The document summarizes the IUA-EDTL project which aims to enhance digital teaching and learning in Irish universities. It discusses hiring student interns from each university to be partners in the project. Interviews with past and current interns and project leads found that interns benefited from practical skills development and confidence growth. Involving students provided authentic perspectives but can be challenging if ideas are not acted on. Early findings suggest students and staff found value in the student partnership when students were treated as close collaborators. Next steps include expanding the study and using lessons to design cocreation activities to translate the research into practice.

1. Students as partners in digital teaching and
learning: A case of the IUA-EDTL project
Fernandos Ongolly and Sharon Flynn
14th Dec 2021
For ICEP 2021
#IUADigEd

2. The Enhancing DigitalTeaching & Learning
project
Funded through HEA Innovation & Transformation Programme 2019-
2021 (Extended to September 2022)
Enhance the digital attributes and educational experiences of Irish
university students
Aim to mainstream digital in teaching and learning activities in Irish
Universities, by addressing the professional development of all who
teach or support teaching and learning.

3. 4 Pillars
Not
starting
from zero
Pedagogy
first
Discipline
focus
Students
as Partners

4. IUA student intern (Nov 2019 – June 2020)
• Member of project team
• Editor of newsletter
• Liaise with student unions
• Contribute to webinar
series
Vish Gain, IUA student intern

5. IUA + university student interns (July 2020 - )
• Commitment to student
partnership
• Members of the project
team
• Listening to student voices
• Reaching out to students

6. Practical Details
• Fixed term internship (min 6 months)
• Part-time, 60 hours per month, flexible
• Report to IUA PM, or local EDTL project lead
• Full member of project team
• Must be enrolled as a current student

7. What?
• The project hired at least 1 intern per university since 2020 and 1 IUA
EDTL intern
• Each university has a project lead who work with the interns
We seek to:
• Explore individual intern’s experiences in the project on their role and
contributions to teaching and learning
• Explore project representatives’ perspectives on the value of actively
involving students as co-creators in teaching and learning

8. What?
• Generally, we want to:
• Understand the role of students as partners in digital teaching and learning.
• Specifically, to:
• document how students contribute when engaged as active partners in digital
teaching and learning.
• Understand how students benefit when actively engaged as partners in
digital teaching and learning.
As a bonus, understand the value that the EDTL project added to our interns

9. Who?
1. Both current and former student associate interns in all the seven
universities
2. Project leads in all the seven participating universities
3. IUA EDTL project interns
4. Project manager

10. How?
• We are conducting In-depth Qualitative Interviews (targeting approx.
20 participants)
• At least one student associate intern per university (former &/or current)
• Current/former IUA EDTL interns
• At least one project representative per university
• Project manager
• Focus Group Discussions (2 in total)
• Current/former student associate interns
• Project representatives in all the seven

11. Why?
• The project has ‘informally’ observed the value that interns bring to
Teaching & Learning.
• Important to document lessons learnt from the EDTL project
• User-centred approaches to teaching and learning
• More often we design programs for students without involving them…
• How can we transfer what we have learnt to other projects where
students are involved
• Beyond teaching and learning
If it were not documented, it never occurred

12. How far are we?
• From November 1st we have conducted 17 in-depth qualitative
interviews
• Student associate interns
• Project leads
• Project manager
Note: At least 2 interviews per site apart from one where we did not get ethics
• We have plans to conduct focus group discussions with staff this week
and students early in the year on the same topic.

13. What are the early findings?
• Interns benefited a lot from the project in various ways:
• Gained practical skills (Canva, podcast, social media, webinar, writing,
Research etc)
• Gained confidence (presentation, relating with junior & senior colleagues etc)
• Interns felt that their involvement brought ‘authentic’ student voices
to the project
• Having a chance to meet fellow interns and collaborate in person
would better experiences
• Biggest barrier to involving students as partners is collecting their
ideas and doing nothing about them
• The pandemic brought out the need to actively partnering with
students

14. What are the early findings?
• Staff reported that students were valuable to the project:
• Brought in different perspectives from first hand experience
• Helped with tasks during collaborations
• Having a dedicated intern made it easier to bring onboard student
voice
• There was consensus on the importance of involving students and
paying them for their work
• Involving students as partners entails bringing them close as partners
and giving them a chance to share their authentic experiences
• It is important to negotiate with students on time (staff are fulltime
but students are part-time)

15. Next steps
• Expand the study to other students and teaching staff (being more
inclusive)
• Use lessons learnt to design a practical ‘cocreation’ activity for
students
• Starting with our own interns
• Collaborate with other projects on how to translate our research into
practice
• Data to contribute to project evaluation
• Publication

16. Thank You!