Dean, L

Smith, S

Webb, G

English

Leeds Beckett Repository

ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 6: SUMMER 2009 11IntroductionThere are many different types of part-timeteachers (PTT) at Leeds Met. There are hourly paidand fractionally contracted staff but also tutors fromindustry and the public sector who offer theirservices free, coming in for occasional sessions.Staff from other departments (such as Library staffand PhD students) can also offer one-off sessions.While we know PTTs make up a substantialcomponent of the workforce in higher education,their exact number is difficult to establish(Husbands, 1998). At Leeds Met, in April 2008 therewere 205 academic staff on fractional contracts, 902hourly paid academic staff and 187 PhD students.Bryson’s (2006) literature review on PTTs outlinedthe context in which they work in HE and the issuesthey face. There is an increasing research baseexamining PTT deployment (Bryson and Blackwell,2001), part-time distance learning tutors and onlinesupport communities (Macdonald, 2006; Macdonaldand Hewling, 2008), and case studies of PTTs(Bryson and Blackwell, 2006).This survey-based project, however, was catalysed bythe need for Leeds Met to explore the context inwhich its own PTTs work. The research study’s aimwas to explore the issues PTTs face in the reality oftheir working practice and how they accessdevelopment opportunities, particularly in relation totheir assessment, learning and teaching (ALT) needs.MethodologyPilot questionnaires were distributed to a randomsample of part-time academic staff. From these initialfindings two separate but related questionnaires weredesigned, focusing on two separate groups: part-timeteachers and PhD students. In September andOctober 2007, all University part-time teachers (thoseon fractional contracts and those who are hourly paid)and all PhD students across all Faculties were invitedto complete web-based questionnaires which asked arange of questions about their experiences ofaccessing assessment, learning and teaching supportat Leeds Met. The survey contained a mixture ofclosed and open questions exploring theirexperiences as PTTs. Forty-two part-time teachersand 26 PhD students responded. The emergentfindings from the PhD students were analysedseparately from the part-time staff data.Findings and discussionFindings from the PhD studentsWhile the Higher Education Statistics Agency(HESA, 2004) reports that fewer than a quarter ofPhD students progress to teach in HE, all theresearch students at Leeds Met in this study statedthis as an immediate or short-term career aim.However, 60% of our respondents were not involvedin teaching or supporting teaching in any way.The awareness of Leeds Met events, support andtraining was found to be high; however, theresearch students, even those who teach, appear tobe treated differently from other PTTs and do notperceive the same compulsion to attend staffdevelopment events that other PT staff seem to do.The majority of PhD students, when asked specificallyabout their staff development needs relating to ALTissues, stated they were interested in receiving staffdevelopment on: teaching (91%); assessmentpractices (78%); and designing curricula (80%).However, while their knowledge of their Faculty-specific days and the University-wide ALT days at theannual Staff Development Festival was reasonablyhigh (73% and 60% respectively), attendance was verylow (20% and 15% for at least part of the day).The discrepancy between the statements of interestin staff development and actual attendance appearsto be explained by the other commitments of thesestudents. The major reason given for non-attendancewas “other commitments”: this was cited by 50% ofrespondents, while a further 43% gave “other paidwork” as their primary reason for non-attendance.There was no significant difference in attendance atALT events by PhD students who did or did notactively participate in teaching. However, it isimportant to note that the students who do teachare not necessarily receiving other training orsupport. Indeed, less than half of those respondentswho teach were currently receiving appraisal andonly 10% reported having a mentor.Findings from part-time teaching staffIt was clear that many staff in fractional postsbegan working with the University on hourly paidroles and then increased their hours. Overall, PTTstaff remained with the organisation for a long time.More than half had worked for Leeds Met for moreSupporting the assessment, learning and teaching needs of part-time teaching staffLaura Dean, Sue Smith and GrahamWebb36485_ALT Journal6:Layout 1  3/8/09  12:54  Page 13ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 6: SUMMER 200912than three years and 42% for more than five years,indicating a clear benefit in investing in the staffdevelopment of this group.Most fractional staff attended both their Faculty dayand ALT day at the Staff Development Festival. Noneof the hourly paid respondents attended either typeof event. On analysis of the qualitative data, thefractional staff who did not attend commented thatthe main reason was insufficient notice to reorganisetheir other work. Fractional staff reported anexpectation that they would swap their work aroundto accommodate the events, for example:“I swapped my clinical and Leeds Met days that weekto accommodate the staff festival.”The main reason given for non-attendance by hourlypaid staff was that they were working elsewhere atthe time and/or could not have attended as theywould not be paid. Many respondents commentedon their role plurality, indicating that they were notsolely PT staff at Leeds Met and emphasising theirother commitments. They needed advance notice inorder to change their arrangements. For example:“It wasn't one of my working days and I would nottherefore have been paid to attend, although thatwould have been a secondary concern. I was notwilling to additionally pay for extra childcare or to usean unfamiliar childcare facility for my youngest child.”More than half of the PTTs worked for at least oneother organisation but were still keen to attend thestaff development events: more than three-quartersstated they wanted more training on ALT issues.While PTT staff were more likely than PhD studentsto use alternative staff development mechanisms tosupport their professional development, they werenot all involved in University-based performancedevelopment (involvement did not significantlycorrelate with length of service). For example,appraisal was not used by most PTTs, only 47%having been appraised in the previous year and 45%never having had an appraisal through Leeds Met.Future action and recommendations1. The University should explore ways of generatingteaching opportunities for and supporting PhDstudents who teach.2. PhD students and all part-time staff should beexplicitly targeted and welcomed to StaffDevelopment Festival ALT days. The Universityshould ensure that the dates of Faculty and ALTdays are provided as early as possible to allowPhD students and part-time staff to alter theirarrangements as appropriate.3. Subject Group Leaders should ensure thateveryone who teaches is offered appraisal froman experienced teacher and teacher mentors.4. A series of focus groups should take place withthose University PhD students and PTTs whoexpressed interest in being interviewed as part ofa follow-up for this project. This would enable theabove recommendations to be discussed in moredepth and allow consultation on how theUniversity should now proceed.Summary and conclusionsFlexible learning and flexible working are featuresof life at Leeds Met and, increasingly, of the moderneconomy. Our recent exploratory research into thechanging nature and needs of part-time academicstaff and PhD students emphasised the valuablecontribution they make across practically everysubject and programme area in the University.Offering flexible contracts to PTTs helps attract staffwith experience and talents that enrich ouracademic community and which might otherwisenot be available to our students. Part-timecontracts enable academics to bring experiencesfrom teaching and researching at other institutionsand from working in the private sector or theprofessions to benefit students at Leeds Met.The project showed that every PhD student whoresponded aimed to teach at some time in theircareer. Many Leeds Met academic staff havebecome inspired to undertake research by thosewho have taught them, so it seems a naturalprogression for researchers to undertake teachingboth to disseminate their knowledge and as anotherroute to having their own theses tested byexplaining them to others and receiving feedback.This leads us to ask whether, in response to thisclear relationship between researcher and teacher,PhD students should have a more structured accessto teacher development opportunities and a directinvolvement in ALT issues. The circle in whichresearch supports teaching to inform content andmethodology and where teaching then stimulates36485_ALT Journal6:Layout 1  3/8/09  12:54  Page 14ALT JOURNAL NUMBER 6: SUMMER 2009 13further research to clarify and explain in increasingdetail, is clearly a virtuous one. So, just as teachersshould undertake research as part of theirprofessional development, perhaps researchersshould understand how their knowledge can bedisseminated through teaching?However, it appears that whatever type of academicstaff are employed by Leeds Met on whichever typeof contract , the University’s focus on ALT prioritiesis consistent and therefore opportunities to engagewith training, development and all other aspects ofUniversity life should be equally flexible to allow allteaching staff to participate fully.ReferencesBryson, C. and Blackwell, R. (2001) Teaching Qualityand Part-time Teachers in HE. York: LTSN GenericCentre.Bryson (2006) Recent and major initiatives onsupporting and developing PTT. York: The HigherEducation Academy.Bryson, C. and Blackwell, R. (2006) Managingtemporary workers in Higher Education – still at themargin? Personnel Review 35(2), 207-225.Higher Education Statistics Agency (2004)Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey.Cheltenham: Higher Education Statistics Agency.Husbands, C. (1998). Assessing the Extent of Use ofPart-time Teachers in British Higher Education:problems and issues in enumerating a flexibleworkforce. Higher Education Quarterly 52(3), 257-282.Macdonald, J. (2006) Blended learning and onlinetutoring. A good practice guide. Aldershot: Gower.Macdonald, J. & Hewling, A. (2008) Exploring thepotential of online communities of practice fordistance tutors. In: Kimble, C. and Hildreth, P. (eds)Communities of Practice: creating learningenvironments for educators. Charlotte, USA:Information Age Publishing.Laura Dean, Sue Smith and Graham WebbTeacher Fellows36485_ALT Journal6:Layout 1  3/8/09  12:54  Page 15

Assessing the Extent of Use of Part-time Teachers in British Higher Education: problems and issues in enumerating a flexible workforce.

Blended learning and online tutoring. A good practice guide.

Exploring the potential of online communities of practice for distance tutors. In:

Managing temporary workers in Higher Education – still at the margin? Personnel Review

Recent and major initiatives on supporting and developing PTT. York: The Higher Education Academy.

Statistics Agency

Teaching Quality and Part-time Teachers in HE. York: LTSN Generic Centre.

Supporting the assessment, learning and teaching needs of parttime teaching staff

Smith, SV

Supporting the assessment, learning and teaching needs of part time teaching staff

Supporting the assessment, learning and teaching needs of parttime teaching staff

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Leeds Beckett Repository

Leeds Beckett Repository