Presenters: Matthew Lawson (Library & Student Services) and Dr Nosheen Rachel Naseem (Centre for Academic Partnerships)
Academic support teams need to work smarter and more collaboratively and make better use of student skills to meet increasing student expectations. This session invites feedback and discussion on ways in which provision is developing: a recent student peer-mentoring project; online reading lists and eTextbooks; embedded academic skills teaching.
Outline: This symposium explores ways in which different kinds of collaboration between teams of professional staff working with students and academic staff can enhance the student learning experience. Presentations highlight new academic support initiatives: challenging assumptions, inviting feedback and suggesting how support can be developed to support academic staff and benefit students:
- Providing seamless access to resources: in recent years the availability of books and journals has become a source of positive feedback. The introduction of online reading lists, and more recently the free personal eTextbooks project, have contributed to the increase in “Library” NSS scores. But there is more that can be done to ensure that students have seamless access to key resources. This presentation will explore how reading lists can be improved to serve students better, and what the management information dashboard says about how students are using their free eTextbooks.
- Are we truly embedded? : Most programmes now include embedded information literacy and academic writing sessions. This has emphasised the importance to students of these skills and improved the visibility and accessibility of the LET and Liaison Librarians. But how embedded are these skills and what more could be done to contribute towards improved retention and achievement levels? This presentation will examine ways in which embedding might be made more meaningful and contribute more directly to student success.
- Peer mentoring for exchange students: the presentation will demonstrate how students can be trained to develop and channel their own experiences of learning situations to enable them to act as mentors to students facing similar experiences. It will cover the practical aspects of the training and management of mentors and the preparation of mentees as well as considering some theoretical aspects of mentoring and learning. In particular, emphasis will be placed on the importance of adaptability and cultural sensitivity in the learning context both for learners, but also for academic staff responsible for determining and assessing the learning outcomes. Discussion will be invited on the possibilities of using similar approaches to support students in a number of potentially challenging learning situations.
Keywords: Online reading lists; eTextbooks; embedding; academic support; StudyHub; mentoring; peer support; enhanced learning; student exchange; adaptability
Session learning outcomes: After the session participants will have:
- A greater understanding of key elements of the academic support offered by staff in LSS and across the University and how this supports teaching and learning objectives
- Ideas about further collaborative work which they may wish to explore further and in more depth
- Understanding of the methods and value of student peer mentoring, especially in new or challenging learning situations
- Opportunity to consider the various challenges presented to students in learning situations that are “off campus” and how peer support may support and enhance the experience
- An opportunity to discuss and feedback on proposed new developments outlined in the presentations