This audit tool is intended to supplement the report Flexible Pedagogies: part-time learners and learning in higher education. It has been developed primarily to help tutors in higher education review a given learning activity (for example a credit-bearing module or an award-bearing course) with a view to determining the extent to which greater flexibility can be built in to the various stages in a student learning pathway within which students undertake their study (be this campus virtual or a blend of both). The tool could also be useful for senior colleagues who have responsibility for reviewing and developing higher level institutional strategy.
Part one of this document provides opportunities for you to engage in initial conversations about the learning experiences of students you support and consider possible ways in which greater flexibility can be developed and promoted in relation to each of the three broad dimensions. It also enables you to consider the reasons why you are seeking to develop greater flexibility in relation to a particular learning activity. As noted in the main project report flexibility per se should not be the goal in itself when seeking to develop more flexible approaches to teaching and learning. Rather a key consideration will be why you may want to introduce a particular pedagogical approach and how such an approach might potentially impact on student learning and the quality of the overall student experience.
In Part two a student learning pathway is introduced as a vehicle for mapping identified possibilities to the various stages (i.e. from the information presented to potential applicants through to the induction arrangements engagement in learning assessment points academic support and potential exit and progression routes). Examples have been distilled from the wider literature and case studies presented in the main project report and are provided as a reference point for each stage. A selection of useful resources is presented in Part three.
