Support

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Are you asking your Learning and Teaching Manager for enough help?

Learning Teaching Managers (LTMs) are assigned to each School to help support the quality enhancement, future proofing and inclusivity of all learning and teaching.

Each LTM works with the Deans and Deputy Deans of each School to help bring about positive change in the learning and teaching space.

If you are an academic and are currently in the midst of creating new modules and moving your teaching to a blended model, then your LTM may be able to give you much more support than you release.

We caught up with Michael Loughlin, LTM for the School of Science and Technology.

Michael said: “The quality of teaching and learning that we offer at NTU is superb and I know from the colleagues I speak to we are all keen for that to continue if not improve as we move more to Flexible Learning. To support my School I’m offering a series of workshops, drop in clinics and training sessions to help academics move their learning to a more blended approach.

“The sessions can be tailored to your need – we can run through how to complete a module development form, talk through any granular questions you may have or even attend your departmental level meetings to talk about the concerns that are specific to your discipline.

“Centrally the Flexible Learning team is emailing a weekly breakdown to each Deputy Dean, this should be being shared in your area detailing key milestones, decision points and timeline. Hopefully this is helping manage all our expectations over what we need to do when.

“The central team is also testing products and processes with the LTMs before they’re being issued – so if you see something that you don’t think is working quite right please let us know as we’ll be able to discuss that centrally for you.”

We also spoke with Kerry Gough, LTM for the School of Art and Design.

“We recognise we’ve achieved an amazing amount since the start of the global pandemic, and our staff have done an incredible job of transitioning their teaching to the online space. This has occurred at a much more accelerated rate than we would have liked. The next step for us is to enhance that offer with the careful curation of learning activities that provide a blend of on-campus and online activity, some of which will be delivered in real time, and other activities which will be made available in a way that students (and staff) can access at a time that fits around their own competing demands and responsibilities. This represents a new way of working for the School and there is lots of support available.”

“As a collective, the LTM’s network have been working closely with colleagues across our professional services departments as we make this transition. In a truly collaborative effort, colleagues from CADQ, Flex NTU, Organisational Development, and their Digital Practice and Academic Practice teams, as well as our Library and Learning Resources colleagues have shared their expertise and available staff development resource to support our teaching teams as they prepare for the new academic year. This has been collated in one place, which is accessible from the Flexible Learning website. It has been a delight to be able to work in collaboration with such a committed group of individuals.”

“In our School I am delivering sessions within Departmental meetings, as well as offering a daily online drop-in and more bespoke workshop sessions for course teams. We are working through this new way of thinking about learning and teaching together, to explore some of the opportunities that it affords us. In particular, reconsidering the traditional model for on-campus contact hours instead as learning engagement hours has really helped us to rethink what learning can look like in our freshly blended learning delivery model.”

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Further Information

For further resources, information and process documents to support the move to blended learning please visit the Flexible Learning website.

If you’ve any questions that aren’t covered here please speak with your LTM or email Flexible Learning.