Quality Assurance and Quality Enhancement Conference, 11th June 2008.

Focus on Subject Centres

David Sadler, Director (Networks),

Some points from this morning

• Sources of Support for Enhancement: only 3 mentions of SCs from the 71 institutions– Including greater number who host SCs

• Sources of Support 2: rare for good practice examples to come from outside institution

• Constraints of methodology and consequent colouring of Report: QA talking to QA people

Points from this morning 2

• Institutional strategy and individual buy-in to enhancement agenda– Alignment with academic values and cultures– Evidence base to support innovations. Practice to support

theory– Imposed frameworks/educational busyness

Some roles for SCs?

– Has the inter-relationship between institutional leadership of QE and individual buy-in (Nina’s QE starts at the point of delivery/ can enhancement be strategic) been explicitly discussed and considered?

– Is there a institutional (slide did say strategic) view of the opportunities presented by Subject Centres?– Key contacts: support, networking and recognition– Funding– Use of SCs to support innovation themes/evidence base– Departmental change– L&T events– PG Certs– Networking (NTFs/Fellows/CETLs plus)– Engagement with SC planning– National agendas and SC “translation”