Dr Colleen McKenna

Participants are required to have completed either the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education for Part 1 (Associate Level)

or

the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education for Career Track

before enrolling on the  Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education Part 2 (Full Level).

This course builds upon the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education (Part 1) and offers participants an opportunity to explore and critique assessment and feedback practices and to design (or re-design) a course in their discipline drawing on principles of constructive alignment among other pedagogical approaches.

The programme comprises 2 modules from the following choices:

• course design (compulsory for those entering the programme from the TC501, GTA pathway)
• assessment and feedback
• contemporary issues in Higher Education 
• signature pedagogies 

Participants who have already completed the course design module on the PGCertHE (Career Track TC503) can also select an optional, enquiry-based module.

Successful participants will be awarded the Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education - Full level and are eligible for full fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (HEA).

10 hours of workshops in the MT. 10 hours of workshops in the LT. 2 hours of workshops in the ST.

Please note that the exact breakdown of hours per term depends upon module selection. 

Teaching for this course will take the form of interactive workshops. The majority of these will be 2 hours long; however, there will be a full day workshop on course design in Lent Term. Moodle will also be used as a learning environment.

Students will be expected to produce 1 piece of coursework in the MT, 1 piece of coursework in the ST and 1 presentation in the LT or ST.

There are formative feedback points for each of the summative assignments.

Additionally, there are formative reflections at both the start and finish of the programme. These formative reflections, combined with the coversheets on the 2 summative essays, make up the learning log element of the course and contribute to the final portfolio submission. Throughout the formative pieces are designed to encourage a reflexive approach to academic practice.

Ashwin, P. (2015) Reflective teaching in higher education. London: Bloomsbury.

Biggs, J (1996) 'Enhancing teaching through constructive alignment'. Higher education. 32 (3) 347-364.

Carless, D. (2015) Excellence in university assessment. London: Routledge.

Healey, M., & Jenkins, A. (2006) Strengthening the teaching - research linkage in undergraduate courses and programs. New directions for teaching and learning. (107) 43-53.

Hughes, G (2013) Ipsative assessment: motivation through marking. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Laurillard, D., (2002) Designing teaching materials in  Laurillard, D., Rethinking university teaching: a framework for the effective use of learning technologies. London: Routledge.

Merry, S., Price, M., Carless, D. & Taras, M. (2013) Reconceptualising feedback in higher education: developing dialogue with students. London: Routledge.

Nicol, D. & Macfarlane Dick, D. (2006) Formative assessment and self-regulated learning: a model and seven principles of good feedback practice, Studies in Higher Education, 31 (2) 199-218.

Rust, C. (2007). Towards a scholarship of assessment. Assessment & evaluation in higher education, 32 (2) 229-237.

Wilson, M. & Scalise, K. (2006) Higher education.  52: 635 - 663.

Assessment path 1
Essay (50%, 2500 words) in January.
Essay (50%, 2500 words) in the ST.

Assessment path 2
Project (50%, 2500 words) in January.
Essay (50%, 2500 words) in the ST.

This course is assessed entirely by coursework - formative and summative. There are no exams.

All assignments are marked on a Complete/Not Yet Complete basis and all assessments are viewed as developmental opportunities. Participants are offered detailed feedback on all work and, where appropriate, they have the option of developing assignments further based on feedback from the teaching team and peers.

The assignments include both essay-style written texts and reflective pieces. Additionally, there are some opportunities for choice within the assessment diet. For example, the module on assessment and feedback, participants can select to do either a group project OR a 2500 word written assignment.

Depending on module selection, participants may also undertake an annotated bibliography, blogposts and podcasts.