Background:
Integration of belonging and community building into the core academic experience can help to facilitate both personal and academic development, as well as engagement and outcomes (Hodgson, 2024). Whilst evolution of teaching practice and academic staff roles are vital in enabling this, PGWT are well positioned within core academic activities and therefore also have the potential for impact. As part student, part teacher, PGWT occupy a ‘unique niche’ or ‘liminal space’ (Winstone & Moore, 2017; Muzaka, 2009) through which they can identify with their students’ position and engage in ‘approachability and advocacy’ with and for their students (Slack & Pownall, 2023). The type of small group teaching they are involved with allows for opportunities to arise for discussion of matters from the wider student experience, beyond the curriculum. This is important, as meaningful interactions between staff and students have been identified as a key aspect of belonging which could improve student success and retention (Thomas, 2012).
Through exploring the nature of these interactions, we hoped to discover whether there was value in this ‘intangible aspect’ of PGWT practice (Robertson, Cleaver & Smart, 2019) that could be developed to support undergraduates’ sense of belonging and community.
The partnership:
The project was initiated by Catherine, who through her work supporting PGWT had often heard them talk about their informal interactions with students and wanted to explore whether these were having an impact on their students, and how PGWT could be better supported, for example if students disclosed personal issues. Catherine assembled the staff research team and together we created and submitted a student staff partnership project proposal which was approved in December 2023. During this period, we also identified Brenda as our potential student partner given her position as neither an undergraduate student or PGWT, which we felt would reduce the risk of bias during data collection and analysis.
The project:
Brenda confirmed that she would like to be involved, and we proceeded to co-create a robust research plan and prepare an ethics application, which was approved in March 2024. Participants were recruited from the School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences, both for convenience and given the certainty of regular PGWT involvement in module teaching. We conducted three semi-structured, face-to-face, activity-oriented focus groups to capture varied perspectives on PGWT interactions: one with students who had been taught by a PGWT, one with the PGWT themselves, and one with the leaders of modules involving a PGWT. Focus groups were led by Brenda and began with an anonymous free listing activity using Mentimeter where participants were asked to list the student-PGWT interactions they had been involved in or were aware of, and the perceived impact of these interactions. These responses were then used to guide the discussion throughout the focus groups. Focus groups were recorded using Panopto, transcribed verbatim, and data were analysed using thematic analysis.
Findings:
Findings from the three focus groups indicated that:
- Students consider PGWT to be relatable role models who can provide them with authentic examples.
- PGWT build meaningful relationships with students and create informal learning spaces which enable students to feel comfortable discussing both their learning and personal matters.
- PGWT enhance and support students’ learning experiences, whilst also providing support to module leaders.
- Being a PGWT supports their own sense of belonging and community within the institution.
To enhance the potential for belonging and community development, we recommend that PGWT are provided with supported teaching opportunities that enable them to work closely with students and that they are involved in the design and delivery of the whole module where appropriate. We also recommend that PGWT are provided with training on how to interact with and support students, as well as how to escalate and discuss issues raised by students during informal interactions. Finally, we recommend that PGWT’s impact across other disciplines is explored to allow for wider understanding and the provision of tailored guidance.
The project was presented in both poster and oral format at the University’s 2024 Learning and Teaching Conference, and a paper has been accepted on the research in the Journal of Postgraduate Pedagogic Practice. We are also working on the production of an infographic highlighting our findings and recommendations.
It is hoped that our findings will serve to increase awareness of the important role of PGWT beyond the teaching of the curriculum and provide guidance as to how PGWT can further facilitate community and belonging within the cohorts they teach.
Reflections on working in partnership:
The process of working in partnership has been valuable to all involved. From a staff perspective, we enjoyed building a close working relationship with our student partner Brenda and watching her develop confidence throughout the project. She quickly contributed to meetings, engaging in discussions, and managing an equal share of the workload. Brenda reported finding value in the ability to work with staff from different disciplines and enjoyed learning new research skills that will be of benefit in the future. Collectively, we appreciated the variety of ideas and approaches which led to valuable discussions and enhanced the quality of the project overall.
Finally, we feel extremely lucky to have had Brenda as our student partner. Her consistent reliability, organisation, hard work, and overall commitment undoubtably enhanced the success of the project and made it an enjoyable experience. Thank you, Brenda!
References:
Hodgson, R. (2024, March 3). Time to go back to basics on belonging. WONKHE. Time to go back to basics on belonging | Wonkhe
Muzaka, V. (2009) The niche of Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs): perceptions and reflections Teaching in Higher Education, 14(1), 1-12.
Robertson, A., Cleaver, E. & Smart, F. (2019) Evidencing the Intangible Aspects of the Student Experience Workbook.
Slack, H.R. & Pownall, M. (2023) ‘Treat GTAs as colleagues, rather than spare parts’: the identity, agency, and wellbeing of graduate teaching assistants. Journal of Further and Higher Education, (47)9, 1262-1275.
Thomas, L. (2012) Building student engagement and belonging in Higher Education at a time of change: final report from the What Works? Student Retention and Success programme. Advance HE.
Winstone, N. & Moore, D. (2017) Sometimes fish, sometimes fowl? Liminality, identity work and identity malleability in graduate teaching assistants. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, (54