Transcript course representative training

Class Representative Training
name of trainer
associate trainer | sparqs
sparqs
 Student Participation Quality Scotland (www.sparqs.ac.uk)
 Aim: to improve student engagement in quality enhancement
 1744 representatives trained in the academic year 2008-09
 Funded by the Scottish Funding Council since 2003
Learning outcomes for today
Session Aims
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Develop your understanding of what it means to be a class
representative at Edinburgh / in EUSA
Introduce the skills needed to be effective in your role
Your representative role
Task:
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What do you think is the purpose of the class
representative?
What do you think some of the tasks will be?
What skills do you think you will need and develop as a class
rep?
How do you think being a rep will benefit you?
The representative role
Purpose
To represent students views and
Tasks
Research the student body e.g.
different modes of study, establish
opinions on all matters relating to
positive relationships with staff and
teaching and learning in an
students, enable discussions and seek
effort to continuously improve the students views about their learning,
student learning
tune in and listen, reflect on what
experience in partnership
you hear, share your experiences
with other reps, present student
with the institution and student
views at meetings / in forums etc,
association.
notify students and staff of ongoing
developments and evaluate your
impact.
The representative role
Skills
Research, networking,
relationship building,
communication, listening,
reflection, organisation,
presentation, report writing,
diplomacy, negotiation and time
management / prioritisation.
Benefit to you
Networking opportunities,
Learn new skills, Make a
difference, Good experience
for future, representational
roles e.g. board of governors,
Good experience for future
employment, Can be validated
on student transcripts, Looks
good on CV.
Why is representation important?
Improved learning
experience
Dialogue
with staff
Student
views
The student learning experience
Higher Education
Curriculum
Quality
and standards
Student
progression
and
outcomes
Learning resources and
their deployment
Student
learning
experience
Teaching and
learning
Assessment
and
achievement
Your course of study…
Task:
In pairs discuss:
What do you hope to get out of your chosen course of study?
 What do you like most about it?
 What would you like to change about it?
 What element/s of the student learning experience does this
relate to and why?
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Representation of your issues
ISSUE
Staff-student
Liaison
committee
YOUR
COURSE
School Council
ISSUE
for all
students
in your School
YOUR
SCHOOL
Representation of your issues
SRC Sub-committees:
Teaching & Academic Postgrad
Learning
Services
Forum
Welfare
External
Students’ Representative Council
- like a Parliament of around 100 students
University Committees
(Senate; Senate & College Committees)
College
Committees
Committees
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Committees you are expected to attend:
→Staff-Student Liaison meetings
→May be called by a different name
→Organised by Subject Areas
→Class reps and academic staff on a particular course
→Ranges from formal to informal in format
→Normally at least once a Semester
→Aim: to discuss course related issues
→Departmental/School secretary should contact you to invite you.
If you do not hear anything within the first few weeks –
get in touch with them!
Committees
→School Councils:
→School Reps in your School will organise these (2 per semester)
→Class reps should attend, along with the two School Reps
→Aims:
→To discuss your issues, share what’s happening in your School/ideas
for what to ask for & how to resolve your issues
→let School reps know what’s happening so they can take issues up at
School level and through the SRC
Committees
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Committees you may wish/find it useful to attend:
→ Teaching and Learning/Academic Services Committees
→Academic Committees of the SRC
→Any student can attend; students can be co-opted on to the committee to
get voting rights
→AIM:
→ to discuss T&L or AS (library, computers etc) issues
→ to make policy that will go before SRC
→ To organise and run campaigns
→Students’ Representative Council (SRC): accountable to
you:
→you can attend SRC, although you will not have voting rights - though you
can stand for election to SRC in future years!
→See how your issues are taken forward!
Key Contacts
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Course Organiser
→ This will be your key academic contact
→ Some issues you will be able to take directly to them for resolution
→ Communication should be a two way process – your course organiser
may ask you for input as well as listen when you come to them with an
issues
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School Representative
→ You should keep in touch with your School Rep, as well as attending
School Councils
→ They may be able to help you resolve issues:
→if there are wider implications than just for your course
→They may know of how similar issues have been resolved elsewhere
Key Contacts
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EUSA Staff
→ EUSA is here to help you! Based in Potterrow, we can advise you if you
are not sure how to take an issues forward
→ We have years of experience working with class reps and know how
the University works
→ Drop in to the EUSA Office, call or email: [email protected]
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Evan Beswick, EUSA Vice President Academic Affairs:
→ Elected Sabbatical student, responsible to you!
→ Contact him at any point for advice and support
→ [email protected]
Ongoing Academic Issues
Case Scenarios Part 1
Group task:
Which case scenarios could you help resolve in your institution
and which would refer on to someone else?......
Short break
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Effective communication
Task:
Draw what is being described to you….
An aardvark
The cycle of communication
Aiming
Responding
Forming
Sending
Interpreting
Receiving
Prof Albert Mehrabiam’s
communications model
Words spoken
7%
Facial Expression
55%
Tone of Voice
38%
The A,B,C,D of
Effective feed back
Accurate
Depersonalised
Effective
Constructive
Balanced
Top tips for effective
communication
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Think about what you want to communicate, who you want
to communicate to and how you can best get the message
across
Think about the environment and consider your timing
Speak slowly and clearly and be consistent
Pay attention to the response and let the person completely
finish what they have to say
Take notes and clarify any points that have not been
understood
Remember your A, B, C, D for effective feed back !
Case Scenarios Part 2
In your groups read through your case study…
 What is / are the real concerns?
 What elements of the student learning experience do these
concerns relate to?
 How would you take the concerns forward in Edinburgh?
Attending Staff-Student Liaison
Committee (SSLC) meetings
Task:
Think about your effectiveness at student – staff meetings…
What
would you do before you go to the meeting?
What should you do during the meeting?
What do you need to do after the meeting?
Recapping representation
R – Represent EVERYONE on your course / in your class
E – Enable discussions and seek students views about their learning
P – Present student views at meetings, forums etc
R – Reflect on your own and other students experiences
E – Establish a partnership approach with staff and students
S – Share your experiences with other representatives
E – Evaluate the positive difference you have made over the year
N – Notify students and staff of ongoing developments (feedback)
T – Tune in and listen
Networking with other reps
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Class rep/s in previous year/s & School reps
Students who are reps in the years above and below you
Students who have been class / school reps in previous years
Class / School reps who are studying different courses /
subjects
Your future representative career
Higher Education
Perhaps you’re interested in getting involved in other opportunities? sparqs offer
additional training courses for higher education students engaged in quality
enhancement including:
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Enhancement Led Institutional Review training (ELIR) and
Internal Subject Review (ISR)
Maybe you’re interested in becoming a sparqs Associate Trainer?
Recruitment open days being held throughout March / April 2010.
For information about all of the above opportunities, contact April Edwards at sparqs
Tel: 0131 622 6599 or email @ ([email protected])
Conclusion
What we’ve covered today…
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Developed your understanding of what it means to be a
Class rep at Edinburgh/ in EUSA
Introduced the skills needed to be effective in your role
www.sparqs.ac.uk
Future Training?
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EUSA is committed to ensuring ongoing support and training
We want to know what we should provide for you
Would you like:
→ Another training session in Semester 2: sparqs offers intermediate
class rep training: would you be interested in this?
→ An opportunity to meet other class reps from across the University
and hear what they have been doing this year, perhaps through an
organised ‘class reps conference’?
→ Do you have any other ideas for what we can provide?
PLEASE fill out the short questionnaire and let us know!
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Next thing to do: ATTEND YOUR SCHOOL COUNCIL!
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Class Representative Training
Edinburgh University Students’
Association
name of trainer
associate trainer | sparqs