Unpacking your Hidden Curriculum: Guide for Educators
Publication date: 05 Sep 2022
Members can access materials relating to this area of work on our Membership Resources Site.
Key transition points for students include entering higher education, moving between years or levels of study and progressing into employment. These are exciting times, but they can also be challenging for students and those who support them.
Our Supporting Successful Student Transitions project offers positive approaches and practical solutions to help support the transition to, and through higher education.
On our Membership Resources site, you will find a variety of toolkits, short papers and case studies, designed to help staff and students to address a number of key areas of concern, including:
- knowledge gaps and student confidence
- mindset and expectations
- community building and learner identities
- perceptions of value across the learner journey.
These resources will be of particular use to staff in student-facing roles, including subject tutors, module and course leaders, and support services staff. In addition to workshop plans, activities and guidance for staff, a variety of the resources are designed to be used by students themselves.
You can also explore a selection of publicly available resources designed to support student transitions below.
Resources from across QAA
As well as the many resources published on our Membership Resources site, we also have a public collection of transitions-related blogs, resources and activities from across QAA.
Unpacking the hidden curriculum
We have published guidance for staff, which includes prompt questions and top tips to get started with identifying the hidden curriculum that needs to be unpacked for their students. An editable guide template is also publicly available. The guide accompanies the Hidden Curriculum Guide for Students which was produced for QAA Members to provide students with an explanation of terminology that is commonly used across the higher education sector.
Unpacking your Hidden Curriculum: Guide Template
Publication date: 05 Sep 2022
PODCAST - Towards neuro-inclusivity
In this podcast, QAA's Dr Kerr Castle sits down with Liss Chard-Hall (Specialist Study Skills Tutor) and Dr Graeme Pedlingham (Deputy Pro Vice Chancellor – Student Experience, University of Sussex) to chat about neuro-inclusivity.
PODCAST - Speaking my language – understanding and supporting the experiences of disabled students
In this podcast, QAA's Dr Kerr Castle, Professor Deborah Johnston from London South Bank University and a commissioner for the Disabled Students' Commission (DSC) and Sean Cullen from Brunel University and the Student Voice Commissioner for DSC discuss the experience of disabled students.
PODCAST - Supporting transitions into College-based higher education
In this podcast, we discuss what the hidden curriculum is and why this matters, before turning our attention to the Student Guide to the Hidden Curriculum and reflecting on how this resource supports students. We then introduce the new Guide for Educators resource, explaining how staff can start unpacking the hidden curriculum in their subject area or the wider institution and how the Guide works with the original resource.
PODCAST - Enterprise and embedded employability in higher education
In this episode, we consider the student experience of enterprise and embedded employability in higher education with Helen Hughes from University of Leeds, Edward Pollock from Robert Gordon University, and Iwan Williams from University of Liverpool. We discussed the student experience of enterprise and entrepreneurship education and how to embed employability and enterprise principles into the curriculum.
PODCAST - Unpacking the hidden curriculum of higher education
In this episode, we discuss unpacking the ‘unspoken rules’ or ‘hidden curriculum’ in Higher Education with Pam Birtill and Richard Harris from the University of Leeds. Along with their colleague Madeleine Pownall, Pam and Richard were first commissioned by QAA Membership to produce the Student Guide to the Hidden Curriculum – a practical, student facing resource explaining terminology that is a common feature of Higher Education across the sector.
BLOG POST - Fostering supportive student learning communities in an online, distance learning context
Dr Hannah Lavery, Dr Debbie Parker Kinch and Dr Encarnación Trinidad Barrantes - The Open University
BLOG POST - Enabling Successful Student Transitions into University: Using Curriculum Design and Data Monitoring to provide Student Support
Jennifer Stott, Dagan Lonsdale, Iain Greenwood and Emma Baker - St George’s, University of London
BLOG POST - Online study groups – a balancing act between peer-learning and student support
Ralitsa Kantcheva and Kate Stuart - Bangor University
BLOG POST - College-based higher education - a unique place for students
Leon Annett - Cardiff and Vale College | Jane Nickisson - Salford City College
BLOG POST - Supporting students’ transition to university during COVID-19
Madeleine Pownall, Dr Richard Harris and Dr Pam Birtill - University of Leeds
BLOG POST - Supporting student transitions: preparing for university during a pandemic
Heather Monsey - University of East Anglia
BLOG POST - Widening participation and resilient learning communities in the arts
Dr Graeme Smilie - University of the Highlands and Islands
BLOG POST - Supporting students to develop transitions skills during times of uncertainty
Dr Alison Eales - QAA Scotland
BLOG POST - What happens next? Student arrival in higher education in 2021
Dr Harriet Jones - University of East Anglia
BLOG POST - The impact of changes to the school experience of A level biological science students
Professor Jon Scott - Higher Education Consultant and Emeritus Professor of Bioscience Education
BLOG POST - Supporting incoming students: community-building in digital environments
Dr Alison Eales - QAA Scotland
COLLECTION OF RESOURCES - Enhancement Themes: Supporting Student Transitions in 2021-22
This collection of Enhancement Themes resources draws together examples of practice and other resources that you may find useful in supporting students during the coming year.
REPORTS - Focus On: Graduate Skills
With debate on apprenticeships and skills high on the agenda in higher education, the Focus On: Graduate Skills project (2018-19) continues to provide useful insights for providers. Resources including reports which highlight the key findings from the commissioned work and events held during this Focus On activity are available on the QAA Scotland website.