In this short video Chloe provides an introductiory overview of Fast-track TESTA

What does it involve? We will run a workshop with your students, in which they work together to reflect on the way they have engaged with their programme, explain what is working well, and suggest places where they think change would be useful. We will then discuss the outcomes with teaching staff at a separate debrief session that takes about an hour.

Who should attend the student workshop? Generally final year students, as they can reflect on their experience across multiple years of the programme. The more students that attend the more useful the feedback will be.

Who should attend the staff debrief session? The programme director, unit leads, the student administration manager or representative and as many staff who teach on or administer the programme as you can manage!

What happens in the staff debrief session? We will present an analysis of the feedback and comments provided by the students, support discussion, and suggest proven tactics to help address any issues identified. The debrief sessions often spark wide-ranging discussions about teaching on the programme and its organisation, and the more people that attend the session the wider and richer the discussion will be.

What’s the outcome? Quick fixes that might improve student experience in-year; ideas for larger changes that could be brought in next year; confirmation (or otherwise!) that planned changes are likely to be well-received; food-for-thought for longer-term programme review plans.

What next? Fast-track TESTA can work well as a stand-alone activity, but often the experience prompt teams to consider delving deeper into their assessment and feedback approaches via TESTA, a bespoke workshop to address a particular aspect of practice or taking a “bigger picture” look at the programme in a curriculum festival.