Learner involvement

It provides our view on learner involvement to contribute to the quality and effectiveness of programmes, including our regulatory requirements, and what we commonly see in programme delivery.

This information should be considered by education providers when developing new and existing programmes, linked to this area.

Our threshold requirements

Summary reflections 

Education providers have effective processes for involving learners in the quality and effective delivery of programmes. They are able to reflect appropriately on the benefit of learner feedback and how this contributes to ensure the quality of programmes. Some education providers are considering how they plan to enhance learner involvement going forward.

Primarily, education providers seek structured feedback from learners, and many education providers also directly involved learners in review activities such as curriculum development and approving new programmes. All education providers have clear policies and processes in place to ensure they can receive and respond to learner complaints, which are normally at the institution level.

Education provider approaches 

Education providers have a wide range of ways to gather learner feedback and take actions forward. For example:

• module or end of year feedback forms, which can be electronic or paper. Feedback gathered is analysed, and education providers often close the feedback loop, such as through “You said, we did” mechanisms;
• representation at meetings, such as learner forums, representation at quality assurance activities, and ‘Town Hall’ meetings;
• review of external feedback data including analysis of National Student Survey results, the National Education and Training Survey, and the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey; and
• reviewing complaints considered by the Office for the Independent Adjudicator.

Education providers use feedback and complaints information to inform changes and enhancements to the delivery of programmes. For example:

• academic delivery – releasing programme materials, such as timetables, earlier to relieve anxiety among learners about the forthcoming year;
• programme management – creating specific inboxes to receive feedback at any time, and weekly drop-in sessions;
• assessment methods – for example, allowing online assessments to be taken in a 24 hour period to allow learners with children, or other responsibilities, to manage their time more effectively;
• staffing levels – recruiting additional staff to ease the burden on existing staff to improve turnaround times for assessment feedback; and
• support mechanisms – introduction of ‘Freedom to Speak Up Guardians’ in practice settings, and updating programme documents to provide clarity about the support mechanisms available.

Some education providers can measure the benefit of actions taken in response to learner feedback, and how this enhanced the learner experience.

Education providers have clear policies and processes in place to ensure they can receive and respond to learner complaints. Processes are made available to learners through programme documentation, and these processes ensure that education providers are able to consider and settle complaints. Most education providers use appropriately anonymised information from learner complaints to contribute to the overall way in which the programme is developed.

When proposing new programmes, education providers normally:

• align proposed programmes to existing policies and processes to ensure learners contribute to the programme in some way;
• seek structured feedback from learners, and many education providers also directly involved learners in reviewing areas such as the programme’s curriculum;
• align proposed programmes to existing policies and processes which ensure a fair, transparent and supportive response to learner complaints; and
• complaints processes apply throughout the duration of programmes, including practice-based learning.
  
  

Current sector focus and challenges 

There is an issue across many education providers with the level of learner feedback received. Low numbers of learners participating in feedback surveys means it is difficult to reach well-informed decisions about developments. Education providers are attempting to drive up response rates to internal and external surveys, for example by ensuring feedback is collected online anonymously, or introducing a survey management processes to reduce survey volume to combat survey fatigue.

Areas commonly explored further through our assessments 

We explored this area further through our assessments, normally when education providers reported issues with learner participation in feedback surveys. Education providers were able to explore this area further and note how they were addressing low numbers of learners responding to feedback. This meant that we did not normally need to follow up the issues further because we were satisfied with education provider responses.  

Proportion of performance review assessments with quality activities / referrals