Developing our Futures: Consistency, Collaboration and Context

Dr Christopher Hill

Director, Research Training and Academic Development

University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus

• What is our purpose in higher education?• Are we producing employees? Thinkers? Global

Citizens?

• How do we internationalise when we can’t move people?

• How do we export research?• How do we build collaborations?• How do we measure quality?• How do we inspire our students? Our staff? Ourselves?

Overview

Consistency

• Embedding an international dimension in all academic programmes

• Providing T&L Leadership and world-class teaching facilities

• Promoting scholarship for teaching and learning to foster excellence

• Developing a research culture and agenda

Key Areas of Focus

Parameters

• What do we mean by exceptional academia?

• Are we talking about research ers and output?• Rankings?• Great teachers and mentors?• Great facilities?• Great students?• All of these?

Total Campus

• Building academic excellence or reproducing academic excellence?• Challenges of a different system• UK – private institutions with significant public funding (both core

and competitive) and significant philanthropy• Malaysia – private institution wholly funded by teaching, no formal

FEC for competitive research funding• UK – relatively light touch QA regime with significant institutional

autonomy (but regular audit)• Malaysia – even with self accrediting status, there is much greater

degree of bureaucracy surrounding academic operations (with associated costs)

• UK degree awarding powers overseen by two regulatory processes!

The International Campus Perspective

Waves of Development

• Teaching and Learning• Student Mobility and Experience• Staff Mobility and Training• Internationalization• Research

Curriculum Development

• Relevant contextual examples• Teaching that is accessible and of a high quality• Not reduced to lowest common denominator but

embedded within practical considerations

Teaching

• Develop comprehensive programme of teaching to support drive for global excellence and stature

– Student feedback and in-classroom experience are key to success in this area

– Research output of tremendous value but quality of graduates is equally paramount• Lecturing for Learning• Small classroom teaching• Assessment and giving feedback

Challenges

• Adapting to context – getting the balance between being fundamentally British but locally embedded

• Governance – the complications of different regulatory regimes, UK Quality Assurance and aligning University governance with JV requirements

• Management – ensuring the necessary local autonomy alongside the need for a coherent and consistent approach to delivering against the core values and expectations of the “home” campus

• Training – developing staff capabilities. Ensuring consistency of quality while leveraging on international experience

Continued

• Campus experience extends beyond classroom

• Multi-tiered approach required• Often depending on interest• Hard to force and relies on engagement

• Training

• Funding

• Time

• Goal setting and success monitoring

Internal University Activity

• Cross-campus review• Integrated training and audit process• Strategic and operational review and activity• Self-audit and self-review• Joined up activity• Transfer of credits• Degree mobility• One university

Collaboration and Context

Overview

• Drive for Excellence– Academic Pathway– Postdoctoral development and integration– Research and Teaching

• Global Collaboration– Relevant and valued partners– Contextual development and leveraging

• National– Community engagement– Capacity building

Partners and Collaboration

• Growth– Seek out international partners of repute – Leverage contextual value Coordinate to ensure

strategic internationalisation underpinning– Develop international research activity

(publications/supervision)– Joint PhD and degree schemes– Identify key research themes and networks

• Developing Universities Face:

• Rapid pace of development• International recognition and rankings• Global Employability

• Partnership and joint degrees• Growing middle class and increase in demand• Transparency of market

Challenges

Contextual Challenges

• Danger of a shopping cart approach• Necessity to develop internal capacity• Necessity for developments to be sustainable

• Not playing a game where the rules, goals and measures of success are set by others

Case Study Example

• Joint project between University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, British Council Thailand and Royal Golden Jubilee (PhD Scholarship Programme)

• To support the development of Thailand’s research capacity and ensure that a sustainable and transparent system of quality research supervision is embedded throughout the higher education system

• Identify key areas for further development

Activities

• 9 month project in 2012• Initial two-day workshop in Bangkok• Followed by 3 week period of workshops at participating

universities (two-days in each location)

• Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok• Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai• Naresuan University, Pitsanulok• Burapha University, Burapha• Walailuk University, Nakorn Si Thammarat• Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen

Programme

• Day 1:• National and International models and frameworks for

masters and doctoral supervision• Expectations of masters and doctoral research• Supervision styles• Developing guidelines for supervisory practice

• Day 2:• Assessment of masters and doctoral research• Challenges in masters and doctoral research

supervision• Implementing and supporting developments in

personal and institutional supervisory practice• Student and supervisor expectations

Key Areas of Focus

• Students:• Language skills• Academic writing• Critical Thinking• Presentation Skills• Project Management

• Staff• Training for new supervisors• International collaboration and mentoring

• Institution• Transparent and contextual guidelines for supervision

and research management

Outcomes

• Each university produced a set of guidelines for supervision

• An amalgamated master copy from all 6 universities was produced

• Key training needs were identified• Project proposal for further development is under

discussion between three partners

• Identified key individuals, within institutions, to carry project further and lead on development and training

• Opportunity for Thailand to develop internally rather than solely respond to outside demands

Next Stages

• Ensure cascading approach and sustainable activity

• December 2013• Train the Trainers Session• Key individuals highlighted to undertake training in

Bangkok• Support the development of their own colleagues

• Necessity to review and support

Conclusions

• Huge interest among academic community to improve existing skill set and better support students

• Varying nature of systems requires tailored programme

• Support for development must come from all levels; governmental/ministerial, institutional, departmental, academic, administrative

• Developing internal capacity can create sustainability but leadership and continued training are key for success

The Future

• A growing role for private provision – bringing diversity and resilience into HE systems

• The role of private HE – transitioning to greater research engagement – and the associated funding issues

• International activity expanding – fuelled by the growth in demand – esp in Asia and Africa

• More international campus-type activity• Challenges for institutions to implement sustainably• Challenges for governments in balancing domestic

public and international private provision