University Teaching Prizes 2017

Posted on July 24, 2017 by djh65

Once again the University is celebrating excellent teaching and learning support with the announcement of 2017 University Teaching Prizes. The winners are:

Barbara Morris Prize for Learning Support
Johanne Thompson (Kent Law School)
Irena Jennings (Kent Business School)
The Go Abroad Team: Emma Marku, Jan Lowe, Janet Wilson-Sharp; Francoise McKee; Brechje Klok-White; Hazel Lander; Sophie Baker; Sammy-Jo Foster

Humanities Faculty Teaching Prize
Chloe Street Tarbatt (School of Architecture)
Professor Murray Smith (School of Arts)

Sciences Faculty Teaching Prize
Professor Sally Fincher, Dr Colin Johnson, and Ian Utting (School of Computing)
Dr Dan Lloyd, Dr Tobias von der Haar, and Professor Martin Michaelis (School of Biosciences)

Social Sciences Faculty Teaching Prize
Dr Stefan Rossbach (School of Politics and International Relations)
Dr Anna Brown (School of Psychology)

You can find further details of the awards at:

https://www.kent.ac.uk/teaching/reward/index.html

The prizes will be presented by the Vice-Chancellor at a lunchtime ceremony on Wednesday 4 October 2017, from 12.30-14.00 in Darwin Conference Suite.

All colleagues are welcome. Please email cpdbookings@kent.ac.uk if you wish to attend

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Academic Administration Excellence Award Winners

Posted on June 22, 2017 by djh65

Many congratulations to colleagues in UELT who won the Academic Administration Excellence Award for the development and delivery of the University’s first 4 MOOCs with FutureLearn, with over 20K participants world-wide in 2016-17.

 

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The Students’ Guide to Peer Mentoring

Posted on May 18, 2017 by Alison Crump

Louise Frith and Dr Gina May from the Student Learning Advisory Service have written a new book entitled The Students’ Guide to Peer Mentoring. It explains the role peer mentors play in higher education and gives practical advice for mentors on articulating the transferable skills they gain through mentoring.
The book is the culmination of collaborative module on mentoring delivered through the Kent Study Plus programme. You can read more about the contents of the book on the https://he.palgrave.com/page/detail/the-students-guide-to-peer-mentoring-louise-frith/?sf1=barcode&st1=9781137599957
Louise Frith is a Student Learning Advisor at the University of Kent, UK, specialising in academic peer mentoring and academic skills development.
Dr Gina May is a Student Learning Advisor at the University of Kent, UK, with particular interests in online teaching and learning.

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Annual Learning and Teaching Conference – Wednesday 21st June 2017

Posted on May 16, 2017 by djh65

The University of Kent is pleased to announce its annual Learning and Teaching Conference. Organised by the Centre for the Study of Higher Education it will take place on Wednesday 21st June 2017 from 09.00 -18.00 in Eliot College ELT2.

The conference theme is Assessment and Feedback at the Heart of the Student Experience. There will be two keynotes during the day:

  • Sustainable feedback and the development of feedback literacies – Professor David Carless, Associate Dean Learning and Teaching, Faculty of Education, University of Hong Kong.
  • Outcomes from the Assessment and Feedback Audit at the University of Kent – Professor Sue Rigby Deputy Vice Chancellor Student Development, University of Lincoln.

Through a series of presentations, the conference will be an opportunity to hear about innovative assessment and feedback initiatives from across the faculties and wider University departments. The conference will also promote and encourage the development of strategic initiatives focused on learning & teaching across the University.

The event is free and colleagues can register here

For more information, please contact Dr Edd Pitt e.pitt@kent.ac.uk

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Do you want to develop a MOOC? E-Learning Forum (ELF)

Posted on April 28, 2017 by djh65

Following the successful launch of our first courses on FutureLearn funding has now been made available to help develop up to three MOOCs – Massive Open Online Courses – over the next year. We are holding a special elearning forum at UELT on Thursday 18th May, 12.00-1.30pm, UELT Seminar Room to share our experience and reflections on our first courses, and invite proposals for courses to be developed.

At this event we will provide an overview of the project and our work so far with FutureLearn, explain the process for proposing a MOOC, and clarify the commitment expected from any successful proposer. UELT will provide advice and support as required to those wishing to write proposals, which are to be submitted in June. The available funding will cover the costs of media production and teaching assistants, while academic time and expertise will be provided by Schools/Centres and project management by UELT. There is also some limited funding to help Schools/Centres in enabling academic staff to contribute.

If you would like to find out more about this exciting opportunity, or just want to learn more about our MOOCs project, please book your place on the elearning forum by emailing cpdbookings@kent.ac.uk  or contact Dr Mark O’Connor (Distance Learning Technologist),m.a.o’connor@kent.ac.uk

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Medway Post Grad Writing Retreat 2017

Posted on April 26, 2017 by Alison Crump

This year’s post graduate writing retreat organised by SLAS will take place on the 15th and 16th of June at Brenley Farm near Faversham. The aim of the event is to support and motivate Medway-based post graduate students with their dissertations or thesis. The retreat is part funded by the Dean of Medway, Nick Grief who says, “The PG writing retreats are helping to develop a confident PG community and a vibrant PG culture at Medway.”

For further details of the retreat are available at http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/retreat/

To book a place on the retreat follow this link http://store.kent.ac.uk/product-catalogue/uelt/events/medway-postgrad-writing-retreat-2017

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Celebrating students supporting other students – APM Awards ceremony 29th March 2017

Posted on April 5, 2017 by Alison Crump

On 29 March, students from 15 schools involved in the Academic Peer Mentoring (APM) scheme attended an awards ceremony hosted by the Student Learning Advisory Service (SLAS). Mentors and colleagues from participating Schools joined in the celebration of students’ engagement and achievements.
The awards were presented to the mentors by Dr Bob Newport, Emeritus Professor of Materials Physics, who was one of the pioneers and a great advocate of the APM scheme in SPS. Mentors from Architecture, KBS and SSPSSR Medway made presentations and showcased the impact this additional support has had on student achievement. The APM scheme has become an important intervention in the University’s Student Success project.

 

The APM experience shows that mentors benefit greatly from the scheme as they deepen their understanding of the course content as well as enhance their employability skills. 91% of previous Kent peer mentors, who are in touch with the alumni office, are now in graduate jobs, compared to 80.4% for Kent graduates in general.
“The University’s peer mentoring scheme is a fantastic way for students to develop valuable employability skills such as communication, planning and leadership” (Amy Wiggins Medway Careers Adviser)
95% of mentors would recommend the APM scheme to others.
“It is really a rewarding opportunity”
”Among the most full academic experiences”
“One of my students wanted to drop out but she didn’t and said it was down to the academic peer sessions. She wouldn’t have a degree if we’d let her drop out”
“A great experience for mentors and mentees”
If you would like to be involved in the APM scheme, please check your School’s website and/or contact your School as Schools will be shortly recruiting Mentors.
To find out more about mentoring at Kent please visit https://www.kent.ac.uk/learning/school-support/apm.htmlor email slasapm@kent.ac.uk

 

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Learning Teaching Network (LTN) – Team-Based Learning in Practice: Moving from theory to application

Posted on April 5, 2017 by djh65

All staff are invited to attend the LTN event taking place on Thursday 4 May 2017, 10am 1.30pm, Medway Campus, Rochester R2.09.  

Presented by Rebecca McCarter: TBL consultant and L&T Development Officer, University of Bradford and Dr Catherine Robinson: Senior Lecturer in Applied Economics and Business Statistics, KBS this session will present an evaluation of the Faculty of Social Sciences L&T funded project: ‘Developing Team Based Learning in quantitative methods teaching using Interactive devices’.

Team-based learning (TBL) is more than group-work. It is a well-established systematic approach that integrates individual study, immediate feedback and small-group activities to create an engaging learning environment, supported and evaluated by peers. Come along to listen to Dr Catherine Robinson and Rebecca McCarter discussing the project and demonstrating how TBL can help you to: respond to increasing class sizes, address lack of engagement among students and support students in your modules.

  •    Session 1: Experiencing TBL and essential principles

 

  •    Session 2: TBL in practice, including peer evaluation

 

  •    Session 3: Implementing TBL, trouble-shooting practice

This session is aimed at staff interested in engaging students in their learning or who are working to improve rates of retention and progression. All staff are welcome to attend.

To book a place please email cpdbookings@kent.ac.uk

 

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CSHE Seminar: Thursday 2 March 2017, Rachel Forrester-Jones and Sue Casement, University of Kent

Posted on February 28, 2017 by djh65

Thursday 2 March 2017 4.30pm-5.30pm, UELT Seminar Room (Canterbury Campus)
Rachel Forrester-Jones and Sue Casement, University of Kent

Experiences of University life for Students with Asperger’s Syndrome:  A Comparative Study between Spain and England

Research has consistently shown that young people with Asperger Syndrome (AS) are likely to experience increased anxiety during new social situations; yet, studies have been regionally and culturally bound.   This comparative study between Spain and England, which to our knowledge is the first of its kind, explored the experiences of university life for students with Asperger’s Syndrome and revealed experiences which appear to transcend EU borders.  At this seminar, two of the authors will discuss the main research findings.

Please confirm your attendance by emailing cpdbookings@kent.ac.uk

 

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University Teaching Prizes 2017

Posted on January 23, 2017 by djh65

Each year, the University awards a number of prizes to individual staff or teams for outstanding work in teaching and/or learning support. The call for applications for the 2017 prizes is now open. The closing date for applications is Friday 12th May 2017.

Further details and information on how to apply are available at http://www.kent.ac.uk/teaching/reward/index.html [1].

The prizes will be awarded by the Vice-Chancellor at a lunchtime ceremony on Wednesday 4th October 2017, to which all staff are invited. Please email cpdbookings@kent.ac.uk [2] if you would like to attend.

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