Mark Schofield Professor Ian Robinson

Institutional Research (IR) and Systematic Enhancement (SE): Tensions, Schizogamies and Positive Directions Mark Schofield Professor Ian Robinson

Presentation Structure • Search for model of SE (Systematic Enhancement) • Tensions between QE and traditional research behaviours (schizogamies ) • An approach to eliciting ideas about SE • Outcomes • Risky presentation as it really is work in progress!

Introduction – Wrestling with the concept of SE • Origins and QAA ‘definition’ • Idea of SE as an ‘ill-defined concept’ • Concerns to have a richer concept to apply in the university • Compelled by Elton’s phrase ‘doing things better ‘doing better things, and our addition ‘avoiding doing bad things’ i.e. our sense of enhancement

Nub of our enquiry was essentially: • What type of systems would support SE? • What would they look and feel like? Where would a notion of IR fit? • i.e. Against a backdrop of concerns that there is often a mismatch between QE and research behaviours

First let’s explore our concerns • Argument that QA is often thin data with little triangulation, small sample sizes, skewed populations eg. NSS • So QA and QE often suffer from the lack of depth and rigor that characterises research behaviours • We have a data rich environment but much redundancy exists • Shallow engagement and understanding of the messages in the data can occur • Lack of trend analysis, statistical significance, and routine bastardisation of data to give single figure statistics and sound bites can occur • (Hence our argument about schizophrenic behaviours)

Theorizing : Proposition is that any enhancement system should contain ‘intelligence-informed behaviours’ and reflection on data that has been carefully and rigorously analysed (like in research!)

Theorizing : • Consistent with Feedback Loops e.g. Kolb –Do, Review, Learn, Re-do etc • SE is arguably a subset of IR – related to intelligence-informed behaviours • SE should rely on feedback related to data on an ongoing basis with in-depth analysis • We tend not to use qualitative data enough, like as rich, thick data such as narratives and tend to over rely on data that is easily enumerated • Not much of the interpretation traditions seem to permeate QA systems • We wanted to see if there were any interesting outcomes related to ‘thicker’ research-like behaviours in any emerging SE models • This is in contrast this to many QA systems where data is often solicited, requested and perhaps undervalued and indicted as a bureaucracy

What we tried to do and why • We wanted to get a richer model of SE by using the creativity and experience of a group of ‘smart’ people to do this • Model Elicitation (ME) was undertaken as a research and development activity • Aim of ME was to create new or integrated knowledge to develop the concept by elicitation of, integration of and generation of new models (ways of conceiving SE)

Questions from ME sessions • Given Elton’s words: • If we had fully matured systematic enhancement, what would/could it look like in action? What would it be achieving? • What should we keep that we do already? • What could/should/can we do more of, change or develop? • Outcomes to be shared soon below!

Have a go for 10 minutes (possibility if time allows)

So what did participants come up with? Outcomes of sessions and contributions to emerging model of SE

Interesting phenomena emerged in sessions • Outcomes of conceptualising SE maybe undermining or in conflict with existing processes • Tension between comfort zones, safety-for-audit positions, and destabilising everything that is in situ (baby with bathwater)

Outcomes (See handout) • Characteristics of an SE model would have features including: • Adaptive teaching related to needs of learners based on research in the institution • Measurement of enhancement of structures and processes as well as traditional outcomes (numeric). So different indicators needed which may be qualitative • Better definition of how we measure experiences of staff and students • Feedback to the source of the data (respect and recognition of the ‘voices’) Hearing and responding to staff and student voices more consistently • Reduction of or elimination of alienation of students by place (e.g. committees) and language of academics and systems • Sustainable activities, with lack of burdens • Non- bureaucratic and monolithic processes, with people engaged in consistent communications feeding into and within the system

Outcomes 2 (See handout) • Characteristics of an SE model would have features including: • Crossing Boundaries – food chains of linear conversations becoming more like food webs • Movement beyond the ‘closing down’ phenomenon by just allocating actors and checking actions of actors, shifting to development and sharing • Sharing and cascading learning from problem – solving around issues from QME processes as part of staff development infrastructure • Celebrations of success and opening secret gardens and showcasing good practices otherwise unknown • Creative fora as opposed to humdrum committees • Filtering of data which currently overburdens everyone • A University knowledge base which can be searched, sorted and cross-referenced and managed

Tweaking Existing Approaches: • Broadcasts of news and action lists immediately after committees • New ideas, unconsidered previously by us: • Convene less enthusiastic groups and see what they think about systematic enhancement and why ? Talk more to the un-converted! • Develop a University knowledge base which can be searched, sorted and cross-referenced and managed • RSS Feeds to individuals based on need to know filtering from quality processes and a knowledge ` database’ • Facebook concept (but not Facebook!) to hear’ students’ voice and reduce alienation. Electronic suggestion box idea • ‘12 month on’ return to induction where once new staff reflect and hence inform their ongoing induction as the HE context shifts

Our challenge outside of paper in relation to : • List what we do now, and how we would like it to look. (Doing things better and doing better things!) • To what extent do our current practices articulate with the stuff in the characteristics list we have elicited? Apply the reflection tool • Build knowledge base, feed it, get RSS feeds coming out of it. (Amazon metaphor)

Innovation (I), Development (D) and Research and Advanced Scholarship (R): Commitment to Systematic Enhancement of Learning I ⇋ R ⇋ D

Mark Schofield Professor Ian Robinson