June 2, 2015, by Teaching at Nottingham

UNMC Teaching and Learning newsletter May 2015

Welcome to the 2014/15 roundup of teaching and learning activities at the University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus as well as a preview of some of the things to come in the coming months.

T&L Priority Clusters for UNMC – 2015

The 2015 Priority Clusters for Teaching and Learning were formulated by the UNMC Campus Teaching Committee. They bring together themes emerging from initiatives started in 2014 and new areas arising from the Global Strategy 2020 Excellence in Education work and also the UNMC Strategic Roadmap 2013-2020. There are six priority clusters which are broken down in to sub-themes – further information is available on Sharepoint. The six priority clusters are:

1. Academic Quality
2. Curriculum and Programmes
3. Transitions
4. Access and Pathways
5. Quality Assurance and Enhancement
6. Underpinning Infrastructure and Resources

T&L Enhancement Fund

A reminder that Campus Teaching Committee has launched two funding mechanisms for 2015 aimed at promoting and enhancing teaching and learning at UNMC. These funds are aimed at pump-priming projects and aimed at either meeting the strategic aims of the campus or else to enable rapid decisions on small scale funding to be made available. The deadline for applications to the T&L Strategic Project Fund is (capped at RM20K per project) is Friday 5th June 2015.

Staff Oscars

Many congratulations to the winners of the student-organised “Staff Oscars” which were announced in great style at the Masquerade Ball on Friday April 3rd. These awards, voted for by students, recognise staff for their outstanding contribution to teaching and learning and the student experience. Congratulations to all the winners.

MQA Visit

Many staff will now be aware that the University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus is about to undergo a Maintenance Audit from the Malaysia Qualifications Agency (MQA) in order to retain its prestigious Self-Accreditation status which was originally awarded in 2010. A panel will visit in June 2015 in order to conduct a full audit evaluation. Briefings will be held for staff who will be involved in the exercise.

Student-led T&L Initiatives

2014/15 has been an exciting year for piloting of a number of initiatives that have either been student led or else had students at the centre – a key element of the Global Strategy 2020 for the University – and will lead to wider rollout in 2015/16. To highlight a few:

• Student Observers of Teaching: a pilot programme where trained students observed a lecturer in a teaching situation and provided feedback from the student perspective. Very positive feedback was received from participants in the pilot.
• Peer Mentoring: A student-led working group has formulated a pilot rollout for peer mentoring to be trialled in certain schools for the September intake.
• Common Reading Programme: a pilot will be trialled with the July foundation intake to provide students with a book to read before arriving at University and in the early weeks to create a common point of sharing and interaction between new students.

Nottingham Student Experience Survey

The Nottingham Student Experience Survey (formerly the NSB) results have been released and are being analysed and action plans formulated. Of particular note is that student satisfaction in the key area of learning has increased year on year, with a significant jump arising from initiatives introduced in recent years (more than 3% increase between Nov 2014 and Nov 2013). However, student expectations remain high and work needs to continue to improve satisfaction levels.

New Teaching Building

The new teaching block (Block F4) is developing at a rapid rate with construction only a few days behind schedule. The planned operation of the building for Semester 1 of 2015/16 remains a target in order to relieve congestion in the timetabling of rooms. Novel teaching spaces will be available within this building – more information to follow.

Thank you.
Prof Stephen Doughty
Vice-Provost (Teaching and Learning)

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