Case Study 1: Knowing and responding to students’ diverse needs
Contextual background
I predominantly work with students in their final term and graduates up to five years out of education on a one-to-one basis online. My team is based centrally, so I see grads from any college and discipline. This means the industries, caring responsibilities, finances etc., of the individuals accessing the service differs greatly.
Evaluation
- Booking a one-to-one
-Currently, students and graduates can book appointments up to one hour before the one-to-one is due to start. To book a one-to-one, they must use Eventbrite to complete a form to provide necessary context before their appointment, it details information such as their college, query, additional needs etc.
- Length of appointment
Appointments are 20 minutes long, with a 10-minute buffer to allow for technical issues, complex queries etc.
- Demand for appointments
One-to-ones are in high demand. We aim to minimise no-shows by sending reminders and letting students and graduates know the impact missing appointments has on the service.
- Other areas of support
We are often the only remaining point of contact graduates have with the university. Therefore, we must be aware of diverse external organisations that we can signpost graduates to for support if needed, e.g., mental health services, financial advice, disability support etc.
Moving Forwards
- Booking a one-to-one
We have decided to trial moving the one-to-one cut off from one hour to three hours prior to the appointment. This change will allow more time to prepare for the session. I will now have more time to review the completed form, so will have the capacity to find helpful resources they could use before, during or after the session.
- Length of appointment
I recently observed a colleague who sends across any relevant resources ahead of the session once they have read the graduates booking form. I will begin to implement this too, as I noticed how much time it saved and how, in some cases, the graduates had looked at the resource ahead of time, allowing them to ask more in-depth questions. It also gives those with poor internet connection or additional needs more time to access and sit with the material.
- Demand for appointments
I would like to trial running small group sessions as well as one-to-ones. The aim of these sessions will be to allow open, respectful discussion centred around one or two grad’s document(s) with others present. Treating what they have brought to be reviewed more as an object (Willcocks & Mahon, 2023). This approach will hopefully enable us to see more graduates at once and perhaps become something in between a one-to-one and a crit. It will be interesting to see the levels of engagement from those not having documents reviewed. They may unintentionally become observers, which could change the space completely (Bennet & Barp, 2008).
- Other areas of support
I have begun discussions with my manager about training to be a Mental Health First Aider. This will better equip me to address any graduates wellbeing concerns.
I recently identified that several graduates were experiencing financial issues. This topic was not addressed in our wellbeing document. Therefore, I have collated a collection of organisations that can support them in this area and will add it to the document once the organisations have been approved.
I believe implementing the above will help me better address diverse needs.
Word count 510
References
Bennet, J., & Barp, D. (2008). Peer observation online
Willcocks, J., & Mahon, K. (2023). “The potential of online object-based learning activities to support the teaching of intersectional environmentalism in art and design higher education.”
Case Study 2: Planning and teaching for effective learning
Contextual Background
Recent graduates, students and alumni, can attend the same workshop. This means that although they are all in the same space, they can be at vastly different stages of their career journey. Often careers services can have a reputation of being out of touch and not personalised. Therefore, I know that each interaction with students and graduates’ counts, as it is important to encourage them to return by meeting their needs.
Evaluation
Last term I trialled running CV sessions that were part of a series that increased in complexity as the term moved forward. It was my own mini version of the spiral learning approach (Emerson & Williams, 2012).
Attendees
It worked well in theory, each of the sessions had a good number of sign ups and strong engagement from the audience. They were asking questions, staying until the end, and participating in polls. However, when reviewing the data, it became clear that only a handful of people were able to attend or view the recordings of the sessions (the last one was not recorded, due to confidentiality). Therefore, most of the attendees were still experiencing the workshops as standalone sessions. These are beneficial, but was not the purpose of the series.
Approach
I ran three sessions in total, with a new one taking place every three weeks. I chose the topics based on trends I had identified in one-to-ones, from email support and spoke with the wider team to understand their experiences. I then wrote various learning objectives that were used as a way to make clear distinctions between the sessions, despite them all having the same subject matter.
Timings
The sessions were designed to go up in length of time as the complexity of the subject increased, so ranged from 30 minutes to an hour.
Moving Forwards
Attendees
Firstly, I recognise that competing external demands will mean that it will be rare that students and graduates are able to attend a full series, watch a recording or engage with the follow up resources (Biggs, 1999). Therefore, I need to aim to speak to as many people in the room as possible.
Approach
I would like to do another iteration of the spiral learning approach (Emerson & Williams, 2012). However, it is necessary to acknowledge some adjustments in delivery and expectation need to be made. Therefore, I can aim to incorporate different activities into each session that allow those at different stages to engage with the material most relevant to them.
Having this broader approach will likely mean that it will be necessary to narrow the topic somewhat. E.g. rather than a session around Creative CVs it can be more targeted, so something like Creative CVs for screen industries etc.
Timings
Every session, except for the hour-long one, ran over due to questions. I think it is important to acknowledge that just because a topic is introducing a simpler version of a concept it does not mean that it takes less time to resonate. Therefore, each session should be the same length of time.
I believe experimenting with these changes in the future will improve the workshop delivery going forward.
Word count: 523
References
Biggs, J. (1999) ‘What the student does: Teaching for enhanced learning’, Higher Education Research & Development, 18(1), pp. 57–75. doi:10.1080/0729436990180105.
Emerson, A. and Williams, G.J. (2012) ‘An innovative approach to encouraging spiral learning for third–year undergraduates’, Psychology Teaching Review, 18(2), pp. 126–133. doi:10.53841/bpsptr.2012.18.2.126.
Case Study 3: Assessing learning and exchanging feedback
Contextual Background
The majority of my teaching happens in an online one-to-one environment. Therefore, I can usually assess quickly if the student has been receptive to something or does not look as if they had grasped it. I can then directly ask them if they need me to rephrase something, repeat something or completely change my method from oral delivery to increasing my use of visual aids etc.
However, at points in the year lecturers will invite me to speak with their final years in-person. This atmosphere is completely different, and I have had found I need to experiment with what works best.
Evaluation
Timing and Environment
There is usually only time in the term to allow me to speak in their final weeks and my team only begin working with students in their final term. This means there have been times where I was invited to their last ever lesson together. They are excited, nostalgic and or distracted. They, understandably, want to spend time speaking with their classmates and lecturers. As opposed to sitting silently for a talk by someone completely new to them.
Preparation
To prepare for these sessions I would ordinarily utilise the information I have gathered from the current graduates to inform what topics I would go over with them. E.g. recent interview questions relevant to their industry, cover letter mistakes etc. I would then ask them to complete an activity. However, students do not always make the connection between themselves and the cohort above, so sometimes cannot fully engage with the task.
Moving Forwards
Preparation
Last year, I began asking their lecturers a few weeks in advance if they had noticed any concerns or themes recurring with their students. Then I could tailor elements of the slides to their specific students. Rather than using the knowledge I have gained from recent grads. Most recently a lecturer sent me a Padlet, which featured the class’s concerns in their own words. This allowed me to get a great sense of the students. Moving forwards, I will send a Padlet to lecturers, allowing students to populate it with their concerns, so I can see what areas they would like me to focus on.
Environment and Timing
I want to embrace the tone that is already established in the classroom, rather than trying to set it when I arrive. I have begun to design the talks to feature anonymised case studies that reflect what the graduates’ concerns are. This allows them to work together during the session, so they can speak with their friends freely discussing the case studies (mostly), while also learning something new and helping one another.
Understanding feedback
This aspect of the unit has allowed me to engage with materials (Nicol & Macfarlane‐Dick, 2006) and reflect on my practice in a way that has led to reframing my understanding of feedback. Previously, I considered feedback to take place after a session, once I have put a poll in the chat, or via a feedback form (that most of them would not answer). However, this unit has allowed me to grasp that I am constantly receiving feedback and have the capability to react to it in real time to adapt to the needs of the students in real time.
Word count: 542
Reference
Nicol, D.J. and Macfarlane‐Dick, D. (2006a) ‘Formative assessment and self‐regulated learning: A model and seven principles of good feedback practice’, Studies in Higher Education, 31(2), pp. 199–218. doi:10.1080/03075070600572090.