C@N-DO programme shared in Myanmar

The University of Northampton’s C@N-DO professional development scheme, aimed at supporting members of staff involved in teaching and supporting learning, proved to be a success when rolled out to staff at its partner institution, Myanmar Imperial College (MIC).

The workshops were delivered over five days and drew directly on the original programme, but adapted slightly to suit the local context and culture of Myanmar. This week was the first part of a longer provision, with the framework provided by the UK Professional Standards Framework (UKPSF). Some of the participants plan to make applications for the Higher Education Academy (HEA) Fellowships and if successful, they will be the first cohort of HEA fellows in Myanmar.

All five areas of the UKPSF areas of activity were focused on, through topics including teaching, workshop planning, micro-teaching and peer observation, assessment feedback and addressing plagiarism, student study skill needs and resources within the University of Northampton’s Skills Hub.

Shirley Bennett, Head of Academic Practice at the University of Northampton, commented: “The participants particularly valued the opportunity to collaborate in groups on workshop planning, to deliver these workshops as a form of micro-teaching and to use this as a form of peer observation. Most have never had the opportunity to observe or to be observed and relished this as an opportunity for development.

“Related reflections and action plans for the future provided clear evidence of their learning from the process and the peer feedback received. They had found the process nerve-wracking, but also tremendously valuable.”

MIC has commissioned two more stages of the C@N-DO programme and Shirley will be supporting the participants online from November until February as they take part in further peer discussion, as well as supporting their applications for HEA Fellowship.  Further workshops will be held in February 2016.