Teaching Development Award Application Form 2013/14

Teaching Development Award Application Form 2013/14
Application forms must be submitted electronically to Lynn Balfour, Proctor’s Office
([email protected]) by Friday 13 June 2014
Name of Applicant(s)
Name(s) of Head(s) of School
Date
Dr Antje Brown
Teaching Fellow
Department of Geography & Sustainable Development
[email protected]
Authorised by Head(s)
 Professor Colin Hunter
of School: YES
(Geography &
Sustainable
Development)
 Professor Nicholas
Rengger (International
Relations)
29/5/2014
Project title:
Written Assignments for the Real World: Policy Briefings
One sentence explanation of the project:
This project intends to complement the existing set of written assignments by introducing a
practice-oriented format – policy briefings - thereby to the range of assessment methods and
complementing students’ transferable skills for life after University.
Aims and objectives:


Research, prepare and articulate guidelines for setting, marking and processing policy
briefing assignments.
Ultimately, engage with a wide range of disciplines and foster links between students and
future employers.
Description of the project: (500 words)
This project intends to research and then formulate guidelines for both staff and students on how to
write and assess policy briefings as a written assignment. The idea was borne out of a search for new
avenues of teaching & communication with the aim to encourage students to apply their ‘textbook
knowledge’ to ‘real’ workplace situations and tasks. Having identified this format as a potential
assessment method last year (whilst teaching at Aberdeen University), it became apparent that
there were no guidelines available tailored towards undergraduate module teaching. After
consultation with the Aberdeen Teaching & Learning Committee, it was left to me to develop my
own set of guidelines and advise my honours students accordingly. Having employed this method for
a second year (including this Spring Semester’s IR4552 The Politics of the Environment at St Andrews
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University), feedback from students and colleagues has been very positive. Last year, Aberdeen’s
External Examiner praised the policy briefing format as innovative and effective and I would now like
to explore this assessment tool further with the aim to present a guidance document (possibly
followed up by a seminar presentation) that could be communicated across (and outwith) the
University. As I am already working in a trans-disciplinary environment (Geography and Sustainable
Development) with a strong working link with the School of International Relations, I am keen to
engage with colleagues from a wide range of teaching & research interests representing disciplines
as diverse as history, philosophy, social anthropology, film studies, management and economics.
So far, students have been asked to –
-
Select a policy issue (in the IR4552 case: an environmental issue of their choice);
Choose target recipients for their document;
Explore various visual means to make their documents reader/ practitioner-friendly;
Employ tools such as bullet points, information boxes, appendices, SWOT analyses etc.;
Provide a concise background analysis before presenting an assessment plus workable/
feasible recommendations to consider for their addressees;
Whilst keeping the piece academic and analytical.
To date students submitted excellent policy briefings, these were compiled and written with a lot of
enthusiasm and professionalism. In order to develop this assignment and assessment method
further and spread it across disciplines, I would now like to introduce this tool in a more systematic,
transparent and measurable format. I believe that specific, module-tailored guidelines on how to
compose and present as well as on how to evaluate policy briefings would not only enhance my own
teaching performance, the findings could also be of interest to - and benefit - colleagues and
students across St Andrews University (and elsewhere).
Outline how the project reflects the Proctor’s Priorities:
As a teaching fellow in the Department of Geography & Sustainable Development and having also
taught and coordinated an honours option in the School of International Relations, I am a strong
supporter of inter-disciplinarity and I believe that my project would not only be innovative and
adaptable to several disciplines, it would also foster and enhance students’ employability and
encourage them to think independently, whilst also instilling further confidence and professionalism.
Predicted start and end dates:
1. September 2014 – 4. May 2015
Presentation of project later in the academic year 2014/15 plus follow up report at the end of the
academic year 2014/15.
How will your project contribute to/or improve learning and teaching in the University?
The assignment format of policy briefings could be incorporated in the assessment frameworks of
numerous modules across the University. It could contribute towards students’ transferable skills
and benefit graduates after their studies.
Can the project be replicated across the University? [Please explain how]
While policy briefings may not be compatible with some subjects such as Physics and Chemistry,
they may certainly be attractive for the Humanities and Social Sciences i.e. the study of any
disciplines that may lead to employment with governments, intergovernmental organisations, NGOs,
business organisations and any other stakeholders of society. The guidance document would be
presented in such a way that it would be easily adapted and incorporated into teaching modules
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across the University. I have already consulted with the Directors of Teaching of Geography &
Sustainable Development and IR (who expressed an interest in my project) and I am already
gathering ideas and feedback from colleagues who have been very supportive so far.
How will the project’s success be measured at the end?
Once the findings of the project are presented as short, concise documents (i.e. short template for
module hand-outs plus staff & student explanatory guides) as well as short seminar presentations, I
would ask my audiences for feedback (short online evaluation forms will be provided, collected and
analysed) and survey any applications of policy briefings over the following academic year. I plan to
write up a summary report on the project at the end of the academic year which will be forwarded
to the Proctor’s Office and made accessible for interested parties.
How sustainable is your project in the long-term?
If composed and presented efficiently and successfully, this project could become a complementary
(if not integral) part of the University’s assignment framework.
Dissemination plan
I intend to prepare, produce and distribute the following –
-
-
A policy briefing template for inclusion in module hand-outs offered to staff interested in
adopting and/ or adapting this template. This template would outline the general idea &
objective of a policy briefing assignment and include key criteria for writing a good briefing;
Background information for staff on how to explain the format to students and mark policy
briefings as part of students’ overall module assessments;
Presentation accompanied by a set of powerpoint slides to communicate the assignment
option of policy briefing as an attractive and feasible assessment tool with the aim to
encourage colleagues to adopt this innovative tools explaining the merits as well as
practicalities of writing and marking policy briefings.
Level of funding requested –
Please give a full and accurate breakdown of proposed costs e.g. staff time (hours and rates of pay), travel expenses etc. NB: The
standard rate of pay for an undergraduate intern is £220 per week. If employing research postgraduates this should be costed at the
appropriate hourly rate of pay (e.g. research assistant, tutoring, clerical). Please also give details of part-funding from other sources
(e.g. School budget, external funding) if applicable.
It is the intention to devote 2 hours per week between 1. September 2014 and 4. May 2015 to this
project at a rate of pay of £13.27 (hourly pay for researcher, grade 5, point 23), total: £849.28.
During this time I would like consult with colleagues from across the University and gather data on
similar assignment initiatives. I also plan to consult library sources and the internet and, more
importantly, contact practitioners (e.g. from the Scottish Parliament, NGOs, business organisations)
to gather further information on what practitioners expect from top class policy briefing. I would like
to budget in the sum of £81.22 for travel expenses and other minor expenses. Apart from staff time
and minor expenses resulting from communicating with practitioners, I do not anticipate any other
costs involved in completing this project. No other (external) funding will be sought on this occasion.
Funding requested in total: £930.50
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