Review of the Teaching Day
Staff and Student Consultation Invited -- May 2014
1 May 2014
For the attention of: All Staff and Students
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
What?
This is a summary document detailing three options for change to the Teaching Day at the University of
Exeter. As a part of the Future Workplaces project, The Teaching Day working group has conducted a thorough
sector-wide review together with extensive internal discussions and debate which have resulted in the
distillation of all the available evidence into these three options. These all involve a modest change to current
working practices.
Why?
Consistent growth in student numbers coupled with an increase in modularity has resulted in an unsustainable
level of demand on teaching spaces.
Who?
One of the three options would be introduced as a pilot and could affect teaching on all University of Exeter
campuses, depending on timetabling requirements. The initial pilot would only apply to level one
undergraduate programmes and Masters awards in options A and C. In option B all levels of study could be
scheduled the 8.30 start but only level one undergraduate programmes and Masters awards would be
scheduled after 5.30, as needed.
When?
The consultation will run during May 2014. The feedback from this will be analysed and then an option for
change recommended by the Teaching Day working group and presented to the Future Workplaces project
board in July. A pilot would run in academic year 2015/16 and carefully reviewed.
How will it
affect me?
No-one will be expected to teach more hours or attend more lectures than they currently do as a result of any
changes made as part of this project. The current process for approving teaching staff restrictions, managed
locally at College level, will still fully apply. This covers timetabling which accommodates family commitments,
leave, sabbatical and professional commitments. The University also reiterates its application of the Athena
SWAN principles and all its other existing policies and practices that are designed to support its staff and
students in managing the different aspects of their lives. Protection of Wednesday afternoons from compulsory
undergraduate teaching, in order to support Guild, Sport and other activities, is maintained in all three options
as part of a commitment to the distinctive Exeter student experience.
Next steps
A University-wide consultation is now under-way to enable the project team to gain feedback from the
University community as to the impacts of each option on those likely to be most affected. You can read more
about how to be involved in the consultation in the document below.
1. Introduction
In December 2013, a working group was formed under the auspices of the Future Workplaces Project (chaired by
the Provost, Professor Neil Armstrong) in order to consider how the teaching day is delivered most effectively within
timetabling and estates resources. The Teaching Day Work Stream was established with academic (including ASA),
Guild, College and professional services representation.
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Given the very efficient timetabling practices and room utilisation in evidence at Exeter, the group was asked to
consider particularly whether limited changes to the operation of the teaching day might create greater flexibility in
the timetable overall and for individuals in line with the wider aims of the Future Workplaces Project. This change
would help sustain modularity and choice, and remove the need to invest in further expansion of the capital estate,
thereby freeing resources for other investment priorities. Estates professionals estimate that building a new
teaching block costs approximately £12M, plus ongoing running and maintenance costs. Clearly this represents a
significant resource to invest in other priorities if it can be avoided through agreeing modest changes in working
practices. The group was asked to test and explore all options available, and has conducted months of analysis,
research and debate, including a quiet phase of targeted staff and student representatives consultation.
A process of open and wide ranging consultation on the work stream’s proposals is now offered to the University
community. It is hoped that individuals and groups will engage with this over the month of May and into early June,
in order to inform the work stream’s deliberations before the group makes formal recommendations to the Future
Workplaces Project Group in July.
2. The current situation and case for change:
The current University timetable operates between 9am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, with protections to Wednesday
afternoons as part of supporting the student experience. In practical terms, any changes we might propose to the
operation of the teaching timetable cannot be implemented now before academic session 2015/16. Given recent
reviews of timetabling practice in 2010 and 2012 and the operational improvements implemented as a result, the
Exeter timetable works very efficiently compared with others in the sector. Room utilisation statistics are in the
upper quartile of performance, with room frequency for the largest rooms at over 80% at Streatham campus.
Though this may sound like it leaves room for growth and improvement, in practice, it means that for all larger
lecture theatres seating 170+ participants, there are only 12 hours total unscheduled capacity remaining. This may
provide for 2-3 additional larger modules. This represents a highly efficient but unsustainable level of remaining
room capacity and presents a risk to delivering the educational portfolio, including supporting flexibility and choice.
Although a temporary shortfall in admissions across the sector in 2012 presented a reprieve, the projections arising
from the University planning processes regarding student intakes and academic staffing capacity mean we are
experiencing real pressure in timetable capacity and shall have a more acute issue to face in 2015/16 if the current
situation remains unchanged. Timetabling and Estates Services professionals have estimated that a minimum +3
hours of teaching within available timetabling parameters would alleviate the worst pressures over the next 2-3
years.
The reality experienced across the University, and on all campuses, is that we are already holding classes outside the
9-6 standard parameters, with later teaching in several departments, and most notably in Business School
programmes. Other solutions to the timetabling constraints have arisen across programmes, but remain insufficient
to resolve the issue overall. These solutions include: repeat teaching (double and triple), splitting large groups,
elective sessions on Wednesday afternoons, lecture capture electronically and so on; these arrangements shall need
to continue as they do at other Universities. And several larger entry programmes are investigating changes to
pedagogy which may in time reduce their utilisation of large lecture spaces meaning our estates requirements may
change considerably within the 5 year planning period.
Finally, Exeter is not alone in grappling with the difficult issues of balancing ever changing demand for learning
spaces with providing an efficiently utilised estate. Our research has shown that many other universities already
have longer teaching days, including Warwick and Bath; each has implemented changes to day length with different
levels of mitigation and consultation. The work stream has taken every opportunity to try to learn from these
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experiences elsewhere and has benefitted from the collegiality across the sector in evidence across the professional
timetabling fraternity in providing us further advice and guidance to inform these proposals.
3. The proposals under detailed consideration:
The Teaching Day Work Stream looked at a wide range of options available to support the delivery of the teaching
portfolio across the teaching day. After thorough sector research, discussion and debate, the work stream is now
actively considering a recommendation to pilot modest alterations to the teaching day in 2015/16 to create more
flexibility in timetabling and welcomes feedback from the community on three specific proposals. These are
summarised below, but fuller detail on all aspects of the options considered by the group, summaries of sector
research and impact analysis conducted thus far may be found in the Teaching Day Options Appraisal available at
the link provided at the end of this document.
Three options to create a more flexible teaching day:
Option A: Timetable operates 9am – 7pm Mon, Tue, Thu and 9 am - 6pm Wed/Fri
You could have one or more large lectures finishing at 7pm on Mondays, Tuesdays or Thursdays.
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A pilot changing the timetabling policy to include teaching between 6-7pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and
Thursdays. The last hour would only be used where no other options are available.
These slots would be used only when other options are not available and would be focused around large
lectures (+170) for first year students and masters students (given their travel and residential profiles).
All other elements of the timetable remain the same including no UG compulsory sessions after 1pm on
Wednesdays and a 6pm finish for all on Friday.
Timetabling will be scheduled to ensure individuals with 9am lectures do not also have a 6-7pm session on
the same day or 9am the following morning and have no more than one later session a week.
It will be compulsory for all large lecture sessions at Streatham and St Luke’s starting at 6pm to be recorded
via lecture capture and made available on the student VLE. Staff would normally be expected to opt into this
arrangement.
Advantages of Option A
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A minor change to only part of the week
An average timetable in a pilot of Option A could look like this:
Staff member (Biosciences)
Student 1st Year (Biosciences)
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Option B: Timetable operates from 8.30am to 6.30pm Mon, Tues, Thu; 8.30am to 12.30pm on Weds; 8.30 am –
5.30 pm on Fri; with all teaching now scheduled on the half hour
You could start at 8.30am on one or two mornings a week. You could have one or more large lectures at 5.30pm (not
on the days with an 8.30 start). The timetable would shift for all so that sessions start at half past the hour.
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A pilot shifting the timetable across the week to start at 8.30am and finish at 6.30pm with an earlier finish
of 12.30pm on Wednesdays for compulsory UG sessions and an earlier finish of 5.30pm on Friday for all.
The last hour of each day will only be used when other options are not available and would be focused
around large lectures (+170) for first year students and masters students (given their travel and residential
profiles).
Timetabling will be scheduled to ensure individuals with 8.30am lectures do not also have a 5.30pm session
on the same day or 8.30am the following morning and have no more than one session scheduled for 5.30pm
in a week unless requested by the College.
All other elements of the timetable remain the same including no UG compulsory sessions after 12.30pm on
Wednesdays.
It will be compulsory for all large lecture sessions at Streatham and St Luke’s starting at 5.30pm to be
recorded via lecture capture and made available on the student VLE. Staff would normally be expected to
opt into this arrangement.
Advantages of Option B
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Starting on the half hour may be more practical for staff and students with caring responsibilities
An earlier finish on Wednesdays and Fridays than at present
By starting on the half hour, more teaching sessions in ‘core’ hours become available
Guild and evening employability events may need to make modest changes to start times, but should
not be detrimentally affected
Earlier start may mean that local peak rush hour traffic may be avoided and availability of parking may
be improved for some
Timetable adaptations are spread equally across the week
An average timetable in a pilot of Option B could look like this:
Staff member (Law)
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Student 1st Year (Law)
Option C: Late session teaching offered between 6-9 on Thu over standard 9-6 timetable
You could have a lecture for an hour or two between 6 and 9pm on a Thursday evening.
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A pilot extending the teaching day on Thursday nights only for an additional session between 6-9pm which
would aim to provide an engaging evening session focused around an enhanced experience for first years
and PGTs in a limited number of subject areas.
Staff and students would not be required to attend sessions at 9am on the same day or 9am the following
morning.
The timetable would remain the same for all those unaffected.
First years would not have any lectures scheduled for 5-6pm on Thursday if they had a 6pm+ session, to
ensure they could attend evening meals in catered halls.
All other elements of the timetable remain the same including no UG compulsory sessions after 1pm on
Wednesdays.
It will be compulsory for all large lecture sessions at Streatham and St Luke’s conducted during the 6 – 9pm
slots to be recorded via lecture capture and made available on the student VLE. Staff would normally be
expected to opt into this arrangement.
Advantages of Option C
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Change applies to one evening only, everything else remains as is
In terms of sporting and Guild events, there is potentially less disruption as activities can be more easily
“zoned” around the one late session teaching only
Condensing activity into one late zone provides greater opportunity for efficient service delivery and
support, and more traffic and busy campus feel in the twilight hours
An average timetable in a pilot of Option C could look like this:
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Staff member (Business)
Student 1st year (Business)
If a pilot to change the teaching timetable as per one of the options above takes place in 2015/16, then mid-year
(Dec 2015) and end of session review points are recommended in order to ensure the process is carefully managed
and supported prior to any continuation in building the 2016/17 timetable.
Considering these proposals within existing practices and commitments
It is important for staff to remember that the proposals above to manage the University timetable overall sit
alongside the practices in place to manage individual staff teaching allocations. If a pilot were to proceed, then
further mitigations will be explored to ensure that staff do not have to spend more hours on campus than they
currently do. Our practices will be explored to ensure that the teaching day span for each member of staff is taken
into consideration so as to avoid excessively long days, unless requested as part of condensed working. Rules are
applied to timetabling to ensure preferred slots are allocated in a fair manner and no individuals have to accept a
greater burden than others. The current staff teaching restrictions policy, managed locally in Colleges, would still
apply, covering family, leave, sabbatical and professional commitments. The University reiterates its commitment to
the principles of Athena SWAN and its existing policies and practices, which support colleagues across the institution
in managing all of their commitments.
For students, the Timetable Office and colleagues in departments/Colleges review the allocation of timeslots to
ensure that all student cohorts are allocated a spread of timeslots across the day. The University reiterates its
commitment to provide protection to Wednesday afternoons for undergraduate participation in Guild, society and
sporting activities as part of supporting all aspects of the distinctive Exeter student experience. Subject to funding,
the Timetabling Office is exploring the possibility of introducing an online system to allow students greater
opportunity to state individual preferences on optional seminars and workshops, in parallel to the staff restrictions
system.
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Finally, the work stream has sought clarification from the Future Workplaces Project Group that the expectation of
the University would be that if the teaching day were extended, Family Centre or equivalent provision would be too,
in order to support staff and student parents who may be affected. This has been fed back through the Chair to
inform the review of the family centre provision which is currently being undertaken.
4. How to get more information?
Please go to the Future Workplaces Project website for more general information including FAQs which are updated
regularly in line with staff and student feedback. Please see:
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/staff/futureworkplaces/
Within the site, the work streams links contain more comprehensive information including a link to the full Teaching
Day Options Appraisal, which also contains summary sector wide research conducted as part of the project. Go to:
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/staff/futureworkplaces/workstreams/
The website lists all work stream members, any of whom will be pleased to talk with you about the project and
proposals on which we are seeking feedback and you may contact them directly.
5. How to get involved and have your say?
There are a variety of ways in which individuals and groups can engage in this consultation exercise. They include:
Structured meetings
The work stream membership has offered to join regularly scheduled meetings which operate within our existing
governance structures (College/Department; professional service teams; Guild, FXU, SSLCs) and a calendar of these
meetings held throughout May has been prepared by the project support staff. A rota of staff who are available
from the work stream to join part of your regular local meetings is now being negotiated with meeting
Chairs/secretaries.
In addition, a key contacts list has been agreed and updates will be provided to these colleagues and representatives
so that they may help us collate soundings from groups as appropriate.
Group feedback
The work stream is especially interested to hear details of the impact of these options, for groups and individuals,
and to take suggestions for any mitigations that might help. Departments, Colleges, service areas and student groups
are invited to submit written feedback to the following email for forwarding and formal consideration by the Work
stream at its June meeting:
Email: futureworkplaces@ex.ac.uk
Please respond no later than 5pm Friday 6 June 2014 so that we may collate your responses.
Individual feedback
Any individual who would like to provide us their views is encouraged to do so by emailing
futureworkplaces@ex.ac.uk.
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A short web feedback collection form will also be provided Friday 16 May 2014 so that communications leads
supporting the project may collate systematic feedback on the proposals from individuals including their anticipated
impacts in order to inform the working group team meeting in mid-June.
Next Steps
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The results of this consultation exercise will be published to the project website in Late June/early July.
The Teaching Day Work Stream meets in mid-June and in w/c 21 July to prepare its recommendations in
order to report to the Project Coordination Group and overall Project Group before the end of July 2014.
Thank you for reading this information and supporting documentation. Your views are important to us in forming
our recommendations and so we hope you will let us know what you think.
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