The Q-Step Centre At Queen's

The Q-Step Centre at Queen's is part of a £19.5 million national programme to promote a step-change in undergraduate quantitative social science training in the UK. Funded by the Nuffield Foundation and ESRC, the Q-Step initiative was developed as a strategic response to the UK shortage of quantitatively-skilled social science graduates. The Q-Step Centre at Queen's is one of eighteen specialist teaching centres funded to develop and deliver undergraduate quantitative social science programmes, including the development of new courses, specialist modules, work placements and pathways to postgraduate study.  Q-Step Centre at Queen's is a collaboration between SSESW, HAPP and M&P.

Strategies for critical reflection in international contexts for social work students

International contexts provide social work students with the opportunity to develop knowledge of international social work, global citizenship and cultural competency. While these contexts are powerful sites of learning, there is a need to ensure that this occurs within a critical framework. The paradigm of critical reflection is used to facilitate this and has been popular in international programs. In this case study, the authors develop this further by describing critically-reflective techniques and by providing examples used in a pilot exchange program between a social work school in Northern Ireland and in India. The potential implications of these strategies for social work education are discussed.

Encouraging students to listen and talk: Assessing oral skills in a level one history module

This case study discusses the assessment model applied to a level-one history module, which was designed to encourage students to reflect upon a range of oral skills, as well as the discursive intent of seminar-style teaching. A range of linked oral and group assessments were developed that would introduce students to university teaching methods, particularly those employed in the humanities. The main rationale behind the module schema was based upon the development of student 'active listening' skills, which are a core aspect of a positive learning environment. The aim was to encourage students to make the most of their seminar teaching time and also to foster critical and creative thinking.

The use of Canvas formative quizzes to improve engagement and outcomes in first-year thermodynamics and fluid mechanics.

This case study describes the introduction of formative online assessment, through means of regular Canvas quizzes, in a stage one Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics module in the 2019/20 academic year with the aim of improving the levels of student engagement and self-regulated learning.  High student engagement was found with the formative assessment, with an average of 96% engagement in each quiz.  Many students were motivated to strive for higher marks in the quizzes, despite receiving no summative credit from them.  Results in all summative assessments were improved compared to the previous year, and there was an increase in student satisfaction with the module.  Feedback from student surveys was highly positive regarding the quizzes: “Regular, non-graded quizzes…help to identify an understanding/lack of understanding of the content being covered.”.  The experience with the new assessment format has offered opportunities for improved online delivery of the module in the 2020/21 academic year given the move to connected learning resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Using Teams for Remote Student Supervision

This video describes an approach for remote supervision of MSc Clinical Anatomy students completing a research project in the Summer of 2020. The Covid-19 pandemic necessitated a switch to a purely online form of supervision. In this video I discuss the technical aspects of implementing this fully online approach. I considered the advantages of the method which include ease of communication and meetings, peer-interaction, ease of sharing of resources, collaboratively editing documents and determining deadlines. The perceptions of the four students were surveyed and all strongly agreed that this approach is easy to use for project supervision, the also agreed it was a good platform for meetings. Very few had technical issues and they particularly enjoyed the chat stream and the fact that all aspects of the project are in one online location. Finally I discuss the advantages from the supervisors perspective which include time-saving, ease of sharing resources with multiple students at once, ease of adding comments to manuscript drafts and better communication.

Group design project work - online and remote working

A case study describing a group design project, undertaken remotely and online, with a large, mixed-discipline, undergraduate cohort. The five-week project tasked students with designing the refurbishment of a power station in Manhattan, into a cultural centre. 

Embedding popular Culture to engage learners in STEM and other subjects

The use of Popular Culture to aid learning is certainly not a new phenomenon. In the age of social media, portable personal devices and associated emerging/developing interfaces and platforms, the influence of Popular Culture has evolved and so too has the ability to use short extracts in order to enhance our teaching material and to make it more relatable to the audience. With the enforced pivot to online teaching due to Covid-19, the importance of making content as engaging and relatable to a remote audience became even more pronounced. This Case Study shares some personal experience of using Popular Culture to engage with students during lectures

Utilising State-of-the-Art Video Collaboration to Enhance Careers Skills Support Provided to Remote, International Queen's University Students

This study describes the delivery of career-focused training that was provided to students within Queen's satellite campus in China. A state-of-the-art video collaboration system, which intended to offer similar levels of interaction and immersivity as that offered by more traditional "in-room" sessions was used. Students found the use of the platform to be as, or more effective than traditional local teaching.

Students’ reception of peer assessment of group-work contributions: problematics in terms of race and gender emerging from a South African case study

This study considered students’ perspectives of peer assessment of group-work contributions at a South African university. Questionnaires elicited students’ perspectives of and general attitudes towards assessment of and by their peers. A growing measure of discontent with the process of assessing peer contributions to group tasks emerged, including actual and perceived racial and gender stereotyping, and related rejection-sensitivity. These initial findings were checked against the students’ experiences in a report-and-respond process that enabled probing discussions of the interpretations. This paper examines and explores the implications of such identifications and receptions for learning engagement and group-work curriculum development in the context of a rapidly transforming higher education sector.

Group work as ‘terrains of learning’ for students in South African higher education

Drawing on perceptions and experiences of group work among environmental science students at a South African university, this study investigated the ways in which group work could be more expansively viewed as ‘terrains of learning’ for students. The results in general indicate that students have positive perceptions and experiences of group work, though problematic elements are evident. This particular case study points to the attention that should be paid to understanding issues of background, ethnicity and various student personalities which could hinder or enable the desired student learning. Such an understanding could contribute to debates regarding the achievement of higher quality learning, given issues of diversity and transformation in the South African higher education context.

Vodcasts and Active-Learning Exercises in a “Flipped Classroom” Model of a Renal Pharmacotherapy Module

Video podcasts (vodcasts) were provided for students on a clinical pharmacotherapy via an online platform, to be watched ahead of classroom sessions. These live sessions took the format of interactive discussion sessions focused on clinical patient notes which involved related disease states, such that they made use of various active learning strategies, and more specifically, process-orientated guided inquiry learning (POGIL) approaches.

Developing Entrepreneurial Skills in Pharmacy Students

This case study describes the design, development and operation of a workshop-based approach for the enhancement of entrepreneurial skills within Pharmacy students. Students were required to develop their own pharmacy-related entrepreneurial idea, including the synthesis of a business plan, and development of a marketing strategy. The students then pitched their idea to academic pharmacists with experience in business.

A Structured Approach for Teaching Students to Counsel Self-care Patients

In this case study, students used a structured interviewing framework to assess patients’ condition states which enhanced their ability to diagnose and treat self-presenting patients within community pharmacy. Students were provided with directed self-study, in-classroom learning, and scenario-based roleplay activities, intended to emphasise the use of an updated mnemonic-based approach for patient questioning and advice provision for a range of condition types.

Abroad but not abandoned: supporting student adjustment in the international placement journey

International work placements are an increasingly important way for universities to enhance their internationalisation strategies and develop student learning. However, the increase in student mobility internationally has not been paralleled in the level of support received from the university when undertaking international placements. This case study explores how students may be supported in effectively managing international placements.

Using Debate to Teach Pharmacy Students About Ethical Issues

This case study describes the use of debates as a method of teaching ethics to undergraduate Pharmacy students. Debate workshops with 5 hours of contact with student peers and facilitators and 5 hours of self-study were developed for second-year pharmacy students. Student development of various skills and understanding of the topic were assessed by staff members and student peers.

Where Universal Design, Inclusive Assessment and Adult Education Principles Coincide: Professional Skills and Authentic Assessment

This case study describes how inclusive assessment strategies emerged from the process of introducing mixed-methods authentic assessment in a module, designed using adult education principles, for working adult students with a diverse range of qualifications, professional backgrounds and experience.

Over-the-counter medicines and the management of self-limiting conditions

This case study provides information on a digital mobile application (app) that we developed to support over-the-counter consultations and evidence-based decision making. It complements our teaching of the subject area to future pharmacists in a university setting (flipped classroom approach using gold-standard resources coupled with interactive discussion sessions led by academic pharmacists, and role-play scenarios in a simulated pharmacy). The app has enabled us to influence practice across the globe (>140,000 sessions of use across 99 countries).