In 2023, the Scottish higher education sector will celebrate 20 years of our enhancement-led approach to quality.
From October 2022 to June 2023, QAA Scotland will be hosting its ’20 Years of Enhancement’ campaign, drawing on sector colleagues’ experience of enhancement to create opportunities for critical reflection, celebration and looking to the future of enhancement in Scotland.
The campaign will include panel discussions, re-developed resources and reflective blogs. It will culminate in our 5th International Enhancement Conference, 'Shaping the Student Experience Together: 20 Years of Enhancement', on 14-15 June 2023.
Campaign activities
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 10 October 2022 | ‘Reflecting on 20 years of the enhancement approach in Scotland’ Dr Ailsa Crum, Director of Membership and Quality Enhancement Services, QAA |
| 14 November 2022 | ‘Valuing student representation in quality enhancement’
|
| 12 December 2022 | ‘Quality enhancement needs student engagement’ Eve Lewis, sparqs Blog |
| 9 January 2023 | Re-launch of Transitions skills and strategies |
| 13 February 2023 | ‘Where in the world is enhancement? Exploring the international impact of Scotland’s enhancement approach’
Confirmed panellists:
|
| 15 March 2023 | Re-launch of Student voice cards |
| 10 April 2023 | ‘20 Years of Enhancement’ Blog |
| 4 May 2023 | ‘Building connection: The role of enhancement in embracing relationship-rich education’ Online panel Confirmed panellists:
|
| 14-15 June 2023 | 5th International Enhancement Conference - ‘Shaping the Student Experience Together: 20 Years of Enhancement’ |
Resources
Blog – 20 years of the quality enhancement framework
Dr Ailsa Crum, Director of Membership, Quality Enhancement and Standards at QAA, reflects on 20 years of the enhancement-led approach to quality in Scotland. Ailsa played a key role in the conception and successful implementation of the national enhancement-led approach to quality and continues to champion the value of enhancement in her role at QAA. Her unique perspective provides an excellent introduction to Scotland’s enhancement-led approach to quality and its continued value in a tertiary education sector.
Virtual Panel – Valuing student representation in quality enhancement
In the first of QAA Scotland's 20 Years of Enhancement virtual panels, the panellists discuss the impact of student representation in quality enhancement and how they have used lessons from their student representative experience to inform their current roles within the Scottish and international higher education sectors. The session was recorded live on 14 November 2022.
Chair: Eve Lewis, Director, sparqs
Panel members:
- James Dunphy, Director of Access, Learning and Outcomes, Scottish Funding Council
- Erica Russell-Hensens, Director of Quality and Academic Standards, University of Dundee
- Gavin Lee, Director of Strategic Planning and Development, University of the West of Scotland
- Heather Innes, President at the Highlands and Islands Students’ Association and 2022-23 Enhancement Themes Student Theme Leader
- Liam Burns, Chief Programme Officer for The Scouts
Blog – Quality Enhancement needs student engagement
In the second of our 20 Years of Enhancement, Eve Lewis, Director of Student Partnerships in Quality Scotland (sparqs ) reflects on the evolution of student engagement since the introduction of Scotland’s enhancement-led approach to quality in 2003. Eve’s blog explores the ways that the student voice is supported, encouraged and valued in higher education in Scotland.
Transition Skills and Strategies
We have updated the Transition Skills and Strategies resources as part of our 20 Years of Enhancement campaign to support use across a tertiary education system.
These resources are a suite of free, ready-to-use and customisable resources for staff and students, organised according to skill. Published as part of the Student Transitions Enhancement Theme in 2015, each resource has been reviewed and updated to reflect our contemporary challenges and the importance of these skills in a tertiary learning environment. The revised resources will continue to support students, and the staff who support them, to develop skills to navigate transition points in the learner journey.
Virtual Panel 2 - Where in the world is enhancement?
The second of QAA Scotland's 20 Years of Enhancement virtual panels explored how the lessons learned from Scotland’s enhancement approach to quality have been used to implement and embed quality enhancement in international HE sectors from real life examples shared by the panellists. The session was recorded live on 13 February 2023.
Chair: Professor Martha Caddell, Director, Learning & Teaching Academy, Heriot-Watt University
Panel members:
- Professor Diane Grayson, Senior Director: Academic Affairs, University of Witswatersrand
- Dr Padraig Walsh, Chief Executive, Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI)
- Dr Andrée Sursock, Chair, Quality Board for Icelandic Higher Education
Re-launch of Student voice cards
We have updated the ‘Responding to student voice: Principles of practice’ cards as part of our 20 Years of Enhancement campaign to support their use across a tertiary education system.
The cards were initially developed as part of the ‘Evidence for Enhancement’ Theme in 2018 and have remained popular resources for planning and discussion.
The cards intend to provoke discussion and reflection and be helpful in review exercises at any scale at any time among students and staff who want to enhance how they respond to student feedback.
Blog - From student representation to student partnership
In the third of QAA Scotland’s 20 Years of Enhancement blog posts, Professor Veronica Bamber, Professor Emerita of Higher Education, Queen Margaret University, reflects on our deepening understanding of transition in the tertiary education sector and how Scotland’s enhancement-led approach to quality has contributed significantly to this body of knowledge.
Virtual Panel 3 - Building connection: The role of enhancement in embracing relationship-rich education
The third of QAA Scotland’s 20 Years of Enhancement virtual panels consider how we can use learning, relationships, expectations, alignment, improvement and leadership to support enhancing the student experience. The conversation will explore themes of resilience, the value of community, and the role of enhancement in supporting student success. The session was recorded live on 4 May 2023.
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Chair: Professor Clare Peddie, Proctor, University of St Andrews
Panel members:
- Professor Peter Felten, Executive Director of the Center for Engaged Learning, Assistant Provost for Teaching and Learning, and Professor of History, Elon University
- Professor Leo M. Lambert, President Emeritus and Professor of Education, Elon University
- Amaya Gaines, Elon University
- Robyn Thiel, Abertay University
Explore 20 years of the Enhancement Themes
During the last 20 years, the Enhancement Themes have allowed staff and students to explore a broad range of priority topics which were of strategic importance to the Scottish sector. The Themes have shaped the development of sector and institutional strategy, policy and practice. Our work has resulted in significant positive change to the experiences of our students. They have produced a large and diverse range of resources, including student and staff guides, workshops, case studies and scans of international practice.
