October 28, 2014, by Giselle Kennedy

Your University needs you! Become an agent of change and make a difference

Do you want to gain skills in project management and communication? Do you see yourself as a change maker? Yes? Well we have the module for you! Students as Change Agents is a new 10-credit module which will give you a unique opportunity to collaborate with staff and fellow students to make very real changes to teaching and learning within your school. We interviewed module convenor, Carina Neil, to find out more.

What sort of projects will students work on?

Student change agents will be able to work on a wide variety of projects where they can make recommendations for change and help to implement their ideas. Some of the projects might include carrying out research with fellow students through surveys and focus groups, and then collaboratively redesigning assessment methods, courses or learning materials.

How do students choose a project?

You can apply with your own idea or choose one from an existing proposal such as:

• Getting the right balance: reviewing methods and frequency of assessment and feedback, making recommendations for the way forward
• Exploring the practicalities of and learning opportunities enabled by lecture capture
• Under the microscope: creating accessible online resources for micro-anatomy, tailored to student needs.
• Moving up and moving through: what do students need to know to make a smooth transition into and through university life?
• Investigating students’ study patterns in order to engage them in a richer learning experience

What kind of skills will students learn?

The main skills which students can develop are in project management and communication. The module includes two face-to-face training sessions on these areas, to be held in November and December. Students may develop other skills, depending on the project which they undertake and further online training support will be made available via Moodle where appropriate.

How do students apply?

Whether you are an undergraduate or postgraduate student, you are eligible to apply for this Nottingham Advantage Award module. All you need to do is visit Workspace, read the module content, and follow ‘Step 4: Apply!’ If you would like to discuss a possible idea for a project or find out about existing projects in your school, please email carina.neil@nottingham.ac.uk.

The application deadline for Student as Change Agents is 31 October 2014. Applications need to be approved by the school’s Director of Teaching and will also be reviewed by a panel of students and staff.  You will be contacted in early November to confirm if your application is successful.

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