Monday, February 14, 2022

Supporting researchers

 On returning to work this year in January, I found out that as part of my work team's move into the 'people and capability' section, that there will be better structured and resourced support for our institute's researchers. I take on the role of facilitating this support for half of my time as an educational developer. This role is for one year and will be reviewed at the end of year. In part to take into account the final move into Te Pūkenga, the institute made up of all the existing polytechnics and industry training organisation, which officially begins in 2023. 

I did a brief search to find existing material. All the sites are university based. These include University of Oxford (UK); and University of Bristol (UK); Massey University (Aotearoa-NZ); and Lincoln University (Aotearoa).

In general, the support includes access to various resources including library, research approval, ethics etc. Developmental support for researchers is usually offered in the way of workshops, seminars. Networking features along with mentoring and learning groups. All standard approaches for supporting academic development. 

I have just sent out a survey to our researchers to work out a baseline for interest in various research support initiatives including writing workshops, retreats and networks; assistance with various research processses; and workshops and resources for using digital research tools/platforms. From the survey, I will develop a 'programme' for this semester and after evaluation, a programme for the second semester.

 

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