Evaluative reports

Chrissi Nerantzi, Damian McDonald, John Hammersley, and Sarah Briggs

A cross-disciplinary team of educators and Education Services staff at the University of Leeds collaborated with students to co-create a game which can be used to foster curriculum and learning conversations in playful and liberating ways.

Inspired by the concept of food as a connector, the project used pizza and its toppings as a metaphor for a game design which fosters radical collaboration, exploration, and democratic participation, where all voices and perspectives matter.

The game is designed to enable small groups to create their own pizza representing their university experience, a programme of study, a module, or a specific pedagogic dimension of one of those experiences, such as assessment, or personal tutoring.

This article reports on the first three stages of the game design process namely the concept identification, research and defining game mechanics and the human-centred design process and experiences of the project team.

Melanie Barrand, Digital Systems Lead

For over 20 years, UCISA have run a national survey looking at trends in technology enhanced learning (TEL) across the UK Higher Education sector. The most recent survey took place in 2022. For this iteration, a short ‘pulse survey’ focused on areas that might have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the rapid shift to online learning.

Melanie Barrand joined the UCISA Digital Education Group in 2017 and has been part of the TEL survey team since then. Melanie also presented a workshop on the findings at the EUNIS Congress 2023. 

"Compared to 2020, this year's data shows increased provision of centrally-supported TEL tools, an increase in outsourcing of TEL provision and an increase in TEL staffing. The data also shows that the sector is undergoing a continuous review cycle for TEL services, with a range of tools being reviewed. In terms of course delivery, there is growth in blended learning; however, fully online learning remains a niche area of activity within schools or departments and hybrid/hyflex delivery is not yet well established across the sector."

- TEL Pulse Survey 2022

Going forward, UCISA and the survey team will review and update the survey alongside UCISA’s Digital Capabilities Survey. A new, combined survey will be launched in 2024.