A systemic approach to working with academic staff : addressing the confusion at the source

The role of the learning adviser in the tertiary context could be argued to be in a period of transformation with the changing culture of modern universities. While in many respects we are still attempting to develop an appropriate and comprehensive definition of our role at the national level, the approach we take is often dependent on our university’s organisation, philosophy and policy. In response to a number of educational and economic factors, in some universities the role of the learning adviser is moving from one that operates in the remedial mode focusing solely on student skills development, to one that transforms the culture of teaching and learning in the institutional by working with academic staff at the curriculum level. At the University of Wollongong, it is the latter systemic approach that is deemed the highest priority in providing the most equitable and effective learning support for all students. This approach aims to remove the sources of confusion for students by integrating tertiary literacy skills instruction into subject curriculum, training staff in providing explicit feedback on their students’ skills and developing teaching and learning materials which further explain and model aspects of the feedback. This paper will present three crucial aspects of the systemic approach: the shift in focus from working outside the curriculum to one that addresses the issues inside the curriculum, or system, by collaborating with discipline staff; the importance of working at the faculty and department level to make these collaborations strategic; and the need to participate in and impact upon policy decisions at a number of levels. Disciplines Arts and Humanities | Social and Behavioral Sciences Publication Details Percy, A. & Skillen, J. (2000). A systemic approach to working with academic staff: addressing the confusion at the source. In K. Chanock (Ed.), Sources of Confusion: Proceedings of the 2000 Language and Academic Skills Conference. This conference paper is available at Research Online: http://ro.uow. edu.au/asdpapers/133 Percy, A & Skillen, J. 2000, „A systemic approach to working with academic staff: addressing the confusion at the source‟. In K. Chanock (Ed.), Sources of Confusion: Proceedings of the 2000 Language and Academic Skills Conference, La Trobe University, Melbourne, pp244-254. A SYSTEMIC APPROACH TO WORKING WITH ACADEMIC STAFF: ADDRESSING THE CONFUSION AT THE SOURCE Alisa Percy and Jan Skillen University of Wollongong The role of the learning adviser in the tertiary context could be argued to be in a period of transformation with the changing culture of modern universities. While in many respects we are still attempting to develop an appropriate and comprehensive definition of our role at the national level, the approach we take is often dependent on our university’s organisation, philosophy and policy. In response to a number of educational and economic factors, in some universities the role of the learning adviser is moving from one that operates in the remedial mode focusing solely on student skills development, to one that transforms the culture of teaching and learning in the institutional by working with academic staff at the curriculum level. At the University of Wollongong, it is the latter systemic approach that is deemed the highest priority in providing the most equitable and effective learning support for all students. This approach aims to remove the sources of confusion for students by integrating tertiary literacy skills instruction into subject curriculum, training staff in providing explicit feedback on their students’ skills and developing teaching and learning materials which further explain and model aspects of the feedback. This paper will present three crucial aspects of the systemic approach: the shift in focus from working outside the curriculum to one that addresses the issues inside the curriculum, or system, by collaborating with discipline staff; the importance of working at the faculty and department level to make these collaborations strategic; and the need to participate in and impact upon policy decisions at a number of levels. In the CAUT commissioned report First Year on Campus, McInnis, James and McNaught (1995) discuss students‟ first year transition, as “characterised by.a series of gaps and gulfs, especially between school and university, and between students and academics”. These „gaps and gulfs‟, in part, represent two sources of confusion: the students‟ lack of familiarity with the academic learning context (generic skills) and the conventions and discourse of their discipline (discipline-specific skills); and discipline staffs‟ inability to clearly articulate their tacit knowledge of the discourse and conventions of their discipline and to provide students with developmental and timely feedback. It is these two sources of confusion that Learning and Academic Skills (LAS) advisers deal with on a day-to-day basis. In the current educational climate that has highlighted the importance of quality teaching and learning in higher education, in many cases LAS advisers are moving away from the remedial and generic model of providing learning support, to one that is pro-active, systemic and developmental. This latter approach addresses the students‟ confusions at the source by working with discipline staff at the curriculum level. The curriculum is the „bridge‟ where all groups engage, the students, the staff and LAS advisers: it is where confusions can be addressed in a contextualised, relevant and timely manner. This approach, however, extends the notion of integration by working strategically at the department and faculty level, and by ensuring that discipline staff develop the knowledge, resources and ability to continue with the teaching of the skills and discourse long after the LAS staff member has moved on to other subjects. The systemic approach is a long-term solution which has the capability of effecting real and lasting change in the teaching and learning culture of our institutions. This paper will present three crucial aspects of the systemic approach: the shift in focus from Percy, A & Skillen, J. 2000, „A systemic approach to working with academic staff: addressing the confusion at the source‟. In K. Chanock (Ed.), Sources of Confusion: Proceedings of the 2000 Language and Academic Skills Conference, La Trobe University, Melbourne, pp244-254. working outside the curriculum to one that addresses the issues inside the curriculum, or system, by collaborating with discipline staff; the importance of working at the faculty and department level to make these collaborations strategic; and the need to participate in and impact upon policy decisions at a number of levels.