QAA and CDN take two more STEPs forward

QAA and College Development Network (CDN) last week held two events in Dundee as part of the Scotland's Tertiary Enhancement Programme (STEP).

STEP is Scotland’s national enhancement programme for colleges and universities, and is a key part of Scotland’s Tertiary Quality Enhancement Framework. It is run in partnership between CDN and QAA Scotland, and is supported by the Scottish Funding Council.

Launched last autumn, STEP is designed to enable colleges and universities to work together to improve and enhance learning, teaching, the student experience and staff development across tertiary education in Scotland.

The fourth of our STEP Discovery Days took place in Dundee on Wednesday 28 May. These events support the development of collaborative projects designed to create positive impacts for Scotland's tertiary education sector. Previous events have taken place this academic year in Glasgow, Stirling and Inverness. 

Each four-year cycle of STEP activities is themed around a particular topic. The topic of STEP's first cycle of activities, which will run until 2028, is Supporting Diverse Learner Journeys. Over the course of this year's four Discovery Days, participants have developed proposals for projects with this focus that will be implemented through the next three years.

On Thursday 29 May – also in Dundee – a special STEP event looked at ways to understand and support student transitions in Scotland.

It featured keynote presentations from the Edge Foundation's Dr Josh Patel, and from Dr Michelle Morgan, Dean of Students at the University of East London. Josh charted the approaches across the four nations to tertiary collaboration and tertiary journeys, while Michelle considered the value of adopting a whole-institutional approach to improving the experience, progression, retention and success of both students and staff.

The event also included presentations introducing three current STEP projects which explore and promote successful student transitions. Nicola Mulholland, Dean for Academic Development at New College Lanarkshire, talked about a collaborative initiative around transitions learning. Professor Luke Millard, Dean of Learning and Teaching at Abertay University, and Jane Roscoe, Director of Curriculum and Partnerships at Dundee and Angus College, discussed pathways, process and design to enable student success. And Phil Storrier, Executive Director of Student Experience and Academic Performance at Dumfries and Galloway College, explored strategies for setting students up for success through enquiry-based learning.

"We're so pleased by the progress we've seen this year," said Heather Fotheringham, Quality Enhancement Manager at QAA Scotland. "Our participants – both students and staff from across Scotland's colleges and universities – have shown such energy, enthusiasm and commitment in stepping up to work collaboratively and create a brilliant set of initiatives to promote the enhancement of our tertiary education sector. It's such a joy to see how STEP has really taken off – and to see how it will really work to improve the experience of students and staff across Scotland."

Victoria Underwood, CDN’s Director of Operations and Strategic Planning, added: "The final Discovery Day of STEP's first year was a real milestone – a powerful demonstration of the energy and commitment across Scotland’s tertiary sector. It was fantastic to see colleagues from both colleges and universities working side by side with a shared purpose. STEP showcases the great potential of Scotland's tertiary sector when we collaborate to enhance learning, teaching and the student experience. At CDN, we're proud to work in partnership with QAA Scotland and institutions nationwide to drive meaningful innovation. These events have not only sparked bold ideas but also laid the foundations for projects that will support and strengthen diverse learner journeys in the years ahead."

To find out more about STEP, please visit our dedicated website.