Implementation strategy 4

Description

We will introduce a new model of data-informed student support with the aim of providing proactive interventions to address gaps in student outcomes. Pastoral Mentors will be recruited across all academic departments and will work with Student Data Leads to identify students in need of support and requiring proactive early interventions including referrals to specialist services.

Rationale

Traditional models for academic support (including tutoring) have evolved with academic staff reporting that they are finding it increasingly challenging to support students pastorally due to changing needs and expectations, particularly about mental health and wellbeing. Research shows a strong correlation between proactive academic support and improved student engagement, retention and outcomes. We will make changes to the current model for academic support at Exeter to make it more proactive, consistent, and data-informed to support students in their studies.  In prioritising this support we have drawn upon evidence from TASO that suggests the existing body of evidence encourages the wider adoption of learning analytics systems, as most studies report some effect in improving students’ outcomes. The TASO evidence review on mentoring, counselling, coaching and role models reports “some evidence” that these programmes are associated with positive effects on students and in accord with their recommendation, will seek to identify the most effective features of this provision through programme evaluation.

For more details see theStudent Academic Support Theory of Change.

Evaluation

The University is working with TASO to evaluate the impact of this provision. The impact report will be published via these web pages in 26/27.

Description

Our institution-wide Curriculum for Change initiative will allow students to curate an educational experience that is relevant to their interests and future goals and help them develop knowledge, and confidence and identify as successful learners. Students will receive directed support to address skills and knowledge development as part of an ongoing skills mapping process involving identification of development gaps and tailored module choice to build specific skills to enhance attainment and employability.

For more details see the Skills Mapping Theory of Change.

Rationale

Research has indicated a number of factors affecting graduate outcomes for widening participation students in comparison with their peers. These include lack of opportunity to gain knowledge of different career paths, access professional networks, gain relevant work experience or take part in extra-curricular activities. Enhanced skills mapping through Curriculum for Change is integral to our Access and Participation Plan because it will give students more control in building work-ready skills as part of their degree. The skills and mindset strand specifically will improve graduate outcomes by enabling students to assess, map and articulate their progress in acquiring the skills, knowledge and mindsets that employers seek, and to choose future-skills-focused activities irrespective of discipline.

Evaluation

Evaluation of this activity will be included in our Annual Activity and Impact Report from 2027

Description

We will review the targeting and delivery of our academic skills support to ensure those students who may benefit most are also easily able to engage with right types of support. We will provide discipline-relevant academic skills support proactively targeted at student groups likely to experience the largest gaps in outcomes, particularly relating to degree awarding. Online tools, one to one support and group work will also be provided proactively linking with the work of the Pastoral Mentors and Student Data Leads and supporting the core skill strands delivered through Curriculum for Change. We will also work to further embed essential academic skills within curriculum for the benefit of all students.

For more details see the Academic Skills Theory of Change.

Rationale

While we seek to embed scaffolded skills development within first year modules, students will be coming to their studies with widely differing educational backgrounds and so the availability of personalised academic support to focus on individual development needs is also important. This was identified during the literature review carried out in the development of our mature student strategy. We can also see differing levels of academic confidence on the basis of personal background and schooling through internal surveys for other student groups and need more information to understand patterns of engagement and potential barriers and the opportunities for support offered by emerging technologies. This intervention is linked to other activities listed in this plan such as Curriculum for Change, Transition and Induction Framework, and the Academic Student Support Model.

Evaluation

Evaluation of this activity will be included in our Annual Activity and Impact Report

Description

The implementation of the project will adopt a two-pronged approach – both to secure effective implementation of Individualised Learning Plans (ILPs) for students who declare a disability and to move towards a position where ILPs are no longer the only means of overcoming learning inequities faced by our students. This will be achieved through a range of actions including developing an inclusive education policy, staff training and the embedding of universal design principles within our modules to make learning and assessment methods more accessible for students with disabilities from the outset, reducing the need for additional adjustments.

For more details see the Inclusive Education Theory of Change.

Rationale

Driven by key inclusion priorities in our current Education Strategy, Strategy 2030, and Transformative Education Framework, an Inclusive Education Project was established to review our current Individualised Learning Plan (ILP) provision, survey best practice in other HEIs, and explore the potential for Universal Design for Learning to improve provision for our disabled students, particularly those who do not come forward for formal support. The first phase of the project undertook a situational analysis involving review of relevant literature, analysis of internal data and consultation, including valuable contributions from members of the Neurodivergent and Disabled Students’ Society and the Disability Network. Feedback indicated that disability support could be inconsistent while Wellbeing Services, professional services, and teaching staff highlighted administration and implementation of ILPs as challenging. There are additional non-disability related barriers to equitable access to education, such as being a mature learner or having English as an additional language. This indicates a need for inclusive teaching and learning practice that is systemic and embedded in our ‘business as usual’. Given the inequities in disability diagnostic systems, government concern about rising Disabled Student Allowances cost, workload of administering large volumes of ILPs, and needs of an increasingly diverse student population, HEIs are increasingly moving towards incorporating Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles in teaching and learning. Modelling UDL principles is considered good teaching and learning practice with some studies suggesting its benefits for reducing awarding gaps for students both with and without disabilities.

Evaluation

Evaluation of this activity will be included in our Annual Activity and Impact Report. A more in depth report will be published through these pages in due course.

Description

Our Transformative Education Framework Curriculum Enhancement tool will support academic colleagues in embedding inclusive practice across the curriculum by taking module and programme convenors through a step by step process to improve accessibility of content and teaching methods. A key strand of our work to address degree awarding gaps, the embedding of inclusive education practice aims to ensure students are able to access a curriculum which is relevant to them and creates an environment where all learners feel safe and respected. The tool which will be used in conjunction with our Inclusive Education Policy and Curriculum for Change, will support the progressive review and enhancement of our curriculum to embed best practice principles.

For more details see the theory of change.

Rationale

Inclusive education has been defined in a number of ways. These various definitions share an emphasis on encouraging a learning environment that is accessible to all students, fosters their continued engagement equally, facilitates openness to different ways of thinking and being, and overtly values individual differences. In such environments, teachers and students alike are aware of, and work to counteract assumptions and biases; they also strive for transparency and foster accountability. As a result, all learners feel respected and therefore supported in their intellectual and personal growth. Inclusive Education at the University of Exeter involves facilitating, and benefitting from, equality and diversity by pursuing language, behaviours and teaching practices that foster the inclusion and success of all learners, and work towards improving their experience, skills, and attainment. In aiming to include all learners, inclusivity simultaneously seeks to avoid the exclusion of any learner – for example, because of particular traits such as: protected characteristics, differences in prior attainment or socio-economic class . 

Evaluation

Evaluation of this activity will be included in our Annual Activity and Impact Report

Description

Academic leads working across departments and subject groupings will provide highly visible and proactive points of contact and advocacy for students experiencing discrimination, harassment, or microaggressions related to ‘race’, ethnicity, background, gender, sexuality, or (dis)ability either within the University environment or on placement. Leads will also work collaboratively and across their subject areas to promote anti-racist and inclusive educational practice and support the University's Transformative Education Framework

For more details see Academic Leads for Inclusion Theory of Change.

Rationale

The EHRC report Tackling racial harassment: Universities challenged reported that almost a quarter of students from minority ethnic backgrounds said they had experienced racial harassment and regular experience of microaggressions within a wide variety of settings and from multiple harassers. The impacts were severe, affecting mental health and educational outcomes. Negative mental health consequences such as depression and anxiety were widely reported, with 8% of students who had experienced racial harassment reporting that they had felt suicidal. Research indicates similar experiences amongst other socially marginalised groups. The creation of a network of Academic Leads for Race Equality and Inclusion drew on learnings from roles within our medicine and education disciplines first created to support students experiencing harassment whilst on placement. The academic leads aim to provide students with a single point of contact in their departments for raising any concerns related to racism, microaggression, racial discrimination and discrimination against any protected characteristics that they might experience as students. This provides a safe space to get timely support from trained staff while providing a visible point of contact and advocacy. The roles also work across their departments to promote anti-racist and inclusive educational practice.

Evaluation

We plan to publish our evaluation of this activity in 2027.

Description

The Grit Students of Colour and Black Leaders programme is designed to equip students from racialised groups with the confidence, the sense of belonging to become powerful contributors to university life. It supports and challenges students to develop a new sense of agency, empowering their leadership and advocacy skills which, in turn, creates a cohort more willing and able to push for the structural change required. Facilitated by Black trainers, it explores notions of community, identity and leadership from the perspective of those from racialised groups. Students investigate how to use their personal resources to develop their skills and qualities, generating supportive relationships that build belonging and community. Students look at who it is they want to be for themselves and others; about what it means to be a visible leader who can inspire the next generation.

For more details see the theory of change.

Rationale

Sector reports such as NUS/UUK Closing the Gap and HEFCE’s Causes in Differences in Student Outcomes highlight that success in reducing differences in outcomes are linked to institutions’ willingness and capacity to be more inclusive. Positive interventions include creating a sense of belonging, building social capital, enhancing the student experience, and developing more wide-ranging learning and teaching initiatives.  The most effective interventions reduce gaps in outcomes by making improvements to the students’ learning, boosting their engagement in HE, enhancing their wider student experience, and raising their confidence and resilience levels.  The Black Leaders programme sits within a broader spectrum of work to make the University of Exeter more inclusive and to address awarding gaps experience by Black students.

Evaluation

Evaluation of this activity will be included in our Annual Activity and Impact Report.  A joint impact report will be produced with our partner GRIT and published through these pages.

Description

Our peer-to-peer mentoring schemes provide pre-entry preparation and post-entry induction to help new students orientate to university life and make the most of the academic opportunities available to them.  The schemes are currently available for various student communities covered by our Access and Participation Plan. Recognising that concepts such as a sense of belonging and learner identity are a process not a specific event, mentees traditionally transition to discipline-specific schemes during Term 2. The approach is cognisant with the What Works? model of retention which showed that engagement to promote belonging and a student identity should begin early and continue across the lifecycle. We will seek to enhance our schemes specifically designed to support students from under-represented backgrounds who are likely to experience gaps in outcomes, including those for mature students, care experienced and estranged students, disabled students and asylum seekers.

For more details see the Peer Mentoring Theory of Change.

Rationale

Evaluation of peer mentoring schemes in other institutions reveals that participation can boost a sense of community and belonging among students and has revealed positive association between participation and student outcomes. We will put in place evaluation of our existing schemes to better understand the impact of these type of initiatives, particularly in supporting mature students, to enable us to improve and extend where appropriate.

Evaluation

We aim to publish an impact report on peer mentoring through these web pages in 2026.