The 21C Partnership
XChange Hub

A call for curriculum and education Student-Staff Partnership Projects for 2022.

What is the 21C Partnership XChange Hub?

Informed by the principles of Partnership Pedagogy, the Partnership XChange Hub (PX Hub) is a Pilot in 2022, and aims to facilitate, support, and scale student-staff partnership (S-SP) in the context of education and curriculum co- creation. It is an opportunity for the university community to be supported to trial, develop, and implement an S-SP project that is strategic, impactful, and designed with mutual learning benefit for students and staff.

The purpose of the PX Hub is to:

  • provide an institutional mechanism to support the university community evidence their student-staff partnership commitments and arrangements as part of curriculum renewal and transformation;

  • grow the opportunity and capability of staff and students to engage in genuine educational and curriculum partnership;

  • engage students in a different conversation about their learning through active participation in shaping the future of their learning at university.

Anchored in the values described in Sustaining Success 2021-2026 – Boldness, Fairness, Integrity, and Excellence – the PX Hub contributes to the measures M1 (reputation), M7 (retention and employability of graduates), and M8 (student satisfaction, engagement, support and belonginess).

 

Why should the University community get involved?

 

Partnership Pedagogy – and in particular – evidence of co-creation and partnership with students, is now a routine part of our university’s Curriculum Design and Approvals Policy. Additionally, the university community is looking for opportunities to co-create with students. Building on the success of the 21C Student Curriculum Partners’ approach to curriculum co-creation, many parts of the University are looking for support to build their S-SP knowledge and capacity, and to draw on students’ experiences and talents to co-create solutions to educational and curriculum challenges.

 

A working model of student-staff partnership

There are many models of S-SP in the scholarly literature. Different initiatives will require different approaches to S-SP. The PX Hub is working with the framework designed by Student Voice Australia.

The PX Hub is keen to support projects that are strategic, innovative, impactful, and designed to be in genuine partnership with students. For the 2022 Pilot, while the Partnership Projects are identified by staff, there should be scope for student partners to influence their shape and direction through the process of partnership. Therefore, the focus is not on student ‘feedback’ or ‘voice’ per se (although that is part of it); rather, the commitment is to partnership that includes co-creation opportunities where students are ‘makers’ of solutions with staff, rather than data points to be mined and responded to.

 

How will the Partnership X-Change Hub Work?

 

We welcome applications for Student-Staff Partnership Projects from Schools, Institutes, and The WSU College.

The PX Hub aims to support up to 10 Partnership Projects across the University. There must be evidence that there has been a conversation about the proposed Project with the Deputy Dean or Associate Dean L&T (Schools) or equivalent, to ensure it sits at the appropriate strategic level. We encourage collaborations between Schools, and across Institutes, and The College (for instance at the cluster level) where there is good reason to do so. Each Partnership Project budget should not exceed $5,000.

The $5,000 budget excludes the cost of stipends (scholarships) for students.

 
 

Examples of Partnership Projects

  1. Co-develop a strategic (perhaps School-based) framework for communicating actions from SFT or SFU data in ways that engage a broader community of students.

  2. A program that engages students as genuine partners in the process of course review and improvement.

  3. An initiative where students are partners in the peer review of teaching / curriculum /assessment (f2f, online, hybrid etc) beyond the subject-level across the School / or elsewhere.

  4. A partnership approach to co-creating of training and/or resources that engage student representatives on local education governance committees.

  5. Work with a group of student partners to establish a regular UG student forum focused on a topical education theme.

Some examples of existing partnership programs include:

 

How to get involved.

What does the application process involve?

You can download the application form using the above button.

  • outline a specific education / curriculum problem or challenge (the basis of the Project) and offer a rationale for why it is best addressed through working in partnership with students;

  • indicate how the project aims to advance Sustaining Success 2021-2026 and the School’s Operational Plan;

  • describe how students will be engaged as partners in terms of Partnership Pedagogy (i.e., the ‘co-s’ of Partnership Pedagogy) and what it is they are likely to learn;

  • identify the types/kinds of artefacts / resources the project team intend to produce (relating to both the project outcomes and the experience of working in partnership) that can be shared across the University; and

  • describe how the learning and outcomes from the project can be shared and sustained both in the School, and beyond, as part of an evaluation process.

In addition, the application form will invite staff to identify personnel, roles, and justify the budget items, as well as a timeline of activity. The application process is not intended to be onerous.

Applications will be considered by a small working group comprising 21C staff (including Curriculum Champions and Student Curriculum Partners, and Learning Futures staff, and Badugulang Fellows). Their decision is final.

Where will the student partners come from?

Any current Western student is eligible to apply for a partnership role in the PX Hub. Applications for student partners will be advertised via Jobs on Campus and students will be invited to respond to a set of criteria focused on partnership.

Students involved as partners in the PX Hub will receive a stipend (scholarship) of $3,000 with an expectation that they have the capacity to aside at least 6 hours each week for 12 weeks during the Spring 2022 session (with room for negotiation for how this works in each team). Students will receive their stipend in two installments – the first on signing their contract, and the second on completion of the Project’s artefacts. It is anticipated that two students will work on each Partnership Project.

If staff have particular students in mind for the PX Hub, please encourage them to apply via Jobs on Campus.

Support for Partnership teams

The 2022 PX Hub Pilot will be led and managed by Dr Tai Peseta (21C Transforming Curriculum Academic Lead), with a selection of the 21C Student Curriculum Partners team. The following support will be available to support Project teams:

  • at least 3-4 Support Sessions where all funded Project teams come together to learn from each other (combination of online and f2f);

  • project based MS teams site to kick-start your collaboration;

  • Student Partners will have access to the Curiosity Pod ‘Student-Staff Partnership: co-creating change’ (vUWS) to support their induction into working with staff in partnership

  • Staff in each Project team will have access to the professional learning program ‘#partnerUP: Students and staff co-creating agency’ on vUWS [avail from Sept 2022].

Key Dates

Apply Now (Staff)

Contact

For queries or additional information, email Dr Tai Peseta.

 

  • Fri 12 Aug - Call for Partnership Projects

  • Fri 19 Aug - Application form available to download

  • Fri 19 Aug - Information session (recording on Zoom)

  • Wed 31 Aug - Applications due 5.00pm

  • Fri 9 Sept - Outcomes notified

Support sessions for successful Project Teams (10-1pm)

  1. Fri 16 Sept

  2. Fri 7 Oct

  3. Fri 28 Oct

  4. Fri 2 Dec