The University of Canberra (UC) is hosting a two-day SAFFIRE Festival in the INSPIRE Centre on the University Campus.
UC receved a $25.95 million Structural Adjustment Fund grant for 2013-14. The suffix acronym FIRE refers to Flexibility and Innovation, Recruitment, and Engagement. There are five overarching goals to the project:
- Curriculum design: design and implement a range of distinctive and innovative degree programs across the UC Group that are student-centred, flexible and accessible; capitalise on UC’s existing disciplinary strengths; are delivered through a variety of online, blended, intensive and partnership delivery strategies; provide clear entry articulation; and enable student enrolment growth
- Support and engagement: devise strategies that incorporate academic and mentoring support for UC and UCC students, to identify ‘at risk’ students and to provide for high retention rates into program development.
- Technologies and learning environments: implement or renew organizational and enterprise systems and teaching and learning technologies to create integrated systems across the whole UC Group that support the new teaching and learning models.
- Cultural change: implement a communications strategy and staff development program to ensure professional development for all staff in the new learning technologies and educational models and administrative requirements, and a broad understanding across the entire UC community of importance of the ethos of flexibility and innovation to the retention and engagement of students to UC’s educational mission over the next five years
- Policy and process review: review and change administration processes to support the new qualifications and associated technologies.
There has been an excellent Twitter feed during the first day using #ucsaffire. There is a YouTube channel that is showing presentations from the Festival.
I was unable to attend Day 1 but am looking forward to participating in Day 2.
This is my pitch:
[slideshare id=17306031&doc=130319ucsaffire1-130318012139-phpapp01]
