1. Academic Health 2017/18 Enhancement meeting
22-May-2018
Sarah Plumeridge, Senior Assistant Registrar (Quality Assurance)
Lucy Merritt, Quality and Standards Manager
Lauren Shukru, Quality Advisor

2. Welcome and Introduction
09: /17 Academic Health
09:20 Good practice 2016/17 Academic Health
09:40 Key changes and revised timeline
09:50 Group discussion: school processes for academic health including module, course and school level reporting
10:30 Break
10:45 Online Action Plan tool
11:00 TEF and Academic Health
11:30 Annual Theme: Inclusive Practice

3. Academic Health The aims of the Academic Health process:-
to assure the academic standards of undergraduate and postgraduate taught and postgraduate research provision;
to ensure that the quality of learning opportunities for students is supported;
to identify and oversee appropriate action to support the above aims and to contribute to the enhancement of provision and students’ learning opportunities.

4. Academic Health: Key changes made for 2016/17 cycle
to focus on 3 areas (student success, student experience, externality) as the evidence base for the assurance of quality and standards
to use a dashboard of student success and experience data and to establish benchmarks of expected performance and flags to highlight exceptions which warrant action
to require course leaders to develop an action plan in response to exceptions and respond to external examiner reports
to require Schools to convene meetings with course leaders as evidence of engagement and action planning
to require Schools to produce an action plan and brief summary overview of provision

5. 2016/17 Academic Health: Good practice
School of Education: placements, mentorships and interactive partnerships
Sarah Fitzjohn-Scott, Deputy Head of School

6. 2016/17 Academic Health: Good practice
Examples of good practice identified in the school reports - available on Academic Health pages on staffcentral
Examples include: school AH processes, student engagement with AH, data driven reports, SMART actions, enhancement initiatives

7. 2017/18 Academic Health Key changes

8. Academic Health 2017/18 (1) Process
Deadline for school academic health action plans and reports brought forward to 19th October 2018 – This has since been changed to 19 November 2018 – see Academic Health page on Staffcentral: Health.aspx#openinnewwindow
Some refinements expected to the dataset: Progression, Differential data
Module, Course and School monitoring report templates
No major changes anticipated
To improve usability and help to clarify what is expected
Action Planning
Online action plan tool to be used for School action plan

9. Academic Health 2017/18 (2) Access to advice and guidance:
Academic health moved form Curriculum team in Quality and Standards to Engagement and Information
Academic Health handbook to be created
Academic health Sharepoint site to be developed

10. Timeline for School and University academic health reporting
Mid October School level UG Academic Health action plan and monitoring report to be submitted
Ongoing UG and PG actions to be rolled over to new action plans
Early November Quality and Standards Committee Academic Health Day
December Outcomes of academic health to feed into University Annual Accountability Review and Student Experience and Success action plan
February School level PG academic health actions added to action plan
Action plan updated following release of updated student success data (progression and achievement).
May Actions following the publication of BSS to be added to academic health action plans
Meetings with PVC ESE to discuss BSS results and actions
Deadline for School Academic Health reports
19th October 2018

11. Key dates: School Academic Health reports and university reporting
Action
20 Aug 18
Qlikview data available
TBC
Qlikview training
Course action plan and monitoring report scrutiny
School action plan and
monitoring report scrutiny
19 Oct 18
Deadline for School reports
8 Nov 18
QSC Academic Health Day
21 Nov 18
Board of Governors

12. Annual Provider review
Though APR we are required to provide annual assurances to our Board of Governors about:
the continuous improvement of the student academic experience and of student outcomes
the reliability of degree standards
Includes reporting on:
The Universities Quality assurance and enhancement framework: External examiners, Examination boards, Curriculum approval, Partnership, Annual monitoring
Student Success and Experience dashboards
Improving Student Success and Experience action plan

13. Discussion
Schools to share existing School practices for academic health at module, course and school level. The outcomes of this activity will feed into the development of some example timelines for schools.

14. Online action plan tool
Lise Loftus, Portal Technologies Adviser

15. Academic Health and the Teaching Excellence Framework

16. Academic Health and TEF (1)
Two distinct processes with different aims but overlap in the data used
Q&S and SPPO working closely together to ensure that the two processes do not duplicate effort
processes should compliment
TEF uses metrics which have been aggregated over a three year period whilst AH uses the last available years data
AH exception reporting an early indicator for TEF

17. Academic Health and TEF (2)
To review the health of provision and set actions for immediate implementation
How, in the context of key metrics, we approach teaching and what makes our teaching excellent
Internal and external data as well as feedback from external examiners, PSRB’s and module evaluation
The data includes:
progression
Achievement
NSS
BSS
DLHE
Continuation
The last available years data
Metrics from national data as well as written evidence
Data is aggregated over 3 years
Includes UG PGT, Partners and BSMS
UG only

18. Academic Health and TEF (3)
NSS 2018
NSS 2016, 2017, 2018
BSS 2018
Module Evaluation 2017/2018
Continuation 2016/17
Continuation 2014/15, 2015/16, 2016/17
Progression 2017/18
Achievement 2017/2018
DLHE 2016/17
DLHE 2014/15, 2015/16, 2016/17

19. Academic Health and TEF (4)
Differences in the data
Examples of differences in the data include:
TEF uses an NSS sector average with a +5%, -2% parameter
TEF measures against a subject specific sector benchmark
Where TEF and AH may differ
A school may have made a step improvement in the latest NSS assessment and feedback, a legacy of a poorer score would hold them back in TEF
A course may not be flagged for academic health for Assessment and feedback but may be flagged for TEF because of the different benchmarks

20. Annual Theme: Inclusive Practice

21. Themes 2016-17 AH Reports and Action Plans
Inclusive practice
In some reports, largely in context of disability
Differential outcomes
Reference not always made to differential outcomes report
Where differential outcomes mentioned, actions not set explicitly against these
Helpful to have an understanding of the particular gaps schools seeking to address
In Year Module Retrieval & CDR
Positive engagement across schools
Inclusive practice embedded in curriculum
Good practice
visibility of the Student Support Guidance Tutor
student led enhancement activities for differential groups
but noted that the academic health report made no reference to differential outcomes within the school.
‘role models’ initiative to promote inclusivity was welcomed as good practice, and the school was praised for its positive consideration of students at every stage.
lacked specifics and did not refer to the differential outcomes report for the school. A similar lack of detail was noted in the action plan.
In Year Module Retrieval
helpful to have an understanding of the particular gaps the school was seeking to address
noted that reference to inclusive practice was largely in the context of disability.
It was noted that differential outcomes were mentioned but that actions had not been set explicitly against these.
School of Applied Social Sciences
Annual Theme: Inclusive Practice
Group 4 noted that the report referred to the differential outcomes report and was clear on the challenges faced. Whilst noting that the report seemed a little ‘top down’ in regard to inclusive practice and student engagement, the group felt that there was much to commend: in particular,
the summer internship programme,
the default sharing of Learning Support Plans with all staff,
pod-casting lectures
The School of Education
Action: Share the school’s good practice on placements, mentorships and interactive technologies as part of the Academic Enhancement Day
(Director of Education, CLT / School of Education DHoS L&T)
The School of School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics
differential outcomes and the responses needed. The group noted as a positive the focus on inclusive practice at a recent staff meeting, but would have liked to have seen details on the issues addressed, the focus of the meeting and what was achieved.
School of Environment and Technology
It was noted that the inclusive practice theme was considered largely in the context of disability.
The group commented that the report did not mention or reflect upon the school’s recent Curriculum Design Review and consideration of inclusive practice against the Curriculum Design Framework.
School of Health Sciences
school’s collaboration with CLT on the Changing Mindsets project
Engagement with placement providers and mentors could be enhanced and the school was advised to seek good practice examples from the School of Education (Deputy Head of School Learning and Teaching.)
School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences
The group identified good practice in assessment and in the engagement with the HEA toolkit
but noted that the report did not identify or reflect on differential outcomes and so lacked actions to narrow any gaps.
Lauren’s input from academic health day

22. Good Practice Visibility of the Student Support Guidance Tutor
Student-led enhancement activities for differential groups
‘Role models’ initiative to promote inclusivity - SoAD 
Summer internship programme - SASS
System for default sharing of LSPs with staff - SASS
Pod-casting lectures - SASS
Mentorships and interactive technologies - SoE
Changing Mindsets project - SoHS & CLT
Utilisation of Inclusive Practice Toolkit
Use of industry tools e.g. Higher Education Academy Toolkit (PaBS)

23. Thank you Any questions?