Student-staff Partnership Research Articles

The genesis of staff-student partnerships: Institutional influences

As staff-student partnership activity becomes embedded into the infrastructure of higher education there is an increased institutional focus on systematising the staff-student partnership support processes. Drawing on data from a case study of a partnership conceived under the auspices of an institutional staff-student partnership programme, this article offers insight into how the institutional context shapes partnership aims, objectives, and composition. It finds that in the pre-partnership phase a gatekeeping role is performed by the institutional programme, which ultimately determines which partnerships proceed, and how they are evaluated. The study contributes to the broader critique of staff-student partnership practices, proposing a framework that integrates the various institutional influences and the pre and post-partnership phases.

A student-staff partnership conducting research in higher education: An analysis of student and staff reflections

This article reports on an analysis of reflections by students and staff following a student-staff partnership which conducted a qualitative exploratory inquiry case study on student mental health in higher education. Following completion of the inquiry, two engaged students and the principal investigator reflected on their experience of the partnership. The analysis resulted in the following categories: a) benefits, b) support for learning, c) motivations, d) impact, e) outputs, and f) limitations. Students learned research skills, enhancements for learning/career and empowerment. Staff experienced an eased ability to conduct research and the rewards of seeing students develop new skills. It is recommended stakeholders in higher education continue to invest in student-staff partnerships in the context of research studies and mental health inquiry to foster opportunities for positive learning outcomes for students, staff, and institutions.

Teaching About Climate Change Impacts on Health: Capturing the Experience for Educators

Climate change is a wicked problem. It is valuable for those working in public health to understand the causes, impacts, and possible responses that affect human health. Educators disagree on effective pedagogical strategies that are both engaging and motivating for students. This research evaluated a course involving climate change and health taught to first-year undergraduate students using a survey codesigned and analyzed through a student–staff partnership. The survey found strong correlations between curiosity and interest in learning and motivation to act. The student respondents preferred educational delivery for best learning outcomes included accessible preparatory material, small group tutorials, and guest lecturers providing specialist disciplinary perspectives. The majority considered there is a link between learning about and subsequently acting on climate change, although a need was identified for educators to promote intrinsic motivation within students in addition to disseminating information in classes. In considering the human health impacts of complex health issues, this article provides a valuable capture of course design and teaching methods that can enhance students’ motivation to act beyond the completion of a university course.

Virtual internships in open and distance learning contexts: Improving access, participation, and success for underrepresented students

This study at The Open University in the United Kingdom examined the effectiveness of specifying internship opportunities for underrepresented student groups in two faculties. Our data, gathered through intern focus groups and supervisor interviews, demonstrate that the virtual internship scheme has been successful from both intern and supervisor perspectives, providing flexible and supportive opportunities which help interns to develop transferable skills and confidence. The virtual internship approach therefore provides opportunities for large-scale distance learning institutions to routinely offer work experience to their students, supported by the further development of effective remote working practices. Unexpected benefits of this program emerged through the staff-student partnerships developed in university-based internships. Future research will focus on mechanisms to further improve and scale up the virtual internship program to enhance access for underrepresented students and to explore how virtuality contributes to new perspectives of employability.

Experiences of creating digital content for teaching and learning through working in staff-student partnerships

Most staff-student partnerships are carried out between students who are studying on the course the academics are teaching; this study is different in showing how skilled students work in partnership with academic staff across the university to create digital content for teaching. The students work as digital media producers (DMPs) within the institution, delivering expertise in the creation of digital content working alongside the academics who develop the subject content. This qualitative study had a small, purposive, and selected sample. Academics and the DMPs undertook focus groups to gather insights into their experiences of transforming teaching and learning into a collaborative process. Thematic data analysis and coding were utilised to generate themes, with consideration to the research objectives while analysing the transcripts. Themes appeared, such as having a central support to encourage relationships and build upon skillsets, thereby supplying the students with an authentic experience and aiding their future employment prospects.

Partnering with students to support international students in an Australian university setting

This case study reflects on a 2019 project involving a staff-student partnership that focussed on improving the international student experience at an Australian university. The project responded to the need for international students to feel a sense of belonging and connectedness to an Australian university as a buffer against the challenges they face that are part of the acculturation process undergone upon arrival. The project’s main output was the creation of short videos destined for three target audiences: international students, domestic students, and academics who teach international students. The project’s objectives were to build relationships between international and domestic students and between academics and students, as well as to minimise misunderstandings held by international students about studying at this university and misconceptions held by domestic students and academics about international students. This case study provides an innovative and practical model for staff-student collaborations in higher education.

Transfer of anatomy during surgical clerkships: an exploratory study of a student-staff partnership.

This qualitative study aims to explore how fourth-year medical students on the surgery course perceived a clinical anatomy workshop organised by near-peer student teachers in partnership with faculty. Forty-seven medical students participated in a workshop on clinical anatomy in the dissection laboratory. A voluntary response sampling method was used. The students' perceptions of the workshop were explored through a thematic content analysis of transcribed, semi-structured group interviews and written comments. A majority of the students had not revisited the dissection laboratory since their second year, and all students described the workshop as a unique opportunity to vertically integrate anatomical knowledge. Four main themes were identified as most valuable for the students' learning experience, namely that the workshop 1) was taught by knowledgeable and friendly near-peer tutors (NPTs), 2) consisted of highly relevant anatomical content, 3) offered a hands-on experience of cadavers in the dissection laboratory, and 4) was taught in a focused session in the middle of the surgery course. This study shows how hands-on workshops in clinical anatomy, developed in student-staff partnerships and taught by NPTs, can enable senior medical students to recall and vertically integrate anatomical knowledge during surgical clerkships. The results have implications for curriculum design, giving voice to senior students' wishes for spaced repetition and vertical integration of pre-clinical anatomy knowledge during their clinical training. Moreover, this study may inspire other students and faculty to develop similar near-peer teaching activities through student-staff partnerships.

Student–staff partnerships for diversifying and decolonising the higher education curriculum

In this paper, we discuss a student–staff partnership project to diversify and decolonise the Higher Education curriculum at the University of Brighton, UK. The Inclusive Practice Partnership Scheme was launched in November 2020, and now in its second year, recruits 64 undergraduate students to co-develop the curriculum within each of the eight Schools across the University. The Scheme is unique in the sector in its focus on undergraduate student experience as the catalyst for a review of curriculum, supporting the development of this work across a wide range of subject areas. It uses the expertise of academic developers to guide and facilitate the work, developing an institutional approach with localised strategies and outcomes, and establishing effective partnership working relationships with academic staff to change perceptions about the relevance and importance of curriculum reparation in all disciplinary areas. The Scheme is a key part of University strategy that aims to address differential outcomes for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic students and is supported through the Access and Participation Plan and Race Equality Charter Action Plan.

How to thrive when studying online

ABSTRACT The Covid-19 pandemic led to significant changes in higher education institutions, with a rapid pivot from on-campus to online teaching and learning. The move to predominantly online teaching resulted in a very different learning experience for many campus-based students, offering new opportunities and challenges. This Directions article is co-written by a student-staff partnership team and shares advice on how to thrive when studying online. The approaches developed to support online and blended learning during the pandemic are likely to be long-lasting, and so the top tips identified in this article have relevance to and beyond possible future disruptions to the higher education learning experience. We discuss four elements to support a successful and meaningful online learning experience: 1) Carefully managing time and balancing different tasks; 2) Staying motivated and rewarding yourself on completion of tasks; 3) Engaging and participating with online learning materials and classes, related to the effective use of online tools to study and stay in touch with peers and staff; 4) Engaging in professional development opportunities and seeking help and support when needed. Following the advice in this article will enable you to approach your studies with confidence, leading to a positive and meaningful learning experience.

Embedding 21st century employability into assessment and feedback practice through a student-staff partnership

Although commonly thought to be only a measure of academic performance, assessments can also provide students with an opportunity to apply skills and knowledge acquired at university into written literacies that prepare them for the transition into prospective careers. Within a Level 2 Microbiology and Immunology course, students struggled to engage with standalone timetabled careers-related sessions, yet they showed enthusiasm when employability was embedded into assessments. A staff-student partnership project explored these issues, with the overall aim of understanding how to effectively embed employability skills into assessment and feedback, which supports the theme of supporting students to position themselves for the future. Through student-run focus groups, this project investigated the reasons for low student engagement with the timetabled employability session and used student views to develop digital initiatives that could be applied to assessment and feedback practice with an emphasis on developing 21st-century competencies. These initiatives were then implemented as pre-session self-directed activities, which helped students link course feedback with employment skills and future career planning, followed by a newly developed in-class reflective feedback session that allowed students time to consider what skills they have developed and make links with future careers. Project evaluation was conducted using a quantitative survey of students involved. This project aims to make feedback more meaningful and better valued by students. The approaches were designed in partnership with former students from the course, this project possesses the unique ability to deliver a genuine student voice both on employability concerns and the role of assessment.

Facing Challenges in Remote Mathematics Education and Support by building a Community of Practice around Student-Staff Partnership

Our active community of practice, developed from a weekly book club, formed through a shared interest in student-centred learning. Inspired by the book The Power of Partnership, this interdisciplinary group fostered and nurtured two practical mathematical applications through a partnership approach. In Munster Technological University academic support, including Mathematics and Statistics support, is offered to students through the Academic Learning Centre (ALC). Project 1 explored, through student-staff partnership, how best to promote the ALC. The project challenged our assumptions of how students would like to interact with the service. Project 2 focused on teaching mathematical analysis to a large cohort of year two students at the University of Southampton during the Covid-19 pandemic, elaborating on how small study groups, facilitated by student partners, were utilised to maintain a sense of connection and belonging, when possibilities for in-person teaching were extremely reduced. This paper discusses how a dispersed community of practice collaborated to enhance learning and teaching of mathematics.

Embedding 21st century employability into assessment and feedback practice through a student-staff partnership.

In-course assessments are an essential part of any coursework because they represent both a physical output of the skills and knowledge acquired at university, but also have the role of supporting student transitions into prospective careers. Therefore, assessments could be used as a conduit to encourage student awareness of the skills needed for the workplace and verify their attainment of these skills, particularly at foundation levels within a degree. Within a second-year Microbiology and Immunology course, students struggled to engage with standalone timetabled careers-related sessions, yet they showed enthusiasm when employability was embedded into assessments. A staff–student partnership project explored these issues, with the overall aim of understanding how to effectively embed employability skills into assessment and feedback and support students positioning themselves for the future. Through a focus group, this project investigated the reasons for low student engagement with timetabled employability sessions and used student views to develop digital initiatives and 21st-century competencies that could be applied more widely within assessment and feedback practice. These initiatives were then implemented as pre-session self-directed activities, with the objective of helping students to link course feedback with employment skills and future career planning, followed by a newly developed in-class reflective feedback session that allowed students time to consider what skills they have developed and make links with future careers. Project evaluation was conducted using a quantitative survey of the students involved.

‘Every partnership [… is] an emotional experience’: towards a model of partnership support for addressing the emotional challenges of student–staff partnerships

ABSTRACT The practice of student–staff partnerships is fundamentally about relationships. As new partnerships are formed, and existing power relations challenged, people experience a range of emotions. Despite their importance, there are few studies that have systematically researched the emotional challenges of student–staff partnership. Through a humanistic approach focused on analysing participants’ experiences of partnership we found that varying degrees of hope, pride, anxiety, and frustration were experienced by both students and staff in a curriculum development partnership project. We argue that effective partnership practices should recognise and support the emotional wellbeing of student and staff partners. Drawing upon the effective characteristics of partnership support found in this research and the broader literature, we propose a flexible support model drawing on (1) peer support, (2) mentoring, and (3) independent reflective writing. Partnership practice that actively supports the emotions involved in working in the partnership may encourage more partnerships in the future.

The partnership co-creation process: Conditions for success?

Staff-student partnership activity continues to increase across the higher education sector, expanding to encompass a broad range of initiatives. Numerous frameworks and typologies have been proposed to help organise the literature and facilitate comparisons among different types of partnerships. The research reported here draws on a case study of a quality-enhancement staff-student partnership to identify the stages of the partnership co-creation process. It argues that the establishment of partnership values is intertwined with the stages of the co-creation process and is critical to the partnership’s success. This research contributes to practice and the literature by offering a practical approach to managing a staff-student partnership, adding to work on quality enhancement partnerships, and extending prior work evaluating partnership activity from the perspectives of multiple stakeholders.

Students as partners in digital education: Exploring lecture capture in higher education through partnership between students and learning technologists

This case study reports on two student-staff partnership projects at Cardiff University that explored the student experience of using lecture capture technologies. We describe the background to these projects, how they were designed, and how students and staff worked together to gain insights into the student experience. The case study demonstrates that nuanced understandings regarding the way students use lecture recordings is required and argues that student-staff partnership is an effective way of achieving these understandings. Suggestions are offered regarding how educationists could further harness partnerships to explore the complex interplays between technology and student learning. This reflective account also explores our efforts in achieving meaningful partnership working, the challenges encountered, and highlights the benefits of partnerships between students and professional-services staff, specifically learning technologists.

An agile approach to co-creation of the curriculum

The importance of developing meaningful student engagement through partnerships is an increasing area of interest and practice within the context of learning and teaching in higher education. This case study reports on an approach used in a co-created curriculum project that aligned the values and principles of student-staff partnerships with those of an agile framework. Through an analysis of the individual team reflections captured during and after the project, the study explores how the agile approach could help address imbalances of power between students and staff in higher education. The results of the study show that team members found that working in this new way increased confidence in co-creating teaching and learning with staff and fostered a positive team relationship, although some reflections indicate that assumptions of power are deeply embedded within the structures and roles of higher education. However, our findings suggest that this way of working can result in positive experiences for students and staff and could be applied to a wide range of student-staff partnership projects.

Learning together: A case study of a partnership to co-create assessment criteria

This case study outlines a staff-student partnership to co-create generic assessment criteria to use in a UK business school. It highlights the potential for staff-student partnerships to create a temporary subfield, in which the established power differentials of academia are dissolved and partnership values can be established. We draw on a series of 10 semi-structured interviews with partnership participants. The values that underpin partnerships are linked to three major phases of the partnership process: establishing the partnership, partnership operation and atmosphere, and the partnership outcomes. The findings indicate that the values of authenticity, reciprocity, and inclusion are critical antecedents to establishing a successful partnership and that careful attention should be paid to establishing the partnership. The case extends our understanding of the partnership process by emphasising these antecedents. The study is multi-authored, which reflects an extension to the partnership process described in the case study.

‘I’m not alone’: outcomes of a faculty-wide initiative for co-creating inclusive science curricula through student–staff partnership

ABSTRACT We explored the experiences of and outcomes for students and staff working in partnership on an academic development project aiming to enhance the inclusivity of science curricula across a faculty. Quantitative survey data revealed changes in student and staff perceptions, including increases in sense of belonging for both, perceptions of fairness in decision-making for students, and increased adoption of inclusive teaching practices for staff. Open responses articulated the benefits and challenges of the project. Implications of this research will be relevant to academic developers working in similar spaces, such as decolonising the curriculum or engaging students as partners in development work.

Learning From the Pandemic: The Impacts of Moving Student-Staff Partnerships Online

While numerous studies on the impacts of COVID-19 on university learning and teaching are now emerging, there has been less critical attention focused on the impact of the shift to online engagement on student-staff partnership (SSP) practices. This article analyses the experiences and perceptions of students and staff from an Australian university as they shifted their partnership practices online during the pandemic. It provides valuable insights into the specific positive and negative impacts of online SSP for students and staff, foregrounding both groups’ perceptions of the accessibility and communication aspects of online SSP. The study’s findings lead to the recommendation of a blended approach and will be of use as SSP programs recalibrate for a post-COVID context.

Breaking the Binary

The need to make higher education curricula gender-inclusive is increasingly pressing as student cohorts diversify. We adopted a student-staff partnership approach to design, integrate, and evaluate a module that taught first-year science students the difference between biological sex, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation in the context of genetics concepts at an Australian university. This module aimed to break the binary in misconceptions of both sex and gender, emphasising that both exist on separate spectra. Data triangulation was used to evaluate students’ attitudes towards the module and their learning of module concepts. Students’ attitudes were positive overall, and evaluation of students’ learning indicated that the majority of students understood and retained key concepts, while also identifying common misconceptions. Perhaps the most important finding was that students who identified as belonging to a minority group had significantly more positive attitudes towards the module than non-minority students. This finding supports previous research that has found inclusive curricula have greater benefit for students from minority backgrounds, indicating the importance of making such curriculum enhancements. Our results speak to both the co-creation process and students’ learning outcomes, providing valuable insights for practitioners both within science and beyond.