Past Learning Circles

Authentic Learning

Led by Catherine Bennett. This Learning Circle had among its aims:

• To develop a 'Taxonomy of Authentic Learning & Assessment'
• To define the pedagogy around what is authenticity in teaching & learning
• To populate this with case examples from across the university
• To produce a web page to showcase this
• To produce a set of cards of ideas for making learning more authentic

Curriculum Review Framework

Led by Jennie Mills (ADC). This Learning Circle explored the concept of developing a Curriculum Review Framework. Members:

• Discussed and shared practice
• Explored what support academic departments require to undertake a curriculum review
• How to engage students so that they play an integral part in curriculum review

Co-creation

This Learning Circle aimed to:

• Draw on current literature about co-creation and student engagement
• Challenge conventional notions of the students as subordinate to the expert staff member
• Explore how co-creation might improve the staff and student experience at Warwick

Education for Sustainable Development

Activities included:

• Exploring existing practices
• Creating new approaches to sustainability
• Engaging with stakeholders within and outside the University to explore ways in which sustainability can be promoted at Warwick

Enhancing the VLE

Co-led by Richard Clay and Jim Judges. This Learning Circle:

• Captured staff and student experiences and feedback to evaluate use of the VLE and to identify areas for improvement
• Shared best practice, innovative pedagogical approaches and solutions to problems
• Acted as a forum for new initiatives and ideas
• Evaluated new VLE technologies and tools with a focus on using technology to enhance learning and teaching
• Made recommendations to help inform and steer the development of the VLE at Warwick

Inclusive Assessment

Led by Kerry Dobbins (ADC), this Open Learning Circle aimed to:

• Gain critical evaluation of current practices from both staff and students
• Evaluate the stability of the assessment designs and help enhance our practices
• Share best practices and enable co-creation of diverse and inclusive assessment practices

Inclusive Policy and Practice for Disabled Students

Co-led by Jagjeet Jutley-Nielsen and Elena Riva. This Learning Circle's goals included:

• Creating a co-produced code of practice for inclusive practice for disabled students
• Working in partnership to create this code of practice with key stakeholders

Interdisciplinarity

Led by Catherine Hale. This Learning Circle aimed to:

• Develop and disseminate exemplars of good practice.
• Engage in ongoing evaluations with students and staff to enhance cross-disciplinary practices in the interest of the student learning experience.

• Encourage strategic cross-disciplinary collaboration and joint cross-disciplinary investment by showcasing interdisciplinary initiatives at departmental and institutional levels

Learning Analytics

Led by Russell Boyatt (ITS). This Learning Circle is currently on hold. Learning analytics may impact on student experience. This Circle has so far looked at:

• The promise and perils of gathering, analysing and using student data
• Issues of privacy, consent, ethics and responsibilities
• Opportunities for analysis and intervention

Learning from Crisis

Co-led by Naomi de la Tour (IATL) and Tiana Holgate (Sociology), this open Learning Circle aimed to:

• Reflect on the measures taken during the Covid-19 crisis
• Make recommendations on what to take forward

Lecture Capture

Led by Chih-Hsiang Lo (Student Union), Tom Ritchie (Chemistry), and Jessica Humphreys (ADC), this Learning Circle provided recommendations to inform policy and guidance on the use of Lecture Capture at Warwick.

Module Evaluation

Led by Cathy Hampton (SMLC). This Learning Circle looked at:

• Existing practices in module evaluation in Warwick and elsewhere
• Literature on the topic
• Shared best practice on how module evaluations can support learning

Pedagogic Research in HE

Led by John Kirkman and Richard Smith. As a Learning Circle, we focused since 2020 on the development of an approach to pedagogic inquiry which teachers can adopt to make sense of and improve their current practice in a very immediate and practical way.

Review of Self-Certification Policy & Procedures

Co-led by Andrew Clark (Chemistry) and Leda Mirbahai (WMS), this open group aims to:

• Capture department specific experiences of the self-certification policy and their rationale for their embedded policy
• Capture the experience of different departments and their students’ use of the self certification policy
• Share examples of good local practices of the self-certification policy
• Create a guide to enable department to consider their assessment strategy and make informed decisions on how to best to adopt, where possible, the self-certification policy.

Student Voice/Experience

The Circle is currently on hold. Some of the Circle activities included:

• Engaged with the literature around student voice and engagement in the development in the learning experience (rather than how learning takes place in the classroom)

• Identified areas for research

• Promoted writing in the area of student voice

Trans & Queer Pedagogies

Co-led by Sam Parr (SU) and Luke Hodson (Psychology), this Open Learning Circle looked at gender inclusive teaching and queer pedagogy in particular. The group will:

• Research and discuss existing literature
• Share teaching and learning practices
• Explore the trans student learning experience

Wellbeing Pedagogies

Led by Elena Riva and Martin Mik. This Circle was to be a space for:

• Sharing practice
• Thinking of how we can design a whole educational experience, from teaching space, to curriculum, to activities, to reading materials, and to assessment, that supports positive student wellbeing
• Exploring the existing literature
• Engaging with the different stakeholders across Warwick University for improving students and staff wellbeing in the teaching and learning environment