Teaching and Learning Plan
Policy and Procedures
Preamble
James Cook University is committed to quality and the development of excellence in all of its core practices:
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research and research training,
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teaching and learning,
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community relations, and
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university management.
James Cook University is also committed to quality assurance and for these four categories of practice quality assurance is described in the JCU Performance Portfolio prepared for its 2004 Quality Audit. The focus of this policy is the quality of teaching and learning and in particular the commitment to the generation of evidence to support ongoing improvement and to justify claims about teaching and learning. The approach to quality assurance we take is aimed primarily at continuous quality enhancement achieved through a self-critical and self-reflective attitude disciplined by attention to the goals of the University and to evidence about practice.
Commitment to Learning and Teaching
The commitment to quality in teaching and learning at James Cook University is expressed in the University’s Statement of Strategic Intent:
We will focuse our energies on advancing northern Queensland and northern Australia, while looking for our work to benefit the tropics world-wide.
We will work with business, industry, government and the community to create lasting intellectual, cultural, social, health, environmental and economic benefits for our region and beyond.
We will produce graduates with the expertise and intellectual curiosity required for sustainable development of our communities, and we will conduct research to provide the knowledge and understanding needed to meet the challenges facing northern Australia and the tropics world-wide.
We will embrace the communities we serve and engage with them at all levels, sharing a sense of pride in the University’s achievements.
The Strategic Intent of the University expresses the commitment to quality and to quality assurance practices linked to the highest of aspirations, to critical self-assessment and to ongoing improvement:
A Commitment to Excellence
We believe that the pursuit of excellence is a good in itself, and that we should judge all of our activities against the highest ethical and intellectual standards.
Providing Service to Students
The University will constantly seek to improve the service it provides for its students, so that they may reach their full potential in a supportive and student-centred learning environment.
Critical Assessment of Our Performance
Critical assessment of performance against clear intentions and aspirations will be a feature of all aspects of our affairs.
Qualities Fostered
One way of describing the overall purposes of University education is in terms of the attributes to be developed in students, the qualities expected of teaching programs, and the qualities of academic staff.
Graduate Attributes
The graduate attributes to be developed in students are shown in the policies entitled ‘Graduate Attributes - Undergraduate’ and ‘Graduate Attributes - Postgraduate’.
Qualities of Teaching Programs
The commitment of James Cook University to develop certain graduate attributes in graduates means that teaching programs, that is, courses, subjects and deliberately clustered or sequenced parts of courses and other learning activities should be designed so that students are able to:
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identify the skills, understandings and values they are acquiring in particular learning tasks, subjects and courses
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recognise that different kinds of skills, understandings and values require different learning strategies
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understand how each learning task relates to their own learning needs and styles
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participate in designing strategies to enhance their own learning
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participate in the negotiation and planning of their learning and accept responsibility for outcomes
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recognise particular learning needs and know where to seek additional help
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believe that they are capable of success
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discuss, apply, reflect on and evaluate their learning
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contribute to the development of new knowledge and understandings
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develop skills in accessing and using appropriate learning resources
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receive adequate guidance, support and feedback on their acquisition of skills, understandings and values
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interact and form positive and educative relationships with peers and teachers
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accept that others have different learning needs and styles and need different kinds of support
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feel secure in their learning environment and be prepared to experiment and take risks in developing creative responses
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enjoy the experience of learning and setting and achieving learning goals
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experience physical and cultural security
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enjoy and benefit from sustained participation in campus life or benefit from interactions through the use of technology.
Qualities of Academic Teachers
Quality teaching is a professional responsibility of academics. Professionalism in teaching encompasses possession of a conceptual basis for practice, the skills involved in design, delivery and evaluation of courses, and certain values. Professional academic teachers should:
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be active scholars and researchers knowledgeable in the disciplines they teach
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be knowledgeable about contemporary teaching practice in the disciplines they teach
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possess a personal philosophy of teaching and be able to identify the assumptions which underpin their approaches to curriculum design, delivery and assessment
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be willing and able to innovate and to evaluate their teaching through critical self and peer appraisal and feedback from students and other sources
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design learning experiences, subjects and courses which are relevant to learner needs and consistent with rigorous expectations within the discipline
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design learning experiences, subjects and courses which develop defined graduate attributes in students
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use a range of teaching, curriculum and organisational strategies that cater for diverse student needs and build upon students’ diverse prior experience
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use assessment procedures that are diverse, appropriate, equitable, and rigorous, and which encourage deep approaches to learning
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function comfortably in an internationalised educational environment and communicate effectively across cultures
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support a high degree of student autonomy and encourage in students the capacity for cooperative work and for self-assessment of progress
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communicate clearly, orally, in writing, and in other communications media in ways that are appropriate to the diversity of students
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demonstrate a commitment to principles of equity and tolerance in their interactions with students, peers, support staff and the wider community
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engage in continuous professional development in teaching and demonstrate a commitment to continuing improvement leading to changes in practice
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participate in the scholarship of teaching by exchanging and documenting ideas in professional forums, engaging in peer review of teaching, developing educational materials for use inside and outside the University, participating in educational research with others involved in research into teaching and learning and publish in appropriate proceedings and journals
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engage in activities that promote the image and substance of the University as an institution that values and supports teaching
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build links between their disciplinary research and the curriculum and ensure that the curriculum adequately reflects the substantive and methodological agreements and debates and the ways in which these are engaged in research and practice in their discipline.
The University recognises that all university teachers will not be able to demonstrate all of these qualities early in their careers. Some teachers will not even be aspiring to university careers, they may be engaged in sessional teaching or part-time teaching because of their close links with industry or the profession. For this reason, the qualities should be seen as a developmental trajectory which most university teachers will traverse in the early parts of their career.
The University also committed itself in1994 to the Guidelines for Effective University Teaching established by the Australian Universities Vice Chancellors Committee from which these qualities are distilled and developed.
Key Objectives and Strategies
The following objectives expand on the overall goals for teaching and learning. Each objective is followed by a series of strategies describing how the University will seek to achieve the objective.
OBJECTIVE 1: To provide quality learning experiences for students in all teaching and learning and learning support activities.
Strategy 1: Ensure that students are taught by active scholars, researchers, professionals and skilled teachers.
Strategy 2: Involve active scholars, researchers and professionals in curriculum development, course review and benchmarking.
Strategy 3: Produce learning resources that meet nationally accredited or publishable standards.
Strategy 4: Require staff participation in induction on appointment and encourage regular teaching development workshop attendance.
Strategy 5: Benchmark knowledge, skills, values and practices of learning support staff against Australian university best practice.
OBJECTIVE 2: To cultivate James Cook University graduate attributes in all students.
Strategy 1: Specify the graduate attributes to be emphasised in each subject and cultivated in each course during Course Approval.
Strategy 2: Monitor the documentation of graduate attribute objectives in Subject Outlines.
Strategy 3: Include CEQ generic skill attainment in teaching performance formula.
Strategy 4: Teach the specification and assessment of graduate attributes in induction, GCTT and teaching and learning development workshops.
OBJECTIVE 3: To provide a positive and supportive learning environment for students from all cultural and experiential backgrounds.
Strategy 1: Actively promote inclusive practices in teaching and learning, organisation and administration, curriculum materials and all University publications and media.
Strategy 2: Provide support services to ensure continued participation by diverse groups.
Strategy 3: Make complaint and appeal procedures widely known and understood by staff and students.
Strategy 4: Attend explicitly to concerns expressed by students, for example, in student feedback surveys.
OBJECTIVE 4: To provide an appropriately wide range of courses and modes of delivery that build upon particular strengths and meet the needs of students.
Strategy 1: Actively support and reward research, scholarship, research and professional activities that inform teaching and curriculum development.
Strategy 2: Support course development that is linked to research, scholarly and professional activity of teaching staff.
Strategy 3: Create and utilise opportunities for feedback about courses from the community, disciplines and the professions.
OBJECTIVE 5: To assure the quality of the educational experiences of students.
Strategy 1: Ensure teaching, flexible learning and curriculum development practices are informed by best practice in the field and by feedback from students and peers.
Strategy 2: Explicitly recognise good teaching, flexible learning and curriculum development practices in appointment, promotion and university awards for excellence.
Strategy 3: Require use of systematic student feedback as evidence in appointment, probation and promotion.
Strategy 4: Specify the educational criteria that must be met for course and subject approval and as part of regular course reviews.
Strategy 5: Systematically monitor student feedback about subjects and teaching in PMP and at School, Faculty and corporate level.
OBJECTIVE 6: To enhance employment opportunities for students by teaching relevant workplace skills, values and understanding.
Strategy 1: Consult with and involve employers and professional bodies in course development and course review.
Strategy 2: Monitor graduate destinations and adjust student load toward areas of significant demand.
Strategy 3: Specifically include work related generic skills in the curriculum and include work experience where this is appropriate.
OBJECTIVE 7: To enhance opportunities for students to continue or resume studies in honours, postgraduate coursework and research degrees in all discipline areas.
Strategy 1: Provide opportunities for undergraduate students to participate in original research, scholarship, and creative activities as an integral part of the learning process.
Strategy 2: Require active research and scholarship of all key teachers involved in undergraduate teaching.
Strategy 3: Include the research activities of key research staff in the curriculum.
OBJECTIVE 8: To support quality teaching and professionalism.
Strategy 1: Encourage teaching staff to undertake formal qualifications in university teaching (for example, the Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching) and continue informal professional development in teaching (for example, workshops in on-line delivery development).
Strategy 2: Recognise accomplishment and innovation in flexible learning and curriculum development practices in appointment confirmation, promotion and university awards for excellence.
Strategy 3: Provide systematic feedback from students to staff each time a subject is offered.
Strategy 4: Provide systematic feedback from students to staff about their teaching at least once per year.
Strategy 5: Manage the quality of teaching and learning at PMP, HoS, E-D and corporate levels.
OBJECTIVE 9: To internationalise pedagogy, curriculum and the learning support environment for local and international students.
Strategy 1: Include international content in the curriculum wherever it is educationally possible and desirable to do so.
Strategy 2: Conduct staff development training to enhance administrative, pedagogical, curriculum and support practices for international students.
Strategy 3: Seek specific feedback from international students to ensure that their educational experiences are in keeping with their expectations and university aspirations.
Strategy 4: Provide opportunities and support for Australian students to gain international experience during their studies.
Implementation of the Teaching and Learning Plan: Responsibilities
The integration and coordination of the work of the executive management structure and the collegial management structure of the University is fundamental to the management of teaching and learning. The relationships between these structures also describe the cycles of planning, action, observation, reflection and revised plans that underpin quality assurance.
The responsibilities in teaching and learning of key organisational units can be summarised as follows:
Academic Board
The Academic Board is the key academic policy body of the University, established by the James Cook University Act and reporting directly to the James Cook University Council. It is responsible to the University and its community for all matters of academic quality.
The key features of Academic Board work in quality assurance for teaching and learning are:
Establishing the criteria for course and subject approval
Monitoring the quality of subjects and teaching using a range of performance indicators
Course Reviews on a five year cycle
Requirements for new and revised subjects
Requirements for course proposals
Monitoring by Performance Indicators for Learning and Teaching
Guidelines for Effective University Teaching
Evaluation of Teaching Framework
Academic Promotion Criteria:
- Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Associate Professor/Reader
Faculties
Through the Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor, the Faculties are responsible directly to the Academic Board for the traditional academic discipline quality control over courses, examinations, and admission standards. The Schools are the locus of quality control over curriculum and teaching practices, and report to the Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor directly and also collectively through each Faculty Executive Committee. Advised by the Faculty Executive Committee, the Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor submits all proposals for new courses to Academic Board for academic approval after resource implications have been considered by the Vice-Chancellor’s Advisory Committee. As part of each Course Review, the Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor is required to respond to the Academic Board indicating ways in which the Faculty will respond to issues raised.
Issues raised in University wide monitoring practices, enrolment data, retention rates, course completions, Student Feedback about Subjects, Student Feedback about Teaching, Course Evaluation Questionnaire and Graduate Destination Survey, and Assessment Grade Distributions are routinely referred to Faculties and to Schools by Academic Board and Vice-Chancellor’s Advisory Committee for action.
Faculties are also primarily responsible for the evaluation of teaching, generally using approaches, techniques and instruments developed by Teaching and Learning Development and endorsed by Academic Board on behalf of the University. Faculties make use of information from Student Feedback about Subjects, Student Feedback about Teaching and the Evaluation of Teaching Framework for overall monitoring, for Formal Course Reviews and for Academic Promotion applications and provision of references by Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellors and Head of Schools.
Divisions
The Divisions are responsible for supporting students and Faculties to sustain and enhance their academic programs. The Cairns, International and Engagement Division plays a role in attracting international students to the University and supporting their welfare. The University Services Division, together with Teaching and Learning Development, provides a comprehensive range of services to support teaching and learning. These services are coordinated with the Research and Innovation Division where undergraduate and postgraduate training intersect, for example academic staff development to improve research student supervision. These services are themselves subject to quality assurance processes, but the Teaching and Learning Development services which are directly linked to the quality assurance system for teaching and learning are those which (i) provide staff development services for academic staff and (ii) provide information for use in the quality assurance process itself.
Academic Staff Development
The Graduate Certificate in Education (Tertiary Teaching) (GCTT) is a block mode course for any academic staff seeking to improve and update teaching skills.
Teaching and Learning Development (TLD) is comprised of Teaching Development, Evaluation of Teaching and Learning Skills. Information is provided to the university community about flexible delivery through the provision of consultancy services to staff, support for strategic initiatives such as LearnJCU and the development of resources for flexible delivery.
The Equal Opportunity Unit provides training and a wide range of services for staff and students to promote equality of opportunity in employment and equity in the workplace. The Unit also provides training and services promoting, encouraging and valuing equity and diversity in the student population.
The Counselling Service provides a point of referral for students and academic staff experiencing difficulties.
Learning Advisers provide direct learning support for students with any study related problems, and increasingly conduct workshops for academic staff and participate in the GCTT to improve staff skills. Specialist support is provided for students of non-English speaking backgrounds.
Reference and Faculty/School Librarians provide a range of staff development for academic staff seeking to improve teaching and learning. These are provided to inform staff of innovations, but also on request from academic staff to meet perceived needs. A key interface from which staff development needs are diagnosed is the Infohelp 'desk'.
Information for Quality Assurance
Teaching Evaluation administers systems to provide Student Feedback about Subjects (SFS) and Student Feedback about Teaching (SFT). The periodic review of the Teaching Evaluation framework is a responsibility attached to this function.
Regular reports of these indicators to the Vice-Chancellor’s Advisory Committee and Academic Board.
Course Reviews are organised by the Finance & Resource Planning Division on behalf of Academic Board.
Vice-Chancellor’s Advisory Committee
The Vice-Chancellor’s Advisory Committee (VCAC) is responsible for corporate leadership, and the management of all teaching and learning quality assurance processes in the University. Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellors are responsible for collaborating with Heads of School to ensure that University wide monitoring is heeded at School level and that School specific quality assurance practices are appropriate and documented. All University wide monitoring data is considered by VCAC, and Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellors and Heads of Divisions report back on actions initiated in response to monitoring.
Approval Details
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Policy sponsor: |
Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor |
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Approval authority: |
Academic Board |
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Version no: |
07-1 |
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Date for next review: |
07/02/2012 |
Modification History
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Version no. |
Approval date |
Implementation date |
Details |
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07-1 |
07/02/2007 |
08/02/2007 |
Formerly part of a broader Teaching and Learning Plan. Other text from this Plan now found in the separate policies of: ‘Quality Assurance System - Principles’ and ‘Course and Subject Development - Criteria’, as authorised by the Chair, Academic Board. |
