tutorial a strategic approach

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tutorial- a strategic approach

• Margo Blythman
• Susan Orr

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Introduction

• Margo Blythman
• University of the Arts London
• m.blythman_at_lcc.arts.ac.uk

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Strategic Approaches

• Understand context, culture and structures
• How do things get done around here?
• How to access resources
• What is the institutional agenda?
• What is institutional energy spent on?
• What is the institution worried about?
• What is the discourse?

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Definition of tutorial

• Systematic monitoring and support of individual
  academic progress

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Key questions

• Who are the powerful people in your context?
• What they are most anxious about?

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Key questions

• What 'language' do they talk?
• student as customer?
• National Student Survey?
• finance ?
• status of the university ?
• equal opportunities?
• 'teaching and learning'?

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Need a lever

• Retention
• Lack of parity across the university
• Diverse student body
• Marketing strategy

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Starting points

• Need to operate on all levels
• Producing a tutor handbook as a focus
• Open group
• Senior management support
• Definition of tutorial
• Job descriptions
• Time recognition
• Usefulness of policy
• Management structure

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Discourse that the institution cant reject

• Widening participation
• Quality
• Student satisfaction
• Legal protection
• Retention

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Key challenges

• Conceptions of learning
• Resourcing- time and status
• Student numbers
• Physical space
• Documentation
• Resistance to monitoring
• Modular structures

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Key strategies

• Listen out for new money (e.g. CETLs)
• Build a network that uses the dominant language
• Get onto as many agendas as possible speaking
  their language
• Win over individual tutors with support
• Argue for a middle management layer for tutorial

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Key strategies

• Institutional savvy
• Wicked issues approach