The Learning Development Project

Lucy’s interests in pedagogy have expanded over the last couple of years to draw AI into her work on learning design. Using AI in the classroom, in an ethical and responsible way, with learners with diverse needs and backgrounds, can level the playing field and support learners in doing things and thinking in ways that might not otherwise be available to them. For learning design to be thoughtful and effective, digital technologies - including AI - must serve a purpose and earn its pedagogic place in the classroom. We need to know what students will get from it, and we must make sure the students know that too. Lucy’s drivers are creativity and curiosity, and they combine into a pedagogy of wonder. But that goes for us too: AI is new, for all of us, so we need to have the courage to not be the expert, to play, to try things out and see what works and have the confidence to co-learn with the students. These technologies aren’t going away so we might as well take the plunge - ethically, pedagogically, mindfully - and see what we can do!The resources we mentioned

John Fowles biography: https://www.fowlesbooks.com/ 

Gill-Simmen, L. (2024). Educating Gen Z: why authenticity and connection are key to thriving in an AI-driven world. The Conversation. Available from: https://theconversation.com/educating-gen-z-why-authenticity-and-connection-are-key-to-thriving-in-an-ai-driven-world-230633 

Harari, Y.N. (2011). Sapiens: A brief history of humankind. Random House.

Hemingway’s 6-word story…maybe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_sale:_baby_shoes,_never_worn 

Jhumpa Lahiri’s professional profile: https://barnard.edu/profiles/jhumpa-lahiri 

Lamott, A. (1994). Bird by bird. Pantheon Books

And the article we talked about

Gill-Simmen, L. (2021) “Using Padlet in instructional design to promote cognitive engagement: a case study of undergraduate marketing students”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (20). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.vi20.575

At the moment, there is no evidence that generative AI is a transformative tool for higher education. Making something more efficient is not the same as being better for learners or learning, and efficiency is not transformation. If we come from a critical perspective, focused on social justice and care, rather than a neoliberal one, then AI currently has little to offer. But it is also important to say no to resistance. We need to resist the harmful uses of AI and drop the assumption that it should be incorporated into teaching; we should not allow students to use it for everything instead of doing it for themselves. There’s little benefit, though, in telling students they are not allowed to use it. To help students develop the critical judgement they need to use gen AI well, we will have to use it a little bit ourselves, experimenting with a critical perspective – often enough to see its limitations and then to decide for ourselves whether it’s truly useful. Talking to colleagues is also vital, in sharing how we feel about it as much as what we know about it, and to ensure that we are always talking about the same thing. 

Maha’s practice of intentionally equitable hospitality can help us think through inequalities in the way our education system is set up that might mean some people need more support than others. The important question should always be, what is the purpose of this task? And then for those students that need more support, they can use AI anywhere apart from in relation to the skill that they need to learn how to do. Above all, if we practice with compassion, we have the potential to make AI something truly of benefit.

The resources we mentioned

Bali, M. 2024. Cake-making analogy for setting generative AI guidelines/ethics. Available from https://uen.pressbooks.pub/teachingandgenerativeai/chapter/cake-making-analogy-for-setting-generative-ai-guidelines-ethics/

Bali, M. 2024. When it comes to AI, is transparency enough? Available from https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/highereducation/2024/10/18/ethics-in-ai/And the article we talked about

Mills, A., Bali, M. and Eaton, L. (2023). How do we respond to generative AI in education? Open educational practices give us a framework for an ongoing process. Journal of Applied Learning and Teaching 6(1), pp.16-30. https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2023.6.1.34 Available from https://hawksites.newpaltz.edu/fdc/files/2023/07/How-Do-We-Respond-to-Generative-AI-in-Education-Open-Educational-Practices-Give-Us-a-Framework-for-an-Ongoing-Process.pdf 

Haidt, J. (2013) The Righteous Mind. Penguin

Hilsdon, J., Malone, C. and Syska, A. (2019) ‘Academic literacies twenty years on: a

community-sourced literature review’, Journal of Learning Development in Higher

Education, 15, pp.1−49. Available at: https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.v0i15.567

Kotzee, B. (2010) ‘Seven posers in the constructivist classroom’, London Review of Education, 8(2), pp.177−187. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/14748460.2010.487340

Moore, R., & Muller, J. (1999). The Discourse of “Voice” and the Problem of Knowledge and Identity in the Sociology of Education. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 20(2), 189–206. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425699995407

Sold a story: how teaching kids to read when so wrong. Podcast also available on Apple and Spotify

Dan Williams - an introduction to his ideas is available at https://danwilliamsphilosophy.com/ 

Wrigglesworth, J. (2019) ‘Pedagogical applications of academic literacies theory: a reflection and case study’, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 15, pp.1−21. Available at: https://doi.org/10.47408/jldhe.v0i15.552

Young, M. (2007). Bringing knowledge back in. Routledge.

White, S. (2024) “Resisting ideological echo chambers: if we are all critical pedagogues, how will we know we are doing LD well? ”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (32). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.vi32.1461.

White, S. and Dhillon, S. (2024) “We need to talk about AL: has academic literacies designed the pedagogy out of Learning Development? ”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (31). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.vi31.1267.

Student engagement is complex and multifaceted. Ten years ago it meant engaging the student voice. Since then it’s become much more about attendance, attention, motivation, presence on campus, belonging, engagement with the curriculum, and more; ‘student engagement’ covers all of these, so it’s important for us to be clear what we mean when we talk about student engagement. What’s already clear is that the more pressured a higher education system is – such as that of the UK – the more focus there is on student engagement. That pressure can come from a policy angle, a financial angle, or both. The outcome is that students need to perceive that their university education is worth it – whatever that might mean to them. And how do we know what it means? Tom advocates for regularly topping up our empathy by keeping in touch with students about their experiences. Student engagement is never done and achieved, just as learning is always ongoing. 

Like many of us, Tom has had a portfolio career and sees himself as ‘someone who works in a university’. Identity is important but we shouldn’t let ourselves be limited by it. As Alan Watts once said, ‘Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth’!

Hamshire, C. and Wibberley, C. (2014) The listening project: Physiotherapy students' narratives of their Higher Education experiences. In Bryson, C. (ed.) Understanding and developing student engagement, pp.47-63. Routledge.

InForm: a journal for international foundation programme professionals. Available from: https://www.reading.ac.uk/inform/

LoveLD magazine. Available from:

Lowe, T., & El Hakim, Y. (Eds.). (2020). A Handbook for Student Engagement in Higher Education: Theory into Practice (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429023033

Spire, Z. (2023) University estates: From spaces to places of student engagement. In Lowe, T. (ed.) Advancing student engagement in higher education: reflection, critique and challenge, pp.189-202. Routledge.

Watts, A. https://public-library.online/Alan-Watts-This-Is-It

Lowe, T. (Ed.). (2023). Advancing Student Engagement in Higher Education: Reflection, Critique and Challenge (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003271789

‘I’m a perfectionist’ is often a glib response given in job interviews when we’re asked to identify a weakness. We offer it up modestly, sure that it will be received as intended: a desirable trait, one showing dedication, commitment, and high quality. Yet what if that were not true? What if, in fact, perfectionism was rigid, unattainable, and damaging? Jane explains that the internal critical dialogue can be extremely destructive in its relentless messaging of not being good enough and, worryingly, her study reports that it is on the rise in students. The connection of self worth to academic performance is hugely problematic, and detrimental to well being. But there are things we can do to help, firstly in understanding the difference between striving - we want to do well, and we try hard - and concerns - we doubt ourselves and worry about what others will think if we don’t meet our own impossible standards. Helping students to understand themselves and their motivations, to have honest conversations about the value of failure, and to build trust and empathy in the classroom or in tutorials, can allow us to challenge perfectionist tendencies. And Learning Developers are perfectly (ahem) positioned for this work!

Burkeman, O. (2021) Four thousand weeks: time and how to use it. Bodley Head

Burkeman, O. (2024) The imperfectionist [blog] Available from: https://www.oliverburkeman.com/the-imperfectionist

Curran, T. (2023) The perfection trap: the power of good enough in a world that always wants more. Cornerstone Press

Flett, G. (2018) The psychology of mattering: understanding the human need to be significant. Academic Press

Hewitt, P.L., Flett, G. and Mikail, S.F. (2017) Perfectionism: A relational approach to conceptualization, assessment, and treatment. Guilford Press.

O’Donohue, J. Irish poet, theologian, philosopher. https://www.johnodonohue.com/ 

McKay, J., Williams, K. and Stewart, J. (2024). “You just want a break from the hatred of failure”: the lived experience of being a student physiotherapist perfectionist and considerations for educators. Advances in Health Sciences Education 29, 893–918 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-023-10287-y

Critical thinking is one of those concepts that we teach and use with students, but Emily Danvers makes clear that it is actually much more complex, contextual and contingent than it might first appear. It’s a practice of asking deliberate questions about knowledge and claims to truth, and it can very much depend on who you are, what you’re thinking about, and why. It also involves a type of confidence - do you have the right to ask these questions? Do you feel you’ll be listened to? And this is where the moves to decolonise higher education are so important, because it challenges established ideas about what the right kind of thinker looks like. We all know what those established ideas are - and so does AI. White, middle-aged, male; these deeply ingrained assumptions are hard to break. 

But critical thinking isn’t individual. Like identity - a key influence - it is a social act, and students may not want to engage in discussions that threaten or challenge their identity, as separating the ideas from the person can feel impossible. This might be more than we can achieve alone in the classroom, but critical thinking offers a new way of thinking about something, and writing affords a possibility for the slow and deep thinking that supports it. Together, we can work to open up critical thinking for all our students.

The resources we mentioned

Criado Perez, C. (2019). Invisible women: Exposing data bias in a world designed for men. Chatto & Windus.

Mohanty, C. T. 2003. “‘Under Western Eyes’ Revisited: Feminist Solidarity Through Anticapitalist Struggles.” Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 28 (2): 499–535. doi: 10.1086/342914

Danvers, E. (2018) Who is the critical thinker in higher education? A feminist re-thinking, Teaching in Higher Education, 23(5), 548-562, DOI: 10.1080/13562517.2018.1454419

The intensifying neoliberalisation of HE over the past few decades is all part of a long trend of universities producing who and what the dominant powers in society wish, according to Chomsky. However, the university has always been a contested space with emancipatory possibilities existing alongside domination and oppression. LD, as part of higher education, is also part of that contested space, and the notion of Critical Academic Literacies (CAL) is Gordon’s attempt to reinvigorate and strengthen the critical, explicitly political roots of LD that is focussed on equity, participatory democracy, and social justice. 

The criticality of LD is not new; CAL is how that criticality might be expressed, and new and emerging Learning Developers are providing cause for optimism in how they’re questioning what they’re doing, how they’re doing it, and who they’re doing it for. It’s no longer just about helping students navigate higher education, but now there’s more sense of collectively questioning and challenging the nature of the neoliberal university and the demands it makes on students and staff.

As Learning Developers, we are part of that system ourselves, in a position of tension and contradiction (and mindful of the self-care needed to manage that positioning), but we can yet all play a part in working to reshape what higher education could look like, by taking this critical turn. We need to understand the past and the present of the university, in order to genuinely help students understand where they might be going in the future. 

Students are as subject to these neoliberal influences as staff. We can look, though, for every opportunity to question and challenge, and encourage students to also question and challenge, whether that is the system generally or assessment strategies specifically, for example. AI provides a great opportunity for us to take a critical stance with both staff and students, to use and apply these new technologies well, to challenge, question and resist here too where necessary. Just as universities can be leaders in this arena, so too can Learning Developers provide coherent critiques of new practices, and to help guide the university in an emancipatory and hopeful direction as part of a wider Critical LD movement. 

Community is central and essential to becoming critically aware and critically literate, in how a field is situated and sharing in the construction of its knowledge. LD is in a great position to push avenues of thought, to connect students and staff, professional and academic, and build these kinds of movements. Are you interested in being a part of it? Get in touch with Gordon! 

Abegglen, S., Burns, T. and Sinfield, S. (eds.) (2023). Collaboration in Higher Education. Bloomsbury

Beetham, H. (2024). What price your ‘AI-ready’ graduates? Imperfect Offerings. Available from: https://helenbeetham.substack.com/i/146823705/employers-are-already-falling-out-of-love-with-generative-ai

Stephen Brookfield - his website

Noam Chomsky - his website

Coffey, L. (2023). Majority of grads wish they’d been taught AI in College. Inside Higher Ed. Available from: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/tech-innovation/artificial-intelligence/2024/07/23/new-report-finds-recent-grads-want-ai-be 

Freire, P. (2014) Pedagogy of hope. Bloomsbury Publishing. 

John Holloway - author page at Pluto Press

Paul, R. and Elder, L. (2021) Critical thinking: Tools for taking charge of your learning and your life. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Asher, G. (2023). Learning Development in, against and beyond the neoliberal university. In Syska, A. and Buckley, C. (eds.) How to Be a Learning Developer in Higher Education: Critical Perspectives, Community and Practice. Routledge. 

Third space, while rightly celebrated as a vital engine for collaboration in higher education, brings with it also the risk of becoming no space at all. Although working in the margins and between the cracks can bolster change and act as a point of resistance, there is also a danger of retreat, defence, and invisibility. Julie contends that it is our role as third space professionals to push into the centre - to exercise agency, to take or seek out opportunities, to be visible. It’s not always easy, but to have an impact on decision-making, we have to be part of the conversation. If you’re invited to join a committee, say yes. If you learn about a new initiative, proactively offer how you and LD can help it succeed. If you get a new senior manager, request a meeting to talk about your service and its strategic alignment. 

These can be difficult tasks to achieve, for many reasons, but all of them are easier with others. Work as a team, and find your tribe, whether that is through mailing lists or conferences. There will be people who share your ideas and ambitions, and who would love to work – and write – with you!

Baume, D. (2023) My obituary for SEDA. Educational Developments 24(3), pp.5-7. Available from: https://www.seda.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Ed-Devs-24.3.pdf

Beetham, H. (2024) Imperfect offerings. Available from: https://helenbeetham.substack.com/ 

Jenny Erpenbeck - an overview. https://www.ndbooks.com/author/jenny-erpenbeck/ 

Meyer, J.H.F. and Land, R. (2003). 'Threshold concepts and troublesome knowledge: Linkages to ways of thinking and practising within the disciplines', in Rust, C. (ed.), Improving Student Learning: Improving Student Learning Theory and Practice - Ten Years On. Oxford: Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development.

Hall, J. (2022) ‘Understanding and debating the third space’.  In McIntosh, E. and Nutt, D. (eds) The impact of the integrated practitioner in higher education: Studies in third space professionalism. Routledge.

Race is missing from Learning Development, but it is inescapably present in our lives and in the lives of our students. Why, then, this disconnect? Ryan’s proposal for a pedagogy of race consciousness (PRC) is a way for us to wake up to the realities of racial difference, to allow students the opportunity to not just bring their lived experiences into the classroom, but to value them. PRC, with its three-step process of intrigue, connection, and tangibility, takes an asset-based approach to learning, as opposed to a deficit approach, looking for and celebrating the differences that make each student unique. LD is perfectly placed to achieve this, in dialogue with students and those who teach them, and through critical thinking. By truly seeing race, we are better able to see the affective, embodied and relational dimensions of learning, rather than simply or only the cognitive. Only then can we acknowledge the full humanity of our students.

And what about writing? It’s like the blues. First, there is catastrophe. But it is only by staying with it, by persevering so it has the time it needs to develop, that we can reach melody. And like the blues, it’s best done with others!

Arthur, R. (2023) 'Closing the gap: Learning development and race' in Buckley, C and Syska, A. (2023) How to Be a Learning Developer in Higher Education: Critical Perspectives, Community and Practice. Routledge.

Ryan’s YouTube Channel

Danvers, E. (2018). Who is the critical thinker in higher education? A feminist re-thinking. Teaching in Higher Education, 23(5), 548–562. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2018.1454419

Du Bois, W. (2007) The souls of black folk. London: Oxford University Press

Galbally, P & Christodoulidi, F (2023) Personalised learning pedagogies and the impact on student progression and retention: the case of counselling training within a university setting, Teaching in Higher Education, https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2023.2211933

Loddick, A. and Coulson, K. (2020) “The impact of Learning Development tutorials on student attainment”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (17). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.vi17.558.

Tommy Curry profile

Cornel West interview

Arthur, R. (2023) “‘Conscious’ learning development: towards a pedagogy of race-consciousness ”, Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (26). doi: 10.47408/jldhe.vi26.928.

PS Carina’s participation in this episode was the result of a fabulous team effort! Huge thanks to Ian Guest and Lucy Marr at the University of Southampton for their hospitality, and to Professor Sabrina Vieth at Solent University for being such a generous-minded line manager.

Third space. It’s a concept most of us will have heard of before, and many of us will identify with it. But what does it actually mean in practice? For Natalia Veles, third space is a space for collaboration and the building of collaborative capital. When the focus of a project is on the learning and the people involved, rather than outputs alone, everybody wins. It involves having a global mindset and the ability to make connections across boundaries and disciplines, drawing colleagues from other disciplines in and being curious about their positioning, and above all learning, and creating and sharing new knowledge with others. It requires translational skills - a compassionate understanding of challenges and how our own knowledge and experience can be enjoined in overcoming them - and a sense of agency and legitimacy, underpinned by the twin and mutually reinforcing aids of confidence and competence. Natalia calls this ‘identity plasticity’, which is a concept, if not a term, that will carry a certain familiarity for all those who work in third space. 

And what about writing in third space? We do so in the same way that we work: by focussing on others and what we can bring to the situation. Write always for your reader, and make that reader a 10 year old child, just to make sure that you can explain your ideas as clearly as possible!

The resources we mentioned

Bakhtin, M. (1984) Problems of Dostoevsky’s poetics. Trans. C. Emerson. University of Minnesota Press.

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990) Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. Harper and Row.

Eco, U. (2015) How to write a thesis. The MIT Press.

Hyland, K. (1998) Hedging in scientific research articles. John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.54 

Soja, E.W. (1996) Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and other real-and-imagined places. Wiley-Blackwell.

Syska, A. and Buckley, C. (eds.) (2023) How to Be a Learning Developer in Higher Education: Critical Perspectives, Community and Practice. Routledge.

Thomson, P. and Kamler, B. (2013) Writing for peer reviewed journals: strategies for getting published. Routledge.

Tolstoy, L. (2007) War and peace. Penguin Classics.

Whitchurch, C. (2024) From ‘service’ to ‘partnership’: harnessing social capital in support of activity in third space environments. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2024.2344132 

And the book we talked about

Veles, N. (2023) Optimising the third space in higher education: Case studies of intercultural and cross-boundary collaboration. Routledge.