Digwyddiad Rhannu Arfer Da – Sharing Good Practice Event

Aberystwyth University will be running a two-day Digwyddiad Rhannu Arfer Da – Rhagoriaeth Academaidd on the 2nd (face to face) and 3rd (on-line) July 2024. The event will be held through the medium of Welsh only. This event has been made possible due to the Small Grant Project money from the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol.

The aim of the two-day event is to present papers under the theme of Teaching Excellence – for example:

  • Learning and Teaching
  • Dysgu trwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg
  • Student Support
  • Supervision
  • Personal Tutoring

The academic papers will be an opportunity for staff across Wales to present their research, under the theme of academic practice – through papers, posters, panels etc. Presentations at the event are welcome from anyone teaching from staff to PhD students.

The Call for Proposals, at the following link Galwad am Bapurau – Digwyddiad Rhannu Arfer Da (jisc.ac.uk)  asks for submissions of no more than 500 words, through the medium of Welsh. We welcome contributions to the event in the form of:

  • 20 minutes presentations
  • 45 minutes presentations
  • An individual or a group presentation
  • Posters from individuals or groups
  • Sharing good practice Panels

The deadline for these proposals is midday on Wednesday 27 March 2024.

I would be grateful if you could share this more widely with colleagues who maybe in interested in attending this event. 

If you would like to discuss anything further, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Annette Edwards (aee@aber.ac.uk)  01970 622386

Learned Society of Wales ‘meet and greet’

Tuesday 13th February 2024

12.30 – 1.30pm with hot drinks and Welsh cakes available throughout.

Location: Research Dialogue Hub, Visualisation Centre, Penglais Campus.

Tŷ Trafod Ymchwil | Research Dialogue Hub – The Dialogue Centre (aber.ac.uk)

The Learned Society of Wales would like to invite you and a guest to join us at a drop in ‘meet and greet’ session being held at Aberystwyth University on Tuesday 13th February 2024.

Tea, coffee and light refreshments will be served and you are welcome to join us for as long as you wish between 12.30 and 1.30pm.

You will be able to meet and talk to staff from the Learned Society including Olivia Harrison (CEO) and Helen Willson (Strategic Engagement Manager) as well as our University Representatives at Aberystwyth University – Emeritus Professor Eleri Pryse and Professor Iwan Morus.  We will also be joined by the President of the Learned Society of Wales – Professor Hywel Thomas.

It will be an opportunity for Fellows of the Learned Society to come together and for all those who attend to meet others who are interested in research and its impact in Wales as well as network and find out more about the Learned Society of Wales including its work with Early Career Researchers.

Who is this event for?

  • Current Fellows of the LSW
  • Anyone interested in research in or about Wales and its impact on policy
  • People interested in learning more about becoming a Fellow of the LSW
  • Early Career Researchers who would find benefit from joining an interdisciplinary network to engage with and learn from

You can find out more about the LSW and our work here. This is a drop-in session and there is no obligation to sign up or formally accept this invitation.  However, we would appreciate an indication of numbers so If you know you’ll be coming along or if you would like further information please email us on lsw@wales.ac.uk

Weekly Resource Roundup – 24/1/2024

As leader of our PGCTHE programme, I keep an eye out for resources to help staff teach effectively. These include webinars, podcasts, online toolkits, publications and more. Topics include active learning, online/blended teaching, accessibility/inclusion, and effective learning design based on cognitive science. Below I’ve listed items that came to my attention in the past week. In the interest of clarity, our policy is to show the titles and descriptions in the language of delivery. 

Online events and webinars

January

February

March

  • 11-15/3/2023 Active Learning Network, Global Festival of Active Learning: Back to the future – looking ahead for active learning (Call for proposals open until 26/1/2024)
  • 12-13/3/2024 Jisc, Digifest 2024: Imagining the future of education and research (hybrid in-person in Birmingham and online)

Resources and publications

Resources on Artificial Intelligence

Other resources

Other

  • Monthly series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinars free open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
  • Subscribe to SEDA’s mailing list for email discussions about educational development and emerging teaching practices. This is one of the sources I use when identifying useful material for the Roundup.
  • Follow University of Birmingham’s Higher Education Futures institute HEFi on Twitter for daily posts with links to pedagogical literature and more. This is one of the sources I use when identifying useful material for the Roundup.
  • Join the #LTHEchat on Twitter Wednesday nights for one hour of lively discussion about learning and teaching in HE. I often find out about good resources for the Roundup from the chat.

Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. You may also wish to follow my Twitter feed, Mary Jacob L&T.

Season’s Greetings and a Happy New Year from the Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit

Season’s greetings from all of us at the Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit.

A big congratulations to those of you who completed the Teaching for Postgraduate at AU qualification. Congratulations to PGCTHE participants who attended Graduation back in July as well as those who submitted their final coursework this month. Also, congratulations to those who achieved the Associate, Fellow or Senior Fellowship status through the ARCHE scheme, as well as our Exemplary Course Award Winners.

This year, we’ve really enjoyed working with you on topics such as artificial intelligence (AI), the Supervisory Framework, active learning and other aspects of learning design, and of course, Blackboard Learn Ultra.

Thank you to our external speakers who have joined us over the year, and all of the speakers at this year’s Annual Learning and Teaching Conference in July, which was our biggest one yet. Thanks as well to colleagues from other departments who have run sessions for us and to all of you who have attended.

We hope you have a restful break, and we look forward to seeing you in 2024 – a Happy New Year to you all!

December 2023 Blackboard Learn Ultra Update

This month there are three improvements in Blackboard Learn Ultra that the Learning and Teaching Enhancement Unit would like to highlight for Instructors.

Additional image insertion options

Images enhance comprehension of and engagement with course content. Instructors and students want to use high-quality images in content and submissions. To help with this, a new image button has been added in the content editor in the following places:

  • Announcements
  • Assessment Questions
  • Student answers on questions (local file upload only)
  • Submission feedback (standard view)
  • Journal entries and comments

Image below: Instructor view – image button on content editor for Announcements.

Flexible grading – sorting control on students tab

Grading large numbers of submissions without a way to organize them can be tedious. Now, instructors can apply various sorting options in flexible grading:

  • Submission date (oldest – newest) of latest attempt
  • Submission date (newest – oldest) of latest attempt
  • Last Name (A – Z)
  • Last Name (Z – A)
  • First Name (A – Z)
  • First Name (Z-A)
  • Student ID (ascending)
  • Student ID (descending)

The grading interface stores the most recently used sorting option. If an instructor stops grading an assessment and resumes grading later, the last sorting option is applied.

Also, if sorting the submissions by last name or grading status, the chosen sorting option carries over into the grading interface.

Image below: Sorting options as shown from Students tab in flexible grading.

Group assessment due date exceptions

Instructors may want to set different due dates for each group working on a group assessment.

In the past, there was no way to assign varying due dates for each group working on a group assessment. Now, instructors can assign a unique due date to each group using the exceptions workflow.

On the group assessment Submissions page, the instructor may add or edit exceptions for a group.

Image below: Instructor view – add or edit exceptions option on the group assessment Submissions page.

The Exceptions panel displays relevant information such as the assignment name and selected group name. This helps ensure the accuracy of an exception. Instructors can select a due date for the group using the date and time picker.

Image below: Instructor view – exceptions panel.

Image below: Instructor view – group assessment Submissions page displays the exceptions indicator for Project Group 1.

Upcoming Trace CPD Workshops

Sara Childs will be delivering two workshops over the coming weeks based on the findings of ongoing research on trauma-informed communication. Aberystwyth University is committed to becoming one of Wales’s only two trauma-informed universities along with Wrexham university. We are currently in the self-assessment phase of a two-year project, of which the next phase will identify individual projects for enhancing our trauma-informed approach. In parallel, sessions are being offered to the community which raise awareness of trauma-informed approaches.

The upcoming workshops will provide an opportunity for those engaged in teaching, or roles that involve direct contact with students, to develop their practice to incorporate this ground-breaking research.

Towards a trauma-informed approach – theory and reflective practice Part 1

Date: 5/12/23 15.00-16.00

Location: Hugh Owen E3

Towards a trauma-informed approach – theory and reflective practice Part 2

Date: 12/12/23 14.00-16.00

Location: Hugh Owen E3

Creating Blackboard Tests for Online Exams in Ultra

Test settings have changed in Blackboard Ultra and the arrangements for conducting an exam have also been updated this year.

These are the main changes:

  • Only one random access code may be generated prior to the test. This code is automatically generated in the form of a 6-digit numerical code when you check the ‘Access code required’ option, which will be the case for ALL online in-person Exams using BB tests.
  • Module coordinators will attend the face-to-face examination for their module (for the first 30 minutes). If it is not possible to attend, arrange a substitute. Being physically present for the examination enables the Module coordinators to generate a second access code 30 minutes after the exams starts and to circulate this code with the exam team.
  • Module coordinators can liaise with the exams office via eosstaff@aber.ac.uk prior to exam day to discover which invigilating staff will be in attendance during their exam and collate their names and usernames.

We have prepared new guidance which explains these changes fully: Blackboard Tests for In-person Exams Guide. It’s an idea to set aside enough time to prepare the test and read the new guidance.

Due to these changes, the E-learning team will be offering additional training sessions on ‘Preparing for Online Exams’ on 5 and 11 December. Register for the training on: CPD Staff Training.

There is also an updated FAQ on Blackboard with more information on creating Blackboard tests for online exams. If you require further assistance with your test, the E-learning team are available on Teams Sessions. Contact to elearning@aber.ac.uk to arrange a session.

The E-learning team will be available to check yout test settings before the exam period between 4-20 December 2023. Remember, we are unable to check your test settings without a confirmed date or time.

Contact us if you have any queries regarding Blackboard tests on elearning@aber.ac.uk.

Weekly Resource Roundup – 27/11/2023

As leader of our PGCTHE programme, I keep an eye out for resources to help staff teach effectively. These include webinars, podcasts, online toolkits, publications and more. Topics include active learning, online/blended teaching, accessibility/inclusion, and effective learning design based on cognitive science. Below I’ve listed items that came to my attention in the past week. In the interest of clarity, our policy is to show the titles and descriptions in the language of delivery. 

Online events and webinars

November

December

January

Resources and publications

Resources on Artificial Intelligence

Other resources

Other

  • Monthly series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinars free open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
  • Subscribe to SEDA’s mailing list for email discussions about educational development and emerging teaching practices. This is one of the sources I use when identifying useful material for the Roundup.
  • Follow University of Birmingham’s Higher Education Futures institute HEFi on Twitter for daily posts with links to pedagogical literature and more. This is one of the sources I use when identifying useful material for the Roundup.
  • Join the #LTHEchat on Twitter Wednesday nights for one hour of lively discussion about learning and teaching in HE. I often find out about good resources for the Roundup from the chat.

Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. You may also wish to follow my Twitter feed, Mary Jacob L&T.

Weekly Resource Roundup – 12/10/2023

As leader of our PGCTHE programme, I keep an eye out for resources to help staff teach effectively. These include webinars, podcasts, online toolkits, publications and more. Topics include active learning, online/blended teaching, accessibility/inclusion, and effective learning design based on cognitive science. Below I’ve listed items that came to my attention in the past week. In the interest of clarity, our policy is to show the titles and descriptions in the language of delivery. 

Online events and webinars

October

November

December

Resources and publications

Resources on Artificial Intelligence

Other resources

Other

  • Monthly series European Network for Academic Integrity, ENAI monthly webinars free open webinars on various topics related to academic integrity.
  • Subscribe to SEDA’s mailing list for email discussions about educational development and emerging teaching practices. This is one of the sources I use when identifying useful material for the Roundup.
  • Follow University of Birmingham’s Higher Education Futures institute HEFi on Twitter for daily posts with links to pedagogical literature and more. This is one of the sources I use when identifying useful material for the Roundup.
  • Join the #LTHEchat on Twitter Wednesday nights for one hour of lively discussion about learning and teaching in HE. I often find out about good resources for the Roundup from the chat.

Please see the Staff Training booking page for training offered by the LTEU and other Aberystwyth University staff. I hope you find this weekly resource roundup useful. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our team at lteu@aber.ac.uk. You may also wish to follow my Twitter feed, Mary Jacob L&T.

Important Update on Generative Artificial Intelligence for Staff

The following was sent as an email to all staff from Prof. Tim Woods, Pro Vice-Chancellor Learning, Teaching and Student Experience, on 25th September.

“Dear Colleague

As discussed at the Academic Board on 13th September 2023, the university has decided to turn off the Turnitin AI Detection tool as of 30th September 2023. The decision was based on experience with the tool across the higher education sector, especially statistics that seem to demonstrate a high incidence of false positives and the anxiety that this induces for students.  

Generative AI has already become pervasive. It is becoming increasingly embedded in the tools we provide for staff and students such as Office 365 and Blackboard, as well as tools such as Google that are widely used by the general public. It isn’t feasible to ban the use of these tools, so we need to find ways to help students use Generative AI ethically and effectively for real learning, not cheating.  

The promotion of AI literacy for both staff and students has emerged as a key agenda across the higher education sector. A key principle is for staff to be transparent with students about the rationale behind assessments, how they help students learn, and what staff expect from their students. Students, in turn, should apply critical thinking if they use AI tools and be transparent in their submitted coursework about how and where they used such tools. This includes the use of tools such as Grammarly or Quillbot that may have been recommended for students with specific learning differences, for example. 

Please encourage your students to view the new LibGuide created by the Academic Engagement Team in Information Services: Utilising AI in the Library: A Student’s Guide: What is AI? The AI and Your Studies page in the LibGuide was created by the Gen AI Working Group and features video clips highlighting practical guidance on ethical and effective use of AI. A session on Using AI for Good will be offered on 6th November as part of the Digital Skills Festival.  

Guidance for staff can be found on the LTEU’s workshop materials Generative AIpage, with guidance created by the Gen AI Working Group and links to selected authoritative sources. The staff document will be updated shortly with additional details on how to identify red flags when marking. 

Please see the CPD booking page for upcoming Gen AI training sessions for staff and discussion forums that are open for staff and students together. 

If you have any questions about marking or learning design in connection with AI, please contact the LTEU.  

Best wishes Tim”