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LTQ Creative Connections
USQ Teaching Academy Relaunch The USQ Teaching Academy was relaunched by ViceChancellor Professor Jan Thomas on 16 March 2012.
PVC Professor Belinda Tynan and VC Professor Jan Thomas with new Teaching Academy member Lynne Stuart
The 2012 USQ Teaching Academy is a recasting of the 2008 Teaching Academy initiative and brings together recognised individuals from within the University to form an exemplar community on learning and teaching. The USQ Teaching Academy celebrates excellence in
learning and teaching at USQ through profiling USQ success in learning and teaching, collegiality and knowledge sharing, providing leadership opportunities, enhancing university-wide participation in learning and teaching initiatives and providing opportunities for collaboration. Vicki Horner and Lynne Stuart from the Department of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty
of Sciences, were inducted into the Academy at the relaunch. They are recipients of a 2011 Australian Learning & Teaching Council Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, for developing retention and support strategies that enable Indigenous nursing students to realise their university dreaming journeys.
Have your say—revising USQ’s Learning and Teaching policy
...a collective process methodology has been chosen to develop a set of new learning and teaching principles.
The definition of Learning and Teaching Principles (Review of the current Learning and Teaching Policy) is currently being addressed. Under the approval of the USQ Academic Board, a collective process methodology has been chosen to develop a set of new learning and teaching principles. The collective process ensures that a number of key stakeholders at various levels at USQ can collectively come to a shared understanding.
To date four (4) workshops for academic and professional staff across all campuses have occurred and one (1) workshop with students and another planned for May. Over 70 people have been involved in these workshops. Thank you to all staff who have been involved in this first round of consultation. The first of the academic staff workshops involved staff nominated by their Dean to participate while the remainder were advertised the entire USQ community and staff volunteered their attendance.
At the conclusion of the consultation activity the information gathered at the workshops will be used to update the current Learning and Teaching Policy. A new draft Learning and Teaching Policy will be fed back to participants for feedback and refined. Once finalised the draft will be reviewed by the USQ Learning & Teaching Committee and with its approval forwarded to Academic Board for endorsement.
Meet-Up Meet-Up, USQ’s specifically adapted peer-assisted program, is enjoying increasing support from lecturers. Currently, it is running in approximately 36 courses/programs with 64 leaders.
Law Meet-Up students
Meet-Up is not a mentoring program; it is based on peerlearning principles and collaborative and social learning strategies. Successful students are trained to lead sessions in which they provide academic advice and assistance based on
their own experience, with the endorsement of the lecturer. The program is run at all campuses and across all faculties, both online and oncampus. Lecturers indicate they find the program assists their students and themselves: ‘I can see the quality of on-campus students’ assignments have improved ...’ (lecturer S1 2011). Similarly, students find the support invaluable. ‘As to the effectiveness of this [Meet-Up]
program, I can confidently say that it was a tremendous success. I personally gained new study tips and learned new processes to tackle exams. Every student who attended these sessions gave the same feedback to me. I would love to see this program continue for our external students... ’ (student S2 2011). Any lecturer interested in running Meet-Up should contact Lindy Kimmins, Learning and Teaching Support.