Alex heads the University of the Highlands and Island (UHI) Academic Practice Development provision, supporting the leadership and coordination of staff facing professional development and recognition across UHI. At UHI Alex has established pathways for staff to seek professional recognition, set up a successful mentoring programme and established a programme of development opportunities to enhance and develop learning and teaching. This is a personal blog to share reflections, ideas and learning through a PhD.
Ah the literature review, important, yup. Also mindboggling at the start, the literature-verse seems so vast, where to start, search terms…procrastination. For a creative structure and organisation are a little challenging, I start with a nice table detailing each paper I find, it’s usefulness and search terms, referencing. However, over the last few weeks this became the focus and I wrote…. nothing. I took a book out the library on literature review and haven’t read it – doh. I did think a lot though and that still counts.
Today I decided to abandon my table and just allow myself to go down a rabbit hole, just a small one but one that meant I wrote a massive 347 words. Well, okay, not massive but significant in my motivation to allow organisational abandonment in favour of going off-piste and take a little rocket into the world of policy, tertiary beginnings and the shifting landscape of quality in further and higher education toward an integrated model. I even used RefWorks, kinnda. I liked this a lot:
“although the term tertiary education is being used with increasing frequency, the people proposing this way forward rarely define what they mean by the term, nor do they specify the form that tertiary education might take in the nations and regions of the UK.” (Morris 2024: 123)
Morris, H. (2024) “What is meant by the term tertiary education? Past developments and recent activity,” Policy Reviews in Higher Education, 8(2), pp. 122–145. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/23322969.2024.2383602.
I think about tertiary-ness a lot, and what it actually means. Not in relation to model of tertiary education but in relation to those who practice in it. If working in further education, do you consider yourself tertiary? In higher education do you consider yourself tertiary? At UHI how do we define ourselves? not as an institution but as educators? I popped a proposal into our UHI Learning and Teaching Conference happening in the summer. I think for my research to be able to consider professional standards in a tertiary context we need to understand what it means to be tertiary, really. This is the title of my proposed presentation ‘Future proofing for the move towards a T’. It wasn’t until my colleague collated all the (34!) proposals to send around the organising group that I realised I couldn’t think of a catchy title so was going to go back to it and forgot! I quite like it though, who doesn’t love a cup of tea.
The presentation plans to explore participants’ understanding of what it means to be tertiary through the lens of the student journey and expectations, professional standards and participants’ own professional values.
I have a feeling it might raise more questions than answers.
So today feels like a win, a small one. If like me and you need to read every word to process meaning, or your inner monologue takes you off into the world of news, dinner or movie night with the kids before you realise you are reading words but not taking them in. Or if you are just trying to find your way in literature-verse and can’t quite imagine how it’s all going to come together then you are not alone. And it’s gonna be alright huh?
This week was the official start of my PhD, although I enrolled a few weeks back the start date was 2 February and this week I had my first supervisory team meeting so all feeling very real now!
To mark this, I thought I would share a little more on what I will be researching over the next five years (eek) including a little more on how my interest in this space came about which I touched on in my first blog post My learning journey: from there to here.
Developing knowledge of the Professional Standards Framework (PSF) 2011 and 2023
Since starting at UHI ten years ago I have had different roles in the implementation, coordination, development, and latterly leadership of our routes to Advance HE Fellowships. What I most enjoyed as I developed in my role was becoming more involved in designing learning opportunities for colleagues applying for Fellowship and hearing about others’ practice and passion for their learners and their practice. It was also hugely beneficial to my own development, running reflective workshops to help applicants make the connection between their practice and the dimensions of Advance HE’s Professional Standards Framework (PSF 2011/PSF 2023) whilst also developing my own understanding of pedagogies and practices at UHI and across our tertiary context. This was also the start of my engagement in mentoring, and I have mentored 30+ colleagues through our UHI Mentoring Scheme to be recognised with Fellowship. These activities developed my understanding of the dimensions of the PSF and the different ways in which they are demonstrated through the varied roles of colleagues at UHI who apply for Fellowship.
Tangent: Being in a professional services role and gaining my own Fellowships (AFHEA and then SFEHA and finally PFHEA) was a huge personal achievement and professional turning point for me. I really enjoy supporting colleagues in professional services to gain Fellowship and be recognised for the work that they do to support learning, teaching and to enhance the student experience and support. Although this isn’t a focus of my PhD it still is one of the most satisfying aspects of my role and still seems to spark a lot of discussion and debate in the sector about who is eligible to apply for Advance HE Fellowships. If this interests you then you might find my blog Celebrating Advance HE Fellowships in the UHI Library Services a motivational read.
Recognising that we had built up a strong and supportive community of practice through our Fellowship mentoring scheme, with colleagues volunteering to mentor others after being recognised, in 2020-21 I decided to focus my MEd dissertation research project on the experiences of staff engaged in mentoring on the UHI Fellowship Mentoring Scheme as mentors and mentees. To keep this blog succinct there were two things that were significant in this study that then developed my interest in research and the topic of my PhD.
The dissertation was a phenomenographic (sadly I still can’t pronounce this) study and gave me the opportunity to develop some knowledge in this approach and analysis that I will also be using in my PhD. Phenomenography has been successfully used in research to find the variations of the experiences and perceptions of educators and learners in school and higher education contexts.
It gave me an insight into perceptions of confidence of educators working in a tertiary institution. This sparked a curiosity about professional identity in our complex institution where staff might be working in either FE or HE or both.
Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges and in the context of UHI
Although the move to make mandatory the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) registration of all lecturers in Scotland’s College was 2017, I hadn’t had much engagement with the GTCS Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges, which colleagues must demonstrate to be GTCS registered. This is because staff are supported within in their own UHI Academic Partner* to gain and maintain their registration with the GTCS. Lecturers must evidence engagement with the Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges through either completion of a Teaching Qualification in Further Education (TQFE) or through a record of experience.
UHI colleagues were seeking Advance HE Fellowship as well as having GTCS registration which sparked discussion about the benchmark in the sector for colleagues working in the Higher Education space holding Advance HE Fellowships. These conversations were collegiate and explorative and considered the need for many UHI colleagues to evidence alignment to both the GTCS Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges and the Advance HE PSF 2011/2023. This sparked further curiosity about the two professional standards and a better understanding of the GTCS Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges.
This curiosity led to a deep-dive into both the GTCS Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges and the Advance HE Professional Standards 2023 and the decision to explore this further in a presentation at the UHI 2023 Learning and Teaching Conference.
Simultaneously the sector was also shifting and a tertiary landscape was beginning to be explored through the introduction of Scotland’s new Tertiary Quality Enhancement Framework (TQEF) being introduced in colleges and universities with a focus on quality assurance and enhancement (Scottish Funding Council). The TQEF has sparked debates across the sector about a move towards a more tertiary structure in post-compulsory education.
In preparation for my conference presentation, I dissected and mapped the two professional standards, looking for differences and similarities. Not surprisingly there were few differences, and they aligned very well from the purpose outlined in the respective standards through to the different named areas or dimensions of the standards. I made the mapping available to staff at UHI to consider how their practice and professional development and algins to both standards, and our UHI Learning and Teaching Strategy Value simultaneously.
This mapping and presentation was essentially the start of defining my PhD topic (not that I realised it then) as I finished the conference presentation by asking participants:
“Would there be value to having one standards framework for learning and teaching in tertiary education in Scotland (and beyond)?”
Then the launch of the Scottish Tertiary Enhancement Programme (STEP) in 2025, which is one of the delivery mechanisms of TQEF has seen colleagues in sector collaborating on four year projects that aim to improve and enhance learning, teaching and student experience.
The mapping resource has also been adopted by some UHI Academic Partners and shared with colleagues in the sector and with the STEP project group ‘Understanding the Staff Development Landscape Required to Support Diverse Learner Journeys in the Tertiary Sector’.
PhD: Exploring the potential for an integrated set of professional standards for practitioners working in tertiary education contexts and institutions: A phenomenographic investigation
This brings us up to date! Phew it’s a lot but felt it important to set the context for the PhD topic.
This research proposal articulates the design for a qualitative methods investigation that seeks to explore and analyse the subjective experiences and perceptions of participants (staff) at UHI. The specific focus will be on those staff members who have attained both or either registration with the GTCS and/or Advance HE Fellowship. The research will analyse the experiences of staff engagement with both or either professional standards including the extent to which engagement in the GTCS Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges and the Advance HE PSF for teaching and supporting learning in higher education (PSF 2011 & 2023) are robust and relevant to a tertiary context, and directly applicable to the development and enhancement of practice in such a context. For the sample that have engaged with both standards, the research will also explore participants perceptions of the extent to which the standards overlap and or complement one another as they engage in both standards as practitioners in a tertiary education context.
The expected outcomes from the research will include identifying any standards pertinent to teaching and learning in tertiary contexts that are absent or underrepresented, and presenting a proposed set of professional standards that are tertiary in their focus and pedagogically relevant to the current and evolving context of tertiary education. It is anticipated that as an outcome of the research, these could be then applied to professional recognition in a sectoral context and applied or adapted for institutional professional recognition schemes.
General Teaching Council for Scotland, College Development Network (2020) Professional Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges. Available at: 65ddfe4c3ac96772a3ad4915_GT5662~1.PDF (website-files.com) (Accessed: 27 June 2024).
From there
I tried really hard at secondary school. My Head Teacher called me into his office just before my GCSEs. I thought it was going to be a motivational conversation congratulating me on my hard work. Instead it was a talk that outlined how I was an average student with average grades and if I just tried harder and got better results than predicted I would be helping the school. This didn’t motivate and I didn’t try harder, I left deflated and never forgot that feeling. I got the grades I needed in the subjects I was alright at and went to college to do A Levels. Turns out that A Levels are very hard, or they were for me. Luckily perhaps, my parents decided to move us to Scotland after the first year, I completed two qualifications in that year in England. I retook GCSE maths – had a great teacher who knew why we were all there and made it as simple as he possibly could so that we could pass – I got a C. I also took Philosophy, I hated that class because the teacher made us read out load, I was and still am a slow reader. I took the exam and failed, I didn’t mind.
Back to school
In Scotland I was enrolled back into secondary school to do Highers. This was where I ‘cracked the code’. And what I mean is I became really good at memorising script (should have been an actor) and regurgitating it in written exams. Authentic assessment was not a thing. I forgot everything within a week of the exams and learned very little but got good grades. I did love art though and I was good at it without having to try really hard so I made plans to go to Art School.
Degree
Art school wasn’t the experience I was hoping for. The teachers didn’t seem to like what I was producing and I found the pace slow and boring. In second year I quit but after 2-3 months working in retail, I was called into the art school for a discussion (oops forgot to tell them I had quit). It was a good meeting and I agreed to come back for the last month of the year. I did all my work in that month and got the best grade so far – fast pace, short deadline – I was in my element. I still didn’t enjoy it but I was motivated to get an Hons Degree and to spend time with amazing friends that I met there. I produced art work that the teachers didn’t hate (although I didn’t love), won an award and swapped my artistic integrity for a 2:1. I graduated and never painted in the style I did at art school ever again (see images – what I painted at art school and the style that is authentically me). I do still paint occasionally but for me and in a style I enjoy, the image on the right below my most recent.
Masters
Fast forward a few (quite a few) years I found myself at the University of the Highlands and Islands in 2016. I had moved with my family to Ross-shire and did a ‘side-step’ coming from a coordinator role at the University of Aberdeen into a coordinator role within the Learning and Teaching Academy at UHI. At UHI I took opportunities offered to build and develop my role and my experience and skills, progressing from Coordinator to Lead and latterly to a Head role in Academic Practice Development. Early on in this progression it was suggested that a PgCert in Tertiary and Higher Education could be an important learning opportunity that would develop my knowledge and skills. I was reluctant, my learning journey so far hadn’t been smooth and the thought of returning to study after so long was scary. My children were also quite young and had their own needs, I spent a lot of time chasing my wee boy about the village as he fled any uncomfortable situation (if you know you know). I agreed to do the first module, I tried hard (obvs), didn’t get a great grade (pass/fail anyone?) but continued on. My grades on the modules steadily improved and I found that I was applying my learning to my work, and then I did my research dissertation module. I loved doing the research, speaking to people, analysing the data and producing some findings. I felt in my element and got a distinction.
To here: PhD
The dissertation module had sparked an interest in research and a belief that perhaps I could do alright in academia. The time wasn’t quite right for a PhD though. My dissertation research was in relation to the UHI Mentoring Scheme for staff. I was coordinating the scheme and having no previous experience in formal mentoring, the research and associated reading offered me the opportunity to really develop my knowledge on the theory and practice of mentoring in education. However I lacked the practical knowledge and application and felt to be authentic in my role and to lead and support the scheme I needed this. I started an ILM qualification in coaching and mentoring. In shear volume of work and commitment it exceeded the Masters study but after a couple of years I completed it and it was invaluable to my role. Prior to the qualification I was considering a PhD in a related area of research because I loved and still love mentoring but between the MEd and the ILM qualification I felt I had ‘scratched that itch’. I had spoken to colleagues and friends over the years who advised to choose a subject I’m passionate about and that would keep my interest for the duration of the research. At this same time the challenges in FE and HE meant ongoing challenges and changes at UHI, at home we were seeking assessments for neurodiversity for the kids and supporting them through their own learning journeys at school. The time never felt quite right and a PhD topic alluded me.
Then two things happened one professional and one personal (not at the same time). The sector started to consider tertiary-ness and I started to consider professional identity at UHI. This was sparked originally from my MEd dissertation research with an emerging theme around identity in our tertiary context and in relation to professional standards. I presented a session at our bi-annual learning and teaching conference in 2023 that explored identity in the context of the PSF 2023 and the Standards for Lecturers in Scotland’s Colleges. I followed this with a blog ‘Professional Identity: Standards and Recognitions in the Changing Landscape of Tertiary Education: Re-imagining GTCS and Advance HE Fellowships‘. My PhD topic was born. But that was two years ago and I didn’t progress the idea as ongoing work and life challenges continued.
Then in March this year my dad died. I don’t know exactly why this was significant in my decision to submit a PhD proposal only that it was and perhaps a post for another time or just for myself.
So I submitted my proposal to UHI which was accepted this week. I start in January and have a supervisory team with colleagues that I greatly respect and look forward to working with and learning from. I feel motivated and excited to get started.
Why?
I am not sure why this is my first blog post on this personal site. Perhaps because I needed to write it down, or perhaps to share that not all learning journeys are smooth and linear. Perhaps to show that career progression isn’t always obvious or planned (I remember asking what pedagogy was when I started at Aberdeen Uni and what PGR stood for). Perhaps to invite you on this journey with me. Perhaps my PhD journey will not be smooth, perhaps I will not reach the end but I will try hard like I have done throughout my learning journey. Feck the naysayers and stick with those who inspire you, find something you love to motivate you in work and in learning, and don’t worry about failing or finishing, just starting. Be kind to others on their journey.
Alex Walker: Academic Learning and Development: you, me and my PhD 