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Annual Report: Developing Research Capacity at UWS, Report on Structured Writers' Retreats (2013)

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Page 1: Annual Report: Developing Research Capacity at UWS, Report on Structured Writers' Retreats (2013)

Developing research capacity at UWS

Report on Structured Writers’ Retreats

January-December 2013

Professor Rowena Murray

Dr Larissa Kempenaar

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Executive Summary

One way of effectively increasing research capacity, activity and outputs as aimed for in the

University’s Strategic Plan 2008-2015 and Research Strategy 2011-2015 is by means of

Structured Writing Retreats (SWR). SWR provide time away from other academic duties and

allow staff and post graduate students to focus on progression in a range of academic writing

projects and the production of a range of written outputs, such as PhD chapters; books;

conference abstracts; journal articles and research proposals.

A total of 9 retreats took place in 2013 with an average of 12 participants per retreat. Thirty-

seven academics and students from UWS attended of whom 10 attended more than one

retreat. In addition 30 academics and students from other Universities and institutions took

part.

The majority of participants worked towards completion of their thesis, while many participants

worked on journal publications. Furthermore participants reported the acquisition of skills

regarding the process and structuring of writing which were viewed as enhancing research

thinking and were seen as transferable skills to their work environment. They also reported the

advantage of disconnecting from social media and the demands of home and work life during

the retreats. Finally, participants described the formation of peer support networks which have

led to the development of writing groups and a more positive research culture on campus.

Those who attended more than one retreat described how these benefits were enhanced by

repeated attendance at the writing retreats.

The findings of this evaluation support Structured Writing Retreats as an effective way of

achieving the University’s Strategic Plan and Research Strategy, while enhancing the post

graduate student experience. For these reasons, these retreats should be embedded in our

research strategy. This would not only send a signal internally that research activity is valued

and supported, but also externally that UWS is committed to both research capacity

development and growing research identity.

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Contents

Executive Summary ..........................................................................................................................2

Introduction: The purpose and function of structured writing retreats ..........................................4

Attendance .......................................................................................................................................6

Outputs .............................................................................................................................................7

Outcomes .........................................................................................................................................9

Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 12

References ..................................................................................................................................... 14

List of participants ......................................................................................................................... 15

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Introduction: The purpose and function of structured writing retreats

The University of the West of Scotland “aims to become an academic institution with a

significant profile and reputation for national and international excellence in applied research in

strategically important academic areas. The University aims to do this by concentrating and

building on our current research strengths and increasing the volume of our internationally

excellent research outputs by 2015.” (Looking forward, Strategic Plan 2008-2015)

One way of effectively facilitating research capacity, activity and outputs is by means of

Structured Writing Retreats (SWR). SWR provide time away from other academic duties and

allow staff and post graduate students to focus on progression in a range of academic writing

projects and the production of a range of written outputs, typically PhD chapters; books;

conference abstracts; journal articles and research proposals.

Structured writing retreats are two and a half day, residential retreats which take place in a

secluded location near Glasgow. Participants bring information and sources they need on

memory sticks or loaded onto laptops. Participants write at computer desks, arranged in a

boardroom format. Meals and snacks are provided.

The structure and concepts behind the writing retreats have been published previously by

Murray and Newton (2009). The retreats all include three evidence based elements:

1. The ‘typing pool’ which means that all participants write individually but are situated in the

same room for the duration of the retreat (Grant & Knowles 2000).

2. The use of a series of strict writing and discussion slots. The structured nature of the retreat is

based on a systematic review by McGrail et al (2006) who concluded that structured

interventions were found most effective in developing academic writing. Within the structured

writing sessions ‘free-writing’, i.e. personal writing for short periods, is used at the start of each

session which Elbow (1973) found to stimulate the development of ideas and the improvement

of fluency.

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3. The use of peer discussion to review progress during the retreat (Murray 2005). This was

possible as all participants were writing in the same room. This sharing of experiences in relation

to writing, in turn, facilitates the development of a community of practice for academic writing

at UWS following on from the retreats.

This evaluation reports on research outputs from nine retreats at the University of the West of

Scotland (UWS) in 2013 and identifies outcomes and benefits for participants. This report makes

the case for regular attendance at retreats for those who aspire to develop and/or increase their

research activity, those aiming to increase productivity in research and writing and those who

want to generate new research collaborations in accordance with the University’s Research and

Knowledge Exchange Strategy 2011-2015.

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Attendance

Nine structured writing retreats took place in 2013. A total of 109 participants attended the

retreats. Each retreat had between 8 to 15 participants with an average of 12 participants per

retreat. The 109 participants comprised 67 different individuals. Thirty-seven academics and

students from UWS attended one or more retreats in January, February, April (2), May, October,

November (2) and December (see figure 1). Fifty-seven participants attended one retreat, while

10 participants attended more than one retreat. The majority of participants came from the

departments of Education (n=17, 46%) and Nursing (n=11, 30%). Other departments

represented included Business, Creative and Cultural Industries, Science and Social Science.

Figure 1. Breakdown of participants from UWS

In addition, 30 students and academics from other institutions across the UK attended the

structured writing retreats. Participants came from Scottish and English Universities, a college

and the NHS. Twenty participants attended the retreat a single time, while 10 participants

attended more than once. The largest number of participants external to UWS came from

Strathclyde University (n=11) and the Scottish Rural College (n=5) (see page 15 for a more

detailed breakdown).

Business 3%

Creative and Cultural

Industries 5%

Education 46%

Nursing 30%

Science 13%

Social Science 3%

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Outputs

At the end of each retreat participants reported on their output in terms of the writing project

they had been working on and the progress they had made with it (see tables 1 and 2). While

many participants only wrote on one project, such as a thesis or journal article, many

participants worked on multiple projects during the retreats.

Of the 109 attendances at the retreats, on 71 occasions participants focused on completion of

their thesis. While most of these participants (n=38) wrote new chapters in the thesis, many also

edited work previously written. In addition, participants wrote preparatory work for the thesis,

including proposals and reflective pieces, and sections such as the reference list. Approximately

one third of participants (n=37) used the time at the retreats to progress their work on journal

articles. Most of these participants produced new drafts of articles (n=21), while in eight

occasions participants edited their work and in 5occasions participants revised previously

submitted articles. The two other main outputs were contributions to papers and abstracts for

conferences (n=20) and book chapters (n=15).

Contribution to: N

PhD 71

Newly drafted 38

Editing of previously written work

17

Tables/Figures/References 5

Preparatory work 10

Journal article 37

Newly drafted 21

Editing of previously written work

8

Revisions of submitted articles 5

Preparatory work 3

Conferences materials 20

Book chapters 15

Table 1. Main outputs

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In addition, participants wrote sections for various other projects. This included reports, research proposals and grant applications. See table 2 below for more detail.

Contribution to: N

Reports 9

Research proposals 7

Grant applications 6

Post graduate assignments 5

Ethics applications 4

Teaching preparation 4

Book/article review 3

Memos 2

Book proposal 1

Cover letters for book and

paper

1

Letter to reviewer comments 1

Read difficult paper 1

Devised questionnaire 1

Prize application 1

Table 2. Additional outputs

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Outcomes

At the end of each retreat participants were asked to describe the impact of attending the

retreat. A number of themes emerged from these descriptions.

The first theme was related to participants’ learning in relation to the development of the

process and skills required to write productively. The main aspect of learning which was raised

by many participants was the importance of ‘paced writing’. This included the discussion and

planning of writing with other participants and in writing, for each time period of writing, and

the use of regular breaks.

“I have never written goals and targets for my writing before – we have done this on

campus orally – but very useful to do that in writing.”

“Imposed stopping is important for productivity. If I sat down to write, I would sit for

longer, but I am more productive here. It’s easier to keep going if you stop regularly.”

For many this was a new way of working and it appeared to help some participants overcome

their fears about writing while increasing their confidence and productivity.

“It makes getting started with writing task less intimidating.”

“It shows you what’s possible. When I arrived I didn’t know what to expect, but now I

know how to make this work.”

The increased productivity provided many with a sense of achievement which acted as a

motivator to continue writing after the retreat. During the retreats the structure was facilitated

by the leader who would provide the external enforcement of the pacing. However, several

participants talked about the transfer of the learning by using the skills acquired to their

individual settings in terms of pacing their writing and using breaks effectively.

“I use the model at home. I work to this pattern. “

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The second aspect of this theme was that the structure appeared to provide participants with an

increase in the quality of concentration and thinking. Some described this as having ‘epiphanies’

or turning points in research thinking. This was in particular for those who attended the writing

retreats regularly.

A second theme was related to the setting in which the writing retreat took place and how this

was conducive to writing productivity. Many participants positively spoke about disconnecting

from their normal lives at the retreats, in terms of not having access to the internet to access

social media, being away from the daily responsibilities of family life and being away from

competing responsibilities at work. One participant described that this disconnecting provided

them with ‘head space’. In addition, participants talked about the writing retreats as being

‘cared for’. Participants felt they could concentrate on the task at hand as they felt looked after

in terms of a relaxed space and the provision of food. This made participants feel nurtured and

added to the sense of legitimizing the focus and time directed at writing.

“Relief: absolute relief. No guilt about not communicating with your work. To come away

for a weekend … work is constantly on your mind, you head’s full of it. You plan not to

answer emails at the weekend, but you always do. But not here. Less feeling of

inadequacy. Great feeling in the evening that I’ve done enough, so I do take a break. Also

morning and afternoon breaks and breaks for lunch – good to switch off, quickly,

because you know you’ll be going back to it. It’s a positive structure. It’s head space.”

The final theme in the feedback was the element of peer support which took place during the

retreats. Peer support was facilitated during the structured part of the retreat by discussion of

participants work at the beginning and end of writing sessions, but also during the unstructured

parts of the retreat as participants socialized during breaks, meals and in the evenings.

Participants talked about the benefits of sharing the challenges of writing, for example when

facing the challenge of completing PhDs. However, participants also appreciated the mixed

backgrounds of participants in terms of different Universities, disciplines, levels of seniority,

experience and the different stages participants were at in terms of completion of their work.

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This is particularly important for early career researchers, doctoral students and UWS staff on

Masters or doctoral courses.

“For PhD students, it’s nice to know that people in more senior positions are human, that

they face the same problems as us with writing and research. Good to be able to bounce

ideas off more experienced people.”

“good to be together with people from other institutions and other disciplines. People

facing similar challenges of writing a thesis or publications. Also good to celebrate

publication successes and PhD completions.”

The nature of peer support was that of ‘non-surveillance’, providing participants with a safe

place to discuss their ideas, and opportunities to receive and give feedback.

“There’s something liberating – you say it’s ‘non-surveillance’ – if you are blocked.

Although it’s very structured, no one is going to read this. This is for me, and that is very

freeing and lets me write”

The positive experience of peer support has resulted in the new writers’ group initiated and run

by PhD students from UWS, Glasgow and Strathclyde. This supports the development of a

community of practice as staff and students transfer the positive culture developed at the

writing retreats to an on-campus setting and sustains research collaborations and networks

developed during the retreats.

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Conclusion

This evaluation has demonstrated that Structured Writing Retreats support the University’s

vision by providing the supportive environment where research and knowledge exchange can

take place across a range of departments and subject disciplines. Both staff and students who

attended the retreats described how they developed their writing skills and improved their

research outputs. These findings are in agreement with existing evidence that these retreats

develop research identities and cultures (MacLeod et al., 2012; Murray, 2012; Murray &

Newton, 2009; Murray et al. 2012).

The development of a community of practice based on peer support to increase research

outputs clearly supports UWS’s strategic objective to “enhance the academic environment by

embedding research/KE in all academic staff workloads and objectives, with the clear

expectation that they will actively engage in producing quality, research and/or KE outputs”

(Research and Knowledge Exchange Strategy, 2011 - 2015). In addition the Structured Writing

Retreats support the University in its strategic objective to “increase the number of staff, and

the quality of outputs, submitted to national research benchmarking exercises (e.g. REF2014)

through developing current staff”.

As the University aims to increase its external research funding by 50%, it is of the utmost

importance to facilitate the completion of its current research projects and PhDs, and, in terms

of knowledge transfer, publication of their findings in journals and at conferences (Looking

Forward, Strategic Plan 2008-2015).

The positive findings of this evaluation also fit with the enhanced focus on Researcher

Development in the Post Graduate Student Experience Survey (PRES). The retreats have given

students the opportunity to develop several skills included in the PRES under Research Skills,

while also giving them the opportunity to develop elements of Professional Development, e.g.

developing contacts or professional networks.

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Evidence that participation at writing retreats has benefit for PhD students is provided in my

forthcoming chapter in Writing Groups for Doctoral Education and Beyond: Innovations in

Theory and Practice (Murray, 2013).

The effects of the retreats are currently consolidated by various writing groups, workshops and

micro-groups meeting on campus and in other settings set up by staff and students who

attended retreats during this period. However, in order to sustain these outputs and outcomes,

participation at retreat should not be a one-off; instead, regular attendance at structured

writing retreats is recommended to develop research capacity and grow research cultures. At a

cost of £170 per person per retreat this would provide a good return on the UWS investment.

For these reasons, these retreats should be embedded in our research strategy. This would not

only send a signal internally that research activity is valued and supported, but also externally

that UWS is committed to both research capacity development and growing research identity.

In conclusion, this evaluation has shown that a research culture is developing at UWS, by means

of participation in structured writing retreats. This form of retreat is therefore a mechanism for

developing research cultures at UWS. As a participant in a British Academy-funded study

(Murray and Newton 2009: 551) of structured writing retreat put it:

‘If I had 3 or 4 retreats a year I would never ask for study leave’.

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References

MacLeod I, Steckley L & Murray R (2012) Time is not enough: Promoting strategic engagement

with writing for publication, Studies in Higher Education, 37(6): 641-654. DOI:

10.1080/03075079.2010.527934.

Murray R (2012) Developing a community of research practice, British Educational Research

Journal, 38(5): 783-800. DOI: 10.1080/01411926.2011.583635.

Murray, R (2013) Doctoral students create new spaces to write in C Aitchison and Guerin, C (Eds)

Writing groups for doctoral education and beyond: Innovations in theory and practice. London:

Routledge.

Murray R & Newton M (2009) Writing retreat as structured intervention: Margin or

mainstream?, Higher Education Research and Development, 28(5): 527-39.

Murray R, Steckley L & MacLeod I (2012) Research leadership in writing for publication: A

theoretical framework, British Educational Research Journal, 38(5): 765-781. DOI:

10.1080/01411926.2011.580049.

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List of participants

UWS

Total number of participants from UWS: 37

Department N Participants (number of repeat attendances)

Business 1 Thandiwe Mtetwa

Creative and Cultural Industries

2 Kenneth Forbes, Jennifer Jones

Education 17 Gordon Asher, Stuart Caulfield, Annette Coburn (2), Beth Cross, Jeannie Daniels, Susan Henderson (3), Lisa McAuliffe, Dermuid McAuliffe, Alison McEntee (2), Sandra McKechan, Rowena Murray (9), Johanne Miller (3), Kate Miller, Catherine Miller (2), Khadija Mohammed, Nighet Riaz, Gillian Thomson

Nursing 11 Nan Bryden, Carol Dickie (2), Fiona Everett, Louise Johnston, Fiona Lundie, Teresa Macintosh, Elizabeth Maitland, Lisa McNay, Fiona Millar, Barbara O’Donnell, Wendy Wright

Science 5 David Child, Angela Beggan, Laura Graham (2), Fiona Hay (3), Hayley McEwan (3)

Social Science 1 Maria Feeney

Total 37

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Externals

Total number of participants external to UWS: 30

Institution N Participants (number of repeat attendances)

Glasgow Caledonian University

2 Kirstin James, Morag Thow (2)

Glasgow University 3 Caroline Findlay, Renato Margiotta, Anna Beck

Greenwich University 1 Joyce King (2)

Huddersfield University 1 Janet Ho

Lancaster University 2 Magnus George, Helena Kettleborough (3)

NHS 1 Caroline Findlay

Queen Margaret University 2 Louise Cotton (2), Roni Bamber

Plymouth University 1 Kassandra Clemens

Scottish Rural College 5 Andrew Brownlow, Carla Gomes, Madeleine Hendry, Selene Huntley, Sue Tongue

Stirling University 1 Maureen Michael

Strathclyde University 10 Matthew Alexander, Sufri Ali, Morag Findlay (4), Kathy Hamilton (3), Marie-Jeanne McNaughton, Karena Moore (3), Helen Mullen, Andrea Tonner (3), Beverly Wagner (2), Mary Welsh (6)

York St John University 1 Liviana Ferrari