Individual versus representational:

Community, engagement and

belongingStudent Unions and the Changing Nature of Student Leadership in the

UK

SRHE

2 June 2014

Dr Camille B. Kandiko Howson @cbkandiko

King’s College London

Background: Student engagement (UK)

The participation of students in quality enhancement and quality assurance processes, resulting in the improvement of their educational experience (QAA Quality Code, Chapter B5)

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Background: Student engagement (US)

“the time and effort students devote to activities that are empirically linked to desired outcomes of college and what institutions do to induce students to participate in these activities”

(Kuh, 2009: 683)

The Project

Quality Assurance Agency (QAA)-funded research project explored the views of students in higher education across the UK in 2012-13, to investigate their perceptions and expectations of the quality of their learning experience and the academic standards of their chosen programmes of study

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Methodology

• Concept-map mediated interviews and focus groups were used to elicit students’ expectations and perceptions of quality, standards and the student learning experience

• Interviews and focus groups were conducted with over 150 students in 16 settings, across 4 general institutional types (research-intensive, teaching-intensive, regional-focused and special interest)

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Analysis

• Interview and focus group data were analysed through open-coding using a grounded theory approach, with codes combined into thematic areas

• Concept maps were analysed visually, structurally and thematically

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Findings

• How students frame higher education• Ideology• Practices• Purpose

• Students and their course

• Students and the institution7

I. Individual engagement

Learning and experience at course-level

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ED1

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Community

Extra-curricular activities

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LA6

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Belonging

Balance

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BR7

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G11

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Students’ Union

Representational role; not necessarily representational

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East Anglia

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G8

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The students’ union was a bit different to expect. I kind of expected it to be more like everybody was involved, but the students’ union for me is kind of... it’s a select group of people who are more interested in kind of student union-y things, as opposed to just normal students, kind of thing. So you do have this huge diversity of people, and you have the societies in the students’ union, but the societies are their own... they’re in their own worlds, as opposed to being in the students’ union kind of world, if you see what I mean. (Aerospace engineering, male, research-intensive)

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II. Representational voiceSurveys

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You are not in contact with an actual person, you know, you’re just filling out a survey, that’s really not engaging whatsoever (International politics, female, research-intensive)

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a.not in contact with an actual person, you know, you’re just filling out a survey, that’s really not engaging whatsoever (KCL12)

Part of ED8

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Collective engagement

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KCL10

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Engage Students!

• Challenge students

• Support students

• Inform students

• Seek, ask and report on feedback

• Provide opportunities for students

• Hold students responsible

• Work WITH not FOR students

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References

Kuh, G. D. (2009). What student affairs professionals need to know about student engagement. Journal of College Student Development, 50(6), 683–706.

Quality Assurance Agency (2012). UK Quality Code for Higher Education. Part B: Ensuring and Enhancing Academy. Chapter B5: Student Engagement. Gloucester: QAA.

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Dr Camille B. Kandiko Howson

King’s College London

camille.kandiko_howson@kcl.ac.uk

@cbkandiko

Thank you!

Research Assistant: Dr Matthew Mawer

Questions?