Bridging the gap: should we reach out to schools to prepare ‘research ready’ students? #lilac18

Carolyn Benny and Pauline Smith from Liverpool John Moores University spoke about their activities to support students in transitioning to university from school through reaching out to local schools.  School teachers have identified that students undertaking the Extended Project Qualification in sixth form need support in developing their IL. Carolyn and Pauline ran an initial session for a school teacher in 2013, and then developed a tailored session to support the EPQ students in subsequent years. It covered finding good quality information, and referencing information. One session took place in school, and one at the university, and was delivered collaboratively with the teacher. Both sessions were hands on, and involved lots of activities. Students liked the independent and active tasks, and feedback from teachers has also been very positive as students have been much more able to find information. Students have also been able to transfer their capabilities to other subjects, and were more confident to learn independently. This activity has supported the university civic engagement strategy, and the project has been shared at the LJMU teaching and learning conference. Academics were very positive about the project, and could see the benefit in providing support to students before they come to university. They have also worked with the Outreach team to offer additional support to local schools.