This year’s QAA Annual Conference will explore the future role of higher education and the big questions being posed:
Can we future-proof HE and protect the quality of the student experience and the value of qualifications?
What impact will the skills agenda and lifelong learning entitlement have?
What role will artificial intelligence play in the digital transformation of HE?
Is UK HE prepared for its role in a tertiary landscape?
Below are main sessions in two days of the QAA Annual Conference 2023:
Is higher education one of the world’s greatest survivors, steadfastly maintaining its position while the earth moved around it? Or has it been reinventing itself for centuries? In this discussion we want to explore the value of higher education, however it is delivered. And we want to consider who higher education is for, in particular how we ensure all students have a sense of belonging and all students have respect for each other’s contributions.
WELCOME & IS THERE A NEED TO REDEFINE THE VALUE OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND WHO IT IS FOR?
Welcome
Professor Simon Gaskell, Chair of the Board, QAA
Chair
Vicki Stott, Chief Executive, QAA
Presenters
David Hughes CBE, Chief Executive, Association of Colleges
Professor Dame Sally Mapstone, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, University of St Andrews
Osaro Otobo, Trustee, British Youth Council
Emeritus Professor Stephen Parker, Emeritus Professor, University of Canberra
The revised Higher Education Law in 2018 and the national Strategic Development of quality assurance and accreditation for universities and colleges in the period of 2022 – 2030 introduced a greater level of internationalisation of higher education which plays an important role in improving the quality of education, training global citizens, promoting the integration of Vietnamese higher education in the region and the world, and developing Vietnam Higher education reputation in the world.
It is therefore more critical than ever that university leadership and governance are able to adapt to new challenges and to create as well as welcome new opportunities that result in high quality training programmes, effective national and international collaborations, productive research outcomes and, perhaps most importantly, employable graduates who are able to adapt easily to the changing environment.
Talk contents:
Reshaping HEI's IQA system toward systematic transformation targeting outcome-based education, learning and teaching underpinned by research, innovation, entrepreneurship and digital transformation including emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence considering complex challenges and social demands.
Improving capacity of External Quality Assurance.
Promoting internationalisation of higher education IQA and EQA.
Chair
Tim Carnley, Business Development Manager, QAA
Presenters
Professor Dr Raymond Lee, Associate Dean (Global Engagement) & Professor of Biomechanics, University of Portsmouth
Dr Anh Thu Nguyen, Founder, LYDINC Institute of Education and Engineering - Technology
Associate Professor Dr Van Tuan Pham, Vice-Director, LYDINC Institute of Education and Engineering - Technology
Bich Hue Tran, Head of Quality Accreditation Management Unit, Vietnam Educational Quality Management Agency (VQA), Ministry of Education and Training (MoET)
Fast-forward a few years…We explore the art of the possible in higher education 2035 and model a couple of evidence-informed competing realities which might well become part of the everyday HE experience.
Let’s introduce HigherEdu5, a non-university structure focusing on digital experiences and capabilities. The infrastructure of HigherEdu5 sounds human, looks human, but is NOT human. The world of learning revolves around the AI bot. There are no campuses and nudges are normalised.
An alternative reality concerns Virtual Learning Analytics University. Each student has an individualised learner profile package, completely customisable and evidence-driven, with approaches dependent on purchase level made by students. AI advice and guidance are pre-requisites for each student and successful career routes are predicted based on potential capabilities drawn from the analytical level purchased and options made.
Despite these potentially dystopian offers, we consider the emergence of Phenomenon-Based Learning, which arguably provides pedagogic glue for any future provision.
Bring along your thoughts, fears and lots of questions.
Chair
Dr Ailsa Crum, Director, Membership, Quality Enhancement and Standards, QAA
Presenter
Professor Stella Jones-Devitt, Professor of Critical Pedagogy, Staffordshire University
In her keynote, Vicki Stott will talk about a big year for quality, the changing higher education landscape and the importance of building strong quality systems for the future.
Chair
Tom Yates, Director of Corporate Affairs, QAA
Presenter
Vicki Stott, Chief Executive, QAA
What impact will it have on higher education providers? Through a multi-nation lens, we will explore the challenges and opportunities it presents to providers.
WELCOME & WHAT DO WE UNDERSTAND BY TERTIARY?
Welcome & Chair
Alastair Delaney, Executive Director of Operations (Deputy CEO), QAA
Presenters
Sir Paul Grice, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Queen Margaret University
Professor Dame Julie Lydon, Chair, Commission for Tertiary Education and Research (CTER)
Louise Warde-Hunter, Principal and CEO, Belfast Metropolitan College
Orla Tarn, President, NUS (Wales)
QUALITY UPDATE: THE NEW QAA MEMBERSHIP YEAR – LOTS TO LOOK FORWARD TO
Presenter
Dr Ailsa Crum, Director, Membership, Quality Enhancement and Standards, QAA
QUALITY UPDATE: THE VERY LATEST FROM QAA & CLOSING REMARKS
Presenters
Alastair Delaney, Executive Director of Operations (Deputy CEO), QAA
Nick Watmough, Quality Enhancement & Standards Specialist, QAA
In this session we invite a number of speakers from across the world of higher education to share their thoughts and vision for what higher education should and could be in 2040. Will provision have changed and the landscape be tertiary? How and where will students be studying?
VISIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE FUTURE: LOOKING FORWARD TO 2040
Will policy developments to support more flexible modes of study have made a difference? What do we need to start doing now to enable their vision of the future?
Chair
Vicki Stott, Chief Executive, QAA
Presenters
Joy Elliott-Bowman, Director of Policy and Development, Independent HE
Smita Jamdar, Partner & Head of Education, Shakespeare Martineau LLP
Ben Jordan, Head of Policy, UCAS
CREATING AN ENVIRONMENT WHICH FOSTERS PEDAGOGIC RESEARCH INFORMED DECISION MAKING ON QUALITY MATTERS
Institutions across higher education often grapple with challenges of tackling quality issues that are informed by the literature and examples of good practice. In FE, there is often little capacity for pedagogic work and in HE, academics and professional staff often do not have the space to focus on it.
In this session our speakers will discuss the findings of this Collaborative Enhancement Project. The team developed a Pedagogic Research Model (PedR) – a ‘how to’ guide on developing, promoting and celebrating pedagogic research activities - to unpick the challenges around quality issues, and created this model approach which both higher education (HE) and further education (FE) can adapt to promote a culture of a scholarly informed approach to their own institutional decision-making processes.
Chair
Stephanie Stephenson, Marketing and Events Manager, QAA
Presenters
Dr Paul Chin, Head of Learning and Teaching, Centre for Learning and Teaching, University of Bath
Dan Connolly, Teaching and Learning Coach, Barnsley College
Dr Katherine Lupton, Lead for International Academic Partnerships, Leeds Trinity University
NAVIGATING QUALITY IN COMPLEX TRANSNATIONAL EDUCATION ENVIRONMENTS
Now entering its third year, the QE-TNE scheme offers members quality enhancement focused thematic activity in selected countries. One of the underlying features of the scheme is to be flexible and adaptable to the local context. This approach was certainly key for the recently completed work in Sri Lanka where the country was emerging from the combined challenges of covid and political and financial unrest. This session will include discussion of key findings from UK providers’ thematic critical reflections and subsequent virtual visits to their partners, focusing specifically on navigating quality in ever-changing and challenging environments. We will hear first-hand about some of the strategies adopted and good practice identified amongst TNE partnerships as well as surfacing some of the lessons that can be learned for future navigation of complex TNE environments.
Chairs
Jennifer Cann, Quality Manager, QAA
Piers Wall, Head of International Membership Services and TNE, QAA
Presenters
Dr Mukul Madahar, Associate Dean Partnerships, School of Management, Cardiff Metropolitan University
Stuart Evans, Collaborative Provision Specialist, Quality Enhancement Directorate, Cardiff Metropolitan University
Professor Aulay MacKenzie, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (acting), Wrexham University
Kate Cleaver, Partnership Development & Liaison Manager, Wrexham University
Dr Lorna Thomas, Director of Partnerships, Faculty Sciences, Engineering and Social Sciences, Canterbury Christ Church University
Dr Katy Warden, Deputy Director of Partnerships, Canterbury Christ Church University
Michelle Childs, International Partnership Manager, Canterbury Christ Church University
Dr Krishani Jayasinghe, Dean of the Faculty of Management, Humanities, and Social Sciences, Saegis Campus in Nugegoda, Sri Lanka
Samadhi Paramitha Herath, Senior Assistant Registrar of Faculty of Management, Humanities and Social Sciences and Postgraduate Studies, Saegis Campus in Nugegoda, Sri Lanka
REDESIGNING ASSESSMENTS FOR A WORLD WITH ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
In the session our speakers will consider how HE providers are redesigning their assessments and adapting them in response to the growth of artificial intelligence. How has it changed their approach to digital and other forms of assessment?
Chair
Eve Alcock, Head of Public Affairs, QAA
Presenters
Professor Michael Grove, Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education Policy and Standards), University of Birmingham
Marieke Guy, Head of Digital Assessment & Digital Education Team, University College London
SUPPLY AND DEMAND: UNDERSTANDING AND DELIVERING QUALITY EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
This student voice-driven discussion will consider what quality education for sustainable development (ESD) looks like in practice – for students, practitioners, audience members – exploring student experience and expectations and how to best approach ESD integration. This session draws upon the work of the QAA Collaborative Enhancement Projects that have been working in this area this year.
Chair
Rachel Hill-Kelly, Assistant Company Secretary, QAA
Presenters
Jade Cioffi, Development and Democracy Officer, Keele University Students’ Union
Stella Maris, Student, University of St Andrews
Dr Andrew Reeves, Associate Professor, Energy and Sustainable Development, De Montfort University
Dr Alex Ryan, Director of Sustainability, University of Gloucestershire
Miriam Webb, Sustainability Engagement Manager, University of Gloucestershire
Beatrice Hughes, Student, University of Gloucestershire
Dr Rehema White, Sustainable Development Programme Coordinator, University of St Andrews
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY AND THE RISE OF AI TOOLS
In this session we will explore the challenges of managing academic integrity in a world where the use of artificial intelligence tools is growing. How does HE respond positively? What do students and staff need to know? How will assessment and learning adapt and change?
Chair
Eve Alcock, Head of Public Affairs, QAA
Presenters
Dr Brenda McDermott, Senior Manager, Student Accessibility Services, University of Calgary, Canada
Dr Mike Reddy, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Computing, Engineering and Science, University of South Wales
Elisha Moreton, Research Assistant, Insight Team, Lancaster University Student’s Union
MULTIPLE MASTERS AND TINY TEAMS – HOW DO HE IN FE TEAMS COPE?
In this session we will explore the highs and challenges of managing the quality of higher education in FE colleges. How do they manage to deliver a great learning experience, student engagement and all the other elements that go into making higher education in FE what it is, with such relatively small teams? What lessons have they learned and what tips would they offer to other higher education providers?
Chair
Janice De Sousa, Quality Enhancement and Engagement Manager, QAA
Presenters
Jane Nickisson, Assistant Principal for Higher Education, University Centre Stockport College
Phil Jones, Head of Learner Services and Marketing, Grŵp Llandrillo Menai
Catherine Prosser, Director of Curriculum and Quality, Grŵp Llandrillo Menai
QUALITY ASSURANCE AND ENHANCEMENT IN THE UAE
In this session, we will explore the Commission for Academic Accreditation's (CAA) strategic vision for the UAE’s quality assurance and accreditation system for higher education. We will also find out from the Emirates College for Advanced Education what it is like to work with two accreditation agencies, CAA and QAA. What did they learn from the experience and has it changed their approach to quality assurance and enhancement as a result? How has it benefited their institution and their students?
Chairs
Christopher Bland, Head of Accreditation and Consultancy, QAA
Julie Till, Head of Global Business Development, QAA
Presenters
Dr Hanadi Kadbey, Head of Institutional Research and Effectiveness Department, Emirates College for Advanced Education, UAE
Sarosh Azhar, Senior Specialist, Institutional Effectiveness, Emirates College for Advanced Education, UAE
Dr Dhayaneethie Perumal, Higher Education Expert, Commission for Academic Accreditation, UAE
THE UK QUALITY CODE: GETTING IT RIGHT - PRE-CONSULTATION PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES - THE BIG OVERVIEW
Following on from our successful summer series of events where we examined the current draft of the sector-led Principles of the UK Quality Code, we are providing an overview of all the Principles and Key Points for Practice as a complete document.
This session will offer participants a chance to share their feedback and have a voice in the redevelopment of the UK Quality Code. It is interactive and involves pre-reading which is available here.
Chair
Stephanie Stephenson, Marketing and Events Manager, QAA
Presenter
Ruth Burchell, Quality and Standards Specialist, QAA
VISIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE FUTURE: LOOKING FORWARD TO 2040
In this session we invite a number of speakers from across the world of higher education to share their thoughts and vision for what higher education should and could be in 2040. Will provision have changed and the landscape be tertiary? How and where will students be studying? Will policy developments to support more flexible modes of study have made a difference? What do we need to start doing now to enable their vision of the future?
Chair
Vicki Stott, Chief Executive, QAA
Presenters
Jim Dickinson, Associate Editor, Wonkhe
Dr Mandy Crawford-Lee, Chief Executive, University Vocational Awards Council
Sebastian James, Vice President Education, Worcester Students' Unio
COMPETENCE-BASED EDUCATION
The Competence-based Education primer was launched at the QAA Member Assessment Festival in April 2023. This session provides an opportunity to further explore the thinking around competence development and discuss the University of Hull's strategic approach to adopting competence-based education.
Chair
Amrita Narang, Quality Enhancement & Standards Specialist, QAA
Presenter
Michael Ewen, Head of the Teaching Excellence Academy, University of Hull
HOW DO WE ENSURE THAT ACADEMIC PROGRAMMES ARE RELEVANT TO THE WORKPLACE?
In this session our speakers will explore how we can ensure that students are prepared for employment during their time in academia. How do we deliver academic rigour and practical skills?
Chair
Tom Yates, Director of Corporate Affairs, QAA
Presenters
Professor Osama Khan, Pro-Vice Chancellor, Academic Education Office, University of Surrey
Dr Jan McArthur, Senior Lecturer, Department of Educational Research, Lancaster University
TEACHING DEGREE APPRENTICESHIPS: THE CHALLENGES, MOTIVATIONS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Degree apprenticeships are growing and transforming the landscape of higher education in the UK to the point that other countries have started emulating it. With such growth, reputation, popularity, and impact, it has become pertinent that we critically assess the delivery to see the challenges, motivations and lessons learned so far.
In this session, the speakers will reveal some of the results from what they believe to be the first national survey on the delivery of degree apprenticeships. They will share some of the lessons and good practices from learners, employers, and educators’ perspectives. This session will be beneficial for all stakeholders of degree apprenticeships (educators, employers, policymakers, trailblazer groups, regulators etc.) as it will reveal what makes degree apprenticeships “tick”.
Chair
Rob Stroud, Director, Assessment Services and Access to Higher Education, QAA
Presenter
Dr Ernest Edem Edifor, Director of Digital Technology Solutions Degree Apprenticeship, Manchester Metropolitan University
ARE WE WILLING TO RESET THE SYSTEM? LET’S DO SOMETHING ABOUT DIVERSITY
In this breakout we will explore why small, specialist or practice-based providers are important to the future of HE. Specialism is essential to the responsiveness of vital sectors such as the creative industries, agriculture and medicine, but it also brings significant challenges. How do we ensure that we continue to have a diverse HE sector that delivers quality to its learners and the wider community?
Chair
Janice De Sousa, Quality Enhancement and Engagement Manager, QAA
Presenters
Mark Corbett, Head of Policy & Networks, London Higher
Professor Ken Sloan, Vice-Chancellor and CEO, Harper Adams University
Edward Venning, Partner, Six Ravens Consulting LLP
DELIVERING QUALITY ASSURANCE ACROSS TERTIARY EDUCATION BOUNDARIES
In this breakout we will explore what it means to deliver a quality framework across the boundaries and different education levels within tertiary education. What are the benefits and challenges?
Chair
Kathryn O'Loan, Director Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, QAA
Presenters
Dr Billy Bennett, Vice-President for Academic Affairs and Registrar, Atlantic Technological University, Donegal
Professor Crichton Lang, Chair, Quality Board for Higher Education in Iceland
Dr Padraig Walsh, Chief Executive Officer, Quality and Qualifications Ireland
DIGITAL LEARNING AND ITS POTENTIAL FOR A MORE ACCESSIBLE POST-SECONDARY SYSTEM
From flexible learning modalities to the rise of artificial intelligence, the past few years have highlighted the potential that digital technologies hold for transforming post-secondary learning experiences. From an accessibility standpoint, the incorporation of digital technologies into teaching and learning may break down barriers for some, yet may also create barriers for others. In this session, Dr Nicole Johnson, Executive Director of the Canadian Digital Learning Research Association will present current digital learning trends and their associated benefits and challenges. With an emphasis on the future, and the trends we are likely to see unfold in the near future, Dr Johnson will explore the implications of technology integration and provide recommendations for providing high calibre, inclusive learning experiences going forward. Topics discussed will include: learning modalities, open educational resources (OER), artificial intelligence, and faculty and student preferences.
Chair
Tom Yates, Director of Corporate Affairs, QAA
Presenter
Dr Nicole Johnson, Executive Director, Canadian Digital Learning Research Association/Association canadienne de recherche sur la formation en ligne
IMPROVING STUDENT LEARNING THROUGH AN INCLUSIVE AND ACCESSIBLE APPROACH TO ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
This session will report from a QAA-funded collaborative enhancement project across four UK HEIs based on improving inclusion and accessibility in academic integrity teaching and practice, using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles. The presenter will demonstrate the outputs from the project including a ‘PARTNERS’ template to check for accessibility and a student academic integrity champion model. Participants will then be invited to discuss how inclusion/accessibility can be incorporated into their own teaching and practice of academic integrity through the application of UDL and the project resources.
Chair
Dr Ailsa Crum, Director, Membership, Quality Enhancement and Standards, QAA
Presenter
Dr Mary Davis, Principal Lecturer (Education and Student Experience), Oxford Brookes University