OD&PL development roundup article - January 2025

See what the most popular LinkedIn Learning courses of 2024 were amongst staff, students and postgraduate researchers at Leeds. If you haven’t accessed your free University account before, find out how to get the most out of LinkedIn Learning with these tailored guides:

• 📘 Staff Guide to LinkedIn Learning
• 📘 Student Guide to LinkedIn Learning
• 📘 Researcher Guide to LinkedIn Learning

Visit our Mentoring Workshops and Events webpage to explore these upcoming development opportunities for mentors and mentees:

📅 21 January, 10am-12noon (on campus) – Mentoring Reflection and Next Steps for Mentees

Who is it for? Mentees within the University-wide mentoring scheme who are reaching the end of their mentoring.

📅 22 January, 2-4pm (online) – Reflective Practice Workshop for Mentors

Who is it for? Available to all mentors - you don't need to be part of the University-wide mentoring scheme to attend. 

📅 5 February, 10-11am (online)

Join us for an online introduction session to the Jisc Discovery Tool to explore what digital capabilities are and how you can use the Jisc Discovery Tool to reach your goals. The tool lets you quickly assess your own digital capabilities and find resources and development opportunities to improve the areas identified in a short survey. It is available to all colleagues, and additional guidance can be found on the OD&PL website.

📅 10 February, 10-11.30am  📅 20 March, 10-11.30am

New to Leeds? Sign up for upcoming online welcome events for new staff to find out more about the University, meet new colleagues and explore the range of benefits, support and advice available.

Apply to join the next Springboard development programme, running from February to June across four workshops. Designed specifically for the personal and professional development of women in grades 2-5 roles, this programme covers topics including improving self-confidence, being more proactive, effective communication and assertiveness.

Our next monthly drop-in session at the Wellbeing Hub will take place on 28 January between 10am and 12noon. These drop-in events provide an opportunity to explore learning and development opportunities for colleagues in grades 2-5 roles. Managers and supervisors of staff in these roles are also welcome to attend to find out more about the support available. Drop-in sessions take place on the fourth Tuesday of each month, except when this falls on a University closed day.

• The February First Steps session helps you consider where you are in your career, reflect on your achievements, identify future goals and start career planning.

• Join the Careers Information, Advice, and Guidance programme in March to explore effective CVs, skills profiles, job applications and interview techniques.

In December, we launched a series of new dates for our Quest programme. These workshops provide valuable opportunities for PGRs to engage in discussions, share insights and learn collaboratively. Upcoming sessions include:

• 📅 28 January, 1.30-4pm (on campus) – Developing Good Supervisor Relationships
• 📅 6 February,  2-4pm (on campus) – Research Culture for PGRs
• 📅 11 February and 19 March, 10am-4pm (on campus) – Exploring Leadership for PGRs
• 📅 27 February,  10am-12.30pm (online) – Developing Good Supervisor Relationships
• 📅 6 March, 10am-12.30pm and 20 March, 1-3pm (online) – What does Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) mean to me?
• 📅 18 March, 2-4pm (online) – Research Culture for PGRs
• 📅 27 March, 2-4pm (on campus) – Your Viva

Our BOOST programme is full of opportunities, to help you build the skills and confidence needed to advance your career. We still have spaces left on these upcoming sessions:

• 📅 21 January, 10.30am-12.30pm (online) – Managing Failure: Turning Setbacks into Success
• 📅 21 January, 1.30-2.30pm (online) – Narrative CV (R4RI) Drop-in
• 📅 4 February, 1-3pm (online) – Career Options

Get support to apply for the UKCGE Recognised Associate Research Supervisor Award, which celebrates the vital impact of postdoctoral researchers, technical colleagues and professional services in doctoral supervision, recognising your essential contributions to the research journey. Join a programme of workshops featuring reflection on your supervisory practice, peer discussions and practical guidance for applying. The deadline is 5pm on 17 January.

🎧  New year, new podcast episode!

The Research Culture Uncovered Podcast is kicking off 2025 with Emily Goodall’s debut episode as host! Join us for the first episode of the year, ‘Preprints as a Catalyst for Change in Research Culture’, featuring open research advocate Dr. Jonny Coates. We'll be taking a deep dive into the evolving world of scientific publishing and the potentially game-changing role of preprints.

Coming soon: Stay tuned for our next episode, where we will share our predictions for research culture in 2025. You can keep up-to-date with the latest episodes and podcast news on the Research Culture Uncovered LinkedIn page.

Our next three Research Culture Cafés are specifically designed for different groups of colleagues, with sessions tailored for professional services staff, technical staff, and postgraduate researchers. While these events are usually open to all staff and focus on broader themes, the upcoming sessions are tailored to the unique perspectives of those in specific roles. This approach offers a dedicated space for discussion and insight-sharing within each group. These cafés provide a supportive, peer-focused environment to share experiences and contribute to shaping a positive, inclusive research culture. We will use insights from the Research Staff Survey and PULSE Surveys to help guide discussions.

• 📅 12 February, 11am-12noon (online) – For professional services
• 📅 23 April, 2-3pm (online) – For technical staff
• 📅 10 June, 10-11am (on campus) – For postgraduate researchers (PGRs)

Applications for the next cohort of the Building Impact Momentum Programme will open later this month. The programme helps develop concrete ideas for impact that can be applied to research projects or in grant applications. Open to research, academic, and professional support staff, the programme includes six webinars, supplementary reading materials, partner work and practical impact exercises.

Register for our online, self-paced Foundations in Teaching (FiT) course, providing essential guidance for staff, postgraduate students and researchers new to teaching or new to teaching at Leeds. The core of the course takes about three hours, with an additional 2-4 hours of optional activities.

After completing the course, you'll be invited to sign up for Developing in Teaching sessions which offer further support for teaching development in specific areas. The sessions cover topics such as planning and designing teaching sessions, delivering your teaching, assessment and marking and effective feedback

📝 Applications for the 2025 awards will open next week (w/c 13 January).

The awards celebrate excellent practice in student education and are open to colleagues involved in teaching or supporting the student learning experience. Winners receive a monetary award to support professional development and scholarship, a certificate and an invitation to a celebratory event. There will also be an online briefing event available to book in February to help you find out more about the awards. You can find out more about the scheme and our previous winners on the University of Leeds Teaching Awards webpage.

Sign up for these upcoming development opportunities for academic personal tutors between January and March:

• 📅 22 January, 1-4.30pm (on campus) – Understanding mature students
• 📅 30 January, 10-11.30am (hybrid) – Developing positive connections with your personal tutees in 2024/25
• 📅 5 February, 9.30am-4pm (on campus) – Supporting students through menopause
• 📅 6 February, 9.30am-4.30pm (on campus) – Essential skills for supporting students
• 📅 17 February, 9.30am-4.30pm (on campus) – Rapid support for students in distress
• 📅 19 February, 9.30am-4.30pm (on campus) – Bereavement training
• 📅 6 March, 10-11.30am (hybrid) – Accent bias for APTs
• 📅 20 March, 10.30-11.30am (on campus) – Active listening for APTs

📅 23 April 2025

The Assessment Matters Conference returns on 23 April 2025 and the call for papers is now open. The conference aims to explore innovative approaches, reflect on best practices and discuss the challenges around assessment and feedback. This year has a particular focus on feedback and grading alongside wider topics to do with assessment practices. For more information about the conference and instructions on how to submit an abstract, please visit the Assessment Matters SharePoint site.

📅 11am to 12 noon, 23 January

Join our next online Pedagogical Power of PebblePad workshop, featuring colleagues sharing innovative uses of PebblePad. Dr Benjamin Chong (School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering) explores how PebblePocket can be used to capture continuing professional development (CPD) for students, while Professional Development Tutor Laura Pearson showcases how PebblePad has been used to provide pre-arrival information for students and as part of a module in Leeds University Business School.

The next set of workshops as part of our Leading in Student Education Development programme will run in February, with additional sessions in June. The workshops are designed for colleagues in leadership roles within student education and are organised into three themes:

• 📅 12 February, 10am-12noon (online) – Understanding the system
• 📅 26 February, 10am-12noon (online) – Influencing others and building consensus
• 📅 6 March, 10am-12noon (online) – Creating presence and authenticity in your leadership  

The TIPS Community (Teaching Innovation and Practice in Student Education) provides a collaborative space for all teaching-related staff, providing peer support, advice, and fresh ideas to enhance your teaching practice.

Throughout the year, the community hosts events and features the TIPS Blog, a platform for sharing examples of innovative teaching practices. Each article highlights a teaching intervention, explains its design rationale, evaluates its impact, and suggests how it can be adapted by others. Do you have examples of everyday teaching practice to share? Have you considered contributing to the TIPS Blog? If you have an idea or would like more information, please email us at academicdev@leeds.ac.uk.