Sally Brown

I am participating on Wednesday 25 April in the second in the series of Learning Innovation Network webinars http://www.linireland.com/about.html . See below. I can’t participate live, but have prepared a video presentation which I will be posting on my website after the event.

Topic: An Irish National Student Survey – Do we need one and what questions should we ask?

Date: 4pm Wednesday 25April 2012

For more information and to register: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3378869289

Other speakers include:

Dr Rónán Ó Dubhghaill, Director of Planning and Institutional Research at University College Cork

David Keogan Vice president (Academic and student Affairs) DIT Student Union

Since becoming an independent consultant, I have started thinking a lot about how we effect change in universities. I have written two journal articles on the topic. The first Brown, S. “Bringing about positive change in the higher education student experience:  a case study” published in Quality Assurance in Education Vol 19 No 3 p195-207 has just been chosen as an Outstanding Paper Award Winner at the Literati Network Awards for Excellence 2012.

The second: Brown, S (2012) Managing change in universities: a Sisyphean task? Quality in Higher Education, Vol18 No 1 p139-46 has just been published this month.

To summarise briefly what I propose, I argue that change in higher education institutions doesn’t happen through managerial dictat, but through painstaking, evidence-based, long-term work, where managers strive to bring colleagues with them in a collegiate fashion, focusing on the student experience.

Thanks to everyone for contributing usefully to the workshop and one-to-one consultations at Plymouth University today on ‘Enhancing the student experience and improving NSS scores’. Here are the slides we used Plymouth 2012 April (653 downloads) .

Phil and I are travelling today to Plymouth to attend their PedRIO pedagogic research conference, where I am looking forward to hearing Glynis Cousin speak and attending the workshops. After that we are doing workshops for staff there on assessment and enhancing student satisfaction.

Phil and I are home for Easter and hope the weather is as nice as it has been recently. As mentioned in my last post, we are now opening bookings for the Assimilate Masters Level Assessment Conference on  Thursday September 6th. Please see the ttached flyer here. Assimilate Conference Flyer (761 downloads) The one day conference is free but has a maximum of 100 places, so do book soon if you would like to come. As well as presenting the results of our research, there is an international panel and twelve workshops in three parallel strands on innovative approaches to Masters level assessment from UK and international presenters.

We’ve cancelled our trip to Australia due to family illness and so for the next six weeks I am concentrating on my Masters level assessment project Assimilate. We will be sending out the call for bookings shortly for the International Conference at Leeds on Thursday 6th September. We have a superb set of workshops for delegates to attend.

Here are the main slides I used on February 23rd Bucks New (1321 downloads) . It was great to come back to High Wycombe, and see how things have progressed since the time I was a Visiting Professor there, and I even learned a bit about tango.

Here are the slides from the presentations I gave on February 22nd. What a wonderful trip to Ireland! I especially enjoyed the All Stars Wars show at the Waterford Theatre, for which I got the very last ticket.  Inspiring Teaching WIT (768 downloads) , Engagement WIT (625 downloads) , Getting Published WIT (565 downloads) .

Here are the main slides which Phil and I used in our presentation on 17th February, including several of ‘wider reading’. Plymouth NSS (704 downloads)

I was working with an  intersting group of colleagues at Leeds on Monday producing an assessment guide based on the Weston Manor manifesto for the HEA. The publication is due out later this year.  On 13th February I will be at the Assimilate Masters level assessment  steering group in Leeds and I have been busy getting the case studies up to date. Next task is to start writing up my Masters level research into journal articles.