If at first you don’t succeed!!!!
Moving within: A story of an Institutional
Research Team in the UK: Evolution and
the priority – The First Year Experience
Introduction
 Models of Institutional Research
 Our Institutional Research team’s remit
Monitoring tools
 The LEAP Survey
 SSN Evaluation
 Induction surveys
Action
 Implementation of SSN/Spiral Induction
 Personal Development Profiles/Reflections
Conclusion
Institutional Research: Two models
North American model
“tends to be centralised permitting good coordination and
alignment of efforts and resources and enabling a strong
link to management information systems, central
planning and decision making processes.”
UK model
“the institutional research effort is perhaps more diffuse
and less well coordinated and the information derived
does not accumulate or consolidate into information that
can inform decision making and support strategic
planning and resourcing decisions to the same extent as
in N America.”
“Much IR effort in the UK is directed not at improving
institutional goals but providing information to satisfy
external requirements for accountability. Much of this
information is directed to retrospective analysis of what
has happened.”
Norman Jackson. 2003. A Network for Institutional Researchers
Foci for IR include
 Student
recruitment,
progression
and
achievement
 Evaluation of the student experience and their
learning
(including
studies
of
institutional
effectiveness in prompting student learning )
 Academic programmes
 Collaborations and partnerships
 Strategic planning and repositioning of HEIs
Areas of research of our Institutional Research team
 Overall student experience (LEAP survey)
 Rewarding Excellence
 Induction/Student Support Network (SSN)
 Part-time work/student finances
 Top-up fees
 Transition into Higher Education Project
Outcomes of research
 New system of induction (Spiral Induction)/SSN
 PDP/Reflections
The LEAP survey – Brief summary
 A three year survey replacing the old performance
indicators in the Annual Student Questionnaire.
 Based in part on the National Survey of Student
Engagement (United States) and the Course
Experience Questionnaire (CEQ), also known as the
Ramsden model, (University of Sydney).
Findings:
 The intensiveness of induction
 The lack of ongoing support for skills
 Need to build on peer support
Action:
 A
new
student
support
infrastructure
was
implemented on the basis of these findings
 LEAP was incorporated into the new official student
questionnaire
 Transition issues were addressed by Reflections,
which has been embedded in the curriculum
Learner
Experience
and
Achievement
Project
(LEAP): Areas of research
i) The student profile on arrival
 Family background: Are they first generation
students?
- How this effects funding
- How this correlates with grades
 The students educational background
- Qualifications
- What they were doing immediately before
they entered higher education.
ii) Initial experiences of higher education
 Experiences of induction
 Consequences of induction
 Transition to higher education
iii) Ongoing issues
 Accommodation
- Effect of living in halls
- Issues related to living in the parental
home (new type of student)
 Finances
- Level of debt
- Effect of part-time work
 Retention
- Those that have considered withdrawing
- Some decide to stick it out
Learning and Teaching Support Network (LTSN)
survey review conclusions
 Consolidate all questionnaires into one recognised
institution-wide survey
 Use a mixture of methods in questionnaires: scales,
tick boxes and open questions
 Also qualitative feedback such as focus groups
 Have student representation in the process
 Clear feedback of the results and actions taken
Students’ background
Background factors
2001
What students were doing
2002
2003
68.4%
60.0%
58.0%
21.1%
27.6%
29.8%
64.4%
67.4%
67.5%
immediately before
University: Full-time study
What students were doing
immediately before
University: Full-time work
Qualifications – A-Level
Parental
2001
2002
2003
graduate
status
Neither
59.9% 61.5%
One
23.1% 20.6%
Both
13.0% 12.7%
Don’t know
3.2%
4.8%
Transition and retention issues
63.6%
20.3%
10.8%
4.6%
Transition issues
Difficulties with
2001
2002
2003
31.2%
30.0%
20.9%
14.2%
15.1%
7.2%
23.4%
19.6%
10.1%
32.8%
34.6%
33.3%
transition
academically (first
years only)
Difficulties with
transition socially
(first years only)
Difficulties with
transition between
levels (second and
third years only)
Considered
withdrawing in the
last six months (first
years only)
Induction (first two years of the LEAP survey)
Did
you
find
course 2001
2002
induction…
Good for meeting other
60.3%
71.6%
students
A useful introduction to the
52.6%
62.6%
course
A useful introduction to the
47.8%
57.8%
Institute and its facilities
Good for meeting unit
32.8%
43.3%
leaders
Good for meeting personal
34.0%
50.3%
tutor
About right
Too long
Not relevant
Too short
Misleading
Too intensive
Other
35.2%
16.2%
12.1%
6.9%
7.7%
5.7%
3.2%
39.8%
20.6%
7.4%
5.7%
4.8%
8.3%
4.8%
Student Support Network and Spiral Induction
Student Support Network (SSN)
The aim of the SSN is to provide a holistic and integrated
support system for all students. This seeks to provide
greater clarity of whom students should go to for advice
on various matters. Personal tutors were replaced by
Support tutors whose role is part of a wider support
network. Support tutors have a range of resources
available to them.
Spiral Induction
Spiral Induction was central to SSN. After the evidence
from the LEAP survey that induction was too intensive, it
was decided that a more spread out process was
desirable. Under the new system first year students
would come together on a weekly basis whilst learning
key information in manageable quantities. This also
enabled them to get to know their Support tutor. Spiral
Induction sessions also addressed student study skill
needs and other issues identified by the students.
Induction (including Spiral Induction)
Did
you
induction…
find
course 2001
2002
2003 (Post
Induction
survey)
Good for meeting other
60.3%
71.6%
75.6%
students
A useful introduction to
52.6%
62.6%
68.4%
the course
A useful introduction to
47.8%
57.8%
70.4%
facilities
Good for meeting unit
32.8%
43.3%
65.7%
leaders
Good for meeting
34.0%
50.3%
-
personal tutor
About right
Too long
Not relevant
Too short
Too intensive
Other
35.2%
16.2%
12.1%
6.9%
5.7%
3.2%
39.8%
20.6%
7.4%
5.7%
8.3%
4.8%
48.5%
14.2%
2.9%
4.1%
6.3%
6.5%
the Institute and its
Personal Development Profile (PDP) - Reflections
 Each student will build up a profile
 Concentrates on the individual development of each
student
 PDP was often perceived as a compulsory
experience from school so it was renamed
Reflections
 It was separated from careers planning to be more
inclusive. The Dearing model was very much
careers focused, at the expense of other factors
First year tasks
 Spiral Induction: Discussion of objectives for the
student learning process
 Throughout year: Individual assessment objectives
form
 End of year/start of next year: Progress. Have the
objectives been met? Next year’s objectives.
Summary
 The IR team has become established at the
Institute. It is moving away from the UK
model and is getting closer to the North
American model. It is beginning to be
recognised and to be embedded in the
Institute’s structure and influence parts of
policy
 It is also hoped that we can still independently
research the student experience in order to
keep on identifying new issues that emerge
 The LEAP survey was a success and has now
been embedded in the new official Institute
questionnaire
 SSN has been generally successful and helped
to improve the induction process in particular
 The students will now be able to evaluate their
progress with Reflections