1. Supporting Doctoral Students to Develop their Teaching Practice Julie-Anne Regan Kirsten Besemer April 2008

2. Background Impetus for change –RDAP –HERA –Applications for the PG Certificate Concerns of PGRs and GTAs –Conflict of interest when supervisor also supporting teaching practice –Lacking confidence and feeling insecure because no preparation for teaching –A sense of great responsibility for the learning experience of undergraduate students they are teaching –No formal recognition of their teaching experience- employability The support framework – see handout

3. Action Learning Groups –Proven to be an effective approach to professional development –Facilitated by an academic development specialist –The role of the facilitator –Managing an ALG –A vehicle for promoting the Professional Standards Framework and the individual recognition scheme of the Higher Education Academy

4. Participating in an ALG Starting teaching without support –Time consuming –Reinventing the wheel Advantages of the ALG –Group support – PhD can be a lonely path –Exchanging information and encouragement –Results are immediate: How the action learning group helped me make my teaching more interactive

5. Effects of the ALG Professional Development and recognition by the HEA Changing the way I think about my teaching – From financial need to professional practice Generic PGR training versus Action Learning –Starting from our learning needs

6. Conclusion Evaluations so far –Confidence building –Directly related to practical issues –Possibly more attractive in disciplines where a cohesive community of research students does not already exist –A useful compromise to the PG Cert but not a replacement

7. Take home messages ALGs can provide an effective forum for developing early academics Appropriate facilitation is an essential feature Formal recognition of teaching practice is viewed as career enhancing by early academics