Leading Fieldwork: Leadership Development for Work-Integrated-Learning

1. Leading Fieldwork: Leadership Development for Work-Integrated-Learning A/Prof Megan Smith, A/Prof Sue Jones, Prof Rick Ladyshewsky, Dr Franziska Trede, Dr Rose Chapman, Dr Helen Flavell

2. The Team • A/Prof Sue Jones - Dean T&L, Health Sciences, Curtin University • Prof Rick Ladyshewsky – Graduate School of Business , Managerial Effectiveness, Curtin University • Dr Rose Chapman - School of Nursing & Midwifery, Curtin University • A/Prof Megan Smith – Sub Dean Professional Placements, CSU • Dr Franziska Trede, Education for Practice Institute, CSU • Dr Helen Flavell, Project Manager

3. Background • Aim: to develop a program to develop leadership capabilities for fieldwork coordinators • Focus of the program grant was academic leadership • the team recognised the significant blurring between academic and administrative roles in the conduct of fieldwork

4. Definitions and roles in fieldwork • Overlapping (and confusing) terminology • Project referred to fieldwork • Work-integrated learning more widely used now • Fieldwork coordinator role • Academic • Administrative

5. Leadership • Not about formal authority or line management over other academics and individuals • Work is delegated and distributed in flattened organisational structures of most universities • Through their work, leaders need to be able to influence, motivate, and inspire others to follow • Leadership is about inspiring individuals without necessarily using force or power.

6. Leadership succession crisis • Focus on effective change mgt and implementation • Excellent leadership needed at all levels to remain competitive • Fieldwork Coordinators (FC) not represented

7. Objectives of the program • Understand the role of the fieldwork coordinator as an academic leader • Understand the concept of academic leadership in the context of fieldwork education • Recognise the importance of building the scholarship of teaching and learning in fieldwork education

8. Program elements • Pilot Program ran at CSU and Curtin in 2011 • Initial survey profiling participants • Program participation – 2.5 days of face to face sessions • Program evaluation • Action learning plans

9. Outline for presentation • Results of the survey • The model of leadership developed for the program • Action plans and feedback • Where to from here?

10. FC Survey Results Demographic Information • Majority of respondents were women (58.5%) • From education and health sciences • Curtin University (63%), CSU (37%) • Most respondents had ≤ 3 years of FC experience (Curtin 47%, CSU 59%) • Some had >10 yrs (Curtin 26.5%, CSU 27.3%)

11. Group Demographics • 40% in health sciences, 20% in education, and 20% management and commerce • 10% in agriculture and environment and 10% in society and culture • 83 % are UG coordinators, 17% PG • 33.3% spend 20-30% of time on fieldwork coordination, with 25% spending 10-20% of time • Fractional nature of time spent on fieldwork coordination!

12. Time on FW

13. Focus of FW

14. Fieldwork Coordinators • Dedicated staff • Enjoy helping and seeing students develop and grow • Enjoy implementing effective fieldwork programs • Liaising with industry • Building partnerships, keeping up with current practice

15. Challenges • Competition for placements and no. of placements required • Slow admin processes, bureaucracy • Lack of recognition, reward and institutional support • Lack of time!!! • Workload—life/work balance • Managing partnerships • Managing poor performance (students/ staff) • Managing student diversity and incivility

16. Capabilities and Competencies Identified by FCs • Interpersonal capabilities (empathising and influencing) • Cognitive capabilities (flexibility, responsiveness, strategy, diagnosis) • Personal capabilities (commitment, decisiveness, self-regulation) • Skills and knowledge (self-organisational skills, university operations, T&L)

17. Development Priorities • Time management • Leadership development • Networking • Assessment and moderation • Scholarship of teaching and learning

18. Pre-Participant Survey - Leadership

19. What They Wanted From the Program • Better ways to enhance facilitation of students with new ideas and more efficient management • A better understanding of the issues and challenges that face students undertaking fieldwork placements • To be a better leader • A better understanding of the current concept of leadership • Awareness of the best practice in academic leadership for fieldwork co-ordinators

20. What You Want From the Program • Skills in 'big picture thinking'; maintaining vision while still keeping on top of the daily grind. Maintaining and improving the quality of the experience for students and for placement providers. Improved advocacy for the pedagogical value of fieldwork • Good ideas for leadership, succession planning, inspiring academics about teaching in fieldwork • Insights on how to 'lead' fieldwork, almost a 'how to..." in regards to setting up and managing fieldwork programs.

21. Modules FC as academic leader Delivering an effective FW program Role of quality in FW programs Developing FW Partners for student learning Creating and sustaining FW partnerships Innovation in FW and managing change Personal leadership capabilities and their development Learning activities Theoretical framework Experiential learning case/problem-based 360° feedback ICVF Peer coaching/self-reflection/ journalling Manual of resources Action projects Program Overview

22. Leadership • Not about formal authority or line management over other academics and individuals • Work is delegated and distributed in flattened organisational structures of most universities • Through their work, leaders need to be able to influence, motivate, and inspire others to follow • Leadership is about inspiring individuals without necessarily using force or power.

23. Leadership Capability Framework Scott (2008) Capability Inter- Personal Personal Cognitive Role specific Generic Competency Capabilities that count!

24. Personal Commitment to T&L excellence; achieve best outcome Self regulation (considered decisions, knowing self, work/life balance, calm under pressure) Decisiveness (take hard decisions, tolerate ambiguity, values/ethical) Commitment (energy & passion, perseverance) Leadership Capability Scales & Items

25. Personal Commitment to T&L excellence; achieve best outcome Self regulation (considered decisions, knowing self, work/life balance, calm under pressure) Decisiveness (take hard decisions, tolerate ambiguity, values/ethical) Commitment (energy & passion, perseverance) Leadership Capability Scales & Items Interpersonal • Influencing (peers & up, motivating, networking, feedback) • Empathising & working productively (transparent & honest, cultural competence) • Develop & contribute to teams • Motivating others • Giving/receiving feedback constructively

26. Cognitive Diagnosis (underlying causes, recognising patterns, identify core issue from mass of information) Strategy (see & act on opportunities, creative, best way to respond, priorities) Flexibility & responsiveness (adjusting, sense of learning, no fixed answers) Leadership Capability Scales & Items

27. Cognitive Diagnosis (underlying causes, recognising patterns, identify core issue from mass of information) Strategy (see & act on opportunities, creative, best way to respond, priorities) Flexibility & responsiveness (adjusting, sense of learning, no fixed answers) Leadership Capability Scales & Items Generic and Role-specific Competency • Learning & teaching (fieldwork pedagogy) • Fieldwork curriculum and assessment design • Evaluation • Dissemination of good practice • University operations • Self-organisation skills

28. Integrated Competing Values Framework (ICVF) A leadership model that is designed to build your capabilities at an academic level now and in the future The ICVF conceptualises academic leadership as: • Having competing demands (paradoxical) • Requiring behavioral and cognitive complexity • Involving critical observation • Involving reflection and learning

30. People focus Cares for others & develops teams Is innovative & sees need for changes Developer Innovator Integrator Internal focus Reflects, considers, monitors and applies strategy External focus Monitor Monitors outcomes & quality of T & L Broker Deliverer Exerts influence, develops networks outside the school Gets the job done, Provides structure Task focus

31. Activity: Does the ICVF relate to me • Look at the ICVF model • Think about the activities you do each day that relate to role in each section • Are there any sections you do more or less of

32. Inappropriate Use of Roles Adapted from Quinn, R., et al. (1996). Becoming a master manager (2nd ed.). New York: John Wiley and Sons, p. 22 Overused roles Innovator Premature responses Disastrous experimentation Change for change sake Soft hearted Permissive Overly democratic Too participative Developer Well developed Innovator Positive Zone Caring Sympathetic Process oriented Creative Clever Underused roles Unaware Unskilled Unpolished Technically expert Well prepared Unimaginative Tedious Politically astute Acquires resources Monitor Task oriented Decisive, directive Reliable Political expediency Unprincipled opportunism Broker Perpetual exertion Overachieving Unreceptive, Unfeeling Sceptical, Cynical Over- developed Monitor Under- developed Integrator Deliverer

33. Action learning projects Taking Curtin Postgraduate Continence and Women’s Health Clinical Physiotherapy Clinical Learning and Assessment to Interstate Facilities. The development of an individualised work-integrated learning Master of Nursing degree An exploratory study of English as an Additional Language (EAL) in onshore occupational therapy students in a clinical context. Developing a capstone project unit for the six disciplines in Curtin Business School • Increase reflection on clinical experiences in vet science students. • What are the expectations of teachers of students in teacher education? • What strategies are effective at increasing supply of physiotherapy placements in a rural NSW city • Developing the advertising in internship with academic and industry partners • Developing 3 WPL subjects in business degrees.

34. Where to from here • Final report on project for Australian Learning and Teaching Council • Resources available through ALTC (new version) for others to use • Establish as a regular program at CSU and Curtin • Explore if there is interest in developing a similar program for administrative staff