Leading learning in Australian universities:'Just in time-just for me' narrative support for Unit Coordinators

Author(s):

Coral Pepper(presenting / submitting)Coral Pepper(presenting / submitting)Susan Roberts

Conference:

ECER 2011

Network:

26. Educational Leadership

Format:

Paper

Session Information

26 SES 07 B,

Paper Session

Time:

2011-09-14

16:45-18:15

Room:

JK 25/138,G, 20

Chair:

Gerry MacRuairc

Contribution

The purpose of this research is to investigate the leadership experience of Unit Coordinators in a selection of Australian universities for comparison with European universities (Garland et al, 2010). The study builds on an earlier project funded through the Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) that examined and clarified the role of Unit Coordinators as leaders of learning in higher education. The findings of the earlier project revealed that there is a little targeted support in place for Unit Coordinators to handle the many issues that arise from leading a unit of study in higher education (Cohen et al, 2007: Lefoe et al, 2008). A previous study undertaken by Scott et al (2008), described some already developing training resources though acknowledged much of the material does not fit the ‘just in time-just for me’ demand.

The aims of this project are twofold. First, we are creating a variety of narratives from the experiences of Unit Coordinators to provide relevant ‘just in time-just for me’ support for other Unit Coordinators. Second, we are exploring the availability of training and useful resources relevant to university Unit Coordinators and, linking them to the narratives to maximise that support. Our narratives and training/research links will be available via a purpose developed website. This research is designed to support and engage academics responsible for Unit Coordination. While much of the leadership development in higher education focuses on the more formal and traditional leader our research focuses on leading learning from the Unit Coordinator’s perspective. Our research questions are:

How do Unit Coordinators perceive their leadership role in higher education?

How do Unit Coordinators perceive the level of support they receive in this leadership role?

Method

Our research and development study will be conducted in two phases with the collection of narratives from semi-structured interviews forming the first phase. Interviews are scheduled with Unit Coordinators in several Australian universities across four Australian states beginning late 2010 and during the early months of 2011. Our semi-structured interviews are designed to gather information about participants’: job satisfaction; opportunities and requirements for professional development and; perceptions of leading learning. All university ethics requirements are addressed to complete the research. Narrative accounts, offer a powerful qualitative research strategy as they permit life-like accounts focused on ‘the lived experience’. Narratives enable participants’ stories and descriptions of experience to be honoured and given status (Conle, 2003: Pepper and Wildy, 2009). Such descriptions also support the criteria for ‘good educational research’ as they contribute to peoples’ well being (Hostetler, 2005). Linked to our one page narratives (or case studies/ vignettes), and also available through the purpose developed website, we are developing two or three key questions that help direct the reader towards addressing their specific problem or issue.

Expected Outcomes

This research is expected to provide an insight into leading for learning among Unit Coordinators in Australian universities for comparison with similar roles in European higher education institutions. We anticipate that participants will welcome the opportunity to tell their stories safely in the environment we create. With targeted dissemination we anticipate that other Unit Coordinators will welcome the opportunity to share their experiences and reflections on leading learning as Unit Coordinators via our purpose developed website.

References

Clandinin, D.J. and Connelly, F.M. (2000). Narrative inquiry: Experience and story in qualitative research. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Cohen, L., Bunker, A. and Ellis, R. (2007). Exploring the role of Unit coordinators. Paper presented at the Research and Development in Higher Education: Enhancing Higher Education, Theory and Scholarship, Canberra: Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia. Conle, C. (2003). An anatomy of narrative curricula. Educational Researcher, 32(3), pp. 3-15. Garland, P., Garland, I. and Larson, A. (2010. Engagement of educational workers in higher education in England and Denmark: The use of dyadic interviewing, Presentation to ECER, Helsinki, August, 2010. Hostetler, K. (2005). What is ‘Good’ educational research? Educational Researcher, 34(6), pp. 16-21. Lefoe, G. Parrish, D., Hart, G., Smigiel, H., and Pannan, L. (2008). Distributive leadership for learning and teaching: Developing the faculty scholars’ model. NSW, Australia: CEDIR, University of Wollongong. Pepper, C. and Wildy, H. (2009). Using narratives as a research strategy. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), pp. 18-26. Scott, G., Coates, H., and Anderson, M. (2008). Learning leaders in times of change. Sydney: Australian Learning and Teaching Council and Australian College of Educational Research.

Author Information

Coral Pepper (presenting / submitting)

Edith Cowan University

Education

Bunbury

Coral Pepper (presenting / submitting)

Edith Cowan University, Australia

Susan Roberts

Murdoch University, Australia

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