Professional development for sessional staff in higher education: a review of current evidence

Hitch, Danielle; Mahoney, Paige; Macfarlane, Susie

doi:10.1080/07294360.2017.1360844

Cited by 40 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Ambiguity and contradictions surrounding academic PD has been cited as potential shortfalls (Lee & McWilliam, 2008) along with differing conceptions of leading and management in the areas of instruction and learning (Marshall, Orrell, Cameron, Bosanquet, & Thomas, 2011). Academic PD needs to focus on quality, inclusion of offerings, and support to part-time, casual faculty, and sustainability of program efforts to support ongoing excellence in education (Hitch, Mahoney, & Macfarlane, 2018). Despite the need for research-informed professional training program development, decisions associated with PD have not always been informed by evidence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A professional learning program for novice online teachers: Application of professional development guidelines using threshold concepts and online learning perceptions

Northcote

Gosselin

Kilgour

et al. 2019

OLJ

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The professional development of online teachers is now commonplace in higher education. Alongside the relatively straightforward decision to provide professional learning support for novice and experienced online educators within universities, decisions about the nature and content of such support are not always as clear cut. The study aimed to gather evidence about the online teaching and learning experiences and views of current students and staff which, in turn, informed a set of pedagogical guidelines that could be used as the basis of professional learning programs for novice online teachers. Using a mixed methods research design, data were gathered using questionnaires, reflective journals, and focus groups to determine the threshold concepts about online teaching and perceptions of ideal online learning environments. As well as identifying threshold concepts about online teaching and perceptions of teachers' and students' ideal views of online learning contexts (reported elsewhere), the study produced curricular guidelines to inform the design of professional development outputs for online teachers in higher education. This article reports on an example of how these professional development guidelines, based on identified threshold concepts of online pedagogy, were implemented at one higher education institution to provide wide-scale implementation of a professional development program for academic staff engaged in online teaching.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A professional learning program for novice online teachers: Application of professional development guidelines using threshold concepts and online learning perceptions

Northcote

Gosselin

Kilgour

et al. 2019

OLJ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Bretag et al (2013) consider a holistic approach to academic integrity and highlight the need for professional development for staff, including a whole-of-institution approach to promoting a healthy academic culture. However, few studies consider casual or sessional academic staff perspectives and their unique issues with academic integrity despite the rapid increase in the casualisation of academic staff across the globe over the last two decades (Hitch et al, 2018). This project aims to address this gap in the research.…”

Section: Academic Misconductmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glitches and hitches: sessional academic staff viewpoints on academic integrity and academic misconduct

Luck¹,

Chugh²,

Turnbull³

et al. 2021

Higher Education Research & Development

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Increasing incidents of academic dishonesty are a problem for universities globally. The traditional approach to dealing with academic dishonesty has been to detect and punish, which may not be the best solution. This study explored the perceptions of sessional teaching staff (a growing but often neglected workforce) on academic integrity and misconduct issues at an Australian university. Findings from the focus groups revealed a deep-seated concern for the size and extent of the problem. While some participants were of the view that students should be punished, others provided interesting suggestions to reduce instances of academic misconduct. This study found that prevention is preferable to punishment as a guiding principle for policy development to address academic misconduct in universities. Students should be educated on the importance of mastering established academic protocols as a way of learning the discipline. Universities need to provide sessional academic staff with contextualised professional development activities.

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“…While registered as nurses, and assumed to be clinically competent, there is no guarantee that they know how to teach. Adjunct employment in higher education is associated with a lack of opportunities for professional development, inadequate time and remuneration for teaching preparation and compromised education quality ( Bodak et al, 2019 ;Halcomb et al, 2010 ;Hitch et al, 2017 ). In a pressured curriculum, with many adjunct staff teaching across multiple subjects and limited remuneration for attending meetings, it can be difficult to devote time to quality debriefing mentorship.…”

Section: Adjunct Faculty Staffmentioning

confidence: 99%

On the Other Side of Simulation: Evaluating Faculty Debriefing Styles

White

Hayes

Axisa

et al. 2021

Clinical Simulation in Nursing

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Background: Debriefing after simulation facilitates reflection and the ability to transfer learning into clinical practice. Aim: To evaluate faculty debriefing to inform and guide the development of ongoing resources to support adjunct faculty members and to maximise learning potential for students. Method: Faculty debriefing styles were evaluated following a high-fidelity simulation involving 720 first year undergraduate nursing students. One audio recording of a debrief was randomly selected from each of 12 faculty members. If a pre-brief was completed prior to the simulation, this was also selected as it is a component of the debrief and sets the tone prior to the simulation. Initial analysis was undertaken using the validated observational structured assessment of debriefing tool (OSAD) to briefly highlight different debriefing styles. This facilitated the thematic analysis of the data using Braun and Clarkes (2006) six step process. Results:Nursing faculty used open-ended questions, silence and clinical feedback with varying levels of expertise and success. Conclusions: Further research into the effect on the variation in debriefing styles, and it's related impact on student learning outcomes is needed.

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Professional development for sessional staff in higher education: a review of current evidence

Cited by 40 publications

References 36 publications

A professional learning program for novice online teachers: Application of professional development guidelines using threshold concepts and online learning perceptions

A professional learning program for novice online teachers: Application of professional development guidelines using threshold concepts and online learning perceptions

Glitches and hitches: sessional academic staff viewpoints on academic integrity and academic misconduct

On the Other Side of Simulation: Evaluating Faculty Debriefing Styles

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