ITL Academic Development Programs Review
Update to A/Deans L&T on implementing P&P and Grad Cert review recommendations

Dear Associate Dean,

As you might recall the ITL reviewed its academic development programs in 2007 and identified a series of recommendations, based, in part, on input from the Associate Deans in each faculty. Attached is a short article 'Acting on the Review' from the forthcoming Synergy which outlines the changes to some of these programs. However, I’d like to draw your attention in particular to two key actions we are now starting work on:
  1. Implementing some changes to the planned teaching of the existing second semester Graduate Certificate units of study to accommodate more relevant, faculty-based projects.

  2. Working with faculties to develop strategies to replace a small part of the central Principles and Practice program with relevant faculty based follow-up activities for new staff.
The article gives an indication of the sorts of “relevant, faculty-based’ options we have been exploring in the renewal of both these two programs. At this stage all I would like to do, is to invite you to start to think about what sorts of options might be suitable in relation to your faculty’s particular needs from these two programs.

As many of you suggested during the review last year – there are already many suitable activities occurring in faculties which might form a useful part of these programs. Alternatively - if faculties would prefer to develop something new we will work with them to do that. Of course, the ITL will continue to offer ITL based options for those faculties and participants in either program who would prefer this.

If you’d like some more background on last year’s review please don’t hesitate to contact me, there is also additional information on the ITL website including:
  • A copy of the ITL Academic Development Programs Review recommendations
  • A draft of the second semester graduate certificate unit of study outlines
  • An explanation for Grad cert participants about the planned changes to the teaching in semester 2
  • The program for the revised central Principles and Practice Program we will be running this June
  • An explanation for participants about how we are phasing in changes to this program.
We will allocate some of the time at our May meeting of the Associate Deans L&T to discussing different strategies in relation to the faculty based elements of the Principles and Practice program further and to sharing ideas for faculty-based graduate certificate activities.

I’ll also contact you in the next week to answer any questions you might have about the changes, and to make a time to discuss how we might move forwards with developing the faculty based elements of these programs.

Kind regards,

Simon Barrie