Other aspects include wider opportunities for placements, overseas and voluntary work which all appear as credits on a graduate transcript. Student support services have been streamlined to make them more accessible.

Others to watch include the universities of Manchester and Southampton, the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, and Glasgow School of Art.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/feb/09/change-degree-courses-radical-aberdeen

There is also a piece by Simon Roodhouse, director of HE@Work at Middlesex University on "Embracing the employer-led degree". It is essentially a plug for Middlesex University's work based learning programmes, apparently a 1000+ learners with clients that include Marks and Spencers and Dell. Still, claims of a 10 -15% saving when compared to traditional on-campus courses are compelling.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/feb/09/employer-led-degree-new-university

Eduserv’s report into the use of SharePoint by Higher Education Institutions

2010-01-26T09:57:00.001Z

The final report from the University of Northumbria, completed through the Eduserv-funded ‘Investigation into the uptake and use of Microsoft SharePoint by Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)’ is now available for download.

Some of the key findings include:

most UK HEIs are using SharePoint to some extent (78% of the 40 UK HEIs interviewed in a telephone survey of IT Directors said that they were making some use of SharePoint)
SharePoint’s rapid rise in the HE sector can be attributed to several factors: (i) the ease with which it can be procured; (ii) its wide variety of functionality; (iii) the gap in the HE information environment for such a product; (iv) its devolution of a lot of power to local users which suits the federal culture of HEIs.
two distinct types of SharePoint implementation were discerned: organic (bottom-up) implementations and corporate (top-down) implementations
drivers for implementing SharePoint included: improving document management; supporting collaboration (internally and externally); improving an intranet or external website; targeting information to particular audiences; improving and automating cross-institution processes; providing a personalised portal for staff and students; bring together and managing data from different information systems in the HEI
a range of critical success factors for SharePoint implementations were identified
with most HEIs already having a virtual learning environment (VLE) in place only two HEIs were found to be using SharePoint as a VLE; but SharePoint is being used in teaching and learning, particularly for functions such as group collaborative work, ad-hoc non-repeated courses, and work that cuts across different courses
several HEIs are using SharePoint to support collaborative research work with colleagues in other institutions; whilst there is plenty of scope for SharePoint to support research groups it will face strong competition from open source systems in this space.

This research was conducted in the summer and autumn of 2009 and many of the implementations seen were relatively recent.

2010-11 is likely to see significant development in the SharePoint space. The average size of implementations will get larger as recent implementations mature. SharePoint is unlikely to take much market share from the established VLEs, but we will increasingly see VLEs competing for the attention of academic staff and students with both SharePoint on the one hand and web applications such as Facebook on the other. In the collaboration space SharePoint is likely to face its stiffest competition from Google Apps, rather than established enterprise content management (ECM) vendors.

For further details go to: http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/sd/academic/ceis/re/isrc/themes/rmarea/eduservsp/

More from Peter Mandelson

2009-12-23T15:05:00.000Z

Have a look at the piece by the Independent's Education Editor, Richard Garner on Mandelson's plans for more fast track / two year degree courses.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/mandelson-do-your-degree-in-two-years-1848107.html

He writes, ......In a letter to the Higher Education Funding Council for England, which is responsible for allocating university cash, Lord Mandelson said he wanted more programmes "such as foundation and fast-track degrees that can be completed full-time in two years". He added: "Over the next spending review period [to 2014], we will want some shift away from full-time, three-year places towards a wider variety of provision." ....

There's more on fines for over-recruitment and maintaining research funding.

Polly Curtis, The Guardian's education editor focusses more on the funding cuts angle at

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/dec/23/academics-vice-chancellors-universities-mandelson

Will we be here next year?!

2009-11-25T12:44:00.002Z

Just in case you missed, it Peter Mandelson has spelt out his vision for universities......

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2009/nov/03/peter-mandelson-university-review-modernisation

Yes, we know more degrees need to target mature and part-time students rather than 18-year olds, but it is the call for a "consumer revolution in HE" that concerns me. Will it really help to treat employers and students as customers? How does this square up with the evidence that most HE students (whatever their goals, age, background, digital literacy......) still want and need guidance and structure to their learning?

Luckily, there are people much more qualified than me to talk on this subject. JISC's online conference started on the 24th November and I have just listened to the Keynote session lead by Helen Beetham and Rhona Sharpe.

Helen Beetham challenged the "consumer" model that it being touted about. She argues

"A consumer model sees learners' needs and expectations as one and the same thing....Find out what learners want - or employers, in another version - and deliver it. But we know learning isn't like that. If we see learning in the highest sense as self-reflection, self-realisation, self-transformation, we see that needs may be met by challenging expectations, and that both will change if deep learning is taking place."

If you want to find out more, these resources may be of interest:

http://caledonianacademy.net/spaces/LLiDA/index.php?n=Main.HomePage Learning Literacies for a digital age wiki LLiDA)

https://mw.brookes.ac.uk/display/JISCle2/About (Learners Experience of E-Learning)

Mike Baker wonders when review of student fees is going to happen

2009-10-29T10:26:00.001Z

Thanks to Paul for highlighting this recent bbc news article by Mike Baker asking when the "New Framework for Universities", due late October is going to be published.

The following extract from this article ponders current challenges for flexible and part-time learning.....

....Lord Mandelson has also hinted that boosting the number of skilled people in the economy will be central to the new framework for universities. This is likely to be mean more short courses, at both undergraduate and post-graduate level, delivered in a variety of ways: part-time, in shorter, more flexible modules, through distance learning and in the workplace.

Yet the worrying reality is that in the past few years the number of part-time students has started to fall. This is at a time when total student numbers are rising. No-one quite knows what has caused this reversal of the previous growth trend. However a student support system that discriminates against part-time study may be part of the explanation.

After all, is it logical to treat a student with a full-time job who studies part-time differently from a student who studies full-time but has a part-time job?

.....The other half of this equation is the way universities are funded for part-time students, which tends to discriminate against those institutions that are trying hard to widen participation by offering more flexible learning.
Some universities have pushed ahead with encouraging part-time students - on short courses, via distance learning and at undergraduate level - but this is a risky strategy, as these students often require greater support, need teaching outside standard office hours and are more likely to drop out.
We already have benchmarks to measure universities' achievement in widening participation, should we have benchmarks for the proportion of part-time students enrolled? ....

(Posted on BBC News Website Saturday 24 October 2009)

Curriculum and Design Programme Meeting 13th and 14th October -The Why and for Whom Questions

2009-10-15T22:57:00.002+01:00

Thanks to Sarah, Lisa and Marianne for organising a really helpful programme meeting.

As usual the more my prejudices are reinforced the more I like it. This time it was why do we have validation/approval processes and student record systems and for whose benefit. The consensus seemed to be both are largely driven in their current incarnations by the needs of external agencies i.e. HEFCE reporting and QAA audit. Ensuring a variety of stakeholder’s requirements is met by these processes and systems including assurance and funding bodies is perhaps the key challenge.

Key points for me were:
1. The ability to re purpose the data generated by validation events and processes.
2. Ensuring validation/approval events encourage properly evidenced reflection by programme/course teams.
3. How to ensure that the artefacts from validation events add value after the event/process is completed. Should it ever be completed?
4. Once again the need for joined up processes.
5. Flexibility without boundaries is called a mess.
6. The process of course/programme delivery should be a larger issue for those involved as opposed to content.
7. External agencies are happy to support a greater range of flexibility than they are often given credit for.

The Design studio should provide a valuable resource and help guide our developments. We need to think about how we introduce it to the management team and institution generally. Reassured that the discussions the project are enabling within and outside of the institution are acceptable outputs.

The projects outside of our cluster group that seemed to have the most direct relevance for our project are Staffordshire, Ulster and Manchester Met. Particularly liked the look of the user interface design tool Ulster is using.

Enjoyed Keri Facers presentation without agreeing with some of the conclusions she was drawing. Is there really a disconnect between parents and their children as a result of technology. Sounds like a familiar tune with technology replacing pop music.

Exemplars

2009-09-25T12:29:00.002+01:00

One of the things that our project and I suspect other projects would benefit from are examples of good practice in terms of the institutional processes supporting part-time and flexible delivery in the HE sector. We are told that for example the private sector has something like 90% of the CPD market and that HE are " So slow", but I'm finding it difficult to identify examples within HE of institutions that are considered to have got it right. Should we be looking at the processes being used in the private sector? Is it really just about us reducing the admin burden around institutional processes as suggested at the ALT symposium? As the song says "thier are more questions than answers". So far!

Welcome to the UG-Flex Project Blog

2009-09-23T12:14:00.002+01:00

Welcome to the UG-Flex Project Blog!

We have created this blog to provide regular updates on the project - our progress, the challenges, what the project team is up to etc.

We want to hear from you too, so please feel free to add your comments and views - it could be anything from what you had for breakfast to sounding off about the latest systems gliche! You might even want to share some good news too.

So, what is "UG-Flex"?

UG-Flex is a JISC funded project based at the University of Greenwich that is working to reveal and enhance the University's curriculum development processes in order to support a more flexible and diverse curriculum underpinned by agile systems.

We know that the University of Greenwich is already flexible and for many years we have run part time, CPD, distance, blended and short courses. The problem is that our current processes, from inception of the idea for a programme or course through to registration and delivery, are shoe-horned into processes that were designed over 10 years ago, when the academic models and student demographic were very different.

UG-Flex is based on the premises that we must become more agile, more efficient and more responsive, and this requires a University-wide understanding of what “flexible” means and slicker systems and processes that can support curricula of a high quality and standard that is trusted and widely used.

To achieve this UG-Flex is working with a range of stakeholders to identify their key requirements.