Abstract
Ulster University has operated its HEA-accredited Professional Development and Recognition
Scheme (PDRS) since 2012, providing support and professional recognition at all descriptors
of the UKPSF. Within the PDRS, open to all staff who support teaching and learning, the
assessment of professional recognition takes place through scrutiny of submitted evidence (eportfolio), followed by an Assessed Professional Conversation (APC) carried out by a trained
PDRS assessor. Professional conversations are seen as “one of the most powerful
approaches…to promote teacher learning” (Danielson, 2009) allowing the individual to
legitimately engage in “reflective critique” (Kreber, 2013) where personal and social
constructs may be expressed in appropriate language, as part of a focused narrative which is
evidence-based. All submissions are thus predicated on an scholarly evidence base drawn
from individual practice. Over the course of the scheme thus far our evaluation has noted that
many participants have not previously actively engaged in the scholarship of teaching and
learning (SoTL) and consequently find it difficult or challenging to situate and/or articulate
their practice within an appropriate scholarly framework (Brew, 2007; MacKenzie et al,
2010) in order to generate the evidence of effective practice required.
This paper outlines the measures devised by the PDRS, in particular through dialogic
engagement and an emphasis on the value of broader collegial discourse on teaching (Spiller,
2002; Clark, 2001), to support applicants in identifying and engaging with scholarship to
strengthen their evidence base for professional recognition.
The paper will also examine findings from the evaluation relating to the attitudinal shift
towards scholarship within practice, and consider the transformational implications for
individual and institutional scholarship going forward, where the brokerage of new
professional relationships is beginning to transcend the more usual “significant networks”
(Roxå & Mårtensson, 2009) or trusted communities of practice.
Original language | English |
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Publication status | Published (in print/issue) - 2015 |
Event | 20th Annual SEDA Conference: Scholarship and Educational Development: The importance of using an evidence base for Learning and Teaching - St David's Hotel and Spa, Cardiff, United Kingdom Duration: 19 Nov 2015 → 20 Nov 2015 https://www.seda.ac.uk/events/info/454/programme |
Conference
Conference | 20th Annual SEDA Conference |
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Abbreviated title | SEDA2015 |
Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
City | Cardiff |
Period | 19/11/15 → 20/11/15 |
Internet address |