UNSW Strategic Educational Development Grants

Information for Applicants

Professor Stephen J. Marshall

Director, Learning and Teaching @ UNSW

Nature of UNSW’s Strategic Educational Development Grants

• Applicants for Strategic Educational Development Grants will be faculties seeking support for faculty endorsed and driven large scale strategic projects aimed at enhancing the educational performance of UNSW in a number of key priority areas outlined in UNSW L&T Strategy 2014-2018

• Project funding is to support the development, initial implementation and early evaluation of educational initiatives. There are no plans to allocate additional funding to sustainably implement educational changes recommended by the projects - a key principle of a projects development must be that there is no net increase in the cost of program delivery.

• It is anticipated that projects will run across 1 to 3 semesters with the majority of projects being 2-3 semesters in duration.

• A maximum of $100,000 per grant is available each semester for three semesters.

Funding Priority Areas

In 2014 – 2016 UNSW’s Strategic Educational Development Grant funding priorities include projects directed at:

• sustainably enhancing the quality of large scale stage 1 and 2 courses

• delivering improved, personalised large scale assessment and feedback

• utilising innovative educational technologies to implement/facilitate high quality blended learning

• enhancing the student experience through the considered use of the “flipped classroom”.

Project Deliverables

• Submission of a Progress Report in the required format (1-2 pages) to the DVC(A) at the end of each semester

• A Final Project Report in the required format (8-10 pages) to the DVC(A) at the end of the project

• Evidence of sustained change in policy and/or practice in one or more of UNSW’s priority areas for educational change

• Open sharing throughout the University of any insights, developments or materials (including educational technology, software, and/or resources) that have resulted from the proposed project.

Application Process

The primary process of application for a UNSW Strategic Educational Development Grant is through a written project proposal that addresses each of the following on the required Application Form:

• Project Summary (250 words maximum)• Project Description (4 x A4 pages maximum)

– Outcomes and Rationale for how the project will address one or more of UNSW’s current priorities for L&T Innovation Grants.

– Approach – a description of what will be done to ensure that the proposed project delivers its stated outcomes including a description of the project’s proposed governance, management, and work packages.

– Value/Need for the Project – a description of the potential usefulness of the proposed project and its outcomes to the development of policy and/or practice in learning and teaching in the applicant’s faculty/school or UNSW as a whole.

• Project Timeline (1 x A4 page maximum)• Project Deliverables (1 x A4 page maximum)• Project Budget - A fully justified (2 x A4 pages maximum) description of how the total

costs associated with the proposed project will be met, including a description of how funding received via the UNSW Strategic Educational Development Grant will be deployed to develop, deliver, assess/evaluate and report the outcomes of the project.

Endorsements

• Since it is intended that the outcomes of projects/initiatives funded by

this grant be sustainable, it is necessary for ALL applicants to be

endorsed by the Dean of the faculty or faculties concerned and anyone

else with responsibility for approving any on-going budget, resources or

organisational changes that may be necessary to sustain these outcomes.

Selection Criteria

• The clarity of the articulated outcomes and arguments to demonstrate how the project will address one of UNSW Learning and Teaching Priorities for 2014-2018.

• The potential usefulness of the proposed project and its outcomes in significantly improving UNSW’s educational performance.

• The strength of the conceptual and theoretical frameworks that underpin the proposed approach.

• The appropriateness and coherence of the proposed approach with the project’s stated outcomes.

• The appropriateness of the project’s proposed governance and management arrangements.

• The appropriateness of the project’s plans for the evaluation, dissemination and embedding of project outcomes in the policies/practices of the applicant’s faculty/school or UNSW as a whole.

• The appropriateness of the Project’s proposed budget and the strength of its justification.

Timelines and Closing Dates for Applications

Proposals for projects to be funded by a UNSW Teaching Fellowship Grant will be called for ONCE in 2014 for commencement in January 2015.

 • Call for Proposals 21

August 2014

• Close for Support from DVC(A)27 Oct 2014

• Close for Endorsed Applications13 November 2014

• Notification of Outcomes to Applicants 11 December 2014

• Successful Round Projects Commence 6 Jan 2015

Preparing Your Application

Avoid Common Conceptual Weaknesses

1. Failure to adequately describe the NEED for educational change

– What is the educational issue that the project seeks to address?

– Why is this an issue?

o What is /are the educational contexts in which this issue arises?

o Why/how does this issue arise in these contexts?

o What is/are the impact(s) on learning/teaching when this issue arises?

Avoid Common Conceptual Weaknesses

2. Failure to adequately describe and justify the PROPOSED educational change

– What do you propose needs to change to address this issue? – Why do you believe such a change will address this issue?– What is the conceptual and theoretical justification for this approach?

3. Failure to clearly articulate the purpose and intended outcomes of the proposed project

– What role will the proposed project play in addressing this issue?– What will the project facilitate and/or deliver that will help to realise the

proposed educational change and address this issue?

A Framework for Identifying and Justifying the Need for Educational Change

MAP and DESCRIBE Current Practice

Determine the assumptions, values

and beliefs that INFORM Current

Practice

 

 

 

   

CONFRONT the appropriateness of these assumptions,

values and beliefs for future practice

IDENTIFY Strengths and Weaknesses of

current practice

Determine how these assumptions, values and beliefs NEED TO

CHANGE for the future

RECONCEPTUALISE current practice

based on these new assumptions, values

and beliefs

 

Avoid Common Conceptual Weaknesses

4. Failure to adequately describe and justify the approach to be taken to effect the change

– What dimensions of current practice need to change?

– How do each of these dimensions of current practice need to change?

– What needs be done to realise the changes required to each of these dimensions of current practice?

A Framework for Identifying Foci for Educational Change

A Framework for Planning Educational Change

IDENTIFY the work packages and

deliverables that will need to be realised to

effect the proposed change

IMPLEMENT and Monitor each work package to ensure that they deliver as

required

Resolve any outstanding or

emerging issues in order to

INSTITUTIONALISE desired change

  

INITIATE the change by accessing and

aligning the necessary resources to each

work package

ESTABLISH the governance,

management and organisational

arrangements necessary to oversee and effect the

change

Monitor and EVALUATE the effectiveness of combined work

packages to realise the desired change

  

  

Avoid Common Conceptual Weaknesses

5. Failure to adequately describe and justify the approach to be taken to managing and effecting the educational change

– Who will be responsible for the overall governance of the project – i.e., for ensuring the project is appropriately planned and managed, and that it delivers what is required in time and in budget?

– Who will be responsible for the overall management of the project and the coordination of the various work packages and teams to ensure that the project utilises its available resources effectively and efficiently to deliver what is required in time and in budget?

– Who will contribute to the realisation of each work package?

Typical Project Governance and Management Structure

Project Governing Board

Project Manager

Project Leader Project Advisory

Group

Project Team

Work Package

1

Work Package

2

Work Package

3

Work Package

4

?

?

?

?

Avoid Common Conceptual Weaknesses

6. Failure to adequately describe and justify the approach to monitoring and evaluating the educational change

– How will the progress of each work package be monitored?o Who will be responsible/involved?o What will be the indicators of successful progress/completion of

each work package?

– How will the project’s overall success be monitored and evaluated?o Who will be responsible/involved in monitoring the project’s

progress? o What will be the indicators of appropriate progress?o Who will be responsible for evaluating the overall success of the

project?o What will be the indicators of the project’s overall success?

A Framework for Planning the Evaluation of Educational Change

Purpose of the Evaluation

Formative? Summative?

Foci of the Evaluation ? ?

Timing of the Evaluation ? ?

Stakeholders interests in the evaluation

? ?

Indicators and measures of success

? ?

Process of the evaluation

? ?

Dissemination and reporting of the findings of the evaluation

? ?

Avoid Common Technical Weaknesses

7. Project is not appropriate for the particular type of grant – The scope of the project is too great for the funds available– The project does not address any or all of the required priorities for

funding– The project neither addresses a particular educational need, nor is it

particularly innovative in either its design or proposed outcome(s)

8. Applicants do not meet the eligibility criteria for the grant– Inexperienced / inappropriate experience

9. Project description does not effectively address all required selection criteria– Too much time spent on one criterion over another or one or more

criteria are not addressed at all

Avoid Common Technical Weaknesses

10. Project budget is inappropriate

– Seeks funding for categories of expenditure that are not approved– Budget expenses do not align with proposed project method/approach– Budget expenses are distributed inappropriately throughout the life-

cycle of the project– Budget expenses are excessive given the nature and scope of the

project– Budget comprises a series of ambit claims– Derivation of budget expenses not articulated– Justifications for budget expenses not provided

Project Planning Template

Avoid Common Technical Weaknesses

11. Grant Application not submitted in the required format

– NOT on the correct form– NOT structured in the required manner (uses all required headings)– NOT in the correct font or font size– Does NOT contain all of the endorsements required– etc.