Why this session?

Evaluating to understand if our teaching is effective is fundamental to monitoring and improving teaching and student experience. It is also increasingly important for supporting claims of teaching excellence for education-based promotion, recognition, awards and in pedagogic scholarship. Yet many colleagues find how to evidence effectiveness difficult and are not familiar with the range of types and sources of evidence we can draw on. The aim of this introductory session is to share and discuss formal and informal strategies for collecting, analysing and reporting the evidence about teaching and learning effectiveness for a range of purposes. 

What the session covers

This session introduces participants to the basic principles of evaluation in education settings. This can be evaluation of ongoing teaching as well as of new or one-off student experience enhancement initiatives and interventions. 

Designed for those new to evaluation in education settings or those wanting to strengthen their education portfolio, this session will outline how to plan evaluation, the types of evidence that can be collected and the ways to analyse, interpret and present data for a range of different purposes including for promotion, recognition, awards and in pedagogic research. 

This session will be of particular value to those who are making applications for Advance HE recognition through SHINE, have been nominated for Educational Excellence Awards or those interested in future National Teaching Fellowship nominations. The session may also be of value for those planning to undertake a new intervention or change in their teaching practice or course/module design.

Intended Learning Outcomes 

By the end of this session, you should be able to: 

• design and implement an evaluation plan for investigating the impact of teaching practice or a student experience enhancement activity 

• select and justify different evidence-gathering methods used to evaluate practice 

• analyse and present evidence as an outcome of an evaluation of teaching 

Pre-session reading

Smith, D. and Hubbard, K. (2023) ‘A beginner’s guide to evidencing your teaching practice’, The Biochemist, 45(2), pp.6-10. Available at: https://portlandpress.com/biochemist/article/45/2/6/232780/A-beginner-s-guide-to-evidencing-your-teaching  

Alignment with PSF 2023 

This session helps develop practice in relation to these areas of the PSF: 

• Use scholarship, or research, or professional learning, or other evidence-informed approaches as a basis for effective practice (V3) 

• Requirements for quality assurance and enhancement, and their implications for practice (K5) 

Presenter

Dr Saranne Weller 

Reader in Higher Education Practice and Development