Project work in partner universities 1996 - 1999:

Liverpool John Moores University

Contact Details

Other members of the PADSHE team at Liverpool John Moores University

Key Findings

Undergraduate programme:

• quality of personal tuition and parity of experience between personal tutors
• staff monitoring of and guidance on student module choice
• quality of academic guidance: discussion of transcripts
• documentation of each student's particular circumstances
• staff knowledge of students as evidence in examination boards
• links with careers services

Potential problems:

• quality of tuition still depended to an extent upon commitment of staff
• paperwork could become burdensome, if all systems are not clearly in place
• system itself could be seen as mechanistic

Further considerations:

• students need to be encouraged to see the process as one which allows them to take responsibility for their own learning: self-appraisal and reflection on learning remain the least successful areas of the project
• students' needs and demands of a PAR system will vary with the different stages of their degree programme
• students and staff would benefit from further training in methods of self-appraisal and action-planning
• a PAR system is most effective for students and staff when it can be introduced through part of a credited teaching programme: eg Level One Tutorial Module

Managing change within the institution

• where clear lines of command are not always apparent, dissemination can be difficult
• the most effective means of dissemination to date has been discussion, through seminars and workshops, with those who are directly engaged with issues of teaching and learning arising out of their own experiences: eg Learning Methods Unit extremely helpful, School Teaching and Learning Co-ordinators key people
• dissemination is also most successful where staff feel that a PAR system can be tailored to their own subject area and teaching systems

Variations across disciplines

Politics: one-to-one meetings in Semester One followed by group meetings with Personal Tutor in Semester Two. Encouragement for peer group support. The system which is under development in the School of Social Science has focused more specifically on the need to develop more fully the reflective element of the PAR and has built in a more rigorous element for skill identification, skills development and action planning.

Core principles accepted

• Timetabled meetings with Personal Tutors three times a year
• Agreed agenda for meetings
• One-to-one discussion of academic and personal development through PARs
• Return of transcripts at PAR meetings in January
• Monitoring of module choice
• Careers information advice to be included in PAR pack
• PADR to be embedded within programme of Level 1 Tutorial Module

Distinctive good practice

In terms of distinctive good practice this model serves to encourage a positive engagement between students and personal tutors which then forms the basis of a robust personal tutoring system.

The Tutorial Module also permits an initial opportunity for students to:

• develop study skills
• reflect upon their learning

The PAR as a whole facilitates a framework of ongoing student support with:

1. strategically timetabled one-to-one meetings between tutors and tutees throughout the three years of the undergraduate programme
2. scheduled careers sessions at all levels

Impact on teaching and learning

• Improved tracking of student progression
• Greater awareness of individual students needs and problems
• Decrease in drop-out rate among Level 1 students
• Positive feedback in initial Level 1 questionnaire on personal tutoring
• Greater opportunity to discuss academic progress at Level 1 in particular, but also throughout the degree, through combination of Tutorial Module and PADRs
• Improved communications and liaison with Careers Service
• Improved system for providing students with accurate and relevant references: reference information sheet for Level 3 students added to pack, 1998

Impact on institution

• Careers Service involved through JMU Steering group and Nottingham Steering Committee.
• Contact with Learning Methods Unit: a Workshop Seminar on PADR for University School Teaching and Learning Co-ordinators held January 1999.
• Input to report of Transformation Design Team: assessment of systems and practices within the University, leading to identification of PADR as University target for April 1999.
• Links with Academic Development Unit through discussion of LUSID project.

Case Study

Deliverables

• School of Media, Critical and Creative Arts undergraduate PAR
• MA Case Study report
• MA Literature and Cultural History PAR