Some examples of engaging students: digital and information literacy
Reverse Mentoring for Blended Learning at University of Hertfordshire
The main aims of the project are to use students who have the skills that staff
don’t have with all aspects of blended learning, and thus improve staff skills in
educational technology. The students are paid for their time and in mentoring a
lecturer, acquire transferable skills to add to their CVs. In the 2006-2007
academic year, 51 lecturers took advantage of this program, and in 2007-08, well
over 100 staff have benefitted. Students keep timesheets. They’d like more work.
Contact: Amanda Jeffries
https://uhra.herts.ac.uk/dspace/bitstream/2299/2929/1/S106.pdf
Co-lab Consultants at University of Surrey
CoLab is a student-led enterprise that provides a range of services for students,
staff, the University, the local community and external institutions. Students work
in CoLab in their placement year, doing staff development, designing technology
enhanced learning tools and hosting in house and external conferences.
Contact: Norman Jackson
https://wiki.brookes.ac.uk/display/slidacases/Surrey
Student E-champions at University of Wolverhampton
Pedagogies need to be in tune with the ways in which many of the present
generation of students interact with technologies. Two student ‘e-champions’
appointed in two modules to shape and lead ‘e’ support for students, in
partnership with the module leader. Students given free rein to use technology to
improve their modules. Were given VLE admin but didn’t use it. Both e-champion
teams created closed Facebook groups to find out from students what they
wanted. Keen to produce resources where they thought there were gaps in
module. Wrote some formative assessment questions. Tried to video the taught
sessions. Students paid £75 each in e-tokens. Not all have collected.
Contact: Paul Brett
http://www.aldinhe.ac.uk/ojs/index.php?journal=jldhe&page=article&op=viewFile
&path%5B%5D=81&path%5B%5D=83
Students as change agents at University of Exeter
Students engage in research looking into ways of improving the learning and
teaching experience e.g. collecting students views on new buildings and learning
spaces (NLTB?). Also development projects e.g. Students working with Business
School to design a hassle-free structure enabling lecturers to record lecture, and
additional content through audio recorders with students responsible for
uploading content onto VLE
Contact: Liz Dunne
http://as.exeter.ac.uk/support/educationenhancementprojects/current_projects/ch
ange/
Birmingham City University: Student Academic Partners
Launched in 2010. A collaboration between the Centre of Enhancement of
Learning and Teaching and the Students’ Union. Teams staff and students in ‘an
equal partnership’ to improve learning and teaching e.g. creating new learning
resources, developments in curriculum design or evaluation. Students paid for up
to 125 hours of work. Aims to create a sense of learning community in direct
response to poor NSS ratings on this question in 2009. In its first year 50
applications, 23 funded, involving 35 students. Bids put in by staff and students
together and assessed on whether they demonstrated: partnership, value for
money, educational merit and relationship to wider university goals.
Won a THE Award in 2010.
http://www.bcusu.com/saps/home/
NEW: The national Student Learning and Teaching Network
A student led Ning community site to promote students as active members of
learning communities.
http://studentlandtnetwork.ning.com/
What is being learnt from these examples?

Takes time to set up. “We worked out that the quickest you can do it is twelve
weeks. That's from the time you decide that you want to recruit mentors to the
time they can do the work and the reason for that is time to advertise, time for
them to apply, time to organise the interviews and let them know who's been
successful, then they have to go through administration with Human
Resources to get registered as members of staff,”

First and second year students with these characteristics were given
preference because their expertise will then be available in future years,
making the project more sustainable

Once selected, student mentors additionally attended training courses offered
to staff,

Timing – students and staff not busy/free at the same times

Students work well in pairs/small teams

Students need support with choosing topics/implementations of technology

Students want recognition as much as reward eg. Exeter end of year
conference.

SAPs in year two increased length of projects from 6-10 months, and
employed a student academic partner to develop a blog for the scheme to
keep projects in touch and share resources.