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Published by rs4001155, 2019-07-03 09:29:24

Constellations 2

constellations3_spreads

CONSTELLATIONS Volume 1: Issue 2
July 2019
Journal of Scholarship

The University Centre
Trafford College Group

1

2

Constellations Volume 1: Edition 2

This is Volume 1: Edition 2 of our annual
research journal CONSTELLATIONS
containing a selection of scholarly activity
undertaken by staff at the TCG this year.
Gary Spicer
Head of School, Scholarship Lead
Trafford College Group

6 GARY SPICER
Do we really know our stuff?: The case for teaching with
emotional intelligence.

12 HELEN MARTIN
Evaluation of modified assessment methods and processes

16 DR CONTROLLAH GABI AND DR JOSEPHINE GABI (MMU)
The fully functioning student: towards a humanistic pastoral
framework in higher education.

24 MARC WRIGHT
The one with funny coloured paper: dyslexia re-assessed.

30 JUNE FREEL
Development of human biology (hb) curriculum design
embedding discovery learning

36 ACCESS TO HE DIPLOMA TEAM
Blended learning resources

44 JACKIE BRAITHWAITE
Peers on film: telling academic stories through video to generate
motivation and encourage a growth mindset.

62 PAUL ALLEN
Commissioned project: peer assisted learning.

3

Constellations

The emphasis of scholarship undertaken
in College Higher Education (CHE) is
distinctive from the Research Excellence
Framework (REF) focused research taking
place in HEI’s which seeks to promote
research that generates economic and social
impact and is intended to deliver local as
well as national and international benefits.
Of course, in a university research is also
heavily linked to funding too.
-

The emphasis for us in CHE scholarship is always to enrich
our students experience and in the process advance our own
knowledge as staff, be that via pedagogic or subject based endeavor.
Conceptually the rationale is underpinned by the work of Ernest
Boyer on the four scholarships (Boyer 1990) - of discovery, of
application, of integration, and of teaching.
With this conceptual framework in mind we want scholarship at
TCG to represent ways in which curricula and pedagogies can
combine and to promote interplay between knowledge contexts.
The aim is to encourage staff, students and sometimes local
employers to work in partnership to develop productive knowledge
exchange networks, to seek ways to enhance peer support and to
constructively evaluate our teaching.

Not only should the projects contained here inspire critical
discourse and enhance teaching and learning across the college,
they should also begin to inform our direction of travel as a
University Centre as we continue to develop our ethos and shape
our curriculum.

There is some interesting work here; Helen Martins paper
investigates the learner feedback on newly modified assessments
for the HNC/D Computing Course and to highlight any further
improvements that could be made. Controllah Gabi’s paper The
Fully Functioning Student is a fascinating investigation into the
notion of a humanistic pastoral framework in higher education in
a climate where as staff we are increasingly accountable for student
progression and success. (This of course is core evidence for the
TEF – Teaching Excellence Framework) Paul Allen has undertaken
a commissioned project in PAL – Peer Assisted Learning – and has
outlined the basis of a workable model we will plan to adopt for
2019-20.

4

Gary is currently undertaking a practice based PhD, a post-witness account of the Volume 1: Edition 2
Holocaust expressed through the intersection of drawing, writing and photography.
Marc Wright’s paper: The One With Funny Coloured Paper is a
timely reassessment of the issues associated with Dyslexic students
and how we manage the difficulties associated with the condition.
June Freel’s aim was to develop and evaluate a range of teaching
techniques/resources for her Human Biology Access students
whilst the wider Access team have written a joint paper on Blended
Learning Resources.
Jackie Braithwaites research paper entitled Peers On Film:
Telling Academic Stories Through Video to Generate Motivation
and Encourage a Growth Mind-set looked at innovative ways
of motivating and easing the anxieties of new students and of
engendering a community of practice which contributes to
motivation levels. And finally my own paper, which develops a small
piece I wrote for the TCG Blog earlier in the academic year about
Emotional Intelligence and its importance in teaching and learning,
entitled: Do we Really Know our Stuff?: The Case for Teaching with
Emotional Intelligence.
Gary Spicer
Head of School
Scholarship Lead
Trafford College Group

5

Gary Spicer: Head of School /
Enhancement and Scholarship

Do we really know our stuff?:
The case for teaching with
emotional intelligence.
-In January I wrote a small piece for the TCG Blog about Emotional

Intelligence and its importance in teaching and learning. I was
just about to start the second round of peer observations where I
undertake an observation of staff myself utilising the new 10-point
plan paperwork. Most of that paper is reproduced here with some
development including some reflection on those observations
viewed through the lens of emotional intelligence.
When I first encountered Alan Mortiboys’ book Teaching with
Emotional Intelligence, it really struck a chord with me and chimed
with thoughts of my own regarding embedding our partnership
ethos and the 10 point plan for Student Engagement which as you
know, has been adopted in Higher Education across the group.
The book is predicated on the following; “Its time to recognise
the central role that emotions play in learning and to ensure that
using emotional intelligence is part of every teacher’s development”
(Mortiboys 2009:3).

Before I realised emotional intelligence was even a
pedagogical theme, I had realised after nearly 30 years of
teaching, most of which has been in Higher Education,
that without engaging in this way with my students, the
opportunity for deep and meaningful learning to thrive
was diminished.

To me this seemed obvious. Lets be honest…nobody learns much
from someone they don’t like or who doesn’t inspire us or who
doesn’t appear to take an interest in us, just think of your own
experience at school. I remember those teachers who innately
understood this, even then in the sixties and seventies there were
those teachers who were enlightened and naturally engaged and
enthused their students. Unfortunately, I also remember those that
didn’t get it and during whose lessons I was bored rigid and learned
very little… It’s true, so why make the same mistakes?
I think we can all recognise that teaching styles have changed
significantly over the years and that received wisdom is now
that we actually learn better and more ‘deeply’ by interacting
and collaborating. We also understand that rather than being
receptacles of teaching, our students ‘needs’ are much more central
to the whole activity. In other words we don’t all learn in the same
way, at the same rate. The traditional methods of recitation and
memorisation that were in fact ‘schooling’ us to remember in the

6

short term to pass an exam or recite information when requested have
now been supplanted – in theory at least - by a myriad of interactive
methods. Supposedly we have moved on from the old binary of talk
and chalk but this paradigm still exists in most educational centres
and I have seen it here at TCG too.
This binary has evolved and has been sustained for many reasons. It
is predicated on the presumption that students are learning because
we are teaching. It is also predicated on a ‘distance’ – often a great
divide – existing between teacher and student. This is rooted is
age-old historical notions of student and master, subservience and
institutionalised power and is all reinforced by the geography and
ergonomics of the traditional teaching space. Teacher at the front,
often standing. Students seated in regimented rows all facing the
teacher, rendering interaction between them impossible. Students are
submissive.
Philosophically, the roots of this neglect can be found in the writings
and ideas of Descartes in the 17th Century. “I think therefore I
am” was his famous idea. In his theory of dualism he separated the
mind and the body. He believed that the mental realm within us
was uncontaminated by the sensual realm of the body. The mind,
according to Descartes was of a ‘higher’ order than the body, which
he saw as closer to animal in nature. This model still prevails today
in our privileging of the intellect in all our academic endeavours.
Antonio Damasio in his book Descartes Error has shown that from a
neuro-scientists perspective Descartes was wrong, stating, “Emotion
and feelings are indispensable for rationality”. (Damasio 1996: xv)
Interesting stuff!
It is timely then that progressive educational practices focus more on
the individual student’s needs rather than assuming all students are
at the same level of understanding. Contemporary teaching is more
activity based, using questioning, explaining, demonstration and
collaboration techniques and to succeed best it is all underpinned by
an emotionally intelligent practitioner. Sonia Jackson puts it like this;
“The traditional “chalk and talk” method of teaching that’s persisted
for hundreds of years is now acquiring inferior results when compared
with the more modern and revolutionary teaching methods that are
available for use today. Greater student interaction is encouraged,
the boundaries of authority are being broken down, and a focus on
enjoyment is emphasised.”
When we are with our students we connect with them (or should

7

Gary Spicer: Head of School /
Enhancement and Scholarship

be) beyond the transmission and discussion of ideas and facts. To
be a teacher the bare minimum should be, knowing the subject.
Of course the real work begins when we begin to reflect on our
effectiveness in communicating and structuring this knowledge
for the consumption of our students. This is pedagogy. In the best
examples, this enables the experience to be transformative for both
teacher and student – and go’s to the heart of partnership learning
– It naturally follows then that without the emotional aspect as
part of our teaching then the value of both our knowledge as staff
of the subject and our learning and teaching methods are seriously
compromised?
Based on my own teacher training experience and the many
students aspiring to be teachers I have mentored over the years
from various universities, I haven’t been aware of any being
asked “who are you and how do you relate to other people?” It
certainly was never asked of me. The question is; if teachers can
gain qualified status without ever acknowledging or developing
holistic skills that support strategies to engage students, how
are we surprised that many don’t see it as important or grasp its
significance?
Problems with discipline, retention and all manner of measures
that scrutinize performance would surely be helped by a strategic
steer – as a pre-requisite – to encourage and facilitate in staff the
modes necessary to develop skills in the emotion dimension of
teaching and learning and increasing the likelihood of students
“being engaged, motivated, ready to take risks in their learning,
positive in their approach to learning, ready to collaborate, be
creative and resilient” (Mortiboys 2005:4).
When I have observed staff as part of our Peer Observation cycle, I
have noticed that certain staff just have it, they are clearly engaging
with their students in an emotionally intelligent way and the levels
of engagement and of trust are palpable. I have often thought
teaching is like being balanced together – teacher and student -
on a high wire. The objective is to cross the ravine and it must be
crossed together, of course teaching is collaborative at its core.
Teaching the softer subjects, arts or social science, clearly lend
themselves to a sensitive approach – it would be incongruous to
discuss Maslow’s hierarchy of need without emotional or anecdotal
engagement – but I have observed staff in construction who have
an innate sense of awareness in this area but who perhaps just need
to develop a more strategic approach, to ensure that what they are
doing naturally is channelled and directed to maximum effect.
In the University Centre10-point plan for student engagement,

8

point 3. Recognize that teaching and teachers are central to
engagement is the one where this facet is noted during observations
or considered in our day-to-day pedagogic self-reflection. In this
section I have commented as follows;
• “Students have clear respect for A”
• “Great subject enthusiasm fostered and stimulated throughout by
B. All students thoroughly engaged”
• “C has an excellent manner and has complete governance of the
teaching environment. This is important in a traditional teaching
format. He is encouraging and deliberate in his instruction and the
use and manipulation of examples. He has a calm and encouraging
teaching manner, which clearly mitigates any ambiguity in the
process of learning. C’s delivery is pitched perfectly. Students
clearly respond and are empowered during the session.
• Students engaged and taking notes during an intimate discussion
where D confidently elicited student subject knowledge. Students
constantly on task. D demonstrated excellent methods of positive
reinforcement.
• “E has an excellent manner with students and creates a relaxed
learning environment in which all students are engaged. E clearly
has the respect of the students”
• “Excellent manner and evidence of emotional engagement with
students. F responded well to questioning”.
So what is at the heart of emotional intelligence? What are the
qualities that students’ sense and respond to in the teaching and
learning environment? What are the determinant factors that help
them not only succeed…but also succeed better?
Harkin 1998:339, 346 names the following behaviours as examples
of determinants of student satisfaction with teachers;
1. Recognising individuals
2. Listening properly to students
3. Showing respect
4. Being friendly
5. Sharing a joke
6. A measure of self-disclosure
Confirming as we suspected what Smith et al (cited in Smith 1997:
45-6) discovered when asking students what qualities should the
ideal teacher in higher education have, found that interpersonal
characteristics such as being ‘empathetic’, approachable’ and ‘relates

9

Gary Spicer: Head of School /
Enhancement and Scholarship

to students as equals’ were woven in with attributes relating to the
lecturer’s skills and knowledge. The research shows again and again
that what students value more than anything and the quality most
associated with effective teaching…much more so than “brilliance
and love of subject or enthusiasm in the studio or classroom…is
those teachers who can create and foster a “special attitude toward
and relationship with students” (Carson 1996:14) In other words
the evidence suggests that students overwhelmingly connect
their transformative experiences with a “complex and personal
encounter that links staff, student and subject mater in an exchange
that is as much affective – meaning influenced or resulting from
our emotions - as it is cognitive” (Ibid:11).
So what do we do? Firstly, teaching affectively necessitates us
shifting our priorities. As teachers knowing our stuff and having
confidence in our own knowledge, content and materials must not
be at the expense of being flexible and being responsive to students.
It is important that our self development is not just focused on
subject expertise but also stresses the development of our ‘self ’
knowledge.
REFERENCES:
Carson, B. H. (1996) ‘Thirty years of stories: the professor’s place in
student memories’. Change 28 (6)
Claxton, G. (1999) Wise up: the challenge of lifelong learning,
London: Bloomsbury
Damasio, A. (1996) Descartes’ Error: Emotion, Reason and the
Human Brain, London: Papermac
Goleman, D. (1996) Emotional intelligence, Why it can Matter
more than IQ London: Bloomsbury
Goleman, D. (1998) Working with Emotional Intelligence, London:
Bloomsbury
Harkin, J. (1998) Constructs Used by Vocational Students
in England to Evaluate their Teachers. Journal of Vocational
Education and Training 50
Jackson, S. (2013) Three new teaching methods improve the
educational process.

10

11

Helen Martin: Lecturer: STEM

Evaluation of modified
assessment methods and
processes
-

ABSTRACT Assessments are a crucial tool used in all levels of
Education to test students’ understanding of a subject knowledge
and to help them excel and progress further. The design of
assessments is very important as the results can then have an
impact on the students’ future career as “assessment affects
decisions about grades, placement, instructional needs, curriculum,
and, in some cases, funding.” (EduTopia, 2008)
This paper investigates the learners’ feedback on the newly
modified assessments for the HNC/D Computing Course to
summarise the success and to highlight any further improvements
that could be made. A comparison will be made for unit grades
achieved before and after the modified assessments to identify if
grades have improved, stayed the same or are lower.
INTRODUCTION Several changes were made to the assessment
methods and processes for the academic year of 2018/19. In
2017/18, student surveys and focus group meetings highlighted
students’ concerns about assessment methods and processes. Some
of these included:
• repetition of assessment methods e.g. too many presentations,
• repetition of tasks e.g. having to create a database for several
units,
• too much written work and not enough practical elements,
• clashing of hand in dates and too many hand in dates for
assignment submissions
• unable to identify the link between units
• unmotivated to aim towards higher grade criteria when one of the
higher criteria had not been met in first assignment (based upon a
unit having 2 assignments)
• Use a holistic approach in all assignment briefs
METHODOLOGY The team spent quite a bit of time over the
summer of 2018 and made changes to the assessment methods and
processes. The first decision was to create one whole assignment
per unit with the opportunity of an informal submission 4-6 weeks
after the hand out date. This would help to reduce the hand in
dates and would allow learners to submit an informal draft to help
identify if the learner is on track with the set tasks and aiming
towards meeting the higher grades. Last year, learners were
demotivated to aim for the higher criteria after the submission of
assignment 1 of 2 as they did not meet some of the higher criteria
and therefore felt there was no point aiming to achieve the higher
criteria in assignment 2 of 2.
12

The team used a holistic approach when creating the assessments
this year, this is expected from the awarding body (Pearson) but it
was to help “support students to become independent, self-aware,
practitioners in their chosen field” and for the assessor to evaluate
students’ achievement as a whole, (Pearson, 2018)
Another decision after using the curriculum assessment tool in Figure
1, was to reduce repetition of assessment methods e.g. reduce the
number of presentations, to reduce the amount of written tasks. This
was achieved by internal verification of assignment briefs and by using
observation forms so the learner could demonstrate the system they
have created as oppose to writing up what they have produced and
including screen shots.

Figure 1 Curriculum Assessment Tool
To reduce repetition of tasks we merged units together, for instance,
Unit 1 Programming and Unit 4 Database Design and Development,
this meant the learners had to create one database (backend) and one
graphical user interface (front end) for both units, previously, they
would have created a database and interface separately for both units.
This also helped the learners understand how the units link together
preparing the learner more for the industry. After the submission
of assessments for all units, a survey was created, see Figure 1. This
survey was designed to encourage the learners’ feedback on how well
they think the modified assessments have helped to address the issues
raised from the previous year.

13

Helen Martin: Lecturer: STEM

ANALYSIS OF DATA
The first set of data to analyse was the evaluation from the learners
from the assessment survey to identify if the new assessments have
helped to remedy the concerns raised with the assessment model in
2018/19
The second set of data was to analyse the results for the units and
to analyse if the results had improved using the new assessment
methods and process. Four units were analysed from the HNC
Computing Course which were completed by the end of semester
1. It was not possible to analyse the other HNC units as these
were still in progress whilst writing this paper. The HND unit
grades were not analysed as this was the first year these units were
delivered, therefore, there was no previous data to compare against.
2 out of the 4 units achieved a higher number of distinction grades,
unit 4 was a 5% increase from 20% in 2017/18 to 25% for 2018/19
CONCLUSION & FUTURE WORK
The results from the assessment survey for the new modified
assessments were very positive and it was evident that the majority
of students felt the new assessments and processes have been
successful as a solution to the concerns raised in the previous
academic year. Question 8 was an open question, some comments
made included too many presentations in unit 3, some units were
large and could be considered as group work to help reduce the
workload and to get real experience on working on a small group
project in the industry, this was aimed towards unit 30 and 40
(HND). Students mentioned regurgitation of assignment criteria
e.g. similar criteria in Merit and Distinction criteria.
There is still further work to be done in the future. As mentioned
previously, the lowest result from the assessment survey related to
the students understanding the assessment tasks from a holistic
approach. As the results for this question were lower than the other
questions, there is a need for further training/guidance that could
be offered to the learners. The first guidance would be including the
assessment guide provided by Pearson on the VLE and spending
some time in tutorial going through this with the learners, there are
also video tutorials on Pearson’s website, again these links will be
posted on the VLE.
It was evident that some grades had improved in four of the units
delivered in Semester 1 for this academic year when comparing
against last academic year, however, the team were hoping for an
increase in Distinction grades for all units. There was an increase
on the number of students attempting the distinction criteria this
academic year compared to last year, unfortunately, not all met
the criteria of the higher grade. More guidance and tutorials could
be delivered to help students understand what is expected at the
higher criteria. Pearson have a lot of reports and video tutorials

14

for guidance on higher criteria and critical thinking, these reports
and links will be shared with the learners on the VLE for the new
academic year.
Some of the feedback given in question 8 mentioned above could
easily be incorporated into the assignments for next year. The
only concern stated which is out of the Lecturer’s control is the
assessment grid and repetition, however, as mentioned above,
more guidance on the holistic assessment will be delivered next
year and the students will be made aware of the Pearson’s’ guidance
documents and videos which will be inserted into the VLE, this
should help the learners deal with the repetition and “support
students to become independent, self-aware, practitioners in their
chosen field” (Pearson, 2018).
REFERENCES
EduTopia, 2008, Why Is Assessment Important, Online https://
www.edutopia.org/assessment-guide-importance (accessed:
11/06/18)
Pearson, 2018, BTEC Higher Nationals – (RQF) Assessment
& Feedback Guidance for Centre/Tutors, Online https://
qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/BTEC-Higher-
Nationals/Business/2016/teaching-and-learning-materials/hn-
assessment-feedback-guidance.pdf (accessed: 20/05/19)

15

Dr Controllah Gabi and
Dr Josephine Gabi (MMU)

The fully functioning student:
towards a humanistic pastoral
framework in higher education
-

Introduction Student participation in higher education has im-
proved and, consequently, institutions have become increasingly
accountable for student progression and success, which is partially
reflected by retention rates (Crosling et al., 2013). This has led to an
amplified focus on personal tutoring in Higher Education (HE) in
general and at Manchester Metropolitan University and Stockport
College University Centre in particular. Existing evidence (e.g.
Sanford, 1967; Tait, 2003 and Thomas, 2006) suggests that the need
for personal tutoring has always existed – only that it seems to have
gathered momentum over the recent years due to diversification
and massification of UK Higher Education (Stevenson, Clegg and
Lefever, 2010). This has coincided with an evolution of Higher Ed-
ucation Institutions’ perceptions of its students (Prince and Ford,
2016) – a marked shift from viewing a student as solely a learner
to an individual who is there to learn but with complexly inter-
acting and often-changing facets significantly impacting on and
being impacted on by this learning (Quaye and Harper, 2015). This
is linked to a realisation of how, to be able to positively affect the
student learning experience, it is also important to pay attention to
and positively affect these individual factors.
Contrary to current practices where the pastoral and academic
functions are conceived as separate, findings from this study sug-
gest that integrating the two is perhaps more effective as it ensures
pastoralism becomes a way of life rather than an add on. It puts
pastoral approach at the heart of all core functions of higher educa-
tion institutions including, but not limited to learning and teaching
where the emphasis shifts from educating the student to educating
the human. This approach would likely be more pre-emptive than
the present dominant segmentation of pastoral and academic func-
tions. Results suggests that when the pastoral approach permeates
all processes, including learning and teaching, students are likely
to feel valued as humans which, in itself, is a core protective factor
from the demands of being university students.
Statement of the problem
Over the years, the tendency – hence tradition – in Higher Edu-
cation Institutions (HEIs) has been to separate pastoral care from
academic activities. This approach has seen pastoral care tending
to be extended to students when something has gone wrong. Thus,
pastoral care’s potential to be pre-emptive has been weakened. The
major shortcoming of this, therefore, has been that intervention
has often been set in motion too late into the student lifecycle.
Furthermore, the operational distinction made between teaching

16

School of Health, Children and Care Professionals

and pastoral care activities has also given rise to the mistaken belief
that classroom practice is distinct from pastoral practice. Resultantly,
rather than being addressed in the classroom – ideally pre-emptively,
some kind of referral system has emerged with academic staff passing
on most issues emerging from, or manifesting in, the classroom to
pastoral care support. With this approach has grown the fragmenta-
tion in the services and support students get during their time at uni-
versity. Such fragmentation has extended to the information processed
and held on the student. So, whatever recommendations or support
steps are put forward may end up not being implemented in the class-
room where, arguably, the student spends most of their meaningful
time when they are in the university. In this work, based on generated
evidence, we argue that teaching and pastoral care are inseparable.
Study purpose and research questions
The purpose was to explore pastoral support available to higher edu-
cation students in the two contrasting contexts – one Higher Educa-
tion Institution and another, a Further Education Institution offering
Higher Education. Employing Carl Rogers’ (1961) humanistic theory
as the conceptual framework, the investigation probed the extent
to which existing pastoral frameworks, approaches and processes
facilitated within students’ personal growth, development of helping
relationships and the differentiation of and interaction between the
student and the human. In concert, this research attempted to test stu-
dents and lecturers’ appraisal of pastoral frameworks, approaches and
processes. Thus, this study sought to answer the following research
questions:
1. What pastoral approaches do the two HEIs use?
2. How effective are these approaches?
3. What are university teachers’ and students’ perspectives of
pastoral care within their HEIs?
Underpinning literature
In a climate where the role of the student as primarily a consumer in
the Higher Education landscape has gradually shifted, emerging litera-
ture (e.g.) suggests that students are showing increasing complexity,
particularly their needs, perceptions and notions of what the universi-
ty education process means. Coinciding with this, HEIs have increas-
ingly become interested in understanding students’ needs and factors
affecting them. To try and unpack this, the present work adopts a
hybrid metatheory significantly premised on Carl Rogers’ concept of
a fully functioning human being (Rogers, 1989) and Nell Noddings’
ethics of care (Noddings, 1992). This is distilled in table 1 below.
Table 1: Key conceptual assumptions and propositions
• HEIs’ primary role must be that of caring.
• Caring should not be an act. It must be an ongoing process, a way of
life.
• Caring is everyone’s responsibility, not just for pastoral staff.
• Rather than wait for the student, enquire, support and follow
through.
• Students’ at their core are vulnerable, thus their starting point is

17

Dr Controllah Gabi and
Dr Josephine Gabi (MMU)

always that of vulnerability.
• Student problems are solvable through positive relationships with
staff.
• Empathy key to unlocking student potential.
• Positive relationships foster individual growth.
• Positive relationships generate reciprocity.
• Approaches based on understanding individuals are more effective
that prescriptive, generic approaches.
• Being genuine in relationships if more helpful than superficiality.
• Conducive relationships help change individual personality, attitudes
and behaviours positively.
Relationships fall between two types – growth-promoting and
growth-inhibiting.
Methods and methodologies
This study, carried out in two institutions, utilised sequential ex-
ploratory mixed-methods approach which comprised a survey and
semi-structured interviews to examine student and staff perspectives
on pastoral support mechanisms in their institutions.
Key findings and analysis
What pastoral approaches do the two HEIs use?
Results of this study suggests that the two HEIs have attempted to
standardise and structure their pastoral care. Standardising, argue staff
from the two institutions, enables consistency in approaches across
staff and students, predictability of processes and formality, measur-
ability and accountability. Within the two institutions, there is an
implicit attempt to distinguish between academic and pastoral support
and service. This, according to interviewed staff, makes it easier to
operationalise an otherwise subjective, informal and indeterminable
aspect of HEI provision.
HEI 1, an HE in FE context, offers two types of pastoral care – group
and individual pastoral support. Tutorials are timetabled and can
be delivered as either group of individual tutorials. Group tutorials
are aimed at, among other things, inculcating a sense of communi-
ty whereas individual tutorials acknowledge individual uniqueness
and needs. There was no consensus, however, on how often students
will access these tutorials, with most teachers indicating that they
preferred to use what they called a ‘need-based’ or ‘need-driven’
approach. The rationale was that students will need pastoral support
at different times at different intervals and, therefore, it made sense
to structure pastoral tutorials in accordance with demand for and
nature of support students had. However, there was an acknowledge-
ment between the teachers that this approach made it possible for
some students to have disproportionally more pastoral support time
than others and, in extreme cases, for some students to go through an
academic year without having 1:1 pastoral support. It was noted that
attempting to attain parity across students insofar as pastoral support
is concerned remained a challenge, a near impossibility, due to the

18

immeasurability of pastoral care and support. One interviewee argued 19
that extent of support cannot always equate to how much time is
accorded.
A student who sees a pastoral tutor once may actually have had more
support than one who sees the same pastoral tutor thrice. It is in the
depth and quality of relationship generated and fostered, not the
number of times the support is sought. If the quality and depth of
pastoral support is poor, a student will be worse off after than before
they accessed this ‘support’. Seeing a poor pastoral tutor ten times may
actually worsen the student’s predicament ten times. So, emphasis
should be on depth and quality, rather than frequency. Pastoral sup-
port is an inexact endeavour (Teacher X).
There was consensus among HEI 1 interviewees that there tended to
be a distinction between pastoral and academic support. Embedding
pastoral care into teaching had not been purposively attempted by any
of the interviewees from HEI 1. The general feeling was that embed-
ding pastoral care into teaching would broaden what the teachers
characterised as an already challenging job and, in many ways, make
the job more complex and accountabilities blurred.
HEI 2
The Early Years and Childhood Studies department at HEI 2, a uni-
versity, followed a blended pastoral and integrated curriculum model
which takes a proactive approach to personal tutoring as opposed to
remedial. Six group tutorials are timetabled throughout the academic
year in line with the institution’s requirements. Within this approach,
it was expected that every student would have pre-arranged, regular
academic and professional tutorials as part of their timetable. This was
intended to help ensure the sequence of transitions during student’s
developmental journey are marked and supported.
Although these tutorials were timetabled, students were also allowed
to arrange 1:1 personal tutorial meetings with their personal tutor as
and when these meetings are needed. Through this, it was envisaged
that students and tutors have opportunities to interact and bond,
thereby fostering positive relationships which are noted as one of the
major influences on student retention, progression and academic
success (Reason, 2009). This was, in addition to the need to share
student information (on a need-to-know basis) between and among
academic and administrative staff and, more importantly, student
willingness to keep relevant university staff updated on changes to
their circumstances in order to ensure that andragogical practices are
also informed by diverse and interminably evolving student data.
In addition to the timetabled personal tutorials, personal tutors teach
their tutees at least one core module throughout the academic year.
The central argument for this approach was that it helps cultivate
stronger bonds between teachers and their pastoral groups. Among
other things, some teachers observed, when personal tutors teach
their tutees, it enables them to appreciate the complexities of students’
transitions as they navigate the social and academic terrain. Accord-
ing to all interviewees, this has, however, placed a taxing demand
on personal tutors to have a thorough knowledge of their students.

Dr Controllah Gabi and
Dr Josephine Gabi (MMU)

Whilst there are numerous positives associated with the personal tu-
tors teaching their tutees, there are also challenges. On the whole, the
effectiveness of personal tutoring relies on students updating tutors on
challenges they encounter, which may be a disadvantage for introvert-
ed students who do not tend come forward without encouragement.
How effective are these approaches?
Teachers from both HEIs felt that their approaches created opportuni-
ties for students and tutors to meet. Hence, aspects of student support,
which tend to be hidden, became somewhat salient. However, there
was an acknowledgement that, as is the case where many students are
involved, “Some will always slip through the net. It’s to be expected.”
(Teacher S).
On the other hand, 66% of students from both HEIs expressed satis-
faction with the sufficiency of pastoral support they got over the last
year while 16% felt it was insufficient. However, when asked whether
they found this pastoral care supportive, only 54% felt it was support-
ive – marking a distinction, in students’ conceptualisation, between
sufficiency and supportiveness of pastoral care where being sufficient
does not always mean being supportive, which resonates with Teacher
X’s perspective cited earlier.
What are university teachers’ and students’ perspectives of pastoral
care within their HEIs?
Results showed that 87% of the surveyed students indicated that pas-
toral support was an important factor in their overall student experi-
ence. Similarly, interviewed teachers agreed that pastoral support was
a core aspect of HE provision. On what they tended to seek pastoral
support for, 58% sought support for academic-related issues while
27% sought pastoral support for health-related issues. Of the surveyed
students, 44% had experienced significant mental health issues while
44% had not. 11% preferred not to say whereas 1% did not respond to
the question. Asked whether their interaction with teachers impact-
ed on their self-worth, 75% indicated this interaction had a positive
impact on their self-worth. Results also revealed that 87% of partici-
pating students felt that they understood taught content better if the
teacher was caring.
Key insights and implications
One of the noteworthy results was how positively students felt their
interaction with teachers impacted on their self-worth. Perhaps these
positive interactions ought to be more deliberately regular. Positive
student-tutor relationships, as observed by Thomas (2012) help culti-
vate a sense of affiliation, loyalty and belonging among students.
We believe that good university teaching is caring. In any case, we
curiously observe that the students we have at university have been
mostly brought up such an education system from nursery to prima-
ry school and, up to a point, to secondary school. The best teachers
are the ones who care. And universities should not be an exception.

20

School of Health, Children and Care Professionals

Classrooms must be caring classrooms, lecture theatres caring 21
lecture theatres and student spaces caring student spaces. The
caring attitude – which we purposively label the pastoral approach
– should define, and be the centre of, all we do in Higher Educa-
tion. We have often heard the argument that “I am an academic,
not a counsellor. I only teach, why should I also be caring?” To
borrow from Noddings’ (1992: xiv) assertion that “The first job of
schools is to care for our children”, we argue that it is the respon-
sibility of everyone working in higher education to care, including
for students, and those who do not care have no business in Higher
Education. University should be a place where students learn to be
human again (for some of them, for the first time). For Higher Ed-
ucation to serve its mission, it must acknowledge and cater for the
human in the student, and the best way to do this is to be human
in our approaches and processes. That this is not always evident
in current Higher Education is the shortcoming the present work
sought to examine and, hopefully, emerge with insights that might
be helpful in advancing the pastoral approach in this important
sector of education which has a significant impact on students’
lives. We do believe that if this approach is embedded in all HEI
processes, it may go a long way into curtailing some of the student
mental health problems a rising number of students are facing. We
argue the student pastoral support ought to be more streamlined, a
more cohesive culture permeating the fabric of student life on our
campuses where mutually respectful relationships define university
ethos.
Concluding observations
With the right approach to pastoral care, university campuses will
be happy campuses – campuses with a purpose. It is important to
note the context that the advent of student voice and participation
and the perceived commodification of Education has arisen the
need for the realignment of expectations between Higher Educa-
tion Institutions (HEIs) and the students they serve. As with any
significant change, this has unsettled long established traditions
and perceptions of both students and HEI staff. Students’ propen-
sity to participate in decisions affecting their core goals in HEIs
has increased and awareness of perceived rights broadened. From
yesteryear’s passive learner, the modern-day student has become
more aware of, and demanded to be involved in, processes of the
HEIs. No longer mere spectator learners, their role has evolved into
that of a consumer – aware of the significance of what they pay in
tuition and having strong views on what they expect in exchange
for their money. It is evident that university teachers (pastoral
tutor and all) play a crucial role of weaving a complex web of
student personal/ academic needs intricacies so that the students
can learn to navigate their way around their studies, not as pas-
sive objects, but fully functioning participants in their growth and
development. This approach involves, inter alia, acknowledging
that students come with prior knowledge, skills and epistemolog-
ical beliefs which, most probably, will influence ‘what they notice
about the environment and how they organise and interpret this
environment. Even so, it is worth noting that the space students
occupy within the broader context of HEIs is that of vulnerability
and will, therefore, benefit from a deliberate environment which

Dr Controllah Gabi and
Dr Josephine Gabi (MMU)

fosters positive relationships with their teachers, not only in the crisis
chair, but even more so in the classroom where they spend most of
their time and their capacity to learn is positively impacted on by in-
teractions they have with their teachers. This, in turn, will most likely
affect their ability to remember, reason, solve problems and acquire
new knowledge which prepares them for future stages of their lifecycle
within the university and post-graduation, particularly in the world of
work and as part of the university alumni. In the process, while still in
the university, they are likely to develop a sense of academic and social
belonging. In the foreseeable future, therefore, a caring pedagogy will
help HEIs develop not only graduates but, perhaps more importantly,
fully functioning human beings.
References
Crosling, G., Thomas, L. and Heagney, M. (2013) Improving Student
Retention in Higher Education. Abingdon: Routledge.
Noddings, N. (1992) The challenge to Care in Schools: An alternative
approach to education. New York: Teachers College Press.
Quaye, S. J. and Harper, S. R. (2015) Student Engagement in Higher
Education: Theoretical Perspectives and Practical Approaches for
Diverse Populations (2nd Edition). London: Routledge.
Rogers, C. (1961) Becoming a Person: A Therapist view of Psychother-
apy. New York: Mariner.
Stevenson, J.; Clegg, S. and Lefever, R. (2010) The Discourse of
Widening Participation and its Critics: An Institutional Case Study.
London Review of Education, 8(2), 105 – 115.
Sanford, N. (1967) The Student in the Total Learning Environment.
New York: Wiley.
Stevenson, J.; Clegg, S. and Lefever, R. (2010) The Discourse of Widen-
ing Participation and its Critics: An Institutional Case Study. London
Review of Education, 8(2), 105 – 115.
Tait, A. (2003) Reflections on Student Support in Open and Distance
Learning. International Review of Research in Open and Distance
Learning, 4(1), 1 – 10.
Thomas, L. (2006) Widening Participation and the Increased Need for
Personal Tutoring. In: Thomas, L. and Hixenbaugh, P. (Eds.) Personal
Tutoring in Higher Education. Stoke on Trent: Trentham Books.

22

School of Health, Children and Care Professionals

23

Marc Wright: HE Disability and Support Officer
and Qualified SENDCo

The one with funny coloured
paper: dyslexia re-assessed.
-

Dyslexia, like most Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
(SEND’s) are usually to lay people categorised by external observ-
able behaviours. In practice I have heard dyslexics referred to as
‘the ones who can’t spell’ and ‘the ones who use funny coloured
paper’ – the latter provoking some amusement on my part. There
are parallels here with conditions such as autism in that dyslexia
is in essence a spectrum condition – so having a stock answer to
a learner need as just having different colour paper is not going to
always work.
10% of the population are dyslexic; 4% severely so (British Dyslexia
Association, 2019). Under the Equality Act 2010 the condition is
labelled as a ‘disability’ which means in terms of practice we have
a legal, and I would argue moral responsibility to adjust practice
to meet their needs. This of course follows the typical modern
cultural mores in education of creating a personalised learning
pathway for all learners – but the ‘reasonable adjustment’ angle has
led to an overreliance on different colour paper (British Dyslexia
Association, 2019).
Firstly it is important to acknowledge that some theorists reject the
‘dyslexic’ label altogether – and this alongside the fluidity of iden-
tity demonstrated to empower various minority groups in society,
is likely to permeate into general culture in future. The modern
trend towards seeing all learning difficulties as part of a spectrum
of being – ‘neurodiversity’ when it comes to the brain, has been
furthered by the progressive zeitgeist in identity politics over the
last ten years. Although not to sound over cautionary, the rejection
of the label ‘dyslexic’ itself may lead to under diagnosis, miss-diag-
nosis, or failure for providers to oblige to their statutory obligations
of support.
Goffman (1963) charts how labels effect an individual when they
engage with an institution, noting that it helps to define their moral
career – the journey of which they undergo in the institution. A
label of SEND could potentially empower a learner as they truly
understand the reasons for the challenges they face, or alternatively
make them de-motivated and rely too heavily on the help from
support workers. Certainly cultural relativism has an enormous
difference on the way in which learners will or will not seek help.
For instance, different cultural interpretations of masculinity often
require a rethink of pedagogical strategy and behaviour manage-
ment methods. Within some cultures, disability is seen as a form
of ‘punishment’ for sins created in a previous life, henceforth to ad-
mit to having an issue with reading and writing could be a dramatic
confession for a small percentage of learners.
Certainly the most common signs of dyslexia are issues to do with
SPAG (Spelling, Punctuation, and Grammar). Bio-medical expla-
24

STEM industries

nations for this differ, however in practice dyslexic learners often
focus on the message itself in terms of what they are trying to con-
vey, they will often mistake the medium (essay for a PowerPoint,
a leaflet for a booklet), and be tangled within their own ideas to
embrace a coherent structure.
This is partially down to a problem that many dyslexic’s face which
is a compromised short term memory ability. Similar effects can
be seen in the enjoyment of alcohol – a person under the influence
might be able to tell you a personal anecdote from many years
ago – but they may forget they have just told it and repeat the story
again. In terms of the effect on practice this means there needs
to be a greater focus on SMART targets to support the learner,
and a continual re-visitation to these. Pedagogical strategies that
keep the learner on task – a full commitment to the assessment
for learning structure (i.e. clear objectives, several activities, and
a plenary) really help dyslexic learners. Although one is hesitant
to recommend rote learning as a strategy as it often promotes the
memorising of information rather than deeper level learning, the
repetition of information during an activity can boost memory.
Taking a multi-sensory approach to this can help.
‘Chunking’ information into key concepts always helps the reten-
tion of information. For instance very abstract information such
as names often lack a ‘hook’ to stick in the memory. By chunking
information into groups it allows an association which can pro-
voke an intellectual or emotional reaction to further questions and
ideas which boosts memory. For instance abstract names might be
footballers such as Beckham, Scholes, Keane, and Giggs. Chunk-
ing would for instance link the four as ‘midfielders’. This would
instigate thoughts such as ‘what is the role of a midfielder?’ and
‘how are they different to the defenders?’
Poor working memory can affect the most basic of human inter-
actions. Friendly corridor based conversations which start with
“how are you?” may lead a dyslexic person actively seeking a little
longer for the correct response, typically “I’m all right thanks how
are you?” – This may often be mistaken for social awkwardness.
When considering pedagogical implications of this there are a
few things that we can do in the classroom. Firstly, for abstract
concepts we need to have concrete representations of them. For
instance – the ‘economy’ or ‘socialism’ are abstract concepts, but
for money we could have a visual image such as coins to go with
it. This can also help learners with high level autism who struggle
with abstract concepts. Also, we need to be careful how we ask
questions with multi modal representations of the questions –
written, spoken, and on the board at the same time can help.
The next two factors which effect a dyslexics learning experi-
ence are interlinked – motivation and self-image. Learners with
dyslexia, or any learning difficulty, at times may adopt a resistant
culture to the learning experience – this is demonstrated in the

25

Marc Wright: HE Disability and Support Officer
and Qualified SENDCo

key performance indicators (KPI’s) across all of the pathways. Many
learners with dyslexia, specifically adult learners have had a challeng-
ing experience in education previously, due to their learning difficulty,
stigma towards them because of it, and poor treatment as a result of
no additional support or insufficient support. How many adult learn-
ers do we commonly hear state “Oh, we didn’t have dyslexia when I
was growing up!”
Influenced by the work of the great Sociologist Michel Foucault
(1969), we can take a historical view of disability and see how attitudes
have changed around conditions, to see how one person can have a
positive or indeed negative self-associated view of the label – be they
‘dyslexic’ ‘autistic’ etc. This of course could be applied to any variable
‘the oldest in class’ ‘the one from the poor neighbourhood’ etc. The
SEND Code of Practice 2015 states that we should help learners move
from ‘co-dependence’ from ‘independence’ – in other words we are
preparing them for life outside of the college. This raises questions,
philosophically as to the role of the teacher. Typically ‘good practice’
notions are based on pedagogical strategies that follow a strict code
of expectations – for instance Bloom’s Taxonomy influencing aims
and objectives, the ‘assessment for learning’ structure shaping lessons.
Often this focus on a ‘check list’ approach can super formalise the
process of teaching, particularly for less experienced teachers, so a
focus on positive social psychology, by the likes of Carl Rogers (1951)
is essential.
Rogers is often described as ‘humanistic’ for his view that children
should be constantly held in high regards. We know from social
influence experiments – the likes of Rosenthal and Jacobson (1963)
that positive feedback is essential to encouraging a learner along their
personalised learner journey. Also the promotion of a reading culture
is essential. If we take the cognitivist approach to learning, the notion
that see’s the brain as a series of cogs turning which shape our de-
velopment, and language is the key fuel for this then we can see why
those who struggle with learning will struggle in science, carpentry,
food technology etc.
On the notion of technology there are a variety of tools that we can
utilise to support dyslexic learners. Firstly we should take a broad
approach to technology and not just assume that specialised pro-
grammes are always the way forward. Assistive technology such as
online calendars, phone alarms etc. can aid a learner in meeting dead-
lines. YouTube videos, MP3’s, and visual games can also be utilised in
order to broaden the textures of the knowledge base – whilst retaining
the same flavour of key components. Also, technology extends learn-
ing outside of the classroom, thus assistive technology can help us to
reinforce our SMART targets outside of the classroom. Commonly
learners who have 25% extra time on their assignments will often tail
off as the rest of the class have started on the next Unit and there is not
effective peer support to usher them forth. Bruner (1977) highlights
the importance of ‘scaffolding’ learners in the right direction, we can
see this use of technology as effective digital scaffolding beyond the

26

natural realms of a classroom in Higher Education.
If we consider the implications of dyslexia on Higher Education
specifically we can break this down to a few key areas; the ability to
think critically, learning, and expression/articulation. In terms of
critical thinking, most pedagogical theories champion our ability
to think critically as an example of higher order learning skills
(Blooms Taxonomy (Bloom, 1994), Maslow’s Hierarchy (Maslow,
1996)), however if we ‘chunk’ information to boost memory, this
may affect our ability to navigate around information and ‘think
outside of the box’. For all learners, by binding information into
broad thematic areas, modern contemporary examples would
include the ‘Brexit’ or the ‘Make America Great Again’ philosophy,
key issues for debate can get lost in disingenuous hyperbole, intel-
lectual preening, and sloganeering that hinders social enquiry. It is
often argued that the best way to re-engage learners who struggle
with their reading is to choose texts that appeal to their interests
and values. Unfortunately this can extend a common writers
problem of choosing evidence that fits with a particular argument.
Social science students for instance will quite often get starry eyed
over critical theorists such as Karl Marx and Christopher Hitchens,
due to the dynamism of the work and will often relegate more right
wing thinkers such as Talcott Parsons, and say, Peter Hitchens to
casual guffaws and indifference.
In terms of ‘expression’, dyslexia can have a profound effect on
assessment, and not necessarily understanding of a subject. Where
assessment tries to quantify understanding of a body of knowl-
edge, an exam/presentation/essay assesses a person’s ability to
demonstrate that knowledge in that particular medium. A dyslexic
learner, who struggles with that particular core skills of reading
and writing may struggle to engage in such forms of assessment.
The role of an effective H.E Disability and Support Officer is to be
selective of a broad pedagogical tool kit and soft skills to re-concep-
tualise, re-brand, re-energise, and re-engage learning outside of the
classroom, as part counsellor, and part cheerleader (metaphorical-
ly).
In terms of articulation, dyslexic learners may be able to explain
complex ideas face to face very well, relying on facial expressions,
gestures, but as with written work may struggle with exploring
more abstract concepts. Written work lacks the ‘total communi-
cation’ of conversation. Mistakes in verbal communication can
be remedied through ‘repair work’ (Sacks, 1995) from all those
involved in the interaction. An essay is very passive and lacks the
‘scaffolding’ (Bruner, 1977) of conversation and group work, and
a knowledgeable other can help by providing an open and honest
dialogue about the key themes and ideas, and forming articulate
paragraphs. Unfortunately, on occasions this means that learners
can over rely on support mechanisms and have an un-realistic
expectation that the work will be done for them – across several
curriculum areas that has been witnessed in 2018/2019. An effec-
tive support team has to use any available cultural capital to bring

27

Marc Wright: HE Disability and Support Officer
and Qualified SENDCo

information to life, and structure out of a plan of action to improve a
piece of work/general academic enquiry.
In conclusion, it is important to see each dyslexic learner as an
individual with their own specific needs – each an individual shaped
by their SEND and also their cultural and socio-economic circum-
stances. As practitioners we should strive to utilise the far reaches of
our professional tool box and beyond to ensure that each learner has
a personalised learning pathway – without just resorting to ‘funny
coloured paper’.
References
Bloom, B. (1994). “Reflections on the development and use of the tax-
onomy”. In Rehage, Kenneth J.; Anderson, Lorin W.; Sosniak, Lauren
A. (eds.). Bloom’s taxonomy: A forty-year retrospective. Yearbook of
the National Society for the Study of Education.
British Dyslexia Association (2019) About. [Online] Available At:
https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/about (Accessed on 1/5/2019)
Bruner, J. (1977). “Early social interaction and language acquisition”.
In H. R. Schaffer (Ed.), Studies in Mother-infant Interaction (pp.
271–289). London: Academic Press.
Foucault, M. (1969) The Archaeology of Knowledge. London and New
York: Routledge
Goffman, E. (1963) Stigma: Notes on the management of spoiled iden-
tity. Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice-Hall.
Maslow, A. (1996). Critique of self-actualization theory. In: E. Hoff-
man (Ed.), Future visions: The unpublished papers of Abraham
Maslow. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, pp. 26–32.
Rogers, C. (1951). Client-centred therapy: Its current practice, impli-
cations and theory. London: Constable.
Rosenthal, R., &. Jacobson, L. (1963). Teachers’ expectancies: Deter-
minants of pupils’ IQ gains. Psychological Reports, 19, 115-118.
Sacks, H. (1995). Lectures on Conversation. New Jersey: Blackwell
Publishing.

28

29

June Freel: AccessBtiooHloEgyLecturer - Human

Development of human biology
(hb) curriculum design embed-
ding discovery learning
-

Line of Enquiry:
• What teaching techniques do access to HE adult learners
feel they learn best from? The aim is to develop a range of teaching
techniques/resources for Human Biology.
• To analyse student feedback in terms of what techniques
helped them understand concepts best.
• To evaluate results and share most successful methods
with colleagues.
Access to H E learners sit in a unique space in education. As
adult learners they will have outgrown compulsory education,
though many may have not gained much from the experience.
The confidence they have in their own ability is the biggest hurdle
teachers face with this group of learners. Some are at the other end
of the scale, having completed up to degree level but who want to
change their career direction. They too can lack confidence as the
new area is alien to them. Also in the mix are students who have
gained good qualifications from their homeland, but find coming
to the UK their qualifications are not recognised, so on top of
learning a new language and culture they are back to school.
‘The more we read the more we realise there are many different
ways of explaining how adults learn’ (Merriam et al 2007). For
younger learners the emphasis is engagement, for adult learners
who have chosen to return to study they have a goal in mind so a
different approach needs to be employed. Many learning theories
suit some, but not all. According the Taylor and Hamdy (2007)
adult learning is based on a range of theories, some of which do not
fully apply to every learning situation. Theories include cognitive,
social, and behavioural. Experienced educators understand there is
an undeniable influence from social and humanistic factors which
may or may not lead to self-actualisation, the basis of andragogy
(Knowles, 1988). The Access to HE learner often comes with a
range of social barriers to certification. Single mums, primary
carers, working over 17 hrs a week on top of their job to fund their
education are some but not all of the examples.
Fig 1 (Taylor and Hamdy, 2007)

To meet the challenge of supporting our adult Access to HE
learners we must engage in providing a range of opportunities to
learn, catch up and gain confidence. The suggested model (Fig 1)
for adult learners within the teaching establishment environment,
task and feedback being the centre of this model, students need
resources that fit their stage in development, their motivation
30 and learning style. They also need time to reflect, observe and

School of Art & Creative Industries

consolidate their new experiences. 31
The research set out to prepare lessons in an attempt to establish
experiential learning as suggested by Kolbs (1984), ‘why do I need to
know this’ and encouraging learners to be responsible for their own
learning. As Kolb (1984) observed many prefer the didactic approach
‘tell me what I need to know’, so how can educators use modern
techniques to enable acquisition of new knowledge and skills?
Method:
To this end, the research focus was to introduce a range of different
teaching tools in the classroom and on the Virtual Learning
Environment (Skoodle) made available before the lessons. To
encourage Kolb’s (1984) learners self control concept of ‘I am
responsible for my own decisions’.
• Quicknotes of PowerPoint handouts and interactive activites
were developed in response to a request in term 1 for more handouts.
• Think pair and share what you know now, reviewed and
reflected upon at the end of the lessons to identify both what has been
learned and what further reading needs to be done.
• Practical sessions to engage and apply knowledge such as
growth of different microorganism giving learners visualisation of the
differences, or making a model of a working heart, carrying out food
tests to demonstrate a range of nutrients in individual foods.
• Sort cards to allow students to interact with the statements,
observe and reflect on the new knowledge with their peers and
formalise the new information in a way that they can interact with
freely.
• 3 minute essays – time to reflect on chunks of learning and
put them into their own words.
• Introduction of Kahoot – online quizzes where phones can
be used to answer in a competition against each other.

• Flip chart posters encourage collaborative learning, students
are exposed to new concepts for example; the different types of cells
involved in the immune response. The groups discuss, research and
present their piece of the puzzle, finally the groups come together to
show the whole process. Basis of this is the Luft and Ingham (1955)
‘discovery through discussion’ and students identifying the ‘unknown
unknowns’.
The level of impact on the learner’s experience in the class room was
assessed through an anonymous survey Monkey set of questions. This
was carried out at the end of two units.
Results:
Original results can be found h https://www.surveymonkey.com/
results/SM-TS33W5VPVttpwww.surveymonkey
-TS33W5VPV
100% found the structure and order of lessons logical, and quicknotes
very useful in class.
96% found the mind map activity at the start of lesson very useful
starter
91% found quicknotes very useful for revision but only 87% found
quicknotes very useful for assignment writing.
Asked when they use skoodle resources

83% found flip chart poster making helpful for consolidating new
knowledge.
74% card sorting helped them discuss and understand subjects.
57% found the speed date activity useful as listening and explaining
helped remember.
Student verbal feedback and tutor evaluation in brackets
• More of my own notes in class and having more time to make
notes before the session moves on (did find lessons logical but said no
to all other questions including do you use skoodle)
• More reference books (will be introducing more ebooks)
• Provide full ppt slide before lessons (tutor now does this)
• Give complete handout like other tutors/quicknotes in one
book/workbooks added like in other classes as easier format (As its
the first year of teaching, looking to introduce this next year but this
makes lessons inflexible as tutor changes between different groups.
(Learner responded that they never use skoodle)
• Positives – found recaps useful, no improvements they can
32

think of, its perfect the way it is now, videos are useful. (More
videos will be introduced and available on skoodle as the year
progresses)
• More space in quicknotes (now introduced)
• More in class demonstrations or practicals (where units
and time lends itself for this they will be included).
• Lessons taught at a slower pace (learner also responded
that they rarely use skoodle)
• Use less fillers in lessons. If subject is taught with time
to spare then allow more time to be dedicated to working on
assignment and have 1 or 2 lessons dedicated to recapping once
criteria is completed. (tutor is unsure what was referred to as fillers
however, this learner didn’t like sort cards or speed dating so can
presume the reference is to these activities).
Conclusions
Though the research set out to bring interactive lessons into the
adult learning environment. The direction changed over the year
as different units leant away from being able to introduce so much
practical. So the focus shifted from what was taken down and
understood and how that converted into success in the assignment.
The most successful introduction was the recap activity at the
start of the weeks lessons. Students asked to feed in one idea/
word/statement to a mindmap drawn up by the teacher. This
gave direct opportunity for students to review their notes and
understanding from the previous week. It enables the tutor to
identify misunderstandings and to re-teach sections that the class
showed only vague understanding of.
The use of practical demonstrations, though enjoyed by students
didn’t feed into the actual assignments as was hoped. For example
the microbiology, some students did not explain the different types
of microbes, for the cardiovascular system students did not fully
appreciate the need for constant pressure and valves as the artificial
system should have shown them.
There is a link to the use of online resources and the student’s
perception of classes being taught too quickly, or there are not
enough notes. Most students do not read the PowerPoints and
resources that are available before lessons, this may be the reason
for students responding favourably to the recap exercise at the
beginning of lessons. They have a second chance to interact with
the information and clarify ideas and concepts.
Evaluation
Anonymity of response allowed learners to be candid, however it
made it difficult to map the success of the learner compared to their
use and interaction with resources. The range of units has dictated
what can be done practically. As the year went on some techniques
were improved, to get a true evaluation it would be useful to
compare year on year rather than unit by unit.
Summary
In order to allow Access to HE learners the chance to be successful

33

there has to be flexibility to meet all the learning styles and opportunities
to catch up. The VLE is very valuable, and educators know this, students
need to be trained from the early weeks how to use it in order for it to fully
support their learning.
References
Bruner J. Toward a theory of instruction. Belkap Press, Cambridge, MA 1966
Hart R. Children’s participation: From tokenship to citizenship. UNICEF,
Innocenti Essays No. 4. Florence, Italy 1992
Knowles M. The adult learner: A neglected species. Gulf, Houston, TX 1988
Kolb D. Experiental learning. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 1984
Luft J, Ingham H. The JoHari window, a graphic model of interpersonal
awareness. UCLA, Proceedings of the western training laboratory in group
development. Los Angeles, CA 1955
Merriam SB, Caffarella RS, Baumgartner LM. Learning in adulthood: A
comprehensive guide. Jossey-Bass, San Fransisco, CA 2007
Taylor, D. Hamdy, H (2007) Adult learning theories: Implications for
learning and teaching in medical education: AMEE Guide No. 83

34

35

Access to HE Diploma team

Blended learning resources
Access to HE Diploma team
-

The tutors from the Access to HE Diploma have been involved in a
range of collaborative and independent scholarly activities intended
to enhance the quality and accessibility of our curriculum and widen
participation on our courses.
Since the spring of 2018, Open Awards (Access Validating Agency)
have been developing a range of Blended Learning resources for use
on the Access to HE Diploma programmes. Open Awards requested
support from centres to develop their new blended learning resources,
and also asked for a group of “real” Access students to become
partners in the project and help Open Awards to evaluate the new
materials. As a member of Open Awards’ Access to HE Committee,
Andy Stott (Course Leader, Access to HE Diplomas) volunteered to
facilitate a partnership between Stockport College and Open Awards
to ensure that these outcomes could be met.

A number of current and past Access to HE Diploma staff have
been involved in the development of these resources (Marc Wright,
Heather Sleigh, Andy Stott, June Freel), so the evaluation of the
materials produced to date seemed to be the logical next step in the
ongoing project. The first batch of resources, covering ungraded
Developmental units and much of the content of our Access to HE
Diploma (Nursing & Midwifery) were released during the autumn
term. The resources can be accessed via: https://openawards.org.uk/
access-to-he/blended-learning-packages/
36

The available Developmental unit resources include guidance on
plagiarism and Harvard Referencing, along with blended learning
activities and materials relating to the following units:
• Academic Essay Writing
• Report Writing
• Study Skills
The resources have been utilised to support study skills
development in tutorials, and students on the Nursing and
Midwifery and Health Sciences diplomas have also been given
access to the Blended Learning resources supporting the Biology
and Health Studies components of their Access courses.
Open Awards have developed on-line questionnaires (Survey
Monkey) which have been used to evaluate the students’
initial responses to these resources. 27 of our current students
completed the evaluative survey by the stated deadline, and their
responses were collated with those from students attending other
partner colleges, before being shared with the Education & Skills
Funding Agency (ESFA) who are funding the project. These
results are summarised in table 1.

37

Question/Statement Yes No

1. Was time spent in class a 66.67% 33.33%

deciding factor when

choosing your course?

Strongly Agree No Disagree Strongly

agree opinion disagree

2. I have chosen my course 22.22% 33.33% 14.81% 29.63% 0%

because it is near to where I

live.

3. Completing the course 11.11% 14.81% 37.04% 37.04% 0%

entirely in class would be too

rigid and I would prefer a

more flexible approach to

my course

4. I prefer attending a class 42.31% 42.31% 0% 11.54% 3.85%

as opposed to a mixture of

online learning (away from

class) and class time

5. The best time of day for 18.52% 37.04% 18.52% 18.52% 7.41%

me to learn new things is in

the morning

6. I would prefer to access all 0% 7.41% 3.70% 44.44% 44.44%

of my course online, so I do

not have to

attend college

7. I prefer to learn new 0% 25.93% 44.44% 22.22% 7.41%

things in the afternoon

8. A mixture of class time 3.70% 25.93% 29.63% 40.74% 0%

(with my tutor and fellow

learners) and online

learning would be better

9. Day time classes are better 29.63% 40.74% 14.81% 14.81% 0%

as I have other commitments

at other

times

10. Evenings are the best 0% 14.81% 14.81% 44.44% 25.93%

time for me to learn new

things

11. I am happy to try out the 3.70% 37.04% 33.33% 22.22% 3.70%

online learning packages

12. Feeling a little nervous 3.70% 14.81% 51.85% 29.63% 0%

about accessing my learning

o nline 7
13. I would prefer to access 0% 18.52% 48.15% 33.33% 0%

the learning packages on my

Smart phone

14. I feel confident using the 51.85% 40.74% 7.41% 0% 0%

internet for online shopping

15. It is not right that I study 14.81% 29.63% 33.33% 22.22% 0%

my diploma online

16. I do not own a suitable 0% 0% 11.11% 59.26% 29.63%

device to access online

learning outside

class

Table 1: Student Responses to the Blended Learning Questionnaire (27

38 participants)


It is clear from the survey results that the majority of students who participated in

the survey prefer to attend day-time classes rather than attend in the evenings or to

attempt study via distance-learning. The majority are also satisfied that they have

It is clear from the survey results that the majority of students
who participated in the survey prefer to attend day-time classes
rather than attend in the evenings or to attempt study via
distance-learning. The majority are also satisfied that they have
the ICT skills needed to make effective use of on-line resources.
However, it is worth stating that the students who completed the
survey had already begun a daytime, classroom-based Access
course, so it is perhaps to be expected that they would hold such
opinions. Widening the survey so that it could be completed by
new applicants when they are first considering taking an Access
course would give a clearer picture as to the attitudes of potential
future students.
Open Awards are aiming to soon have available a full set of
Blended Learning resources for the Access to HE Diploma
(Nursing & Midwifery). This is our most popular Access
pathway and it could form a new mode of delivery and extended
curriculum offer for future Access intakes across the whole of
the Trafford College Group. Some Access students, being adult
learners, find it difficult to attend all classes due to factors outside
the college environment (childcare, work commitments etc.). The
Blended Learning resources, in combination with the resources
developed by course tutors that are already available on Moodle,
should make it easier for students to catch up with material from
any classes that they might miss.
If the Blended Learning resources prove successful, and lead to
increased student registrations, Open Awards will extend the
system to cover other Access diplomas, potentially widening
participation for adult learners in both Further and Higher
Education.
A second project focussing on widening participation and
increasing student numbers has been undertaken by Ines Coso
(Course Tutor, Access Social Sciences & Access Education).
All Access to HE Diploma tutors recognise that once a student
commits to an appropriate Access course, they will find it a highly
rewarding, worthwhile and life-changing experience. However, it
is also clear that many potential students are unaware that such a
course, offering a “fast-track” route into Higher Education, even
exists. Therefore, in order to increase the number of learners and
make the course grow, Ines has completed a number of activities
which are intended to increase awareness of Access courses and
recruitment levels.
This has included work, in collaboration with the college
Marketing department and Open Awards, to identify groups of
potential learners who could benefit from targeted information
regarding Access courses and potential progression routes into
Higher Education and future employment. The current marketing
leaflets will be distributed to local parent & toddler groups,
Stockport Central Library, Stockport Jobcentre Plus, Sure Start
children’s centres, even takeaway outlets such as Subway and
McDonalds.
Both Open Awards and the Access licensing agency (QAA) have
identified the need for increasing public awareness of Access

39

Access to HE Diploma team

courses. To this end, Open Awards have set up a marketing group,
involving their own staff and representatives from a number of partner
colleges, including the Trafford College Group. In May 2019, Ines
attended the first meeting of this group, which is intended to share
ideas and knowledge on how Access to HE diplomas can best be
marketed at a local, regional and national level.
One idea that emerged from the group was a “viral” social media
campaign, beginning with existing staff and past or present students,
which could then be shared with their own contacts. The new 2019
intake of students will be asked for their opinions as to best ways to
increase awareness on Access courses. It has also been proposed that
a reward or incentive scheme could be used to encourage students to
participate in any future social media marketing campaigns.
Adam Stone (Course Tutor, Access Social Sciences & Access
Education) has focussed this year’s scholarly activity in two areas:
the actual delivery and marking of last year’s scholarly activity
‘project’ (the writing of a new criminology unit) and the design and
implementation of an entire Access to HE module that he had not
previously taught (English).
In his previous role, teaching criminal psychology to A Level students
in a secondary school sixth form teacher, Adam found that one of the
most notable units was the one on criminal profiling. He has taken
this past experience with A Level psychology, plus an awareness of
a renewed public interest in serial offending (as evidenced by recent
Netflix fare such as ‘Mindhunter’ and the three related documentaries
on Ted Bundy), and developed an Access unit that is specifically
tailored to the requirements of adults studying criminology.
In addition, such a unit added a little extra diversity from the usual
coverage of the sociological explanations of crime (in particular
Marxism and functionalism). When Adam first started teaching
Access Criminology at Stockport College in 2009, much of the
module was taken up with this very seventies/eighties left-of-centre
sociological perspective. Such a perspective certainly reflected the
main thoughts and theories of the time, and the background and
‘training’ that Adam himself had received in the social sciences,
but it became clear that there was space for alternatives to the often
overemphasised critique of capitalism, even though this still remains
very pertinent.
This academic year, Adam has been busy developing resources and
teaching the new ‘Offender Profiling’ unit, which he wrote in 2017-18.
The new unit was officially approved by Open Awards in the summer
of 2018 and added to their unit bank for use from 2018-19 onwards.
The teaching of the unit covered a period of 5 – 6 weeks during
March and April 2019, making it the fourth unit of the five completed
during the Access Criminology module. This was followed by a brief
period of directed study and then the deadline for the assignment
submission. The assignment itself was an essay entitled “Outline and
assess the history, role and effectiveness of offender profiling”. The
resulting grades were a mix of merits and distinctions, with some
students finding the overall structuring of the piece a little more
40

challenging than some previous assignments.
Feedback from the students was very encouraging. Past experience
had revealed that Access Criminology students are generally a
bloodthirsty lot, and a month and a half of graphic descriptions
of serial murders certainly provided plenty of grist for the mill.
In a sense, the impetus to design this unit was simply to examine
the foul acts that men do (generally they are men) – a grisly but
necessary aim if one is to seriously engage with the reasons for
‘extreme’ criminality. This provided an opportunity for the students
to ask some rather interesting questions about human beings,
and in particular psychopaths, who almost come through in the
literature as if they are a species apart from ‘normal’ Homo sapiens.
The other main focus of Adam’s scholarly activity has been the
development and delivery of the English module on the Access
to HE Diploma (Education) course between September 2018 and
June 2019. This unit constituted a third of the Education pathway,
and Adam only received confirmation that he was to deliver the
English units two weeks before the course start date. Luckily, he
had considerable prior knowledge of large parts of the syllabus.
However, this was still proved to be a rather onerous task.
On closer scrutiny, it became apparent that the module wasn’t just
‘English’. Linguistics, developmental psychology and phonology
played a major part in the make-up of the module, along with the
study of English language AND literature. As the Access Education
course did not run in the preceding academic year, pre-existing
resources were scant (and where they did exist, they seemed
inadequate). Therefore Adam was compelled to write the course
content, resources and assignments as he went along. However, he
managed to successfully keep his planning and resources ahead of
the syllabus throughout the academic year. Having now delivered
all five units, and having received feedback from this year’s
students, he is now in a good position to deliver the same module
in the next academic year.
Joanne Ivers (Course Tutor, Access Business & Management), has
been conducting scholarly activity based on Curriculum Design
within her teaching on the Access to HE Diploma (Business and
Management) Programme. Having taught the Access Business
module for the past four years, Joanne decided that the time
was right to restructure the assessment strategy for the Business
module. Previously, as is the case for all other Access course
modules, the five units that made up the module had been assessed
through the use of five separate assignments. However, it became
clear that the Business module included a number of units where
there was the potential to link together assessment criteria from
multiple units. With this in mind, Joanne began to investigate how
this could be addressed using a new approach that would allow the
learners to gain additional transferable skills alongside the stated
unit outcomes.
Joanne used her own knowledge and experience of starting up
her own business, “House of Colour”, through a franchise model

41

Access to HE Diploma team

to devise a more holistic approach to assessing the Business module.
To achieve this, Joanne fused the assessment criteria from three of
the five units in the Business module (Business Ideas and Start Ups,
Introduction to Marketing, Business Financial Planning) into a single
themed approach. This allowed the design of an assignment that asked
the students to produce a Business Plan based on their own business
idea.
This was the starting point for the project, and the three units in
question were covered from January through to the end of May. To
meet all the stated criteria from the three units, the students had
to produce a real-life Business Plan detailing their own business
idea, supported by the learners’ own exploratory Market Research
on their idea. The various tasks set within the assignment included
the production of a Market Research Report and a Marketing Plan,
together with the utilisation of their own financial data to produce a
Break Even Chart and Cash Flow Forecast.
In keeping with the requirements of the awarding body (Open
Awards), separate assignment briefs were still required for each of the
three units, and details had to be provided as to where the various
assessment criteria would be addressed. To support this, an additional
mapping document was constructed to provide clear evidence that all
assessment criteria had been addressed within the holistic approach.
The learners were provided with copies of each assignment, the
mapping document, and an assessment calendar detailing which
sections of the Business Plan were to be handed in at different times
during the course.
The learners enjoyed the idea of setting up their own business and
came up with a number of interesting business ideas, including:
• Aesthetic Cakes (subscription business model – cake making
and delivery service),
• Sustainable Supplies (on-line distributor of environmentally
friendly office supplies),
• East to West (an on-line, bespoke manufacturer of clothing
fusion the traditions of Eastern and Western cultures)
• Swansea Fish Restaurant (a new concept of having live fish
which you choose to eat).
The overall assessment strategy for all our Access to HE Diplomas
includes the completion of several, ungraded developmental and
study skills units. Our goal is always to fully embed these units within
the assignments that the learners complete for their academic units.
The market research element of the assignment provided evidence
for the “Using Research Skills” unit based on the market research
they undertook relating to their own business idea. The information
gathered helped the learners to complete their Business Plan with
greater accuracy, to produce a Marketing plan which had clear aims
and objectives, and to produce a realistic break even analysis and cash
flow forecast.
This holistic approach had to be carefully structured and deadlines
needed to be met before moving onto the next task. Attendance was
42

key to keeping the learners on task, and to maintain interest and
motivation in their Business Plan. The learners lived and breathed
their business idea for 5 months. Those that have completed this
journey have agreed that they gained a great deal of insight as to
how to start up a new business and the importance of producing a
realistic business plan. The students also reported that carrying out
the market research was the most challenging part of their project,
however they valued the journey, and recognised how useful the
information they gained was in terms of the rest of their Business
Plan.
On reflection, Joanne reports that she enjoyed the delivery of
the themed approach, and felt that the learner experience was a
positive one, allowing students to gain practical skills instead of
purely addressing a given set of assessment criteria. One learner
intends to pursue her new business idea as a way of supporting her
through her university studies (Aesthetic Cakes). This approach
does require very good attendance, dedication and motivation.
Going forward, Joanne intends to award a prize for the best
Business Start–up, and to recruit real-life business people to judge
their business idea and supporting business plan. You never know,
the learners could be on to a winner!
One of the strengths of Access to HE Diplomas is the ability
of tutors within different colleges to adapt the mould their
teaching and assessment strategies to meet the needs of their own
groups of learners and develop their own skills, knowledge and
understanding as they gain experience. Unlike most courses at
level 3, the only “syllabus” provided to Access tutors is the list of
assessment criteria for each unit. How that material is taught, and
assessed, is at the discretion of the tutors themselves. The Access
awarding body, Open Awards, have always been very receptive to
input on unit content and design from the tutors at their partner
colleges. Our approach to scholarly activity has been to collaborate
as fully as possible within this process, allowing both the course
content and the tutor skills to evolve as time progresses. As an
Access to HE course team, we look forward to continuing this
approach in the years to come.

References:
House of Colour (2019). Information available at: https://www.
houseofcolour.co.uk/ (Accessed 28th May 2019)
Open Awards (2019) Blended Learning Packages. Available
at: https://openawards.org.uk/access-to-he/blended-learning-
packages/ [Accessed 28th May 2019]
Open Awards (2019) Access to HE Unit Reviews. Available at:
http://openawards.org.uk/access-to-he/access-to-he-unit-reviews/
[Accessed 28th May 2019]
Stone, A.E. (2018) Offender Profiling unit. Available at https://
openawards.org.uk/what-we-offer/access-to-he-search/access-to-
he-unit-detail/?id=1388018 [Accessed 28th May 2019]

43

Senior LecJtaucrkeireiBnrEaiatrhlwy aYietea:rs Practice

Peers on film: telling academic
stories through video to
generate motivation and
encourage a growth mindset.
-

Abstract
This action research project had two purposes. Firstly, to explore
whether a short video of completing Foundation Degree students
sharing their personal, professional and academic stories could help
to motivate and ease anxieties of new students embarking on their
Foundation Degrees and also for those making the transition to Level
5. Its second purpose was to explore whether the video could act as
an example of a community of practice which may also contribute to
motivation levels.
During Welcome Day, the film was shown to 38 new students about
to embark on Level 4 studies, and 28 students who were making the
transition to Level 5. After watching the video, the students were
invited to complete an online questionnaire to find out what their
concerns were starting their academic year and whether the video had
helped to alleviate them. The results showed that the filmed stories
demonstrated aspiration and personal and academic endeavour
which students at both Level 4 and Level 5 found motivating. It also
demonstrated that being part of a solid peer support network, within a
community of practice, plays an important role in achieving academic
success.
Introduction
For Foundation Degree (FD) students, the induction programme is
limited to one day, referred to as Welcome Day. Students assimilate
a range of teacher-centred methods of communicating information
including timetables, calendars and how to create usernames and
passwords, whilst engaging in ice breaker activities intended to
ease the new situation. Whilst important, it ‘can create an overload
of information’ (Yorke and Thomas, 2003; Crosling, 2003 cited in
Crosling, Heagney, & Thomas, et al., 2009, p. 12). However, a more
collaborative activity takes place for new Level 4 students entitled
“Hopes, Fears and Offers” where students consider and share what
they hope to gain from the course, what they fear about starting
the course and what they can offer to the course. Over the years,
the results of this activity have shown a range of similar hopes and
fears, usually with more fears identified than offers. Although much
attention is paid to the fears to help alleviate anxiety on the day, it is
equally important to discuss ‘hopes’ with students, as hope helps to
develop a positive self-concept and ‘gradually form personal career
goals, goal achievement skills and belief in achieving the goal’ (Jiang,
Tu & Fan, 2016 cited in Lou, Yang, Gong & Lu, 2019, p. 1). Therefore,

44

identifying with the student what they can offer the course helps to
develop self-esteem and self-belief and a growth learner mindset
from the start. This is important because ‘a growth learner mindset
facilitates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for
success’ (Braithwaite & Hirst, 2018, p.20).
Rationale
The rationale for the study was to find a way to help alleviate
the fears students begin the course with and to foster hope and
aspirations to generate a ‘can-do’ approach from the start of their
level of study. Motivation is key to successful learning (Armitage
et al., 2007) and it was the intention for the video to be shown as a
tool to help foster this. It was hoped that the stories of peers who
had been successful in achieving their Foundation Degree would
help to motivate the new Level 4 and continuing Level 5 students.
Returning Early Years Practice (EYP) students and the Children
and Young People (CYP) FD students found themselves in a new
position. At Level 4, they had learned as two groups within smaller
class sizes. At Level 5, these groups had been merged to create one
group, therefore disrupting established learning communities. This
was a situation which needed to be considered for the purpose of
keeping a positive learner mindset.
Additionally, there is the more recent recognition that induction
strategies should take a more student-centred approach to ‘enable
students to learn about and understand the expectations and
culture of higher education’ (Yorke & Thomas 20013; Crosling,
2003 cited in Crosling, Heagney & Thomas, 2009, p.12), therefore
the video alongside the Hopes, Fears and Offers activity would
create a varied diet of induction activities, which as Brophy (2010)
suggests, enhances interest and adds value for students.
Study aims:
1. To explore if the video could help to ease anxiety and help
to motivate new students and those making the transition to Level
5 by listening to completing Foundation Degree students sharing
their personal, professional and academic stories.
2. To explore if the video could provide an example of a
community of learners and demonstrate the importance of being a
community member to the success of the students.
Literature Review
The literature review discusses first day nerves, the importance of
motivation for successful learning and learning in a community of
practice.
Beginning the course
Smale and Fowlie (2011, p. 10) cited in Braithwaite and Hirst
(2018, p. 14) describe starting university as a form of ‘culture
shock’ and state that ‘it is generally true to say that the greater
the difference between where you came from and where you are
now, the more likely you are to feel the effects of culture shock.

45

Senior LecJtaucrkeireiBnrEaiatrhlwy aYietea:rs Practice

Similarly, Askham (2008) cited in Postareff, Mattsson, Lindblom-
Ylanne & Hailikari (2017, p. 442) describes the university context
as ‘alien environment’ and that its new demands can create pressure
and ‘arouse a variety of emotions. This is turn could have an effect on
learning processes, identity development and well-being.’ Although
students attending Stockport College do not have the added anxiety
of moving home, the same notions can be applied to how they feel
when beginning the course, particularly at Level 4. As noted in
Braithwaite and Hirst, (2018, p. 15) ‘students can and do reflect upon
their previous learning experiences and will bring notions of success
and failure to university study… This relates to Bourdieu’s notion
of habitus which is an unconscious identity, borne out of personal
experiences.’ Additionally, it is highlighted that insecurities about
academic success are not limited to Level 4, they can re-emerge at
Levels 5 and 6.
Motivation
Motivation is a key factor in learning and it is a concern of both
student and tutor of how to ‘arouse and maintain that desire’
(Armitage et al., 2007 p.65). A powerful motivation tool suggested by
Brophy (2010, p.23) is the tutor’s personality and everyday classroom
behaviour. ‘Students’ motivation to learn and sense of belonging in
the classroom tend to be high when students perceive their teachers as
involved with them…but students become disaffected when they do
not perceive such involvement’ (Brophy, 2010). Therefore, establishing
a learning community in the classroom, by tutors getting to know and
enjoying their students and helping students getting to know their
tutor (in general terms as getting to know each other), is important.
In Maslow’s hierarchy of Needs, the five levels represent different
levels of motivation with the highest level labelled self-actualisation
and the lowest labelled physiological needs (Gravells, 2008). Gravells
suggests that the learning environment should be created to meet the
basic level of needs and education be delivered to provide growth
for learners to move through the other levels; the need to feel safe
and secure, develop self-esteem through growth in confidence and
autonomy and to reach the final stage of self-actualisation; the desire
to reach ones full potential (Gravells, 2008). Furthermore, Fowler and
Mayes (2019, p. 9) attest that ‘issues of education should be addressed
first and foremost in terms of identities and modes of belonging, and
only secondarily in terms of skills and information.’ They suggest that
students need a rich social context in which to learn, highlighting that
‘people are not motivated to learn per se, but are motivated to join a
community of practice’ where there is a ‘sustained mutual engagement
on an appropriate enterprise’ (Cox, 2005, p. 11).
Community of Practice
Firstly, it is important to consider what a community is. Smith
(2001) cited in Braithwaite and Hirst (2018) proposes three different
ways that a community can be described: as a place, an interest
and a communion. In terms of the students in this study, ‘place’
is the University Centre which they attend one day a week and
share common spaces such as the classroom, computers, eating
46

and drinking spaces and the library. ‘Interest’ is concerned with
shared characteristics, for example studying on the Foundation
Degree and balancing a work schedule and family life alongside HE
study. ‘Communion’ is the spirit of the community which includes
supporting, sharing and motivation.
Wenger, McDermott and Snyder (2002, p. 4) describe Communities of
Practice as ‘groups of people who share a concern, a set of problems,
or a passion about a topic, and who deepen their knowledge and
expertise in this area by interacting on an ongoing basis’. In the
context of this study, the groups of people are the CYP and EYP
Foundation Degree students and when these students spend time
together, they then
typically share information, insight, and advice. They help each
other solve problems. They discuss their situations, their aspirations,
and their needs. They ponder common issues, explore ideas and act
as sounding boards… However they accumulate knowledge, they
become informally bound by the value that they find in learning
together… They also develop personal relationships and established
ways of interacting. They may even develop a common sense of
identity. They become a community of practice. (Wenger et al., 2002,
pp.4,5)
Lave and Wenger (1991) describe established community members
as ‘old timers’ and those on the periphery of a community of practice
as ‘newcomers’. Newcomers are on the periphery of a community of
practice and to move beyond that, newcomers need to understand
something about the old timers. For instance, who they are, what
they do, what they enjoy and dislike, how they collude and collide
with each other and, through example, what the finished product of a
community of practice looks like. Fowler and Mayes (1999, p. 9) draw
upon Wenger’s ideas and identify three stages of ‘coming to belong
to a community of practice’ as Imagination: through orientation and
exploration, we identify with a community of practice; Engagement:
through participating in a community we value, we come to belong to
that community; and Alignment: we connect to a new framework of
convergence.
Community of practice for participants
In the context of this study all the new Level 4 students on Welcome
Day are on the periphery of a developing their own community of
practice. Therefore, it may be useful, and perhaps motivating, if they
first identify the benefits of belonging to a community of practice by
introducing them to the idea that engagement, belonging, connection
and convergence into a community results in a supportive and
motivating learning environment.
Within this study, the Early Years Practice (EYP) students and the
Children and Young People (CYP) students making the transition
to Level 5 have already developed their own separate communities
of practice. Therefore, it is of particular importance that the Level
5 students, are motivated and keen to develop a new, converged
community of practice. However, it is questionable whether one
converged community of practice can be successful or perhaps even
necessary, as a loss of identity as an EYP student or CYP student

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would be forfeited to simply becoming a Level 5 student. Therefore,
the intention of the video for these students is to generate motivation
during times of community disruption which would be occurring
alongside possible insecurities of making the transition to Level 5.
Methodology
Action research, positioned within an interpretivist paradigm, was
adopted for this research project. Action research is described by
Sharp (2010) as generating knowledge-for-action and is often used
by educators to find out solutions to problems or to address a specific
issue. As Tekin and Kotaman (2013, p. 81) highlight, action research
is flexible, participatory, and situation-based with an intention to
improve practice ‘based on real learning contexts and experiences’.
It involves the crucial process of planning; taking action, observing
and evaluating the effects (Taylor, Wilkie & Baser, 2006). Therefore,
as noted by Sharp (2010, p.56) it ‘is highly contextualised within the
world of work and undertaken with the benefit of insider knowledge
and an acute awareness of what matters most.’
Using video
In today’s society people are used to, interested in, and possibly
excited by acting as observers of other people’s lives, whether watching
YouTube, reality TV or engaging in social media. In 2009 Burgess and
Green reported that as of April 2008, You Tube hosted upwards of 85
million videos, showing an increase tenfold from the previous year.
In 2018, Burgess and Green reported that by 2013 one hundred hours
of video were uploaded every minute and by 2017 one billion viewers
watch one billion hours of content a day. This shows that people are
acting as both consumers and producers of media content (Hartley,
2009). Furthermore, Hartley believes interest is highest of material
made by peers. According to Lange (2007, n.p) cited in Burgess and
Green (2009, p.80)

….many video bloggers argue that it is precisely by putting these
intimate moments on the Internet for all to see that a space is created
to expose and discuss difficulty issues and thereby achieve greater
understanding of oneself and others.
In addition to interest, video is a useful medium in qualitative
research. As Haw and Hadfield (2011, p. 2) advocate, discourses of
video in research ‘position [it] either purely as a data collection tool or
a methodological novelty capable of serving almost any purpose; the
Swiss Army knife of qualitative research.’ They identify five modalities
to represent specific uses:
1. Extraction: using video to record a specific interaction so that
it can be studied in more depth by the researcher
2. Reflection: using video to support participants to reflect upon
their actions, understanding and constructions
3. Projection and Provocations: using video to provoke
participants to critically examine existing norms, traditions and power
structures
4. Participation: using video to engage participants in a research
project in ways that allow them to shape its focus and outcomes
5. Articulation: using video to help participants voice their
opinions
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Participants – the filmed students
In total, 7 students volunteered as video participants. 6 female EYP
students were filmed in pairs and 1 male CYP student was filmed by
himself. The EYP students worked in a range of settings, for example
a reception class, nurseries, and one student worked as a nanny. The
CYP student worked in a secondary school.
Participants - the audience
All 66 Foundation Degree EYP and CYP Level 4 and Level 5 who
attended Welcome Day.
Structured Interview
It was agreed with the students that the filmed interview would be a
structured one, also known as a ‘standardised interview’. Therefore,
all the students were asked the same question in ‘a consistent manner’
(Gabi & Gabi, 2018, p. 44). The participants were given the questions
prior to the interview to help them feel prepared for filming. However,
no indication of desired responses was proposed so as not to prejudice
the answers.
Interview questions:
1. What did you want to achieve when you first started your
Foundation Degree?
2 How has your practice been affected?
3 Please explain the skills and attributes you have gained over
the past 2 years
4 Have you had any adverse times?
5 What have been your best moments?
6 Have you any advice for new students?
7 Did your course go quickly?
8 What do you plan to do next?
Questionnaires for Level 4 and Level 5 students
Questionnaires were selected because of their versatility. As Sharp
(2010) notes, they can be used to collect information from small or
large numbers of participants to explore views, perceptions, attitudes
and preferences. A range of question types were utilised: Likert-
Scale responses and dichotomous questions, alongside open-ended
questions to generate some qualitative data. Once constructed,
the questionnaire was uploaded to the College VLE with a brief
explanation of the aim of the research. The intention was for the
students to complete the questionnaires whilst still in College to
endeavour to gain as many responses as possible.
Ethical Considerations
Roberts-Holmes (2005) highlights that a researcher does not have
the right to carry out their research and should seek permission from
participants at an early stage. Similarly, Taylor, Wilkie and Baser
(2006) point out that regardless of which data collection tools are
used, ethical guidelines must be followed. Permission from the filmed
participants was gained and assurance given verbally and in writing,
that they had the right to withdraw during filming. The on-line

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Senior LecJtaucrkeireiBnrEaiatrhlwy aYietea:rs Practice

questionnaires were designed to be anonymous and this was explained
on the questionnaire.
Results
Both methods produced an abundance of qualitative data which was
rich and valuable whilst also providing statistical data which helped
to compare the responses. Two Welcome Days took place to induct all
the students at Level 4 and Level 5. 66 students attended and watched
the video. Students were invited to complete the questionnaires on
Skoodle following the viewing. However, on the first Welcome Day, a
technical issue arose with the survey which resulted in relying on 15
students to complete the questionnaires out of College. This may have
affected the lowered response rate of 50 from a possible 66. Table 1.
identifies the response rates from each group of students.

The answers from the questionnaires were systematically analysed
and a relationship with the narratives in the video was sought
and identified. Patterns emerged and developed into key themes:
time management, academic success/self-efficacy, confidence and
friendships and building relationships.
Questions
1. On a scale of 1 (no effect at all) to 5, how anxious do you feel about
starting your course?
2. Please describe your main concerns
3. Did the film clips address any of these concerns?
4. Overall, did the film help to motivate you as you embark on your
studies?
5. What did you feel was the most helpful part of the film?
6. Which statement do you agree with the most: The filmed helped to
motivate me, the film was inspiring, I was interested in what my peers
had to say.
7. Describe any information you would have liked the students to have
discussed which was not in the film
8. Finally, if you could give the film a review title, what would it be?
For Level 4 students only: Please describe your main concerns of
starting level 4
Q1. On a scale of 1 (no effect at all) to 5, how anxious do you feel
about starting your course?

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