Within the context of a competitive UK Higher Education (HE) environment, this paper explores the transitions made by former or current practitioners who are now university academics, referred to in this study (and others) as 'pracademics'. Drawing together the concepts of pracademia, academic selves and professional identity, this paper makes a tri-fold contribution. First, this case study examines pracademics' perceptions from a post-1992, 1 UK-based higher education institution (HEI) through collaborative reflexivity. Secondly, it suggests how pracademics' professional selfidentities can be fluid and context-dependent. Thirdly, it explores affinities and tensions between academia and practice, and identifies opportunities for building links between them. In doing so, the research makes a number of specific recommendations. The authors advocate for the recruitment of academics with practitioner experience and the facilitation of their effective transition into and within the HEI environment.
spending 10 years working as a solicitor in private practice, Jill moved into academia.Alongside various Course and Research Leadership roles, she has collaborated with both internal and external partners to develop student employability initiatives.
This exploratory study addresses a gap in the literature for the potential in assessing domain-specific self-efficacy within the context of Higher Education (HE). Focusing on HE students' participation in extracurricular activities (ECAs), the study builds on the authors' previous research which recognised the impact of ECAs on HE students' lived experiences. An initial sample of two hundred and ninety-four students from a from a post-92 Higher Education Institution (HEI) in the North of England (UK) completed a survey designed to measure self-concepts of student self-efficacy, encompassing academic and social tasks, and fifty-four of those students completed a follow-up survey. The key finding was that there is a positive association between involvement in certain ECAs and self-efficacy in students within the university context. Furthermore, the results indicate a relationship between engagement with certain ECA-types and specific domains of self-efficacy. These findings have important implications in that supporting students to develop higher levels of self-efficacy specific to the university setting could have an impact on key HE outcomes, such as employability. Further research needs to be undertaken to establish if there is a causal link between involvement in ECAs and the development of self-efficacy whilst at university.
Against the backdrop of a dynamic Higher Education (‘HE’) environment and challenges compounded by the Covid-19 pandemic, this ‘on the horizon’ paper will outline initial findings from a study which seeks to explore students' perceptions of their transitions to a blended learning environment. Subsequently, this paper examines two research questions. First, what can be learned from initial findings about students’ perceptions regarding the approaches taken by the Higher Education Institution (‘HEI’) to support the imposed changes to their learning? Second, with a particular focus on spaces, how do students perceive their early experiences of the changes to teaching and assessment necessitated by the pandemic? To achieve the richness of data required, the research adopts a case study approach in focusing on a post 1992 HEI in the North of England. Drawing on the theoretical framework provided by sociomateriality, the paper will offer a reflective voice on the interaction, adjustment, opportunities, and conflicts arising from adapting residential dwellings into learning spaces. The variation in student living situations will be considered in the context of access to HE and student experience. The study draws on creative, photovoice methods to facilitate participant-led discussions in both focus groups and interviews. Illustrative images produced by participants will be included in this paper to add context to the initial analysis. Finally, future directions for the study will be outlined and considered in the context of the ongoing changes in the HE sector.
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