Midlands Group
Midlands ADSHE has been meeting since February 2005 approximately 3 times a year at different venues across the region.
The group covers the Midlands area, from Birmingham and Coventry to Nottingham and Northampton
main contact persons
Clare Trott – c.trott@lboro.ac.uk
Barbara Taylor at Nottingham Barbara.Taylor@nottingham.ac.uk
Members belong to Nottingham Trent, Nottingham, Loughborough, Leicester, De Montford, Coventry, The Open and Birmingham universities.
Midlands Adshe has its own jiscmail list ADSHEMIDLANDS@JISCMAIL.AC.UK
How often did the group meet during 2009/10?
Each term
Where did the group meet?
Coventry, Nottingham Leicester
What topics were covered?
Last time we compared the various ways we manage group work and unsurprisingly have spent some time this year discussing problems with DSAs.
Dates of future meetings :
The Midlands group have a meeting next Wednesday (November 3rd) at the University of Nottingham beginning at 1.30. Our agenda is to prepare for a presentation that the group is offering at the BDA conference and also to look at essay writing and dyslexic students. Christine Carter will be leading that discussion.
If you have time to get this information on the website, could you ask anyone who hasn’t already said they were coming to contact me on Barbara.taylor@nottingham.ac.uk for further details
Recent activities – meeting 18 june 2010
Re the BDA Conference 2011. At the last meeting we discussed the issue of International Students and how we are dealing with this. Please find attached the pre-assessment Questionnaire that Caroline Mansell has devised for International Students. In addition to this Questionnaire the proposal was to include a 10 minute free writing exercise. The main idea we discussed yesterday was that we all look at this approach with International students and think about how this might provide a useful piece of development work to feedback to the conference. That was pretty much as far as our thinking reached in the sunshine of yesterday so obviously we need to have something a bit firmer.
I realise that everyone is hugely busy but if we could throw a few ideas around via e mail re this questionnaire…what others are doing…what others suggest we should do…what are the challenges…supporting the students?? etc etc then I am happy…perhaps with Fiona (??) to try and put together an Abstract to send off.
Sally
BDA Conference 2008 – Presentation by the Midlands ADSHE group:
Holistic and Inclusive Responses to Learning Differences in HE’: Making Links, March 2008
Holistic and Inclusive responses
Presentation
Handout
Discussion Topics
Some meetings focus on particular issues such as adjustments in exams whilst others may involve an exchange of ideas on policy and practice.
Professional Development
• A Local Educational Psychologist who works for HEIs in the region, led a stimulating evening on the assessment process and interpretation of results.
• Ian Smythe led a day on the assessment of international students and students who have English as an additional language. This was also a really useful time for sharing information.
Current Research Topics
David Pollak: 1. BRAIN.HE – qualitative research into the experiences of students identified with a range of neurodiversity.
2.INCurriculum – a collaborative project between 3 HEIs using selected modules to ‘mainstream’ accessible and inclusive practice drawn from dyslexia-friendly work in Art & Design.
Both are funded by the NTFS.
Future Developments
At the end of the ADSHE Networking Day 2007 the Midlands Group met to discuss putting together a collaborative proposal for a workshop at the BDA Conference in 2008. This proposal was drafted, submitted and successful and we are delighted to have been given the opportunity to facilitate a joint workshop at the 2008 BDA International Conference in Harrogate.
The 8 universities are looking at the whole experience for a student with SpLD/Learning Differences starting with transition into the university, Screening/Assessment, Inclusive Learning, Accessible Learning Styles and Strategies, Employability and the Student Voice. It will be an interactive workshop with brief outlines of the ongoing work in each of the universities followed by a Case Study Approach to focus the discussion and structure some action points.
This is an excellent opportunity for us to further strengthen our collaborative partnership working.
Meeting minutes 4.2.09
Meeting minutes 8.11.08
Meeting minutes 9.11.07