Month: March 2010

Students should expect a certain quality of learning

The student experience covers more than the degree that hopefully comes at the end of your time. There’s the power of networking, there’s the entertainment, there are the friendships, there are clubs and societies, there are so many things that makes your time at uni beyond monetary value.

*But*…you do pay for a certain level of teaching and learning. You expect access to the resources you need that make it possible for you to gain a First Class Honours. Even if you don’t get that top grade, you shouldn’t be left thinking it was the institutions fault for not having provided you with all the tools to manage the highest grade possible.

photo by jam343

Most aspects of learning are up to you. It’s not always easy. But teaching needs to be to a high standard and you have to develop learning processes in a way that complement the teaching. That development can only come through effective guidance. That guidance is something you’re paying for too.

You aren’t strictly paying for everything beyond teaching and learning, unless you’re charged for it elsewhere. Don’t be fooled into thinking that you got your money’s worth in ways other than your learning experience. You need to contact your Students’ Union and your uni’s student support service if:

the teaching isn’t up to speed;
you don’t get enough feedback;
the feedback isn’t timely;
you’re not given access to the tools that will further your learning;
the tools are unsatisfactory or outdated;
there’s something lacking that halts your progress;
any circumstance that has a negative impact upon your learning.

None of this means we should adopt an approach where students are seen as ‘consumers’. HE is not a physical product, nor is it a service with a particular end result. You’re paying for something subjective.

However, you should be able to freely pursue their education in the knowledge that the right resources are available to them and that any shortcomings can – and should – be challenged.

Wes Streeting and Graeme Wise of NUS wrote a paper on the values of higher education and I like the way they sum up what’s necessary:

“Students should be able to challenge the quality of the learning environment and the support they are getting, and should also be able to take intellectual risks and sometimes pursue interests at a tangent to the main curriculum. It should be obvious that students can’t really do any of these things unless they have been reasonably diligent, attended most of the classes, done the background reading, and tried to seek out help and advice. It should be equally obvious that to do this, students need access to well-funded and well-managed resources, and the support of expert and helpful teachers. When all these things are happening in concert, the result is higher education imbued with what we might call ‘quality’.”

Are you receiving sufficient ‘quality’?

What students want to know

According to the Sodexo-Times HE University Lifestyle Survey, these are the Top 3 reasons students go to university:

To improve job opportunities (73%)
To improve salary prospects (58%)
To improve knowledge in an area of interest (57%)

And these are the Top 3 things prospective students want to know about a course:

More information about what a course would qualify them to do (47%)
Views of past students of the course (43%)
Number of contact hours with academic staff (42%)

Given this, what if every university prospectus answered these questions based on each degree course:

What could I go on to do with my degree?
What are my future prospects like after completing this course?
How do previous students rate the course? [Include interviews & comments from past students?]
What did those previous students go on to do?
How much time do students get with tutors and how accessible are they outside formal teaching hours?
How many hours are spent per week in formal teaching situations (i.e. lectures/seminars/tutorials)?

Many matters are important when choosing a degree, but these are overwhelmingly big questions according to the survey. I’d say a good, open and honest prospectus would do well to answer the questions set out above as a priority.

That’s just what Paul Marshall, Executive Director of the 1994 Group of universities, said today:

“Providing transparent and accurate information about universities, and the nature of what they offer, should be a priority in delivering excellent student experience. Students need clear and accessible information to enable them to understand the choices available. Prospective students deserve more than glossy advertising prospectuses to inform crucial decisions about which university to attend and which course to study.”

As a student, would you know how your uni would answer the above questions? Were you happy with the information given to you before starting, or would you have preferred greater detail for making a suitable decision?

photo by ChiBart

Further resources on the survey:

Access the full University Lifestyle Survey [PDF 2Mb]
Major facts & statistics are mentioned in this Sodexo press release [PDF 66Kb]

Least Visited Posts & Why They Matter

There are nearly 400 posts here on TheUniversityBlog. They get a varied amount of attention, from tens of thousands of visits to just a few hundred.

I’ve already mentioned the most visited posts here, but what about the less fortunate articles?

Here are 6 posts looking for a little bit of love. They may currently be neglected, but please give them consideration. Why? Because…:

Kill Conflict Dead

Because… In an increasingly ‘instant’ world, we regularly act before thinking. Please, let’s think before acting.

Why even your independence goes through a dependent phase

Because… You believe everything you read. Once you accept this natural behaviour, it’s easier to move on and develop your critical thinking, which is so important for effective study.

Don’t let minor issues slow you down

Because… The world doesn’t change in a flash, but your thoughts can. Are you willing to spoil your day by giving the trivial importance?

Be inspired, no matter what the situation

Because… You should “Enquire Within Upon Everything”.

Thinking traps and trapped thinking

Because… Flaws need to be recognised before you can do anything about them.

Controlling ‘valid disruptions’

Because… Disruptions aren’t always unwelcome, even if they are disruptive. You just need to be able to self-regulate and limit the extent to which you’re distracted.

Image credit: original by artwork_rebel (cc)

Print Versus Screen: Information Pros and Cons

The way we read has changed dramatically in recent years.

Reading text off a screen – whether for cost, convenience, online content, collaborative reasons, or otherwise – is normal. We read from computer monitors, handheld devices, TV screens, you name it. What used to be in a textbook or magazine is now held on a PDF, through an online subscription, or from an RSS feed.

The change in format brings with it a change in reading methods.

You may not realise it, but what you see on screen can be altered in so many ways. For example, Twitter users don’t have to read user updates via the site. They can read from a standalone software client, such as TweetDeck. They can use an alternative website, such as Brizzly. The relationship with the text changes each time. The question is, how much can the relationship change?

Whether it’s 140 characters of text or an entire ebook, you don’t know how others are consuming information compared to you. What you see is what you get.

But what do you see? How are you getting it?

With books, you had less choice. Yes, there are hardback and paperback versions. Yes, the layout of a new edition of a textbook can radically change. Yes, a scribbled-in-the-margin copy of a book can suddenly look very different to a brand new copy of the same book. But most of the time your view on paper isn’t going to be radically different to another person’s view. What you make of the text, of course, is a different matter.

Moving to the screen, it’s impossible to tell all the different ways a text can be consumed. Even a relatively standard PDF of a book can be resized, reshaped, and made to scroll in different ways. The customisable nature of the texts should help you concentrate on the writing itself, but I’m sure it doesn’t work as simply as that.

There’s no right and wrong, but there are advantages and disadvantages to whatever method of reading you employ. Here are some:

SCREEN ADVANTAGES

Easy to annotate.
Customisable.
Cuttings, screenshots and quotations are easily taken.
Can be read in many different setups. Even printed out on paper, if you must.
Even non-customisable text can be customised for easier reading with the right tools.
Often have access to links and further discussion.
Can easily look up terms and definitions with a quick copy and paste.

SCREEN DISADVANTAGES

Not reading in isolation. Disturbances away from text and other on-screen interruptions.
You’re more likely to scan the information, rather than fully immerse yourself in important detail.
Suits most in small doses and quick hits. On screen reading doesn’t work for many as an extended exercise.
Not portable…unless you have an ebook reader and compatible file.
We’ve become used to reaching for the keyboard and Google for finding something out. The Web is our dictionary, thesaurus, encyclopedia, textbook, and more. Yet the answer may be in a reference book right next to you…

PRINT ADVANTAGES

In print, we’re naturally faster readers. Reading from a monitor slows reading speed down. [Could we end up evolving as electronic text becomes the norm…?]
Much easier to focus on a physical text. No *direct* distractions.
Portable. Sometimes heavy, but still portable!
Easy to flick through and scan.
Quick access to contents, index, glossary, and any important pages.
Physical bookmarks stand out and take you straight there.

PRINT DISADVANTAGES

Not easy to search.
More difficult to make notes. Either deface a book, make a formal note (when it isn’t always convenient), or buy expensive post-its/bookmark tabs.

We can’t live without physical books OR electronic text. Both are required for effective study. The same can be said for our own writing. Do you take electronic notes, or use good old handwriting? As HackCollege explains, there are pros and cons to both methods.

But are we beginning to treat books with less importance? Once you get used to so much online reading, returning to a book can be a strange experience. You end up reading as if you’re browsing at times. Your eyes wander without focus and you look for the bottom line, that important take home point…even in fiction! Through fear of wasting time, we’re losing touch with the detail.

How do you prefer the written word…virtual or physical?

[Update: On March 21, @jamesclay published a podcast “Do you like books or do you like reading?” which gives more information on the pros and cons of e-readers like Amazon’s Kindle, Sony’s Reader and Apple’s iPad. Well worth a listen.]