TILT - It's all about Community

When people ask me what TILT^® is about, I always start with community. For me, TILT would not be what it is without the community of colleagues that make it happen. Whether that be from the colleagues who are running TILT funded projects, our variety of practice and scholarship groups or from the amazing practice being shared on our online space – TILTOnline. TILT is framed by a number of principles which very conveniently spells out VOICE (some might say I planned that!). TILT is about giving colleagues a voice whether that be through showcasing and discussing their practice, running funded learning and teaching projects, presenting at our Annual Learning and Teaching Conference or gaining recognition through our AdvanceHE Accredited Fellowship Scheme, through the VC Excellence Awards or enhancing their expertise through staff development.

TILT Principles:

Visibility - Through TILT colleagues have the chance to be visible / recognisable within NTU and the wider HE sector, as a community engaged in excellence in learning and teaching.

Opportunity – TILT provides opportunities for development, for example; funding, sharing best practice, developing learning and teaching knowledge and showcasing work to the sector.

Innovation - TILT encourages colleagues to be bold and creative in introducing new learning and teaching practices.

Community - TILT creates a genuine community of HE professionals that supports, inspires and facilitates their professional development.

Excellence - TILT supports colleagues in delivering excellence in teaching and learning providing students with the best possible outcomes.

TILT – a space for everyone

As a colleague of NTU, you automatically become part of the TILT community. Colleagues from academic schools and professional services are encouraged to engage in what we offer as everyone has something to bring to the learning and teaching community.

How can colleagues get involved with TILT?

There are many ways! First, join TILTOnline. TILTOnline was born out of the pandemic and has grown into a supportive and engaging space which provides a variety of content to support learning and teaching development, and grow the culture of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) at NTU. Another way to engage is through our Practice and Scholarship (P&S) Groups. TILT P&S Groups contribute to eight core SoTL themes as part of NTU’s overall strategic plan. These include Assessment, Curriculum and Technologies in Learning including looking at Generative AI. Anyone at NTU can join and colleagues are invited to suggest new groups too! Several events are run across the year including our Flexible and Online Learning Symposium and the Games Based Learning Symposium. This gives colleagues the chance to engage in discussion around these topics and to showcase the work they are doing.

TILT Annual Learning & Teaching Conference (ALTC)

I would say the highlight of the TILT year for me is the Annual Learning and Teaching Conference (ALTC). The ALTC showcases innovative practice in learning and teaching, with each year focusing on a different theme. The ALTC is a friendly and inclusive space where ideas can be shared, discussed and challenged in an effort to enhance the theories and practices of learning and teaching. This event is now moving to a two-day conference and this year our theme is HE Futures – The Next 10 Years. Attendees will have the chance to hear from colleagues on a range of topics linked to the theme and consider how things might change in terms of the curriculum, staff, students and technologies. The conference is internal only and colleagues can still sign up to attend. We might even get some sunshine!

Launching in 2024/25 – TILT Scholarship Development Journey

As part of TILT’s commitment to provide colleagues with ongoing opportunities to develop and innovate and to support colleagues gaining visibility in learning and teaching, we are going to be launching a Scholarship Development Journey in the new academic year. This is a space where colleagues will be able to see the various options available to them to help them as they progress in their learning and teaching career.

TILT - the next 10 years

As we approach our next conference looking at HE Futures – The Next 10 Years, we have been thinking about what TILT might look like over the next 10 years. We actually reach 10 next year and in that time a lot has changed and developed. During that time, we have awarded over 1,400 colleagues with Fellowship, welcomed thousands of colleagues to our various TILT events and supported over 180 TILT funded projects. Lisa Clughen (Senior Lecturer in Arts and Humanities) has been involved with TILT from the beginning and commented ‘TILT has transformed my career. My teaching awards such as the VC’s Outstanding Established Teaching Award and my different sabbatical awards have allowed me to take my research and practice into new and exciting directions that have been both personally rewarding and extremely beneficial for my role as a Senior Lecturer in Spanish. I’m now an Expert Advisor in Embodiment and Mindful Movement for OneHE thanks to such engagements with TILT. TILT is at the cutting edge of teaching innovation in all of its activities and provides an enviable learning and teaching culture for NTU.’

At the heart of everything we do it all comes back to helping to create opportunities for staff to develop, share, inspire and innovate together. Someone once said to me that TILT is like a supportive family and that made me feel proud of what TILT is about. Like any family, it will continue to grow together and in doing this, continue to enhance the learning and teaching experience for everyone involved.