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Campaign Updates and Conferences - President: Education on November

Thursday 07-12-2023 - 14:57

Campaign Updates and Conferences – President: Education November 2023 Update

By President: Education - Dola Dada

November got off to a roaring start with the second annual University of Sunderland Learning and Teaching Conference, which was held at the Fire Station on 1st November. The theme for the event was focused on academic integrity, which fits in perfectly with my manifesto priorities. The conference had speakers from within and outside the University talking about academic integrity among students and academics.

One of the highlights of this event was the opportunity for me to be a part of the student panel discussing causes and consequences of academic misconduct among students and possible ways academic staff could support students to reduce occurrences of this. The need for students to always reach out to Personal Academic Tutors and academic staff for help was re-emphasized and I hope this serves as a reminder that if any student is having any challenges affecting the academic experience; help is available from the University and from the Students’ Union, so do speak out and ask for help.

President: Education Dola Dada

President: Education Dola Dada

Campaign Updates

Research has been ongoing to investigate best practices regarding the ‘Fit to Sit’ Policy in the sector. We have reached out to sabbatical officers, students and SU staff from other universities. We have also compiled case studies from our students here. The final research to be done is a survey among our students which will commence in December. The research report will then be compiled and shared with the University to evidence the need for a change in the Fit to Sit policy to better support student wellbeing and success.

My campaign to take off essay mills from the University’s social media is focused on Instagram, Facebook and X. I have created accounts on these social media sites to observe the activities of the essay vendors and their modus operandi. This should help to pinpoint the best way to put a stop to their activities on the University sites.

The campaign to make library and study skills inductions available at more relevant timing for students is still ongoing. The objective is to have these sessions during the middle of term when students have received their assessment briefs and received at least a month of lectures. This ensures that the information received during the library session is relatable and better understood.

SSAC Inductions/QAA Conference

This month I had the honour of being accepted to be a member of the Student Strategic Advisory Committee of the QAA. The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) is an independent agency which works with higher education institutions and regulatory bodies to maintain and enhance quality standards and improve the quality of higher education in the UK. The agency works in close collaboration with students to ensure the student voice is represented in all processes, hence the establishment of committees like the Student Strategic Advisory Committee with all student members.

I also attended my first member conference of the QAA where I got to meet other members in person. It was great to hear the discussions about improving the standard of education and especially the importance of students and partnerships with SU in this regard.

This month we also formed a North East Coalition of Sabbatical officers with delegates from Newcastle, Durham and Northumbria Universities in attendance. We hosted the first meeting here in Sunderland and our key priorities now are Cost of Living, Housing and Transport. We will be lobbying at regional and national levels to achieve our goals.

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Officers

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