Nick Hammond The Higher Education Academy, York, UK [email protected] 25 June 2008

Evidence, understanding and practice: the Higher Education Academy's role in supporting institutional change

Nick HammondThe Higher Education Academy, York, UK

[email protected]

25 June 2008

mailto:[email protected]

Plan for the talk (overview)

Multiple representations for multiple purposes Framework for research on the student learning

experience HEA and its strategy

Quality assurance and quality enhancement Evidence-informed policy & practice

Towards a research observatory Questions & discussion

Plan for the talk (state-transition model)

Slide 1Title

Slide 3oview2

etc… Slide 2oview1

(If too slow or audience bored)

End

Impressive slides for planted questions

Plan for the talk (process model)

Er… cough and the scope is um… splutter across…

Plan for the talk (communication model)

1st order rep: what I want to say to them

1st order rep: what I understand him to

say 2nd order rep: what I think they’re

understanding

2nd order rep: what I think he thinks we’re

understanding 3rd order rep: what I think they think that I think they understand

3rd order rep: probably too

complicated to bother with!

One phenomenon can be modelled in many ways

Different models serve different purposes and audiences

Model of talk For Criterion

Overview Audience Utility (helps understanding)

State-transition Speaker Utility (helps organise talk)

Process Cognitive researcher

Efficient explanation; Prediction

Communication 1. Researcher

2. Speaker

Explanation/prediction

Utility (meta-knowledge)

Framework for researching the Student learning experience

Political & cultural context

National & inst. policy & practice

Learning environment

T&L practice

Student experience

Broadening context

World of experience & action

World of educational design & development(Application representation)

World of abstractions & theory

Incre

asin

g a

bstr

acti

on

Teaching machine for arithmetic (Skinner, 1954)

Skinner’s teaching machines (1950s)

• Based on behaviourist principles of operant conditioning– Materials self-contained & broken into small

linear steps– Machine asks question, student provides

response– Only proceed to next step (& give

reinforcement) when correct

• Grounded in large body of prior research• Skinner considered learning only resulted

from reinforcement, not from self-evaluation or reflection

Political & cultural context

National & inst. policy & practice

Learning environment

T&L practice

Student experience

Focuses on a very small part of the learning experience…


World of educational design & development


…and a narrow body of theory of questionable generalisability

Taxonomic framework

…of teaching &

learning

…of policy , regulations etc

…of the learning

environment

Experience & action

Ed design & development

Principles of T&L practice

Curriculum specs, resources etc

Inst policies & management

Abstraction & theory

Theories of learning & teaching

Models of org. mngmt & change

Discipline epistemologies

Broadening context

…of wider culture

Cultural management

Critical / political pedagogy

Notional space of institutional research

Taxonomic framework

…of teaching & learning

…of policy etc

…of the learning environment

Experience & action




Policies & management





Grounded/illuminative research

Taxonomic framework


…of policy etc


Experience & action









Evaluation research

Taxonomic framework


…of policy etc


Experience & action









Investigative research

Taxonomic framework


…of policy etc


Experience & action









Theory-driven research

Classification of forms of educational enquiryForms of enquiry

Process includes Outcomes include


Situate within relevant literature Appropriate study design for study issue Robust collection and interpretation of

evidence in relation to issue Dissemination to relevant communities

Enhanced understanding of theoretical/conceptual issue

Optionally, recommendations for action on HE issues

Practice and Policy based research

Investigative study

Situate within relevant literature Appropriate study design for study

issue/problem Robust collection and interpretation of

evidence in relation to issue/problem Articulate basis for generalisation to

wider context Dissemination to relevant communities

Recommendations for action on HE issue/problem, locally and more widely

Optionally, enhanced understanding of theoretical or conceptual underpinnings

Evaluative study

Situated within relevant literature Appropriate study design for study

questions Robust collection and interpretation of

evidence in relation to questions Articulate of basis for generalisation to

wider context Dissemination to relevant communities

Judgement about value or worth, or actions for local enhancement

Recommendations for wider practice

Optionally, enhanced understanding of theoretical or conceptual underpinnings

Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

SoTL Situate study within relevant literature Cycle of evidence collection,

interpretation, reflection and adaptation of practice

Enhancement of local practice or policy

Forms of enquiry Outcomes include


Enhanced understanding of theoretical/conceptual issue

Optionally, recommendations for action on HE issues

Practice and Policy based research

Investigative study

Recommendations for action on HE issue/problem, locally and more widely

Optionally, enhanced understanding of conceptual underpinnings

Evaluative study Judgement about value or worth, or actions for local enhancement

Recommendations for wider practice Optionally, enhanced understanding of

conceptual underpinnings

Scholarship of Teaching & Learning

SoTL Enhancement of local practice or policy

Assertions (so far)

One set of phenomena can be represented in many ways: utility depends on for whom? and for what purpose?

Student learning experience can be conceptualised in terms of individuals & their wider contexts

Levels of abstraction (experience / application representations / theory) provide a basis for taxonomising forms of research

Different research endeavours have different epistemological purposes (theory-facing & application-facing) and audiences

The HE Academy’s mission

To work with the HE sector to providethe best learning experience for students

Through services to individual academics Staff in subject communities universities and colleges

And responding to interests of our other stakeholders Students; professional & employer bodies Sector agencies; governmental bodies

The HE Academy’s aims

Identify, develop and disseminateevidence-informed approaches

Broker and encourage the sharing of effective practice Support universities and colleges in bringing about

strategic change Inform, influence and interpret policy Raise the status of teaching

Effective enhancement requires

Enabling infrastructures and resourcing Alignment with academic values and

culture Coherence across levels

Policy, strategy, practice Agency, institution, individual

Sound evidence base for interpreting, understanding, applying, evaluating

Mostly assuranceQAA remit

Mostly enhancementHEA remit

Assurance and enhancement

Defining standards& checking they’re met

Supportingimprovements to T&L

Ensuring mechanisms foreffective improvement to

T&L are in place

more External accountability less

Assurance and enhancement

more External accountability less

Bottom-up

Top-down

Individual lecturer

National agency/body

Institution

Department

[HEA]

[QAA]

[Institution]

The HE Academy’s aims

Identify, develop and disseminateevidence-informed approaches

Broker and encourage the sharing of effective practice Support universities and colleges in bringing about

strategic change Inform, influence and interpret policy Raise the status of teaching

Achieving aim 1:Identify, develop and disseminate evidence-informed approaches

Gather, synthesise and make available relevant evidence

Promote the use of evidence-informed approaches to enhancing the student learning experience


World of educational development


}Evidence of all sorts…

The Academy observatorySphere: “Synthesis & Practice from HE Research Evidence”

To make evidence relevant to HE policy & practice

Evidence gathering & categorisatio

n

Synthesis, integration & contextualisi

ng

Application, evaluation

Observatoryfunctions

Evidence Understanding Use

Sectorengagement

Providing evidence,

quality control etc

Reviews, commentaries, key issues, priorities etc

Applications to policy & practice,

evaluative evidence

Observatory plans

Developing web infrastructure Focussing on three areas

Technology-enhanced learning Employer engagement Widening participation

Demo and consultation at Academy Conference Version for comments later in summer Full launch in autumn Further linking into Academy (York & Subject Centres)

networks and activities

Contact: Rachel Segal or Cristina Sin

Achieving aim 1:Identify, develop and disseminate evidence-informed approaches

Gather, synthesise and make available relevant evidence Promote the use of evidence-informed approaches to enhancing

the student learning experience

By Academics, subject communities & institutions Through more effective access to evidence & syntheses [sphere] Through working with networks and groups at these three levels Through the encouragement of policy developments & initiatives

Questions & discussion

Why Plutarch?

“Research is the act of going up alleys to see if they are blind”

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled”

Documents

Nick Hammond The Higher Education Academy, York, UK [email protected] 25 June 2008