Support for Programme and Course Design

Increasing the accessibility of your teaching using learning technology

This workshop will look at how to improve the accessibility and inclusivity of teaching by introducing the principle of Universal Design and how it can help inform the use of learning technology, both in the classroom and online. 

Links will be made to the many learning technology tools and services available and how to make choices about their adoption that can help improve the student experience, as well as that of staff. 

This workshop is applicable to anyone involved with teaching, training or building educational resources who would like to make more thoughtful use of learning technology, including the virtual learning environment, quiz and survey tools, blogs and e-portfolios. 

No specific previous experience of learning technology is necessary, and information will be given on how to obtain further guidance on the tools and services mentioned. 

Learning Outcomes: 

• say what accessibility means to you in your role; 
• recognise what we call learning technology matters; 
• identify practical ways you can increase the accessibility of your teaching, based on the principles of Universal Design.

Student personae for learning design

This session presented by Tracey Madden, aims to introduce you to personae, simplified descriptions of student architypes, and their use in learning design. We will show how personae can be created and what they can bring to the design process. We will also show how to combine them with other sources of data and avoid the possible pitfalls.

This session is suitable for those who design courses and programmes, and also those involved in designing student-facing services.

Learning Outcomes

• state what is meant by a persona (in the context of design);
• explain how personae can contribute to design (even when we're able to work with students, staff and data sets);
• create a persona based on a design context, recognising the necessity to be thoughtful;
• use ready-made persona to provoke discussion on inclusivity and accessibility in design.

OER: Open education in the curriculum

Creating and using open educational resources is an important way to ensure longevity of access to course materials, and this can benefit staff, students, in all learning environments whether on campus, online, or hybrid.

In this information session we will look at the ways in which open educational practices and open educational resources are being used across the university and the benefits this provides including how it can:

•  make a significant contribution to diversifying the curriculum
• improve digital skills for both staff and students.
• engage students in the co-creation of their own learning experiences, and to my mind, this is one of the most powerful affordances of open education.
• provide legacy and impact that can be reused and disseminated by other communities and organisations.
• create concrete examples of student skills and knowledge towards their professional careers.

OER: Diversifying the curriculum with open education

In this 1hr seminar we will look at existing practices across the university adopting open education practices and resources to diversify curriculum and encourage student co-creation and learning.

Together we will then explore and discuss the variety of ways in which creating, using, and sharing open educational practices, and or, resources (OER) can help to diversify educational materials.

Learning Analytics 

This training will help you to understand what learning analytics are available and what these represent. The training will also allow you to gain awareness of what these can tell you about your students and learning materials.