Hi Heather and Sylvia,
I am back at work part-time and most every day now so I should be able to keep up. I agree that creating an account, as long as it is quick and simple, should not be a deterrent to using the site. Being able to view a front page that gives a brief overview of what it is about before you are asked to create an account would be good.
I take it that with the account, people can ask to be notified about site news or subscribe to notice of new content.
Gary
Gary Hunt
Posts made by Gary Hunt
Thank you very much everyone! Once I get this semester finished, I will post some follow-up comments. In particular, I will keep you informed on the progress of developing a survey--something that a number of you thought was a useful next step in the process.
Please don't hesitate to contact Vivian, Sylvia, or me if you hear of other activities occurring that relate to this initiative.
Regards,
Gary
Please don't hesitate to contact Vivian, Sylvia, or me if you hear of other activities occurring that relate to this initiative.
Regards,
Gary
I would like to extend a very big thank you to everyone who participated. There is a wealth of interesting and valuable ideas here that will help guide us in determining how this initiative will proceed.
There was clear support for the idea that a national system could elevate the value of training and certification and bring more professional recognition to our practice. There was repeated mention of the need for a flexible framework of expectations that can be adapted to the context of institutions, programmes, and faculty needs.
How to go about developing the structure of a national system is an extremely challenging proposition. Our comments clearly indicated that we need to consult broadly with wide-ranging stakeholders. Perhaps a survey or series of surveys could meet this requirement. There was mention that the organizational effort could begin at the national level through the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. There was also the suggestion that we need to start at the provincial level, either at the political level of Ministers of Education or provincial teaching and learning organizations. Perhaps working concurrently at both the national and provincial levels would be appropriate.
Perhaps we can use this last discussion topic to answer the question--What exactly do you think should be done next and how do you suggest we go about doing it?
There was clear support for the idea that a national system could elevate the value of training and certification and bring more professional recognition to our practice. There was repeated mention of the need for a flexible framework of expectations that can be adapted to the context of institutions, programmes, and faculty needs.
How to go about developing the structure of a national system is an extremely challenging proposition. Our comments clearly indicated that we need to consult broadly with wide-ranging stakeholders. Perhaps a survey or series of surveys could meet this requirement. There was mention that the organizational effort could begin at the national level through the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. There was also the suggestion that we need to start at the provincial level, either at the political level of Ministers of Education or provincial teaching and learning organizations. Perhaps working concurrently at both the national and provincial levels would be appropriate.
Perhaps we can use this last discussion topic to answer the question--What exactly do you think should be done next and how do you suggest we go about doing it?
Interesting comments Peter. The benefits that a programme gets from the UDLE's depends on the effort that faculty choose to put into it. For me this raises the issue that if the expectations are so broad and flexible that they can be met with minimal effort and thought, then the goals of OCAV are not really being met. Is there a template for exactly how the programme reviews are structured?
I can certainly see a big value having the expectations prompt reflection on, and development of programme-level outcomes--I think we have a long way to go in BC to get to this point in every institution.
I can certainly see a big value having the expectations prompt reflection on, and development of programme-level outcomes--I think we have a long way to go in BC to get to this point in every institution.
Vivian, Your system of peer review sounds very effective and I think we could certainly adapt it for use here at TRU. We don't have a template such as this so our peer review methods are extremely variable. This is yet another great example of how the UK system permits adaptability to meet the specific needs of teachers. Thank you for sharing!^-)