Successful Personal Tutoring Margaret Postance Dr Chris Beaumont Fay Sherringham
Overview of Workshop 2 At the end of the session you will be able to explain The Edge Hill University policy and expectations of the role of Personal Tutor. Characteristics of good Personal Tutors: Managing students expectations Supporting students development needs Recommendations from experienced Personal Tutors Sources of support for staff and students. Student Data Dashboard (IT) Student Services, Careers
3 Why is the Personal Tutor important in HE? Undergraduates have enhanced employability expectations of H.E (Bates & Personal Kaye, 2014a) Tutors were seen as an essential element of academic support, and a clear definition of this role, the allocation of adequate resource (time) to it, Students are more motivated to attend HE for employability-related reasons and appointment of staff with an interest in providing pastoral support were (Kaye & Bates, 2016) regarded as desirable. QAA( Academic 2013) What students tutors think feel of their increased Higher Education pressure to respond to institutional demands relating to students employability support (Bates & Kaye, 2014b)
Exploring your role 4 In your own words and based on your own perception, please write down a) What you believe a personal tutor is and b) What you believe a personal tutor is not. In PAIRS, share your answers, In FOURS arrive at a consensus and put on flipchart
Exploring your role 5 Deborah Chirrey: English Linda Kaye: Psychology Polly Thorpe: Primary and Early Years Education
The Personal Tutor system at EHU 6 The Personal Tutor system is a fundamental element of a network of support services and is underpinned by the following principles: 1. Respect for every student as an active learner and an individual with their own learning needs 2. A shared responsibility for each student s learning, development and achievement 3. Support for the induction of students into the academic community and their transition through academic study 4. Recognition of the importance of equality of opportunity, diversity and inclusion. EHU (2016) The Personal Tutor System at Edge Hill University, https://www.edgehill.ac.uk/clt/files/2012/02/the-personal-tutor-system-at-edge-hill- University.pdf Personal Tutors are central to aspects of academic and pastoral support and guidance
Requirements of PT system 7 a) Clearly defined, for students, in the student programme handbook b) Shared responsibility for the student and personal tutor to proactively engage with the process. c) Personal Tutor will provide general guidance on academic and support issues, and signpost or refer the student to other sources of advice and guidance d) Student will be given the name and contact details of their personal tutor during the initial induction period or within two weeks of enrolment for continuing students e) If the Personal Tutor is absent, departments/ areas will provide alternative points of contact
Requirements of Personal Tutor system 8 e) A minimum of 4 meetings in year 1 with a further two meetings each, in years 2 and 3. It is the student s responsibility to attend and to participate. Written records will be maintained. f) in exceptional circumstances, if either the student or the personal tutor requests a change, the department/ area will have a clear procedure for dealing with this. During the working week, your Personal Tutor will respond to informal emails and telephone enquiries normally within two working days. Each department / area/ Faculty will have a system in place to address urgent issues.
9 Personal Tutor Roles and Responsibilities ROLE Provide academic support for academic development Support student transition Act as a first port of call Point students towards other sources of more specific support Facilitate personal development and achievement Be familiar with the services and processes for student progression Respect the student's right to confidentiality Write references when required RESPONSIBILITY Meet with students within the first two weeks of the programme Provide contact details and availability Outline schedule of formal meetings with students Maintain a record of formal meetings Act as a gateway for referral to other support areas Engage with personal tutor development Monitor student progression particularly around identified transition points
10 What attributes does a Personal Tutor need? Alexis Moore: Professional Education Attitude want to do it Organised making time, Know key resources and contacts Proactive & responsive to individual needs. Listening. Be approachable, put at ease, but as professional critical friend, not parent, teacher Patience Claire Moscrop: Computing
Pastoral Support: How can you best support identified students needs? 11 Student Services: Scenarios - Case studies Students struggling Confidentiality DSA changes
Academic guidance 12 to enable students to make the most of their time at EHU and fully develop their personal capital. Discussion of Academic Progress Assessment Feedback Module Choice Employability PDP : How does this fit in?
13 PDP: Considerations Personal Development Plan (PDP) Personal and professional development activities Employability Development Assignment feedback exercises Links with modular activities Record of Personal Tutor meetings eportfolio (Campus Pack)
14 University Support for Personal Tutors Alexis Moore: Professional Education Time.. Recognition..not bolted on, embedded in curriculum value. Somewhere to go for support: Forum. Staff development sessions, mental health case studies, coaching. Contacts for student support. Integrated IT support (registers etc) More visible info on deadlines. Minimum standards of what students can expect. Deborah Chirrey: English
15 EHU Staff Employability attitudes (2015). 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 88% Careers Centre Who is responsible for delivering employability skills? 59% Centre for Teaching and Learning 55% Students Union 59% Head of Department 69% 69% Programme Leaders Personal Tutors 80% Individual Lecturers 12% Other
Staff and Employability 16 Staff and Employability Confidence but what does it mean for my students?
17 SaPRA Reflect on series of different skills/statements: Identify level of confidence on a scale of 1 to 5 Personal Skills, Identification of Individual. Self awareness Employability Skills: Communication, team working Becka Colley Careers Adviser National Teaching Fellow Digital Skills
18 SaPRA Understand & Identify Intermediate Year 2 / Level 5 Develop & Transfer Apply & Communicate Basic Year 1 / Level 4 Advanced Year 3 / Level 6
19 SaPRA - Aims Develop a better understanding of your skills and abilities Identify your levels of confidence in different skill areas Produce an action plan for areas to focus on Create evidence of where you are skilled Log in using your usual Edge Hill username and password http://ehu.ac.uk/3u7 SaPRA is not a test there are no right or wrong answers
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Reviewing Evidence / Action Planning Think about where you felt confident - what evidence do you have for this? Identify relevant examples and record them in the evidence grid Where did you feel less confident? What can you do to increase your confidence? Complete an action plan identifying the steps you will take Your evidence and action plans can be reused for your PDP and to discuss with your personal tutor. The examples you produce in your evidence can be used in applications.
SaPRA statements 22 Search for SaPRA Resources to help you complete the evidence grid and action plan available.
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24 Follow up to SaPRA Advice to Students: Discuss with Personal Tutor See a Careers Adviser Work through online materials Get involved in activities/experiences
25 Student Preparation Prior to each meeting/tutorial a student must ensure that they prepare and bring:- Assignment feedback and assignments when appropriate. SaPRA results, Reflection, Action plan Professional Practice Observations (where relevant). Professional Practice Final Report Form (where relevant). Any questions/queries regarding their progress.
What would you say are the most important three approaches you use as a Personal Tutor, 26 Polly Thorpe: Primary and Early Years Education Listening Respect for individual- be holistic we are supporting people not just students. Being proactive Giving students rules of engagement they don t understand what the PT is for like a sat-nav Give students ownership Deborah Chirrey: English
27 Review Staff & Student Guides 1. Usefulness 2. Omissions 3. Issues & Concerns 4. Suggestions for improvement
28 Guidance for a new Personal Tutor Linda Kaye: Psychology Make time for it, get a mentor Set expectations Be organised: Keep notes and records Get to know what specialist support is available, build up relationships with specialists. Don t give advice you are not qualified to give Emphasize importance of F2F Empower your students Claire Moscrop: Computing
Student Data Dashboard 29 A JISC project to collect and summarise data providing indicators of student engagement EHU Workshop Requested data: Essential: Biographical, Entry data (points/ A-level), Attendance (Lec/Sem/PT), Assignment marks (SID), Extensions/ EMC/Malpractice, VLE logins. Desirable: Self-declared needs, clearing entrant, resident on/off campus, Blackboard grade centre marks, Student Services engagement, SRM, Lecture downloads, Careers centre visits.
Example: Nottingham Trent University 30 Data sources and indicators of engagement Biographical data such as the student s enrolment status drawn from the student information system Actual engagement data comes from four separate systems: the virtual learning environment (VLE), the card access database, the assessment submission system and the library system. Each student receives one of five engagement ratings: High, Good, Partial, Low and Not Fully Enrolled.
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Outcomes 32 Dashboard is a valuable resource for staff seeking to build relationships with students A positive relationship between student engagement and both progression and attainment has been identified Less than a quarter of students with a low average engagement progressed from the first to the second year, whereas over 90% of students with good or high average engagement did so 27% students said that they had changed their behaviour in response to data on the dashboard, Some students also became better engaged with academic activities such as doing more independent learning, even though these factors are not measured in the Dashboard
EHU Computing- Student Tracking System 33
34 EHU Faculty of Education Trainee Tracking Database Tailored to specific requirements Screen entry Print out summary (see example)
Blackboard Student Register system Qwickly Attendance allows all data to be stored in course/programme areas online allows students to self-check in via mobile devices or a browser. Learning Services are putting on 2 staff sessions (approx. 30 mins) in September to support the start of the academic year. http://www.goqwickly.com/attendance/
35 Personal Tutor challenges My challenges as a Personal Tutor?
Feedback 36
With Special thanks to our volunteer experienced Personal Tutors 37 Deborah Chirrey: English Linda Kaye: Psychology Polly Thorpe: Primary and Early Years Education Claire Moscrop: Computing Alexis Moore: Professional Education
38 References Bates, E. A., & Kaye, L. K. (2014a). I d be expecting caviar in lectures : The impact of the new fee regime on undergraduate students expectations of Higher Education. Higher Education, 67 (5), 655-673. doi: 10.1007/s10734-013-9671-3 Bates, E. A., & Kaye, L. K. (2014b). Exploring the impact of the increased tuition fees on academic staffs experiences in Post-92 Universities: A small-scale qualitative study. Education Sciences, 4, 229-246. doi: 10.3390/educsci4040229 Kaye, L. K., & Bates, E. A. (2016). The impact of higher fees on students reasons for attending university. Journal of Further and Higher Education. doi: 10.1080/0309877X.2015.1117597