Faculty Level NSS Action Plan Template 2013-2014
Section A: Faculty Information
Faculty
Associate Dean
Date
Health and Social Sciences
Caroline Reid
5 November 2013
Section B: Reflection on progress against the previous action plan.
Overall summary
High performing courses:
Midwifery (18 month programme) 100% 20% above upper quartile
Health and Social Care 95%, 5% above the upper quartile
SocialWork (Luton) 95%, 5% above upper quartile
Social Work (Bedford) 92%, 2% above upper quartile
Psychology and Criminology 91%, 1% above upper quartile
Applied Social Studies 89% meeting upper quartile
Significantly improved:
Psychology and Criminal Behaviour, up 32%
Operating Department Practice, up 30%
Criminology, up 28%
Sports Therapies, up 15%
Disappointing performance: Child and Adolescent Studies, down 20%
Adult Nursing 65%, down 13%
Teaching satisfaction has declined year on year since 2009, from 89% in 2009 to 85 % in 2012 and 2013, and is now slightly below the sector
average.
The Faculty Assessment and Feedback score has bumped along at 70 to 74%, in 2009 this was 11% above the sector average, but the rest of
the sector has shown year on year improvement leaving us now only slightly above the sector average and 2% below the upper quartile at
76%.
Satisfaction with Academic Support has remained static between 75-77% over the last 4 years, against a sector average upward incline from
74% to 80%, leaving us with 76% below the sector average
Organisation and management is by far the most problematic category in the Faculty where at 64% we are way below the sector average of
78% and 20% below upper quartile average of 84. Satisfaction in this category remains on the decline.
Personal development satisfaction is 1% above the upper quartile sector average and has been consistently well evaluated for the last 4 years.
However, it is also on a negative incline having decreased year on year from 88% in 2009 to 84% in 2013.
Learning resources has recovered from a brief dip last year to 81% in 2013 but remains slightly below the sector average.
Overall satisfaction as expressed in question 22, at 82% is 4% below the sector average and 8% below the upper quartile. This has been
relatively static for the last 4 years bumping along between 84-82 %.
Free text comments offer some insight into the areas the students most enjoy and with which they are most satisfied and also what they find
most frustrating. These are reported in the reflection on each category.
It is evident from the free text comments that the key areas of improvement for HSS are in relation to organisation and management and
assessment and feedback.
Overall Summary
Areas that have improved since the last
action plan.
The only category to show a significant improvement at Faculty level since the last action plan is
Learning Resources with a 6% improvement.
Free text comments reflect students’satisfaction with the development of their improved
confidence and building of self-esteem. This is evident in the high Faculty Personal Development
category score which is 1% above the sector upper quartile.
PAD support is welcomed and valued.
Areas that have seen a decline in
performance since the last action plan.
Detailed in summary comments above.
Issues that have persisted since the last
action plan.
Organisation and Management is clearly a source of student frustration along with
Assessment and Feedback.
Reflection on progress against previous actions.
Ref
Actions (transposed from the
previous report)
Outcome and Progress
Teaching and
Learning
Improve teaching quality
All actions T&L actions on-going.
FEG to ensure compliance with peer
observation of teaching and online
assessment feedback, and to using
career review to improve performance
in tutorial support, assessment
feedback, and engagement with
students
HoDs have begun work with CLE on
HEA Fellowship accreditation and
coaching training for PATs
Ensure relevance of curriculum and
Good teaching is identified in the
free text comments for most
programmes, equally however, the
opposite is also evident in the
negative feedback stream in many
Good practice
identified for wider
dissemination.
Ongoing Challenges Identified.
Understanding student engagement, and
exploring lack of engagement such as poorly
attended lectures.
Need for more workshops and smaller groups
identified in free text comments
Where there is placement,
students positively value
these opportunities and
highlight the authenticity
of the learning placement
The need for more placement/practice
opportunity, particularly in Sports Therapies,
but this is also distributed across other Depts
where programmes have a focus on human
modes of delivery
Assessment
and Feedback
Departmental committees and Faculty
Executive and Academic Board to
engage with student feedback on the
curriculum and how it is taught.
Lack of prompt and detailed
assessment feedback - monitor use
and outcomes of online assessment
Faculty Quality team led by Sub-Dean
Quality will conduct periodic
unannounced audits of assessment
feedback to students
Academic
Support
Staff student ratio improvement
needed, especially in hotspots such as
ASS and Psychology.
areas.
All A&F actions ongoing.
All Depts confirm that they are
meeting the 15 day feedback
requirement.
Spot monitoring of feedback at unit
level on-going, reporting into FAG
and FAB
SSRs increased as detailed in HoD
commentaries
It is clearly evident in the free text
comment on the high performing
courses and improved courses, that
relationships with academic staff
are key to the students’ positive
satisfaction, and this is illustrated
in comments that Tutors are
friendly, helpful and approachable.
provides
Positive free text
comments are made with
regard to assessment
there is a clear theme
where the assessment
guidance is available well
in advance, is clearly
broken down and
transparent and dialogue
around the assessment
task and process is
encouraged.
Staff support for students
is very strong in some
areas and a mindset to be
embedded across all
Depts.
Arrangement by Academic
teams of learning sets and
seminar groupings linked
to PATs also mixed tariff
seminar groupings to
enhance students
services.
Students behaviour disrupting classes in some
areas.
This is predominantly referred to with regard
to Lectures rather than other teaching modes
Ongoing issues students identify in free text
comments:
Too much assessment, assessment bunching,
a lack of a coherent overview of assessment
across the course and year is a very clear
source of dissatisfaction across all courses.
There is equal discontentment with the
length of time it takes to get grades back.
Students are not happy with receiving
feedback without a grade. There are
consistent comments across all courses that
feedback from work is always delayed.
Lack of support the university gives you when
you fail.
This includes frustration with student
mitigation services which are often described
as a fruitless cyclical process with no tangible
or supportive outcomes for the student.
Supporting staff new to the University and to
specific roles
learning.
ASS names to faces
strategy across the
portfolio to ensure
students always know who
to speak to, along with
centrally placed, staff
photo and info welcome
boards.
Sports Therapies news
letters – to existing and
potential students
Organisation
and
Management
Need to prioritise student
communication
All O&M actions ongoing
Establish clear expectations with
staff groups about responses to
students.
Agree a contract with students and
staff.
Free text comments around O&M highlight
many areas of student frustration:
Changes of classes and cancellations
Poor communication of information or
changes to students
Staff not organised sufficiently to discuss
assignments early enough which leads to
stress and panic in the students
Teachers are hard to contact, and take too
long to respond.
Attendance monitoring and need to take hard
copy registers impacts on lecture and
workshop environment, attendance
monitoring policy and tools need further
development.
The lack of space for the students to study
together is very limited at the Health sites,
and the social space and catering outlets are
for some non-existent and others only
amount to vending machines.
Learning
Resources
Investment in replenishing and
updating texts funded and
underway
A lack of ICT resources, poor and slow
machines, a lack of the necessary software on
some machines and poor wireless connection,
particularly at satellite campuses are
consistently mentioned under negative free
text comments.
Personal
Development
Implementation of Employability Action
Group work and embedding into courses
Reflection on
BUS data
A number of units missed from the BUS
exercise last year and identified need to
improve the roll out and implementation of
BUS across across all units in the Faculty
Other –
including level
6 Student
Satisfaction
Survey results
The findings of the level 6 survey
mirrored the NSS findings and in
retrospect the time would have
been better timetabled presenting
and discussing the NSS results from
the previous year with the students
returning to their final year
The findings of the level 6 survey mirror the
NSS findings.
Policy for the support of student with specific
learning difficulties, and the implementation
of reasonable adjustments needs
development and to be made transparent to
students.
Supporting students with physical disabilities
and providing an inclusive learning
experience with equal opportunity for the
physically disabled
Section C: Action Planning for the coming academic year
Specific Actions
Ref
Aims
Actions required
Teaching and
Learning
1.To provide engaging
teaching and learning
opportunities grounded in
practice and research
informed
Staff development,
VLs, HEA
Faculty Learning
Development Forum
Assessment
and Feedback
By whom (Main
person identified in
Bold)
By when
ADSE, HoDs, PoLes, CCs
July 2014
2.Explore the opportunities
for the use of Technology to
enhance student
engagement and learning
ADSE, HoDs, PoLes, CCs
March 2014
Apply for StEPs bid to
support
3. Increase placement
opportunities
AD, ADSE, HoDs
July 2014
Staff costings by Dept
as detailed in HoD
summaries
4.Create a forum for the
discussion, development
and sharing of pedagogic
practice
ADSE, Sub-Dean Quality,
Faculty TLAG rep, PoLes
March 2014
Speakers and
hospitality 2K
5.Close the assurance
enhancement loop Teaching Quality
ADSE & Sub-Dean
Quality, HoDs, PoLes,
CCs
July 2014
ADSE, HoDs, PoLes, CCs
Dec 2014
6. To provide all students at
the start of each academic
year with a clear assessment
Agree and introduce
cross faculty
template and
Resource needs
with any
costings.
Success criteria –
expected
outcomes.
Improved student
feedback to PEC, BUS
responses and
Increased student
satisfaction in NSS
Implementation of TEL
bid encompassing a
unit from each Dept
Increase in available
placement
opportunities
Increased cross-faculty
engagement and Interprofessional discussion
of pedagogy and the
development of
practice research ideas
Consistent cross
Faculty application of
university strategies
and policies
All courses to meet
minimum feedback
standards.
and feedback map
monitor and evaluate
use via PECs
7. Explore students
discontentment with
assessment and feedback
processes and introduce a
Faculty assessment dialogue
to manage students
expectations
Work with student
partners to
understand
discontentment with
assessment
processes
ADSE, student reps,
PALs, PoLes, CCs
March 2014
ADSE, Sub-Dean Quality,
HoDs, Externals, PoLes,
CCs
Sept 2014
ADSE, HoDs, Faculty
Manager, PATs
Nov 2014
Faculty Manager
March 2014
Staff development in
coaching for all PATs
HoDs
July 2014
Implementation of
new PAD structures
and processes
ADSE, HoDs, PoLes, CCs,
PAD team
July 2014
Identification of
target programmes
in need of particular
support
ADSE,Sub-Dean Quality,
HoDs
May 2014
8. Review and enhance all
stages of the assessment
process from assessment
creation to external
moderation
Academic
Support
9.Implementation of PAT
policy
Allocation of PATs
Introduce new PAT
admin system with
staff development
support
10. Enhance the embedding
of skills learning support in
courses and identify and
support students at risk
Increased student
achievement.
Feedback event
hospitality, student
incentives, Focus
group transcriptions
Improved NSS
assessment and
feedback scores
“
Staff development
time
“
Improved NSS scores in
Academic Support
category
Staff development
time
Reduced attrition and
improved progression
and achievement
11. Articulate clear faculty
policy on responding to
student communication
Consistent
implementation of a
standard response
time and process
across departments
ADSE, HoDs, PoLes,
CCs
December 2014
12. Engagement of students
as partners in all aspects of
the students experience
Engagement with the
BedsSU ‘BIG’
campaign.
ADSE, HoDs, Poles,CCs.
Student Reps
July 2014
Clear management of
student expectations of
staff availability and
communication
Adoption of BIG
processes in PEC
committee and
fortnightly Course
meetings
Organisation
and
Management
13. Provide timely personal
timetables to all students
Implement new
timetabling policy
ADSE, Dept Timetabling
coordinators, Poles, CCs
Agree departmental
approaches to
seminar allocation
Dept Timetabling
Coordinators
April 2014
Faculty manager
Dec 2014
14. Develop clear Faculty
communication processes to
advise students of
cancellations or disruptions
to normal working or
delivery practices
15. Develop and strengthen
Portfolio and Course
Coordinator roles and team
working processes
Reduction in
timetabling complaints,
improved learning and
teaching and
organisation and
management
experience
Improved NSS
July 2014
Monthly PoLe
meetings for cross
faculty dialogue and
developments.
ADSE, Sub-Dean Quality,
PoLes
Improved cross dept
engagement and IPL
opportunities
Learning
Resources
Personal
Development
16. Improve access to, and
quality of, Learning
Resources for students on
satellite campuses
17.Provision of appropriate
specialist ICT resources and
computer availability for
ASS students, and also ICT
resources available at
satellite campuses
18. Prepare to roll out the
PALs initiative across the
Faculty from Sept 2014
Twice yearly Course
co-ordinator
meetings
Develop use of
digitised resources.
Other –
including level
6 Student
Satisfaction
Survey results
20. Work with CLE to more
effectively implement BUS
across all units in the
Faculty
Faculty Librarian, ADSE,
PoLes, CCs
Pilot Talis Aspire in
some courses
HoDs, ICT,ED, ADSE
Identify PAL
coordinators for all
courses and plan for
implementation of
policy
19. Plan for the embedding
of Employability action
group initiatives
Reflection on
BUS data
“ & CCs
Unit Leads to ensure
that BUS survey is
taken at the
appropriate time for
their units.
July 2014
Designated space
and capital
investment in
provision of
designated ASS
computer lab
Improved student
achievement and
employability.
Improved NSS
satisfaction for LR and
Teaching experience
ADSE, HoDs, PAL
Coordinator, PoLes, CLE
July 2014
ADSE, Sub-Dean Quality,
HoDs, Poles, CCs
July 2014
Unit Leads
Termly
untilAugust 2014
Workload planning
for coordinator role
Increased unit level
feedback available
Section D: University Wide Aims and Challenges
Ref
University Specific
Aim/Challenge
Teaching and Learning
Changes to Quality assurance
processes for programme approvals
and reviews are proving very labour
intensive making it difficult to
maximise the developmental
opportunities that may come with the
process
Assessment and Feedback
Understanding students
discontentment with assessment and
feedback.
Staff assessment overload.
Academic Support
Implementation of PAT
Organisation and Management
Equity of student experience received
by students on Aylesbury and
Butterfield sites.
Timetabling
Learning Resources
Lack of availability and access to
specialist computing facilities needed
by Social Sciences for key aspects of
curriculum, and which impacts on
Suggested Resolution
Priority
Medium
Development of a University wide
project to develop programme based
assessment.
Develop a more ‘joined up’ approach to
student achievement between
academic and student support services
Ongoing by way of coaching staff
development and staff dev needed for
new admin system and processes
Availabilty of facilities, resources and
services needs further development
High
Timing of all processes need to be 12
weeks earlier than last year – this is
progressing
Review of ICT needs of ASS.
Request made in February 2013 and no
progress on agreed resource.
Increasing student numbers via clearing
Medium
Medium
High
High
student employability
Personal Development
Development of placement
opportunities for Sports Therapies
students
Reflection on BUS data
Other – including level 6
Student Satisfaction Survey
results
Caroline Reid
Associate Dean (Student Experience)
Faculty of Health and Social Sciences
(V1 Nov 2013)
and no increase already limited
resource
Identified and in progress
High