Sponsor/year: Faculty of Business & Law, 2014 – 15.
Project leads: Wendy Webber, Michael Volkov, Andrew Creed, Viola Rosario, Linda Thies, Christine Oughtred, Sabrina Chakman, Dani Hitch.
Aim:
- Better support increasingly diverse student cohorts to develop academic literacies (in particular), digital literacies and career readiness.
- Develop a better model to teach diverse students.
Underpinning theories/literature:
- Embedded literacies: Students are explicitly taught the skills of self-management, critical thinking, reflection, communication and digital literacies appropriate to the Management discipline as part of the curriculum. These skills are developed cumulatively in a range of activities and assessment tasks. Academic skills are introduced in the first-level unit MMM132, in which students research management theory and industry practices; and developed further in the second-level unit MMM262, where students are required to view management decisions from different perspectives and reflect on their own development.
- Personalised learning: Since 2016, students complete a digital ‘Academic Integrity Module (AIM) in MMM132.The AIM uses adaptive learning technology (Smart Sparrow) to give each individual student media-rich learning experiences personalized to their learning needs.
- Scaffolded assessment tasks: Students’ work on assessments is supported with customised cloud-based resources including models of writing, FAQs, videos, PowerPoints, rubrics and discussion topics hosted by LLAs and Librarians. LLAs and Librarians also present tips on completing the assessments successfully in on-campus and cloud seminars via BB Collaborate.
- Constructive alignment: The intended learning outcomes, authentic activities and assessment tasks are aligned and expressed in clear language so students are clear about what they need to do, and of the relevance and purpose of their work.
- Professional development for staff: Academic and professional staff partners present and contribute to professional development activities around inclusive teaching.
Breaking down the assignment task
An alternative format may be downloaded here: Managing your assignment (DOCX 13KB)
- Student success: Success rates for LSES students enrolled in MMM132 in Trimester 1 rose approximately 4% each year from 2014 (before the intervention) to 2016 (SIPU).
- Award: The project team including 17 School of Management and Marketing, Library, DSL, and Equity and Diversity staff were Highly Commended for 2015 Vice Chancellor’s Award (Teaching Excellence).
- Collaborative practices: The student successes and professional collaborative practices formed between academics and professional partners in this unit laid groundwork for many aspects of the redeveloped Bachelor of Commerce (interviews).
Positive student comments
Several student comments acknowledged the long-term benefits of learning academic skills (internal report).
'This unit is a very useful unit that not only can help me to improve reading, writing and critical thinking skills, but also help me to know some basic knowledge that is useful for whole career.'
'CloudDeakin content is amazing especially in regard to the assignment … More subjects should be this helpful.'
'There were a lot of helpful resources for the assignment, as well as very clearly laid-out information regarding the topics and criteria of the unit. Everything was very clear and easy to navigate.'
'I felt like it was achievable to gain a high mark in the time we had to complete it. I felt the unit would be suitable for all skill levels going into it and has been a standout of my course so far!!'
Positive staff comments
Staff commented that they had seen improvements in students’ confidence, motivation, critical thinking and familiarity with available support services. They listed benefits for themselves from the collaboration with professional staff in this unit including increasing their own skills, knowledge transfer, insights, partnerships and networking (internal evaluation report).
'I really think that this is a model for the way that we should be working at Deakin… we're all there to help students and we need to be coordinating the support that we give students and building it, I think, into the curriculum, not just make it part of the add-on extras. If we want the outcomes, then the outcomes are only going to be achieved if it is planned, organised, built into the curriculum.'
(Academic and Peer Support Team Site)
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