The ACDS Teaching and Learning CentreLiz Johnson

OLT National Teaching Fellow

Support for this activity has been provided by the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching. The views expressed in this presentation do not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching.

In the talk…The role of the ACDS TL Centre

Construction of the ACDS Centre

Priorities for the ACDS Centre

Exemplars don’t work?• Henderson (2011): Review of 191 papers 1995-2008 promoting

instructional change

1. Evidence base for successful change is weak

“research communities that study and enact change are largely isolated from one-another”

2. Change requires long-term engagement of participating educators in a project recognizing complex nature of higher education

“Two commonly used change strategies are clearly not effective: developing and testing ‘‘best practice’’ curricular materials and then making these materials available to other faculty and ‘‘top-down’’ policy-making meant to influence instructional practices.”

Align the learning context:complementary roles

Teacher Student

TaughtCurriculum

Institution

PeersDisciplinary AssociationsInstitutionsHE SpecialistsHE Research

Regulators FundingProfessional accreditationUniversity groups

The role of the ACDS TL Centre

• Build a picture of good practice in learning and teaching in science and mathematics

• Provide condensed authoritative advice to Faculties of Science: evidence-based practice

• Develop advice for regulatory, funding and policy bodies

• Build and support links amongst science and maths education leaders

DISTILLATION

AUTHORITY

INFLUENCE

ENGAGEMENT

ACDS Teaching & Learning Centre

Centre website

TL meetings

Projects

ADTLsACDS members

Science TL leaders

The Hub for Science TeachingBring separated disciplines together

Accrediting societies 7

Resources and education events 21

Resources 12

Science Education networks 5+

Translation to practice

A hunger for consolidated and authoritative information…

ResourcesEvaluated good practicePractice/ideas exchangeInfo: funding, conferenceEvaluating

ActionsLink networks/disciplinesVoice & vision for SciFundingEndorsementCareers/mentoring

People & organizationCollege of experts?

CharacterX –disciplinaryConnected, sustainable

ACDS TL Centre OperationACDS

ACDS Executive

ACDS TL CentreCentre Director

Communications Officer

ADTL network ACDS TL Conference ADTL Professional

Development Workshops

Science & Maths educators Information hub Practice exchange 

ACDS TL project teams ACDS Position papers National Statements/

Reports on Learning and Teaching in Science and mathematics

Distributed leadership

Facilitation,Progression

Authority, whole-of-

sector

Testing the model: 2013• Participation: newsletter, meetings• ACDS TL Centre Website• Projects: ACDS TLO project• Meetings

• ACDS TL Conference• Discipline Network Roundtable • Project Workshops• ACSME

Centre website

TL meetings

Projects

ADTLsACDS members

Science TL leaders

Website: www.acds.edu.au/tlcentre

Centre Projects: Information, outcomes

Resources: ACDS reports& statements Useful links

Networks: Science

Education, ADTL

News: meetings, projects,

publications, ideas

Science TL CalendarIdeas exchange

Projects: ACDS TLO ProjectObjectives: • Advice on using the national Science Threshold Learning

Outcomes (Science TLOs) in course design • Forward planning for sector-wide uptake

Action:• Advancing the TLOs workshop, Feb 2013• ACDS response to HESP draft standards• Advice for Faculties in preparation• Dissemination:

• Discipline draft TLO statements• TLO good practice guides

Meetings• Develop collective view• Disseminate information• Initiate and progress projects• Build on existing meetings

ACDS TL Conference• ADTLs, TL leaders

Workshops• Specific purpose: TLO workshop, Discipline Network Roundtable;

ACDE/ACDS joint meeting• Professional development?

ACSME• Broad audience of science and mathematics educators

Working collaborativelyScience Discipline Networks• Project funding by OLT (mostly)• Focus on:

• translation to discipline• Educator practice

ACDS TL Centre• Cross-disciplinary links• Focus on

• curriculum leadership• institutional context for learning

SaMnet

Physics Education Network

Where to next?• October 2013: ACDS AGM approved

funding

• Consolidate collaboration : education networks, TL project leaders, OLT

• Expand active membership to TL leaders• ADTL Bootcamp• Teaching associates (sessional teaching)

Thanks to…Prof John Rice

Prof Russell Crawford & the ACDS Executive

A/Prof Manju Sharma & the SaMnet team

Generous participants: ADTLs, TL leaders, and colleagues

Support for this activity has been provided by the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching. The views expressed in this presentation do not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Government Office for Learning and Teaching.

Developing the model

National Conferences(ACDS TL conference, ACDS AGM, ACSME, HERDSA)

7

ADTL/institutional leader interviews 10

State-based/discipline workshop 12

Institutional presentations 4

Priorities for the ACDS TL Centre

Recurring themes…issues for Science and Mathematical SciencesCurriculum: learning modes, outcomes, role of HE

Students: underpreparation, large classes

Staff: PD, cultural change

Authoritative advice: executive summary/ explanations, pedagogies, PD for staffTools: exchange, toolkit, benchmarking, evaluationNetworking/ sector information: News, events

Recurring themes…valuable information