Fostering Student Agency within Hierarchical Systems and Structures: Student-Faculty Pedagogical Partnership Programs as Ecosystems
for Leadership and Professional Competency Development
Adriana Signorini, University of California, Merced (California, USA)
Alison Cook-Sather, Bryn Mawr College (Pennsylvania, USA)
[virtual]
Aimee Fleming, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Arizona, USA)
[virtual]
Riley Caldwell-O’Keefe & Eugene Lee
Amherst College (Massachusetts, USA)
ICED 2024, Advancing Higher Education Ecosystems for Competency Development, Nairobi, Kenya
Welcome!
What is Pedagogical Partnership?
“A collaborative, reciprocal process through which all participants have the opportunity to contribute equally, although not necessarily in the same ways, to curricular or pedagogical conceptualization, decision making, implementation, investigation, or analysis.”
- Cook-Sather, Bovill, & Felten, 2014, Engaging Students as Partners in Learning & Teaching: A Guide for Faculty, pp. 6-7
Where are we going in this session?
Introductions at Your Tables!
In Groups of Three:
Note: If we had time you would get bonus points for creating a dynamic group movement!
The Short-Story of our Program:
Institutional context
Core programmatic commitment:
(as evidenced/articulated by a former P3!)
[The P3] partnership afforded me an opportunity to engage with a faculty member as an expert in my own right and demystify the seemingly distant relationships that students hold with professors at the college-level. It allowed me to see the ways in which professors valued student feedback and opinions, and further change the rhetoric of a limited one-size fits all pedagogical approach to teaching classes.
—Eugene Lee '23, P3 Student Fellow, 2020-21 cohort
Pedagogical Partner Program (P3)
This work stems from our larger pedagogical partnership research project with additional partners, Drs. Sarah Bunnell (Amherst/Elon) and Kristen Luschen (Amherst/Hampshire).
“...it does seem kind of scary to suggest something like that to a professor…” (Student Partner, S.2)
“...she's a white professor, and I'm a student of color. You know, there's still that thing, like, I always have my guard up, that just in case, there's an unexpected microaggression.” (Student Partner, S.6)
Pedagogical Partnership Program (P3)
2023-2024 (Student Roles)
Fall Semester
Spring Semester
Readings and Reflection Assignments due each week
P3 Weekly Cohort Training Meetings
Timesheets due in Workday by noon:
Oct 9th Oct 23rd Nov 6th Nov 20st Dec 4th Dec 18th
Observe Class Weekly and Send Observation Notes to Faculty Partner
Meet Weekly with Faculty Partner
P3 + CTL Meeting: Every other week
P3 Cohort Only Meetings: Alternating weeks with P3/CTL meetings
Timesheets due every other Monday in Workday by noon
During week of Dec 4-8 and virtually during January Break:
Meet with Faculty Partner
End of Semester
Motivation for launching program:
Students as Learners and Teachers (SaLT) pairs paid student consultants with faculty and departments to co-create inclusive, equitable, and anti-racist approaches to teaching and spaces of learning.
Institutional context
“It is rare to find a professional space that truly values student experiences and insight as a credible source of knowledge, and empowers students to speak authoritatively to faculty members.”
- Former student partner, April 2022
Foster agency and voice through:
Fall & Spring Semesters
Distribution of Guidelines and Orientation for Student Partners
Faculty and Student Partners Meet Weekly
Student Partners Meet Weekly with Cohort and SaLT Facilitator
Student Partner Observes Class Weekly, Shares Observation Notes with Faculty Partner
Outgrowths of Basic SaLT Model
Motivation for launching program:
Institutional context
Core programmatic commitment: To bridge the gap between faculty and students.
The SaP program does this by:
Students-as-Partners (SaP) Program
“After participating in this program, I now demand more from my education and understand the value that my perspective can bring to the classroom. I am more vocal in advocating for my own education and the education of my peers.”- Cade Cabral, ERAU 2024
Onboarding Training for Student Partners-Prior to New Semester Starting
Student Partners Meet Monthly with SaP Program Coordinator and SaP Leads
Students-as-Partners (SaP) Program
Observes Class Weekly, Meets Weekly with Faculty, Continuous Feedback Loop
Mid-semester Feedback Session- Planning and Course Adjustments
Continuous Refining of the Learning Experience and Reflection
Fall and Spring Semester
Fall and Spring Semester
“That an undergraduate program should be so much more than just going to class and doing the work. It should be about learning everything you can about life, leadership, and teamwork/group work before you leave. This SaP Program gave me all of these missing elements. Everyone should get to participate in this program.” Karol Planadeball, ERAU, 2023
Institutional context
Core programmatic commitment
Motivation for launching the program in 2009:
May, 2024 CV-RISER conference
SATAL Logic Model and Program Design
Protocols and Workshops
Interactions with Faculty about substantive Matters
“Faculty with years of teaching experience are still eager to find new ways to improve student
learning. And they trust us as SATAL interns to provide helpful feedback.
“It [the meeting] made me feel that our work is very important.”(SATAL Intern)
Equitable Pedagogical Practice
Interactions with Faculty about substantive Matters
“Faculty with years of teaching experience are still eager to find new ways to improve student learning. And they trust us as SATAL interns to provide helpful feedback. “It [the meeting] made me feel that our work is very important.” (SATAL Intern)
REFLECTION
Individual:
Reflecting on your own context, which frameworks and practices from the examples resonate for you?
In groups of 3:
Slice of Insight: Communication!
Conceptual frameworks for leadership and professional competency development in a pedagogical partnership program:
Eich, Darin (2008). Grounded Theory of High-Quality Leadership Programs. JLOS.
Leadership in this context, “is defined as a ‘relational and ethical process of people together attempting to accomplish positive change’ (Komives, et al 2006, p. 11).” (Eich 179)
Amherst College mission:
to educate students (to) …. lead principled lives of consequence.
P3 Student Fellow
Cohort-Based Communication
Subversion and Experiential Learning
“[The] most influential thing would be the cohort meetings because it was getting to hear the perspective of the other P3 students and seeing what they were experiencing in the class and how each of our experiences and partnerships were different. I think that was really influential in getting a more broader view of the program.” (Student Partner, S.5)
P3 Student Fellow/
Faculty Fellow Communication
“I learned that … professors aren't the sole teachers and students aren't the sole learners [....] that not only increases my confidence, but it's, it's empowered me to like speak up and not be afraid to share something.” (Student Partner, S.1)
“I just really enjoyed [....] being able to think together, [....] just figuring out that process was something that was very enriching in general.” (Student Partner, S.7)
P3 Fellow/Classroom Student Communications
Recognizing Diversity and Developing Structures of Need
“Not every student feels like super confident or extroverted enough to share. I think that also kind of intersects with… gender or race. And so like, who feels most comfortable speaking up in a space?… I think I focused on a lot about… [how] people have different identities, and that contributes to how comfortable they feel speaking up in a group setting where they're being graded on.” (Student Partner, S.5)
Individual Reflection
In the Amherst College (Eich) model, what resonates or is important to consider for fostering student agency and developing students’ leadership and professional development competencies within your context?
Bryn Mawr
and Embry-Riddle
NACE (2021): Communication: “Clearly and effectively exchange information, ideas, facts, and perspectives with persons inside and outside of an organization.”
Faculty Partner—Student Partner
“My principal and I have a great relationship. I think it’s because of the [work I did through the SaLT program]. I learned how to communicate my thoughts regarding pedagogy in accessible but profound ways. And I learned how to navigate a relationship with someone who wasn’t my peer.” - Student partner quoted in Cook-Sather, 2011)
Staff Facilitator—Student Partner
“...having a prompt or a task [offered by the facilitator] to start the conversations…gave me a way to think of my partnerships in different ways. There was always a way to dig deeper into the parts of my partnerships that I could feel but could never quite put my finger on.” - Student partner, anonymous feedback
Bryn Mawr and Embry-Riddle
NACE
NACE (2021): Communication: “Clearly and effectively exchange information, ideas, facts, and perspectives with persons inside and outside of an organization.”
Student Partner—Student-Partner
“Our monthly meetings together as a student partner group helped me learn how to actively listen and how important it is to respect diversity and learning styles when communicating. I have already used these skills in my summer internship.” (Student: Taylor Beglay, ERAU, 2023)
Student Partner—Enrolled Students
“This program has helped me understand mentorship and communication better. I also had the opportunity to mentor students in the classes I partnered for. This helped me find out how to ask the right questions to get the input and feedback we needed to improve the course. Asking questions and communicating clearly changed our feedback.” (Student: Noe Chavez, ERAU, 2024)
Individual Reflection
In the Bryn Mawr and Embry-Riddle (NACE) models, what resonates or is important to consider for fostering student agency and developing students’ leadership and professional development competencies within your context?
Eight High Impact Practices Elements
Performance expectations set at appropriately high levels
Significant investment of time and effort by students over an extended period of time
Interactions with faculty and peers about substantive matters
Experiences with diversity, wherein students are exposed to people and circumstances that differ from those with which students are familiar
Feedback is
frequent and timely from peers and faculty, formative and summative
Periodic, structured opportunities to reflect and integrate learning
Opportunities to discover relevance of learning through real-world applications
Public
demonstration of competence
SATAL & High Impact Practices
Student Partners-Staff
Public Demonstration of Competence
“The SATAL program has an immense amount of opportunities for interns to showcase our work and present to others. I started off in the SATAL program being a bit shy and now I feel that my leadership and public speaking skills have vastly improved. … Also, I have been in research projects which have allowed me to present to another university and get their feedback in order to improve the [our research] project. SATAL has definitely made me feel like a researcher and more confident in my abilities.”
Student Partners-Enrolled Student
Experiences with diversity, wherein students are exposed to and must contend with people and circumstances that differ from those with which students are familiar
"In my time as a SATAL intern, I have definitely met a wide range of people, both in classroom settings and my SATAL peers themselves. In the classroom setting, I have had opportunities to talk with students who struggle with different sociocultural and socioeconomic issues, especially during the pandemic. This has led me to better understand the UC Merced student community and what can be done to better support our students...Everyone works differently and learns differently and by collaborating with my peers on data collection and analysis, I have experienced how different people learn, and also learned how to work collaboratively across differences."
Individual Reflection
In the UC Merced (HIP) model, what resonates or is important to consider for fostering student agency and developing students’ leadership and professional development competencies within your context?
Key Takeaways
In groups of three share:
thing that you learned in this session,
idea that inspired you that you could imagine acting on,
OR question that you still have.
Fostering Student Agency within Hierarchical Systems and Structures:
Developing and Assessing Student-Faculty Pedagogical Partnership Programs as Ecosystems for Leadership and Professional Competency Development
Adriana Signorini, University of California, Merced (California, USA)
Alison Cook-Sather, Bryn Mawr College (Pennsylvania, USA)
Aimee Fleming, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Arizona, USA)
Riley Caldwell-O’Keefe & Eugene Lee
Amherst College (Massachusetts, USA)
ICED 2024, Advancing Higher Education Ecosystems for Competency Development, Nairobi, Kenya
Thank you!