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We introduce the special issue entitled 'Beyond academic development as institutional practice: advancing community-led approaches' and offer critical commentary that advances the concept and practice of academic community development. Through repeated readings of the 10 articles from diverse contexts included in this issue, we draw out four main themes highlighting why and how academic communities beyond single institutions support academic development. First, we revise the initial conceptual framework of 'academic community development (ACD)', which focused the call for papers, presenting six dimensions rather than the previous three continua. Then, we consider the degree of 'institutionalisation' of this range of initiatives. From that analysis, we derive a typology of ACD initiatives. We then consider a) what common interests have been served by these communities, and whose they are; b) the focus of these communities in relation to the revised conceptual framework; and c) the essential ingredients for success. We emphasise that communities leverage assets in ways that traditional needs-based academic development often does not. We conclude with implications for typical academic development work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues for recognition of the centrality of relational pedagogy for student learning and the important role played by academic developers in supporting this. In the paper, the authors situate relational pedagogy within the context of contemporary marketized higher education, explore the nature and importance of relational pedagogy, and they illustrate some of the ways in which it may be developed and enacted. Academic developers play a significant role in supporting academics' understanding and practice of relational pedagogy. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of a relational pedagogy at a time when care and relationships with others have mattered more than ever. Therefore, the authors suggest that relational pedagogy is an important area worthy of academic developers' attention and institutional backing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strategic documents are artifacts that can reveal evidence of an institution's teaching culture and, ideally, can influence how teaching is valued, rewarded, and resourced. This paper describes how an Institutional Teaching Culture framework based on six well-researched levers was applied to analyze strategic documents for indicators of teaching culture. Analyses conducted at five Canadian universities identified strengths and gaps within and across documents which, in turn, helped guide conversations about enhancing representations of institutional teaching culture. The authors share insights about our use of this analysis framework and offer recommendations to institutions invested in understanding and fostering robust teaching cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how pracademics who teach at different universities in Ghana contribute to shaping their academic development. In this study, a pracademic refers to an industry practitioner who is employed by a university as a part-time academic to teach academic courses and support the knowledge and skills development of learners. Using a dialogical narrative approach, data were gathered from 14 pracademics who teach academic courses at different universities in Ghana. The findings revealed that the academic development of pracademics is linked to their unique professional identity, the social networks that support their personal and professional growth, and the complex professional community in which they operate. The narratives of the participants revealed that the network of pracademics serves to promote their common interests, which include needs (social, job-related, and resources), expectations, access to opportunities, and their ability to promote academic disciplines. Additionally, pracademics are likely to be highly motivated to join informal networks within a broad context – pracademia, when they know that issues concerning their job security and professional development in the areas of teaching, research, and engaged scholarship will be prioritised by the management of universities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper calls for consideration of appropriate support and development for doctoral research students involved in supervision of undergraduate and Master's degree projects. This subgroup's professional development tends to be neglected in academic development and the related literature. The paper describes a development workshop offered regularly to this group over four years. Presenting evaluation and focus group data, the authors argue that although institutional structures can inhibit such development activities, there are benefits to PhD students, project students, and lead supervisors when doctoral research students' supervision is validated and supported. They call for further research and development provision in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The character of professional development offered to those who teach in higher education is changing. There is a shift towards the adoption of more flexible, work-based, apprenticeship models, where experiential routes are increasingly valued. This paper seeks to understand the factors that impact engagement in academic professional development. A quantitative study reveals that experience, years of service, and discipline have little impact on educators' professional development preferences, nor on the recognition of individual needs and contextual nuances to ensure optimal engagement in academic professional development. We demonstrate that it is not possible to profile professional development pathways in these ways, thus strengthening the evidence base for a flexible approach to it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings of a four-year research project studying change practice and agency in higher education. The main findings of five empirical studies are presented. These findings lay bare how academic staff perceive opportunities to change their practice, identify leaders' strategies when trying to bring about change, illustrate the different and at times incompatible ways of understanding change initiatives, acknowledge the importance of moral dimensions in change, and demonstrate how leaders mobilise theory when engaging in change practice. The article synthesizes the results of the project and draws conclusions with a view to how academic developers may best engage with critical stakeholders in higher education institutions. The paper concludes by presenting some thoughts on how a new model for academic development may take form. The paper aims to provide insights, inspiration, and critical dialogue to researchers in academic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing an institution's research culture is a challenge that is especially pressing given its prioritisation in the context of contemporary university performance. This paper discusses how academic development teams working with researchers can build meaningful institutional research culture through conceiving of researcher cohorts as members of an organisation-wide community of practice. It focuses on supported development of social media knowledge and skills through a programme that synthesises digital practices, institutional and digital literacies, and identity formations. I argue that this informed, generative approach to building an academic community's digital literacy acts as a catalyst to develop stronger institutional research culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years there has been a proliferation of paper-based and electronic collections of case studies focusing on different facets of academic practice in higher education. Inherent in their compilation and dissemination is the assumption that these collections contribute to improvements in practice. How justified is such an assumption? This question serves as a backdrop to the paper in which attention is given to the range and variety of collections of case studies; their nature and purpose; positive and negative arguments concerning their value; and their role in educational development. It is concluded that, if collections of case studies are to make an effective contribution to educational development, academic developers should attend to a variety of questions concerning their adoption and use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the highly competitive research sector, performance pressure is leading to the stratification of the academic profession, and to difficulties for early-career researchers. Support is therefore vital for talent retention, and to avoid 'brain drain'. However, limited research has distinguished varying models of professional support in research careers. After differentiating mentoring from co-worker support, and early-career scholars from senior researchers, this study performed statistical analysis on data collected from a representative survey of 840 scientists in Poland. Its intention was to discover the prevailing models of professional support in research in Polish academia, and to identify their relationship with job satisfaction and scientific development, teamwork, and stability of employment. The findings revealed that mentees in traditional hierarchical relationships received comprehensive support, while those who received assistance from their co-workers reported less perceptible benefits. Moreover, gender was found to be an important aspect of professional support relationships, with most scientists being supported by mentors of the same gender as themselves. Finally, differences were observed between the work environment assessments of the recipients of different support models. This paper discusses the theoretical and practical implications for academics, academic developers, and institutions which face wide disparities in supporting academic development, and are affected by turnover of early-career staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing instructional quality in higher education is a key goal of educational development (ED) work, yet demonstrating complex outcomes remains challenging and lacks practical guidance. Evaluating ED services often relies on a reductionist approach characterized by linear assumptions of causal pathways to measure the extent to which instructional outcomes have been achieved and uses proxies such as short-term participant satisfaction. This paper advances a complexity-informed approach for guiding the evaluation of complex outcomes of ED services across individuals and activities within institutions that is adaptable across institutional contexts. To do this, we position the need for innovation in evaluation approaches within current ED literature and practice, and outline key implications of four complexity principles for guiding our approach. Then we describe an iterative process for developing and implementing the evaluation approach within a larger Centre for Teaching and Learning self-study. We describe the transferability of the evaluation approach to contexts beyond the study, and conclude with theoretical, practical, and methodological implications for evidence-based decision-making and strategic planning of ED work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper starts by sketchingInternational Journal for Academic Development(IJAD’s) first 20 years, its contents and concerns and staffing. Suggestions follow on future directions for both research and practice in academic development. These suggestions build in particular, but not exclusively, on reviews of and projections for academic development by my fellow foundingIJADeditor Chris Knapper in this issue, Graham Gibbs (2013), and David Baume and Celia Popovic (2016). Some thoughts on the future ofIJADare added. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been extensive research conducted into the plight of casual academic staff, the precarious nature of their work, their limited academic development opportunities, and their heightened risk of being positioned on the periphery of the workforce in academia. Institutions have attempted to mitigate this risk through the provision of academic development interventions at all levels of higher education. This paper builds on existing literature through a discussion of the current state of staff and academic development provided to this group in higher education. Through a critical overview of prevailing issues, the paper also prompts academic developers and leaders to reimagine employment structures in academia for facilitating the full integration of casual staff in higher education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improved clarity concerning the relationship between curriculum and pedagogy in higher education is needed to address issues concerning learning and teaching quality. This paper explores the relationship between curriculum and pedagogy and argues for a stronger and more explicit link between the two. On that basis, the paper proposes a conceptual learning design framework that has the potential to act as a clarifying tool for academic developers and academics as they conceptualise and develop contemporary learning environments for effective learning. Reflections on the implication of the framework for practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little has been written about academic developers (ADs) working in teams leading other ADs. This paper chronicles the experience of a group of ADs in one Australian university working on a curriculum realignment exercise. Unexpectedly the dominant theme in participants’ reflections was group dynamics, not the process. We were confronted by unstated assumptions about ADs working collaboratively and shocked to realise that ADs, like academics, resist change. Our interpretation of that ‘resistance’ was a salutary reminder of the extent to which academic development work reflects broader social, political, and institutional contexts and discourses. Parallels between this context and ADs working with academics are drawn. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Sector-wide research has shown the benefits of student-staff partnerships in course design whilst highlighting the complexity of this work, and the difficulties in gaining traction to create sustained ways of working. Reflections by academic developers on the roles and partnerships in course design at one Australian university reveal the critical three-way partnership among academic developers, students, and academics. The benefits brought by a Course Design Studio model in providing a liminal space to sustain positive three-way collaborations are outlined. This paper offers a conceptual argument that addresses areas of concern often encountered in traditional course design student-staff partnership relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we explore possibilities and challenges for deliberative academic development. Deliberative academic development refers to a practice that engages members of the university in dialogue about its purposes, ways of organizing and leading higher education, as well as teaching and learning. The paper critically analyses data from focus group interviews with academic developers from four universities within two national contexts. Combining sociological conceptualizations of agency and the framework of 'epistemic living spaces', the paper offers insights into challenges and opportunities for deliberative academic development, as well as a framework for studying agency in other contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores creative educational development by asking what it is or might become. It is based on a singular pedagogical process within the fields of arts, design, and architecture in higher education. The exploration is framed by Gilles Deleuze’s philosophy of difference, which allows for a movement beyond educational certainties that might sometimes limit developmental efforts in higher education. With the intersection of artistic-pedagogical processes and theoretical investigations, the paper aims to imagine potentialities for thinking and doing otherwise in educational development. Thus, this paper strives to become open toward expanding difference and creation within educational development processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the experiences of a group of academic developers who support educational development work as Faculty Liaisons at a large, research-intensive university. These academic developers inhabit complex 'third spaces', providing support through an embedded partnership relationship that requires lateral movement across functional and organizational boundaries to create new professional spaces, knowledge, and relationships. The authors utilize narrative inquiry and auto-ethnographic approaches to present an interpretive qualitative analysis of their experiences supporting Faculty and University projects across complex and evolving organizational boundaries. From this analysis, they highlight key roles and responsibilities associated with their blended context and identify challenges that academic developers who occupy third spaces within academic organizations face as they negotiate competing interests, identities, and requirements associated with the diverse range of their projects and the blended experience of working in scholarly and administrative, central- and Faculty-based roles. The lessons they have learned from these experiences will be of particular interest to academic developers who are experiencing the flux of change within higher education settings that are impacting teaching and learning practices both for faculty in the classroom and for those across the institution who support them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces the context and design of an institutional educational development grants program, Jindaola, which reflects an Aboriginal way towards reconciling Indigenous and non-Indigenous Knowledges in the Australian higher education curriculum. The program is unique in two ways: it foregrounds the voice of Aboriginal local Knowledge Holders in the design and implementation of the program; and, rather than focussing on embedding predefined 'packages' of Indigenous Knowledges and pedagogies into curricula, the approach adheres to Aboriginal methods for conducting business and maintaining knowledge integrity, by taking interdisciplinary teams of academics on a journey towards what we are calling 'curriculum reconciliation'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper illustrates the use of narrative as a means of examining the complex array of factors that shape academic practice. Through focusing on the personal, using the narrative voice of the participants, a series of situated perspectives on the journey towards academic life, and more specifically teaching, is presented. The paper argues that teaching is a highly complex enterprise that is shaped by a multitude of factors and so should be examined in a range of ways in order to uncover the richness of practice. The study is based on a set of qualitative interviews from which a small sample of narratives has been extracted. These narratives illustrate the multiple and often ambiguous nature of academic practice and of teaching in particular, and hence can inform the work of academic developers by providing a rich and more personal understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Levels of career support for sessional academics vary widely. This paper surveyed 109 sessional academics and demonstrates that a lack of career development for them is a widespread issue. The study finds that some sessional academics receive career support opportunities, while others receive nothing. As the number of sessional academics continues to grow and they become an ever larger part of the higher education workforce, while at the same time tenured positions are still the objective of many in academia, this paper contributes to current scholarship by identifying a clear stratification in the sessional workforce that has implications for the academics who hope to secure tenured positions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can research on disciplinary socialization and imprinting help us understand the extent to which educational developers bring aspects of their disciplinary training to their educational development research? In this paper, we explore the relationship between the research approaches developers associate with their original disciplinary training and those they actively use in their own educational development research, comparing and contrasting the strength of imprinting by discipline cluster. We discuss implications for how educational development as a field supports new developers moving into the field from another discipline and for how developers work with academic colleagues in other disciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper critically reflects on the challenges associated with academic standards in a postgraduate certificate in academic practice, which involved the wider academic community of the institution. It is underpinned by a socio-cultural constructivist view that suggests standards do not exist independently of assessors, but are co-constructed by participation in communities of practice through the process of making assessment judgements. Following an outline of the programme design, the discussion focuses on the uncertainties around standards arising from the fragility and fragmentation of a nascent community of practice comprised of a multiplicity of personal standards frameworks and disciplinary perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an increasingly global higher education environment, many universities are taking their educational services overseas. One model of overseas provision is through transnational (offshore) education. Transnational teaching challenges the prevailing understanding of an academic role at every level. Transnational teachers are expected to work in environments, climates and classrooms which are culturally very different to their own. Assumptions about university education are shaken and teachers find themselves having to return to and question the fundamentals of their teaching, learning and assessment practices. This paper argues that the experience of being a transnational teacher and working in a culture very different to one's own forces reflection which can lead to 'perspective transformation'; as such it could be a powerful professional development opportunity which should be nurtured and supported. This paper draws on the growing body of published literature on staff experiences of transnational teaching and my own experiences as a transnational teacher to support this argument. It shows that the 'novel experiences' of transnational teaching encourage content, process and premise reflection that can, with appropriate support, ultimately improve teaching practice not just in the transnational context, but also back home. Dans un environnement de l'enseignement superieur de plus en plus globalise, nombre d'universites etendent leur prestation de services educatifs outremer. L'education transnationale delocalisee (offshore education) est un de ces modeles de prestation de services outremer. L'enseignement transnational pose des defis a la comprehension dominante du role academique a tous les niveaux. Les presupposes au sujet de l'education universitaire sont remis en question et les enseignants doivent des lors revoir et remettre en question les fondements de leurs pratiques liees a l'enseignement, a l'apprentissage et a l'evaluation. Cet article defend l'idee que l'experience de devenir un enseignant transnational et d'œuvrer dans une culture qui est tres differente de la sienne force une reflexion qui peut conduire a une « transformation de perspective ». En ce sens, il pourrait s'agir d'une occasion de developpement professionnel puissante, laquelle devrait etre soutenue et encouragee. L'article repose sur un corpus de documentation en pleine croissance portant sur l'enseignement transnational ainsi que sur mes propres experiences a titre d'enseignement transnational. Il fait la demonstration que des « experiences nouvelles » de l'enseignement transnational encouragent une reflexion au sujet du contenu, du processus et des presupposes, laquelle, en fonction d'un soutien adapte, peut en fin de compte ameliorer la pratique enseignante non seulement dans le contexte transnational mais aussi a domicile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper, reporting the findings from a larger, earlier study, aimed to develop an in-depth understanding of the struggles involved in six Pakistani academics' experiences of professional growth. A narrative inquiry approach was used to explore the experiences and the data were analysed using paradigmatic reasoning, an approach to analysing narratives. The results indicate that professional learning for the participants in this inquiry is largely a solitary endeavour that relies on an internal locus of control and is driven by a sense of ethical responsibility. Findings support holistic academic development, with important strategic implications for academic developers in higher education institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities have a long history of change in learning and teaching to suit various government initiatives and institutional priorities. Academic developers now are frequently required to address strategic learning and teaching priorities. This paper asks how, in such a context, academic developers can ensure that work they do in relation to one specific institutional priority can support future learning and teaching strategies. Two examples of efforts to integrate research and teaching are discussed to demonstrate the length of time needed to develop institutional understanding and how to create sustainable resources to meet the needs of changing initiatives. The paper highlights the importance of a sustainable approach to ever-changing learning and teaching priorities, suggesting that resources and other work developed to meet institutional initiatives should be structured so that they can be readily reused or adapted when policies change. The paper concludes by drawing out some implications for academic development. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Institutional approaches to curriculum development often privilege outcome over process. This paper explores the use of an adapted Change Academy approach, originally developed for teams from different institutions, to supporting teams from different disciplines within the same institution. The approach was evaluated through analysis of the experience of members of four teams, with data collected through a survey, focus groups, and the reflections of facilitators. We argue that educational developers supporting curriculum development should pay as much attention to the process as the outcome, and that a well-designed Change Academy approach can be effective in implementing curriculum change across an institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the Teaching and Learning Regime concept, situating it within top-down university policy implementation and its possible interactions, with bottom-up disciplinary cultures. It argues that top-down policy implementation needs to acknowledge the importance of disciplinary practice architectures and the enablements and constraints they present. Policy will manifest itself in different ways in Teaching and Learning Regimes because it will be filtered through a variety of cultural components or 'moments'. It concludes by explaining the implications for educational developers acting as 'cultural workers' within the dynamics of top-down institutional policy implementation and academic practice architectures on the ground. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper details a six-step model for coaching online teachers that has been successfully implemented at an Australian university. Drawing on three fields of literature - online teaching, community of practice theory and coaching programs - the model involves (1) on-boarding and goal-setting, (2) coaching conversations about online teaching strategies, (3) implementing those strategies in the classroom, (4) collecting and triangulating data about their implementation, (5) sharing feedback and data with teachers, and (6) reflection. The success of the model to date and lessons learned from its implementation, will be of interest to the emerging field of academic professional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interdisciplinary education is gaining prominence in higher education, but little is known about the experiences and professional development needs of interdisciplinary educators. Through the lenses of self-reflection, peer review, and the educational literature, this paper uses a narrative enquiry approach to explore the lived experiences of two academics as they transition from a focus on their disciplines into roles as interdisciplinary educators. By exploring sequential events, we identify five key phases: making the move, starting out, the teaching experience, learning more, and looking forward. We faced many challenges, including working with an interdisciplinary teaching team, feeling 'undisciplined', and the need for an adaptive curriculum. Based on our experiences, there is a real opportunity for academic developers to design and implement initiatives to support academics embarking on interdisciplinary teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic identity is fluid, slippery, and uncertain, academic developer identity even more so. This paper explores the author's use of photography as a medium through which to present, represent, and interpret her own practice and professional identity as a third space professional within higher education. Drawing on existing literature on academic identity, the author explores the ways in which she has attempted to negotiate her identity as an academic developer through photographs that represent milestones in the construction of this identity. The discussion of these pictures draws on autoethnographic approaches to identity formation combined with visual narratology and takes the form of a visual autoethnography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sessional teachers in universities are often marginalised by their part-time status, availability for training, and invisibility within the institution’s infrastructure. Nevertheless, tutors as a subset of this group, regularly have access to some training and development. This paper presents a methodological approach for implementing the BLASST framework for sessional staff at a New Zealand university, based on a project to benchmark support for tutors. Using Activity Theory, I discuss tensions associated with developing a training programme for tutors and how such an approach can aid the development of similar models for all sessional teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Societal, governmental, and research expectations of universities in contemporary western society have led to increasing calls for teacher professionalism and accountability as well as research excellence and research-informed teaching. Consequently, demands on academic staff development continually emerge, which academics may view as oppressive. This paper reports research that critically examined the commonalities between a pre-established set of discourses about resistance to teaching development and views about teaching and learning in academics’ comments on student evaluations of teaching. The comparative study and the identification of commonalities are used to speculate about implications for academic development approaches both with teachers and institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, we focus on professional development for senior academic staff, in particular, doctoral supervisors. Using an authentic case as an example of a long-term, comprehensive, and mandatory development program for senior staff, we analyse the challenges and benefits of such a program and identify issues for consideration. The main issues include: 1) the need for strong incentive structures initiated by the top management; 2) teaching principles that are aligned with the group of senior academics; and 3) a well-evaluated course that, in the long term, encourages supervisors to participate due to their inner motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, I describe an approach to the integration of theory and practice at the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and organizational levels. The results of the research projects in which I have been involved over the last ten years are used to illustrate how these three levels have facilitated the identification of three tensions. These tensions together create a framework that can help academic developers better understand how to approach the challenges of advocating for the integration of higher education theory with academic practice in their own institutional environments, and how this integration is linked to existing higher education literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of countries, including Sweden and the UK, are considering the introduction of compulsory teacher training for higher education (HE) lecturers. This paper assesses whether such a policy is likely to achieve its aims, and the issues that may arise as the policy is implemented. The paper draws on experience with this policy in Norway, empirical research from relevant studies, and on social practice theory to illuminate the processes involved and identify prospects and pitfalls. The paper concludes that while compulsory higher education teacher training may achieve some of its goals, as a standalone policy it is unlikely to achieve them all. Higher education institutions and their staff are involved in multiple games, with competing goals and different rules. Meanwhile higher education policy‐making often lacks coherence, with contradictory outcomes in different areas of policy. If policy‐makers at all levels are serious about the enhancements to teaching and learning that compulsory training is designed to achieve the policy must be prioritized, properly resourced, and measures taken to develop a hospitable environment for it both structurally and culturally. The paper concludes with some specific proposals to aid educational developers in implementing such policies. Bon nombre de pays, desquels la Suède et le Royaume‐Uni, songent à introduire une formation obligatoire pour les enseignant‐es de l’ordre supérieur. Cet article évalue dans quelle mesure une telle politique est susceptible d’atteindre ses objectifs, de même que les questions soulevées lors de la mise en oeuvre d’une telle politique. Cet article s’inspire de l’expérience norvégienne de la formulation et de la mise en oeuvre d’une telle politique; de résultats empiriques provenant d’études sur le sujet; de même que de la théorie de la pratique sociale ( social practice theory ) pour faire la lumière sur les processus impliqués et identifier les perspectives d’avenir et les embûches. L’article conclut que, bien que la formation obligatoire des enseignant‐es de l’ordre supérieur puisse atteindre certains de ces buts, celle‐ci est peu susceptible de les atteindre tous en tant que politique autonome et isolée. Les institutions d’enseignement supérieur et leur personnel sont impliqués dans divers jeux, reposant chacun sur des objectifs et des règles tous différents les uns des autres. Pendant ce temps, la formulation des politiques d’enseignement supérieur manque souvent de cohérence, produisant des résultats contradictoires dans différents domaines de politiques. Si les décideurs politiques de tous les niveaux sont sérieux relativement à l’amélioration de l’enseignement et de l’apprentissage visé par la formation obligatoire des enseignant‐es, une telle politique doit devenir une priorité, elle doit bénéficier de ressources appropriées, et des mesures doivent être prises en vue de développer un environnement qui lui soit accueillant, tant aux plans structurel que culturel. L’article se termine sur quelques recommandations spécifiques visant à aider les conseillers pédagogiques lors de la mise en oeuvre de telles politiques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the impact of the creation of the European Area of Higher Education (EAHE) on Spanish tertiary education is analysed from the standpoint of educational improvement and academic development. First, the recent history of the HE system in Spain is summarised in order to understand the context in which this reform is taking place. Then, an overview is offered of some measures taken at national and regional levels to conform to the reform, followed by a description of the specific measures taken in two different universities to bring about educational change. Finally, we elaborate on and draw some conclusions regarding the change process emerging from the creation of the EAHE. The main point of the paper is to describe an emerging reform process focusing on how notions of change and organisational leadership influence teaching and learning, and to offer some reflections on this. En este artículo se analiza el impacto que ha tenido la creación del Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior (EEES) en el sistema español de Educación Superior, desde el punto de vista de la mejora y el desarrollo académico. En primer lugar se resume la historia reciente del Sistema de Educación Superior en España con el fin de comprender el contexto en el cual tiene lugar esta reforma. A continuación se indican algunas de las medidas tomadas a nivel estatal y autonómico seguidas de la presentación de algunas medidas específicas planteadas en dos universidades (UAM y UD) para llevar a cabo el cambio educativo. Finalmente, se ofrecen algunas conclusiones con respecto al proceso de cambio resultante de la creación del EEES. El objetivo principal de este artículo es describir el proceso de reforma emergente tomando como referencia algunas nociones de cambio y liderazgo en las organizaciones, ofreciendo algunas reflexiones sobre su influencia en la enseñanza y el aprendizaje. Dans cet article, l'impacte de la création d'un Espace Européen de l'Enseignement Supérieure (EEES) sur l'enseignement tertiaire espagnol est analysé du point de vue de l'amélioration pédagogique et du développement académique. Premièrement, nous résumons l'histoire récente de l'enseignement supérieure espagnol pour mieux comprendre le contexte dans lequel cette réforme a lieu. En suite, nous offrons un aperçu des mesures prises au niveau national et régional afin de se conformer à la reforme, suivie d'une description de mesures spécifiques prises dans deux universités pour renforcer le changement pédagogique. Finalement, nous élaborons et tirons quelques conclusions au sujet du processus de réforme émergeant de la création de l'EEES. Le point principal de cet article est la description d'un processus de reformes émergeant en accentuant comment les notions de changement et de direction organisationnelle influencent l'enseignement et l'étude et de donner quelques réflexions sur ce processus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how academic staff are supported in attempts to develop their use of educational technologies. It identifies the work undertaken by academic staff in the development of an Information and Communications Technology (ICT) application and relates this to the direct support (helping staff to teach using ICT) and professional development opportunities (helping staff to develop their skills) available to them. These broad areas of support are seen as a continuum, with varying proportions of direct support and professional development available in different circumstances. The paper concludes that increasing use and expectations of ICT to support student learning in traditional universities are leading to a greater need for team-based approaches to support learners, and the issues that this change raises are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of continuing professional development (sometimes capitalised as CPD) of professionals in higher education is that it operates around a series of unresolved tensions: between higher education institutions as major providers for other professionals and as a relatively new provider in terms of its own professional development; between the prestige associated with continuing professional development in the service of research and that accorded to learning and teaching. These problems are compounded by a tendency to regard professional or staff development as comprising only those sorts of activities that are formally recognised. Rather than attempting to resolve these two tensions, the paper argues that problematising our conceptions of continuing professional development can open up space for debate. The paper re-visits some of the recent history of CPD in order to pinpoint some of the contradictions. This allows new questions to emerge: for example about whether the multiple practices of continuing professional development constitute "domesticating" ( Land, 2001 ) or more critical tendencies within the newly emerging regimes in higher education. The arguments have implications for practising educational developers in meeting the challenges of a broader mandate for CPD, and in recognising the importance of the non-formal in development practice. The paper takes its examples mostly from an English context, but many of the contradictions highlighted are relevant to other state-dependent higher education systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The report of the Dearing Committee (NCIHE, 1997) identifies a rapid and ongoing increase in use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to support teaching and learning in higher education. This rapid expansion involves practices that are changing the traditional roles of both staff and students. The need to orient staff to the unfamiliar roles associated with student-centred learning and ICT-augmented teaching is well recognized. This paper argues that students also need to be prepared for their new roles. The paper provides a rationale for student development to prepare students for the transition to learning environments that include extensive use of ICTs as learning technologies. The argument is that both staff and student development are necessary and that these are complementary foci. The discussion then provides a detailed overview of successful student-development strategies that have been developed to support students starting studies at a purpose-built flexible learning campus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to discuss evaluation of 'networked learning' and to ask some fundamental questions about the validity of, and the practicalities involved in, evaluating this new and unexplored mode of learning. Networked learning as understood here describes a learning activity involving the use of a web-based networked learning environment. The underlying assumption in this paper is that the involvement of such a tool changes the way the learning environment and the learning process are experienced. It will be argued that networked learning requires a definition of learning environments in order to appreciate the full impact of this type of innovation in learning and to enable appropriate and effective evaluation. The Extended Learning Environment Network project (ELEN) is presenting a model for evaluating learning environments and networked learning and the project hopes to encourage the application and discussion of this model by the wider academic community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academics are constantly undergoing identity shifts in response to globalisation, marketisation and the impact of technology on academic work. This study investigates the impact of a Graduate Certificate of Higher Education (GCHE) on academic identity development in an Australian University. GCHE graduates and their educators were interviewed to examine whether such extended and reflective professional development might support the negotiation of complex identity shifts. Findings indicated that academic identity development was enabled through this professional development by re-engaging individual academics in the diverse, traditional components of teaching, research and administration, working against the neoliberal trend of role-compartmentalisation for efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Business education has had limited discussion on professional development for academics. Given the increasing focus on the quality of teaching and learning in higher education, we investigate how academics conceptualise professional development. This has important implications since one's conceptions of a phenomenon can influence subsequent approaches. Few phenomenographic studies have investigated academics' conceptions of professional development. Our study asked business academics a typical phenomenograhic question: what does professional learning and development mean to you? Our participants conceptualised it in four qualitatively different ways: continual growth mindset; student-centric mindset; knowledge-sharing mindset; and purpose-oriented mindset. We discuss the implications of these mindsets for designing professional development in higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What role does academic development have to play in responding to radical cultural shifts in the global landscape? Whose voices and identities are contributing to institutional change? This reflective essay encompasses the perspectives of the four international panellists in the opening plenary of the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED) 2018 conference in Atlanta, Georgia, USA – Torgny Roxå on ideologies; Chng Huang Hoon on agency and empowerment; Joy Mighty on voices and identities; and Mary Deane Sorcinelli on evidence and outcomes. These perspectives set the stage for the conference, and, brought together in this paper now, they address key conference themes, offer coordinates for reflection, and pose further questions about our profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New voices emerging in the global South are contesting the academy's elitist and exclusionary ethos by disrupting the normalcy of coloniality. Concerns raised by the student protests of 2015 and 2016 have challenged the higher education sector to rethink its traditional teaching, learning, and assessment practices in response to student calls for decolonised and transformative curricula. This paper explores the 'voice' of the marginalised, who dare to 'speak' in authentic and provocative ways to call the university to action. We pose the questions: are alternative voices enough to inspire institutional change if traditional hierarchies of power remain intact? What does this mean for the collective project of re-imagining a university that carries a promise of social inclusion and social justice? What are the implications for academic development (AD) work, which finds itself on the margins, in service of mainstream (and dominant) epistemic and pedagogic practices? Using reflective narratives, and drawing on decolonial scholarship, this study explores a group process involved in curriculum change work at a university in South Africa. It raises challenges for AD and its role in the current context of change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper builds on discussions of academic developers' identity experienced as a discomfiting, troubled, and often marginal space. Three experienced academic developers, located in research-intensive institutions in three different countries, using auto-ethnographic writing and a shared narrative inquiry, explore moments of congruence and conflict. While there are elements that sustain them in their job, the categorisation of their role can impact on their ability to do their job, undermining their credibility. This can prevent them from engaging in research that could enrich practice in their institutions and inform institutional strategy or change the culture in teaching and learning. Instead they are forced into discomfit: having to defend their right to be involved in the institutional discussions. The most worrying issue is the pervasive trend in the change of academic developers' status (from tenure-track academic peers to professionals). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]