This Wednesday’s #LTHEChat looking at how we engage staff with Scholarship of Learning and Teaching, both new and experienced staff, with, erm, me!

LTHEchat@lthechat.bsky.social · 12h ago

Join us for this week’s #LTHEchat which will explore “Engaging with SoTL - challenges and ideas” with buff.ly/tISYD6Q on Wednesday 8-9pm GMT. Read the blog post at: buff.ly/r6qaI9i

If Birmingham’s management clearly don’t want the Institute then perhaps before destroying it they could see if another university would? I know not many uni’s are in good positions to do so but I do wonder if we’ll see some swoop in to offer and take entire groups wholesale. It’s happened before.

Patrick Kincaid@patrickkincaid.bsky.social · yesterday

Statement by Professor Michael Dobson, Director of the Shakespeare Institute.

This is currently one of those periods where there are several good, interesting, potentially hopeful ideas and new projects coming up from colleagues whilst I currently have capacity and time for approximately -5 of the current projects... So naturally I've said yes to several.

Update your calendar, set your watch! Make sure to join us for #LTHEchat with @gchikwa.bsky.social @josephinedeguara.bsky.social @meddspi.bsky.social at 8pm GMT today. buff.ly/OtA0hF9

Amongst all the more historical buildings in Ghent, whilst wandering through the university areas, popped into De Krook, library. Aside from the view over the city, lovely to see a library so packed with every type of person from small kids to OAPs, and floors packed with students studying.

HE Funding debate in parliament yesterday (Westminster Hall) - various MPs raising the well known issues for the sector, gov response largely the usual, but can read details here: hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2026...

Higher Education Funding - Hansard - UK Parliament

Hansard record of the item : 'Higher Education Funding' on Wednesday 28 October 2026.

hansard.parliament.uk

Some interesting discussions from our chat today. Considering social anxiety in particular, connections with transition, linking back to academic anxiety. Emboddied learning. Online/indy learning too. Balance of support, but where enabling development to lessen, not just avoid, where suitable.

Giles Martin@gilesdrmartin.bsky.social · 4w ago

Next up, this Friday is a look at active learning, considering anxiety issues amongst students (thanks to one of our MA students for the exploration to read). How do we marry up the desire for active learning and activities in class with various types of anxiety that either these provoke or exist?

Many years back (00s) the eternal issue of students not checking emails came up in a dept. Staff chatted with students about it. Students said they were overwhelmed but the number of emails, too many etc. Staff very sympathetic to that, everyone is familiar, staff say the same. Next...

Per Engzell@pengzell.bsky.social · last mo.

My PhD taught me research. I wish it had taught me how to answer ten emails without needing the rest of the day off.

It's that time of year setting up things for new cohorts, so in case it is useful to create a folder for each student, for a large group, here's a short video tip (Windows). I'd seen a few similar tips (and needed something to adapt to HE when experimenting with videos), saves times.

Giles Martin@gilesdrmartin.bsky.social · last yr.

Experimenting with some short tip videos in portrait (to be e.g. within feeds) for staff for pros/cons. No, I'm not starting a tik tok. At this time of year I often need to set up folders for each of the students on a course (own files, shared folders) - this been useful in the past.

One of my possible controversial opinions is that I don't agree with honorary degrees. I get unis may want to either associate with X or recognise Y, or similar. But I find it a little insulting to the students who've just worked hard for that degree. They aren't the same, but seems unnecessary.

Paul Greatrix@registrarism.bsky.social · last mo.

New blog. There have been many stories over the years about the scurrilous business of fake degrees being offered for sale through dodgy degree mills. But even more ropey is the offer of fake honorary degrees. Yes, fake, fake degrees can be acquired. For a price.

Seen the first very likely AI-written (or copy/pasted from an AI chat) piece of student feedback (not to me) I've now seen in the wild. Longer than it needed to be, following 'style' of chat. Noting this as observation over judgement - I can imagine students worried about getting things clear etc

Reading the article now but stopped to appreciate the authors AI disclosure statement. It’s a thing of beauty.

University leadership should do the same type of thing for staff. We all know things are worse, we've worked through years of cuts, but are likely a lot of ideas on the ground and simple fixes for annoyances that a) will make staff a bit happier b) save time/enhance work (can do for students too)

Martin Lewis@martinlewis.moneysavingexpert.com · last mo.

Please submit your small ideas for fixing Britain to the Small-Ideas.org website. It’s a new charitable initiative I’ve set up to try and make sure life’s potholes don’t get ignored. Working with two charities and a cross party panel to turn your ideas into policy then try and make it happen.

Not encouraging. Thinking Allowed is exactly the type of programme radio 4/podcast that should be produced if the BBC is to mean much and ought to be fairly cheap. I love in our time, which is getting some extra time from… (but right length now if scope for extras). www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

BBC to cut raft of Radio 4 programmes including You and Yours

The corporation said it would be investing in a new consumer programme, while announcing more cuts.

bbc.co.uk

In which we discover who did or did not watch Watership Down as a child...

Sleeping Village Reviews@sleepingvillage.bsky.social · last mo.

In honor of scary media month: what is the first piece of media you remember truly frightening you as a child?

I’ve been wondering for a while whether we end up with an unfortunate version of A combined with blacklisting (including institutions), onto slightly mitigated with vouching/sponsor. This is not a proposal btw but seems a possible strategy we see taken.

Chris Lintott @chrislintott.bsky.social · 2mo ago

On similar lines, if we’re not careful: A. Scientific journals will only accept submissions from established researchers working within institutions. B. Data we’ve spent ages making open will be hidden to avoid the expense of continued download by bots.

'A third and two thirds can’t both be right. And when a minister at the heart of the government’s economic thinking picks one of them, it matters which is closer to reality.'

Students are working more than ever. Or are they?

Torsten Bell and Alan Milburn say fewer students are working. Jim Dickinson goes down the Labour Force Survey rabbit hole to find out why purpose-built surveys say the opposite

wonkhe.com

Also in discussion with our new lecturers this week: Not getting sucked into ppt making things linear and always the focus. You can repeat, have extras, be non-linear, go back. You can also just take them down (blank out), shift focus to something/one else. Sometimes the best slide is no slide.

Giles Martin@gilesdrmartin.bsky.social · last yr.

PPT top 2 keyboard shortcuts for teaching: (B) Blank screen, take the slides away from attention, shift focus. Sometimes the best slide is no slide. Online, also consider stop sharing when not in use. (#+Enter) jumping to a slide, or the end can be handy and avoid click click click, oops too far.

It's start of term time and as usual these quick tips came up as not all new colleagues knew about them (and with our classroom screens the latter one is often why what you think should be there, isn't!. The former one similarly for online teaching).

Giles Martin@gilesdrmartin.bsky.social · last yr.

When presenting many people have trouble getting what they want on a screen. Two shortcuts, helpful to know for quick access: Alt+Tab - switch between open windows e.g. Slides and browser/software. Good when teaching online on one screen. Win+P - change room screen, mirror or a second display?

After an extra pre-term meeting we've now sorted the HE Reading Group topics for the first trimester of the year. Invites on their way to the BSU (and guest) group members. Looking forward to good discussions at our informal meetings. Mixture of output by colleague, reports, book chapters, papers.

*adding 'low risk of crocodiles' to the risk assessment section of my next conference attendance request at work.

In Our Time doing the video of people talking podcast thing, via iplayer? The granddaddy of chart topping podcasts. I don’t listen like that, though now, academics, you have a chance to turn up in costume. You know you want to! www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

In Our Time

In Our Time explores the ideas, people and discoveries that have shaped our world.

bbc.co.uk

The sheep have turned up for the freshers’ poster fair.

Welcome Week for new undergraduates and despite the negative news and commentary, thousands of excited young people about to study things they have a passion for, meet new friends and enjoy the next few years. Give it one week before they figure using the letters to spell out PASTA again.

Good quick read on podcast assessments. Done well, supports new skills, enables different expression. Done poorly, they reproduce issues from before whilst provide a mirage of learning. As per academic writing, there are skills involved to be developed, time to be spent thinking and editing.

Staff and Educational Development Association@seda-ed-dev.bsky.social · 2mo ago

In this week's blog post: thesedablog.wordpress.com/2026/09/15/s...

Ooh, nice, now a Tree trail walk at our campus too. I've been working through the Urban Tree Trails in the city - great to explore areas with a new lens. www.bathspa.ac.uk/news-and-eve...

I don't recall reading much with major second person writing, and now read two in a row by chance: The Raven Tower (Ann Leckie) - added fun (2nd p) narrative on reliability front due to the rules of the game for the gods. The Everlasting (Alix E Harrow) - back/forth each time loop/twist

Welcome to the first half of our new cohort of the PGCHE on campus today. Our usual broad mix of disciplines to learn about and from even with our small group today, from acting to teaching, from music to creative computing.

Whilst this tip is for panels, it's also a common tip I give for teaching seminars. Many of us have been in a class with 5 groups doing the same activity, then all asked to feed back in turn. Same stuff. First group go, then get bored, etc. Give different foci, or ask only for alt/different points

Sam Freedman@samfr.bsky.social · 2mo ago

These are all great tips. I'd add two more.... 1) Do not let the entire panel answer the same Q (from you or audience) unless they are disagreeing. No one wants to hear the same answer four times phrased slightly differently.

Sometimes they have recaps in the extra/trailer section and I keep wondering why more don't - good way to encourage watching by reminding you what you enjoyed before and want to continue vs 'can't quite recall, will look later'. Now I've said that, I have to record recaps for my yr 1 module...

Marie Le Conte@youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com · 2mo ago

just saw a story about the second season of Three-Body Problem coming soon and I mean surely we can come up with a better TV system than "hey remember that thing you watched eight episodes of two and a half years ago? no? you don't? you can't remember the plot or characters at all? well we're back!"