Enhancing the whole university experience for international students.
Type of snapshot
- Policy or strategy for learning literacies
- Central services provision e.g. library, learning development, e-learning, ICT
- Provision in the curriculum: separate skills/literacies module
What was the context for this snapshot?
The initiative is based in the School of Marketing, Tourism and Languages and focuses on addressing the needs of international students joining study programmes at Edinburgh Napier University. The pilot project will focus on international students from India who are 3rd year direct entrants to the University’s BA Hospitality Management programme.
The pilot project for this initiative is funded by the TESEP (Transforming and Enhancing the Student Experience Through Pedagogy) project.
What kind of learners were involved in accessing this provision or support?
Students from hospitality management colleges in India who are joining Edinburgh Napier University BA Hospitality Management programmes as 3rd year direct entrants.
Specific challenges relate to the differences in academic cultures and the higher level of expectations of students as a result of their progression to higher education level in the UK.
What skills or literacies were particularly being addressed?
The SPICE (Students Pre-arrival Induction for Continuing Education) pilot project has been initiated to develop a web-based resource that addresses a subset of the skills required by this student group. Specifically, this pilot project aims to develop essential academic skills necessary for study at Edinburgh Napier University. These would include:
- Organising study time
- Group work, tutorials and lectures
- Academic writing skills, including paraphrasing, summarising, referencing, and use of quotations
- Awareness of academic misconduct, including collusion; and
- Presentation skills
Who provided the support? How was support provided?
The new resource is to be made available to the target student group in May 2009. The resource will initially be provided in a paper-based work book format. Development of an online version of the resource is also due to start imminently.
A specific target group has been selected for this pilot project. Following evaluation of the pilot project resource, the product will be developed further to create a more generic version that will meet the needs of all international students.
It is anticipated that the provision will not be assessed and that student participation, although targeted, is not mandatory.
Benefits, outcomes, and lessons learned
This pilot project initiative is about to be launched to its target audience for the first time in May 2009. We anticipate that there will be some obvious level of improvement in student performance on assessed work submitted during trimesters 1 and 2 of the 2009/10 academic year when compared to that of previous Indian student cohorts. Particular attention will be paid to:
- The number and nature of occurrences of academic misconduct;
- The standard of academic writing used in assignments; and
- The levels of student attendance and participation in teaching sessions (lectures and tutorials).
An analysis of student performance on assessed work and also of the overall student experience will be undertaken in academic year 2009/10 to assess the benefits realised as a result of students’ use of the product. As part of the process, feedback will also be gathered from the target student group and from academic staff involved in delivering their study programme. The outcomes and findings will further inform the development of an online version of the new resource which will be launched to subsequent target student groups.