Learning & Teaching Conference 2022

The focus on learning communities and working in partnership with students is now an integral part of the HE experience.  Consequently, there is now a compelling case for adopting a more strategic and student-focused approach to ensure that community initiatives based around shared-identity, belonging, mutual support and comradeship are appropriately planned, embedded and resourced.

The aim of this workshop activity is to explore the notion of community, and the key elements that students associate with the idea of belonging.  In doing so, staff will be encouraged to consider the ways in which students group themselves and how this influences their own perceptions of belong and social identity. 

The paper will also demonstrate how the Student Journey Model (SJM) provides an invaluable tool to strategically plan, design and deliver community initiatives at different stages of the student experience. The SJM provides a holistic framework that allows the different perspectives and paradigms surrounding effective community development to be assessed and mapped, alongside a realistic consideration of the challe nges and opportunities influencing implementation at a programme, departmental and institutional level. 

The session will detail indicative examples of community and partnership development within an HE context with reference to indicative initiatives that have included: work and takeaway evenings run in conjunction with students; developing relationships through personal tutoring; and partnership-engagement in marking, assessment and module design. The session will also illustrate how community thinking has extended into community outreach programmes, and developing strategic relationships with local schools and colleges. It will also address the importance of Alumni-related activities, and that communities of learning do not finish after graduation. 

Links

WonkeHE (2022) - Whose job is it to help students make friends?