Personal Development Planning Margaret Harrison Associate Dean of Academic Frameworks

PDP an up-date From 2005/06 onwards all students on taught courses in UK HEIs are expected to participate in PDP PDP is one half of Progress File, the other half is a Transcript which is a formal record of student academic learning. A Transcript is part of a Diploma Supplement. More recently the proposed Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR) as one document would cover PDP, a Transcript and Diploma Supplement. PDP gives a student the opportunity to monitor, review and action plan their personal development  PDP an up-date  University PDP policy  How the University implements PDP in Departments

Note the strong link between PDP and employability. PDP can help students to: plan, record and reflect upon their experiences in a way that develops their employment related skills and self-awareness; understand how their transferable skills might be applied in new settings; make realistic and suitable career plans based upon their heightened self-knowledge; demonstrate both their employment potential and their ability to manage their future professional development to employers HEA: HEA via the CRA/QAA forum has a wealth of information/ resources on PDP.

PDP is a Process and Practice When outlining to students the reasons to get involved with PDP Croot and Gedye (2006:175) state: ‘PDP can help you improve your academic performance, enhance your employability and make the most of your university experience in general.’ Clegg and Bradley (2006) have identified three models of PDP: Professional: emphasis on CPD (Education and Health) Employment: emphasis on generic transferable skills (Sport and Leisure) Academic: emphasis on subject specific skills and metacognition (Humanities and Social Sciences) One can have a mix of the three models. We may wish to relate this to University PDP policy and delivery.

Entwistle and Peterson (2004) have analysed PDP in relation to a student’s move from surface to deep levels of processing/learning. Despite the emphasis on process and practice many people still stress PDP as a product – why is this? When reviewing University PDP policy we need to consider: Is our current policy fit for purpose? Do we need to make any changes to the policy?

University PDP Policy Personal Development Planning is an integral and a required element of all undergraduate and postgraduate programmes:  integral in that PDP is, wherever possible, delivered and assessed in the context of subject-specific study, in order to maximise the benefits in terms of academic and personal skill development and employability, and to make students see as relevant;  required in that all students are introduced to PDP, and are normally assessed on PDP-related tasks (dependent on course and level of study), at the start of their programme of study. All students are expected to engage with further PDP- related activities throughout their programme of study, and are given guidance in doing so.

Personal Development Planning is designed to build capacity in students to:  evaluate, reflect upon and manage their own learning;  identify and develop their academic, transferable and study skills and habits/attitudes in order to become more self-assured, independent learners;  think creatively and constructively about personal, academic and career goals and plan an effective strategy towards achieving those goals;  demonstrate their ‘employability’ and /or continued professional development, by fostering their personal responsibility and self-reliance;  integrate their learning from a range of activities, including work-based and voluntary activities, into their own personal development planning, and use evidence from learning to obtain credit against their programme of study

Key issues with PDP are:  Appreciation of different learning styles  Embedding transferable skills in the curriculum  Assessment  Ownership of PDP by students  Confidentiality  Relevance  How one helps a student move from surface to deep learning  Staff engagement with PDP  Reflection and how this is developed  Implicit or Explicit Are there any more to add to this list?

The Principles of PDP delivery These principles can be applied to undergraduate and postgraduate provision and they comply with QAA guidance:  Development of PDP within a programme of studies must be appropriate to the level and area/subject of study;  All students must be given the opportunity to engage with an explicit, structured and supported process for PDP;  Responsibility for facilitating students’ PDP rests with Departments and Faculties in conjunction with the Careers Centre;  Departments should provide a delivery plan that identifies the approach(es) used (both within and in addition to the formal taught programme) and lines of responsibility. A delivery plan should demonstrate how PDP is provided in each Course within the Department; Conti.

Principles of delivery (continued)  All students must be introduced to PDP at the start of their programme of studies;  Certain aspects of PDP will be assessed in modules (at undergraduate level only);  Implementation of PDP, by each Department, will be formally monitored and reviewed, annually in the first instance, by Faculties and forwarded to the appropriate University committee e.g. UMS / PMS Board of Studies;  Information about PDP should be made available to all students in electronic and/or hard copy format, normally in a Course guide.

How the University implements PDP in Departments Evidence base There should be explicit reference to PDP in:  Programme specifications;  Module descriptors, where appropriate; and  Department Delivery Plans The process of annual monitoring and reporting on PDP delivery should be contained within Course Annual Monitoring Report.

Department PDP delivery plan Draft example of a PDP delivery plan - Level I Formal ‘taught’ programme Specific aspect of PDP presented Where delivered Course & module status i.e. compulsory or not Activity /Evidence (assessed or not) Person(s) responsible for delivery, review, enhancement and further action Critical reflection XX111 Introduction to Philosophy XX Single Hons. (compulsory) XX Joint Hons. (core) Short reflective commentary as part of coursework Module tutor and teaching team Skills auditXX160 Learning and Personal Development XX Single Hons. (compulsory) XX Joint Hons. (core) Week 2 task with students, not assessed Module tutor Second table: Other opportunities for PDP outside the formal ‘taught’ Programme. One sheet per Level (UMS). Postgraduate course delivery plan uses same headings but is more flexible in terms of formal taught and other opportunities.

Various examples of good practice across the University of how PDP can be delivered/recorded:  Learning diary  Story boards  Career centre staff deliver specific sessions  Pebblepad – electronic portfolios  Hard copy Portfolios (as in Education)  Employability link  Reflection on critical incidents