RCE Severn-2012

rce_proj_title
Submitted by RCEdaniella on Thu, 2012-08-16 00:00
1. General Information
Contact Name(s): 
Alex Ryan
Daniella Tilbury
Organizational Affiliation : 
University of Gloucestershire
University of Gloucestershire
Role in the project: 
Associate Director
Director
E-Mail Address(es): 
aryan@glos.ac.uk
dtilbury@glos.ac.uk
Project-relevant information: 
Project´s website: http://insight.glos.ac.uk/sustainability/Education/hefcelgmquality/Pages/default.as
2. Project Information
1. Project title: 
Leading Curriculum Change for Sustainability: Strategic Approaches to Quality Enhancement
2. Project Description: 
Institutional responses to sustainability are increasingly common in Higher Education. However, establishing institution-wide commitment to sustainability in the curriculum is still the hardest but most important strategic issue to address. Isolated examples of such practice do exist in a small number of institutions but no University has yet fully embedded Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) into their education systems and processes.

Leading Curriculum Change for Sustainability focuses on the interface between ESD and the processes for quality enhancement and assurance in Higher Education. The aim is to produce strategic guidance for universities and Higher Education stakeholders, to drive ESD innovation and leadership for sustainability in Higher Education. The project tackles this agenda at three levels:

1. Sectoral – building capacity and involvement for sustainability education with key sector agencies such as the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) and Higher Education Academy (HEA).

2. Institutional – supporting changes to academic practice and curriculum development within the five partner institutions.

3. Individual – engaging academic leaders and developers across the sector and experts working on this agenda globally.
3. Project Status: 
Ongoing
4. Key Words
Other: 
Education for Sustainability, Higher Education, Quality Enhancement, Leadership for Sustainability
5. Project categories
Project categories: 
Education
Research
Influencing policy processes
Networking and partnership development
Material production
6. Expected outcomes:: 
1. CHANGES AND DEVELOPMENT AT FIVE HIGHER EDUCTAION INSTITUTIONS (legacy and outcomes in institutional course development; CPD processes; graduate attributes; plus specific guidance and resources developed)

2. CAPACITY-BUILDING AND PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENT (engagement of sector leaders; sessions at strategic forums; profile raising in Higher Education Teaching&Learning networks; international participation in dissemination work)

3. ESD & QUALITY TOOLKIT FOR INSTITUTIONS (HARD COPY, CDROM, WEBSITE – includes findings and recommendations; plus briefings on ESD in course development and graduate employability profile)
7. Duration of the Project:: 
October 2010 - September 2012
3. Project Leadership & Vision
8. Project coordination (e.g. teams): 
The project is led by the University of Gloucestershire (UoG) and funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The project team involves collaboration among five partner institutions: Aston University, University of Brighton, University of Exeter, UoG and Oxford Brookes University.

The core team consists of a lead representative at each institution, with an additional Project Director based at the lead institution. The team has wide-ranging expertise across different academic subject areas as well as varied experience of working on significant sustainability education and research projects.
9. Leadership structure
a. Administration: 
3
b. Transactional: 
4
c. Transformational: 
3
4. Project results
10. Project results : 
At the UoG level:

This project has resulted in renewed leadership commitment for ESD at UoG after a change in the composition of the University Leadership Team. The University has formalised a commitment that all Quality Assurance (QA) processes must embed ESD; to approve clarifications in strategic documentation (such as QA Handbook); to provide ESD guidance and training for External Examiners and QA Professionals a well as those preparing for QA processes; and to establish responsibilities and assurance safeguards to secure ESD in the curriculum quality system.

At the sector level:

The project has resulted in a range of benefits for the sector through:

- Leaving examples of l.eading practice, strategic guidance and adaptable resources
- Improving understanding of ESD as a teaching quality agenda among leading practitioners of ESD.
- Building capacity with key sector agencies such as QAA and HEA to establish how ESD could inform future sector frameworks (including UK Quality Code- see summary for details).
- Egaging a range of expert advisers across sectors, to increase the impact of its findings with stakeholders who influence future Higher Education curriculum agendas.
- Production of an online toolkit suitable for use by those in both quality roles and those working on ESD, placing the institutional projects in sector context.
11. Contribution to reforms and innovations: 
This project is unique internationally in promoting ESD as a curriculum quality matter and is significant in progressing ESD as an organisational issue. It has resulted in a range of important benefits, all of which are geared towards producing more effective courses to equip students with the range of sustainability skills they will need when entering the workplace in their chosen field. At the UoG, these over-arching benefits are achieved through:

- Ensuring a legacy in the QA and QE systems in ESD from 2012-13 onwards – all courses in future at the UoG will now have to demonstrate how they address ESD principles.
- Positioning ESD clearly in QA documentation that will be monitored externally in future audits by the QAA.
- Providing recommendations for reporting and monitoring of ESD developments, to establish an assurance and continuing improvement mechanism for ESD in the curriculum.
- Creating pathways to align previous ESD work with the new strategic context of the University and its organisational planning trajectory in the Strategic Plan 2012-17.
- Increasing connectivity between ESD work and the University’s central Learning&Teaching (L&T) development mechanisms, embedded ESD in the L&T strategy. A new awards scheme for curriculum development was created.
- Building capacity with senior staff responsible for QA and QE and improving understanding of how ESD connects with other curriculum priorities and adds value for the institution.
- Developing provision for professional staff development in ESD.
- Providing targeted guidance and planning tools for teaching teams that situate ESD in the context of national policy for professional practice and subject benchmarks for individual courses.
13.Core Partners: 
University of Gloucestershire (lead institution), Aston University, University of Brighton, University of Exeter and Oxford Brookes University.
5. Partnership and networking
14. Project Network
a. Information network: 
2
b. Knowledge network: 
4
c. Innovation network: 
4
6. Participation
15. Type of involvement: 
The project partners are each taking different approaches to progress ESD as a priority for improving the quality of teaching and learning, using strategies that align with their institutional setting.
16. Participation opportunities
a. Informational participation: 
4
b. Consultation participation: 
3
c. Decision influencing participation : 
3
7. Education & Learning
18. Learning activities: 
This project uses action learning approaches to promote dialogue, develop understanding and build capacity for change within the sector on this important agenda. The UoG is working in partnership with Aston University, University of Brighton, University of Exeter and Oxford Brookes University, to engage and influence the sector at three levels:

1. Developing pathways for change in five universities: action learning is being used to trigger changes in educational practice to bring EfS into quality enhancement processes in the five partner institutions.

2. Building partnerships for progress at sector level: consultation is under way with the sector agencies responsible for curriculum standards and quality through policy frameworks and practice guidelines for HE.

3. Sourcing diverse stakeholder perspectives: dialogues are being held with expert advisers from academic, professional and industry contexts, about graduate skills and leadership needs for sustainability.

SECTOR LEVEL COMPONENTS: DIALOGUE & DEVELOPMENT WORK

- Sector Agencies Dialogue - building guidance and capacity with sector agencies that oversee quality issues in the UK academic infrastructure and professional practice (QAA, HEA).

- Expert Advisory Board - steering the project on the sector landscape, drawing on stakeholder views from higher education, civic and business leaders, the group is Chaired by the CEO of the UK QAA.

- Critical Friends Group – sourcing advice from ESD experts working at subject, professional and educational development levels as well as oversight and advice from HEFCE Sustainable Development Committee.
19. Educational activities
a. Theory: 
2
b. Discussion: 
5
c. Interactive and Multidimensional "action oriented education": 
3
8. Research Integration
20. Research & Development (R&D): 
This project uses action learning approaches to research which promote dialogue, develop understanding and build capacity for change within the sector on ESD and Quality Systems.
21. Research partners: 
University of Gloucestershire
Aston University
University of Brighton
University of Exeter
Oxford Brookes University
22. Description of research
a. Disciplinary: 
1
b. Interdisciplinary: 
1
c. Transdisciplinary: 
8
Type: 
Project Reports
Country: 
United Kingdom
Region: 
Europe
Community: 
SCP,Livelihood and Well-being
Issue: 
Transformitive Learning
Country: 
United Kingdom