{"id":20570,"date":"2024-07-04T15:39:51","date_gmt":"2024-07-04T05:39:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/?p=20570"},"modified":"2024-07-05T19:54:53","modified_gmt":"2024-07-05T09:54:53","slug":"setting-our-students-up-for-success-the-vice-chancellors-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/setting-our-students-up-for-success-the-vice-chancellors-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Setting our students up for success: The Vice-Chancellor&#8217;s Challenge\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At t<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">he University of Sydney <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">we\u2019re<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> committed to providing an exceptional educational experience that prepares our students for success. <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">As you may already know, Sydney has consistently scored <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">quite low on the annual<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.qilt.edu.au\/surveys\/student-experience-survey-(ses)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Student Experience Survey (SES)<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. There are some key areas of our<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0students&#8217; academic journey<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> that\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">we can enhance <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">i<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">n order to<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"auto\">improve <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">their overall experience and outcomes in response to this. As part of the <a href=\"https:\/\/intranet.sydney.edu.au\/news\/all\/2024\/03\/26\/putting-students-at-the-centre-of-our-educational-aspirations.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Vice-Chancellor&#8217;s Challenge<\/a>\u00a0we&#8217;ve created a set of resources that all teachers are encouraged to utilise.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At the beginning of semester<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>This is the perfect time to support students in <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/developing-a-sense-of-belonging\/\">building a sense of belonging<\/a> at Sydney. <strong>A strong sense of belonging is closely associated with positive student ratings<\/strong> on the overall quality of their educational experience.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/transition-one-stage-of-a-journey\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">My journey activity<\/a>\u00a0gives students an opportunity to get to know each other and you, and we&#8217;ve seen this happen successfully in units across Sydney.<\/li>\n<li>Try to learn your students&#8217; names, or help them learn each others&#8217;. With a large cohort this can be a tricky task, but using <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/making-relationship-rich-experiences-the-heart-of-higher-education\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">name tents<\/a> or the Student Relationship Engagement System (SRES) to <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/four-meaningful-ways-to-enhance-student-relationships-and-engagement-with-the-right-data\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">capture students\u2019 own pronunciations of their names<\/a> can help. For more ideas review our suggestions on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/document\/d\/1PbVDygBmTGbUWmuNAZ46oIGEYEbtrIEI20JbOG1FQgY\/edit?usp=sharing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the power of a name<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Around week four or five<\/h2>\n<p>Gathering feedback from students on their perceptions of their progress in the unit can help to identify areas for quick and easy adjustments. Formal mechanisms <a href=\"https:\/\/student-surveys.sydney.edu.au\/staff\/order\/fft\/\">like the FFT-M<\/a> are available to gain feedback at the mid-semester point, but we know some\u00a0<strong>easy and quick ways to find out how your class is doing<\/strong> whenever you feel the need.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/document\/d\/1ek6QkctQjyXWILMdD-g_UvbLuSw2k8U2EIDbE9TqnTQ\/edit?usp=sharing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">minute paper<\/a>\u00a0will gather quick feedback from your students about their learning experience and can take a couple of different forms. Questions could seek to uncover content-related misconceptions or misunderstandings held by students, identify further areas of interest, or ask for feedback on tweaks that could improve class experiences.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Before assessments\/exam periods<\/h2>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Across Sydney <strong>our students are asking for <\/strong><\/span><strong>clearer guidelines and more detailed feedback on assessment tasks<\/strong><span data-contrast=\"auto\">. Larger changes to assessment structure and feedback can be made for the future, but there are also a number of small and easily-made adjustments or additions that will support this goal.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Creating\u00a0multiple choice quizzes (MCQs) with <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/multiple-choice-quizzes-for-learning-part-1\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">immediately-delivered feedback <\/a><\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">on common misconceptions or important concepts<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> will allow students to both practis<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">e the skill of quiz-taking and receive immediate feedback. Generative AI tools such as <a href=\"https:\/\/cogniti.ai\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Cogniti<\/a>\u00a0can be <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/a-fresh-look-at-mcqs-using-cogniti\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">used to create banks of MCQs<\/a> with helpful feedback &#8211; this can save you significant time and energy!<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/running-revision-sessions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Revision sessions<\/a> serve as an opportunity to reinforce key concepts, clarify doubts, enhance understanding, and build a sense of safety for upcoming assessments.<\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\">Spending time in tutorials (or even dedicating an entire tutorial) answering questions about the assessment and discussing what &#8216;good&#8217; looks like with the use of rubrics and exemplars will support confidence-building and a <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/assessment-in-first-year-what-the-evidence-tells-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">clear path to success<\/a>.\u00a0<span data-contrast=\"auto\">Easily-implemented framing interventions support our students in <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/facing-challenges-positively-using-framing-interventions-in-your-class\/\">facing their assessment challenges positively<\/a>. Practice questions (there can never be too many!), sample assessments, and additional resources for difficult topics are always welcomed.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"1\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559683&quot;:0,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/dont-get-lost-using-good-navigation-and-organisation-to-improve-your-canvas-site\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Good navigation and organisation<\/a> in Canvas sites along with consistently-presented instructions given in plain English will support students in finding information quickly and easily, something that is particularly important during periods of time that can be quite stressful.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Other ideas to consider<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Improve clarity.<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<span data-contrast=\"auto\">The simple act of providing clear instructions <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">and being well prepared can have\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">a huge impact<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> on learning. <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Ensure that you and your tutors provide clear explanations about content and are well-prepared for classes. If you are teaching a concept for the first time, test it out on your colleagues first and ask them for feedback if anything is unclear (remembering that your students don\u2019t have your peers\u2019 disciplinary expertise). You can also <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/letting-educators-take-control-of-generative-ai-to-improve-learning-teaching-and-assessment\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">prompt Chat GPT with your explanation<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> as if it were someone with no disciplinary knowledge and then adjust accordingly.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Enhance your teaching team\u2019s responsiveness.\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At the beginning of each semester set expectations around your teaching teams\u2019 availability to answer questions. Make sure you and your team are all on the same page with regards to how you interact with students. Are you using a <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/ill-see-discussion-boards-tips-engaging-students-semester\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">thoughtfully-designed discussion board<\/a>? Do you have physical or virtual office hours? No matter how many FAQs you provide there will always be students who for a whole range of reasons may have missed something, have an additional question, or need unique support.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Enhance course content and delivery.<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Regularly review the volume and pacing of your course content to ensure it is manageable for students.<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">You could<\/span>\u00a0<span data-contrast=\"auto\">consider using polling tools<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> to provide more interactivity and quick feedback in class.<\/span> <span data-contrast=\"auto\">Find out how colleagues across Sydney have <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/hacking-your-lectures-to-make-them-unmissable-wisdom-from-the-crowd\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">hacked their lectures to make them more interactive.<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Promote a supportive and inclusive course environment.<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Review the principles of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/boost-student-engagement-with-a-universal-approach-to-learning-design\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Universal Design for Learning<\/a> to<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/boost-student-engagement-with-a-universal-approach-to-learning-design\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">increase accessibility<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<span data-contrast=\"auto\">create a more <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/three-quick-strategies-to-improve-student-learning-using-universal-design-for-learning\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">supportive and equitable learning experience<\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0Designing for diversity will help you to <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/designing-for-diversity-creating-bridges-and-lowering-barriers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">create bridges and lower barriers<\/a> for all students.<\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Encourage interactive learning and collaboration.<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Implement more <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/interactive-lectures-as-easy-as-m-c-q\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">interactive lecture activities<\/a>, discussions, and live lectures and classes to increase engagement. Discussion boards can be used to <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/innovative-uses-discussion-boards-collaboration-community-engagement\/\">build collaboration and community engagement.\u00a0<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span data-contrast=\"auto\"><strong> Support students\u2019 mental health.<\/strong>\u00a0With a high rate of students reporting mental health concerns and the national cost of living challenges affecting us all, do your best to create a <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/being-human-together\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">supportive and understanding environment<\/a>\u00a0and consider implementing suggestions from a <a href=\"https:\/\/sydney.primo.exlibrisgroup.com\/permalink\/61USYD_INST\/2rsddf\/cdi_informaworld_taylorfrancis_310_1080_13562517_2021_1989580\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pedagogy of care<\/a> in your class.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559738&quot;:120,&quot;335559739&quot;:120}\">Tell me more!<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Read through <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Teaching@Sydney<\/a> for other ideas on creating a great classroom<\/li>\n<li>Reach out to your local educational design team or the <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/about-educational-innovation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Educational Innovation team<\/a> for support<\/li>\n<li>Come along to an <a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/events\/\">event or a workshop<\/a> in an area of particular interest<\/li>\n<li>Enrol in the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/events\/MPLF\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Modular Professional Learning Framework (MPLF)<\/a>\u00a0to level up your teaching ahead of semester two<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At the University of Sydney we\u2019re committed to providing an exceptional educational experience that prepares our students for success. As you may already know,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":20593,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1368,1857,1860,381,57,1859],"tags":[110,86,104,201,97],"coauthors":[499,488],"class_list":["post-20570","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-assessment","category-have-clear-communications-and-expectations","category-offer-meaningful-assessment-feedback-and-academic-integrity-b","category-student-experience","category-teaching-tips","category-use-engaging-approaches-to-content-delivery","tag-assessment","tag-engagement","tag-feedback","tag-student-engagement","tag-teaching","post-item","post-even"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20570","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20570"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20570\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21386,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20570\/revisions\/21386"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20570"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20570"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20570"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educational-innovation.sydney.edu.au\/teaching@sydney\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=20570"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}