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Co-construction, student partners and student voice

Across all aspects of learning and teaching practice, co-construction, student voice and partnership working between staff and students is central to achieving meaningful and impactful change. Students are at the heart of the academic community and can best provide an insight into how learning and teaching practices work for and affect their study, achievement and sense of belonging.

You may also want to check out our reflective questions on co-construction, student partners and student voice. These reflective questions have been produced by Inclusive-Learning@York, working closely with student interns, to support University of York staff to explore, discuss and reflect on inclusive practices in their teaching, learning and assessment.

Practical guidance

Across all aspects of learning and teaching practice, co-construction, student voice and partnership working between staff and students is central to achieving meaningful and impactful change. Students are at the heart of the academic community and can best provide an insight into how learning and teaching practices work for and affect their study, achievement and sense of belonging. 

Co-construction and students as partners: staff and students working collaboratively together as partners in the development of all areas of learning and teaching. This includes embedding co-construction into both curriculum design and pedagogical approaches - key areas to consider developing co-construction with students include programme design, module design, learning and teaching approaches and assessments.

Student voice: Student voice refers to opportunities for students to share their perspectives and feedback on their learning and teaching experiences, and for this feedback to be listened to and valued.

  • Consider where you might work with students as collaborators and partners in curriculum design, creating the opportunity to develop an inclusive curriculum that is relevant to all students, recognising and valuing their lived experiences, prior learning and diverse perspectives. See further our guidance on inclusive curriculum design.

  • Consider where you might work with students as collaborators and partners in developing pedagogical approaches, creating the opportunity to develop inclusive learning communities which enable the full participation and engagement of all students and ensure that the diverse learning needs and preferences of all students are met.

  • Co-construction offers the opportunity to transform learning through enabling the engagement of diverse communities of students, including those who may traditionally be marginalised in higher education. It is important to ensure student partnership opportunities are reflective of a diverse student body. Consider how to ensure a wide range of students have the opportunity to work as collaborators and partners, and how to ensure recruitment processes are inclusive and open to a wide range of students.

  • Consider ways in which students can be supported and rewarded when working in partnership and co-construction. For example, paying students for their work can ensure a more diverse body of students are enabled/encouraged to apply for the role, and also recognises the value of the work being carried out by the student.

  • By considering what power dynamics or hierarchies may be present in student partnership or co-construction work that you are involved with, there is the opportunity to increase engagement and ensure the outcome and knowledge produced is equally reflective of all parties involved. It can be helpful to create space for conversations about this within partnerships, challenge what knowledge is valued and why, define roles and responsibilities within the partnership collaboratively.

  • Consider the barriers certain student groups may face when entering into a student-staff partnership and how you might overcome these. Consider the different needs and experiences some students may have, and how this affects their engagement within partnerships.

  • Consider any institutional barriers which may affect the success of a meaningful partnership or student voice project. This may include things like resource and funding, policy, time commitments and potential tensions between personal and institutional values. Be open and reflective about these barriers within your partnership.

  • Consider what mechanisms are in place to navigate conflict within partnership spaces. Think about whose responsibility it may be to resolve these conflicts, or whether alternatively it is okay to have disagreement within partnerships. Discuss this collaboratively.

  • Meaningful student partnerships should respect and value different ways of working. It is important to be open-minded and create partnership spaces which are dynamic with space to reflect upon any key assumptions and values - consider what steps you might take to create this.

  • Consider what opportunities are currently incorporated into your learning and teaching practice for meaningful student feedback. Feedback opportunities should allow for a holistic reflection of students’ experiences of curriculum, pedagogy and wider learning experiences.

  • Ensure you maintain space and time to reflect on student feedback collected about your learning and teaching spaces, and consider this and reflectively. Consider how you might act upon student feedback within future learning and teaching activities. Consider the importance of sharing feedback within the academic community, and discussing student voice openly both with students themselves and colleagues.

Case studies of good practice

These case studies of good practice reflect several pieces of work taking place across the University which promote and teach important lessons about inclusive teaching and learning practice.

YUSU's 'Life in Lockdown' research: student partnerships

This case study highlights the impact of sharing students’ individual experiences at the University of York, through acknowledging a diverse array of intersectional identities. It is an important example of student-centred approaches to learning, teaching and assessment.

Led by University of York Students’ Union (YUSU) 

What did we do? 

Through use of Digital Storytelling, (a process of personal story development where storytellers retell and share ideas based on certain life experiences) ‘Life in Lockdown’ collected information about student lived experiences during national lockdown. By mapping the stories of 42 students throughout the first national Covid-19 lockdown, research was gathered to produce a unique study focused on highlighting ‘unseen struggles’ of students as they worked within unprecedented environments. 

Why did we do it? 

Foregrounding the perspectives of underrepresented groups (eg BAME, working class, disabled students), ‘Life in Lockdown’ aimed to unveil the complex, intersectional experiences of individuals at the University of York. Through using the ‘storytelling’ method of research, the project’s process gave all the control to the students, enabling their creativity and self-expression. These stories could then be used to inform learning, teaching and assessment practices in light of the significant disruptions Covid-19 brought upon Higher Education and life more generally. 

What did we find? 

Within the study we found that students’ environments constantly influenced their learning experiences, specifically their motivation levels. While in social isolation, students were often led to feelings of apathy toward learning and their daily routine in general. The study also uncovered a deep connection between student identity and place. Living and learning in altered environments over lockdown, students experienced varying impacts upon their sense of self: some felt positive about the security of  home life, while others experienced a loss of their sense of student identity, which in turn impacted their motivation and connected to their learning.

What did we learn? 

Overwhelmingly, ‘Life in Lockdown’ points to the connection between students’ living environments and their learning experiences. It highlights the rich learning that can happen, when students are given the freedom and opportunity to express their lived experiences in ways that go beyond traditional surveys and questionnaires. ‘Life in Lockdown’ also highlights the value of student centred approaches to student experience research, which in turn influences the ways in which we think about approaches to learning, teaching and assessment. For example, students who took part in the study revealed the positive impacts of greater flexibility in learning, teaching and assessment approaches, particularly in relation to being more inclusive and accessible to the needs of their cohort. The project emphasises key lessons to take from the pandemic and beyond, namely, the need to recognise a diversity of experiences within the student population in relation to LTA and the benefits of collaboration with students in exploring and understanding their individual lived experiences. 

Reflections and recommendations…

  • Consider using individual storytelling methods to collaborate with students and collect evidence of student experience/ opinion
  • Consider ways in which you can make your teaching and assessment more flexible to student needs and demands 
  • Be considerate of students’ unique environments. Education doesn’t take place within a ‘vacuum’ and learning, teaching and assessment design should be cognisant and critical of inequalities within the student body, and should work to address inequities. .  

To find out more get in touch with n.glover@yusu.org or read more about the ‘Life in Lockdown’ project.

Capturing student voices: a student panel event on lived experiences with disability

Creating spaces through which to highlight and listen to student voices and perspectives is at the heart of inclusive practice within higher education. Through giving students a platform to share their stories and have their voice heard, this event shone the spotlight on student’s personal lived experiences with a disability and how this impacts their experience at University.  

Led by Inclusive-Learning@York and University of York Student Union (YUSU)

What did we do?

In partnership with the University of York Student Union (YUSU), Inclusive-Learning@York organised a student-led panel discussion on lived experiences with disability focusing on ‘Invisible Disabilities’- the first of three events planned to take place. Here, four University of York students volunteered as panellists, with the discussion facilitated by YUSU’s disabled students officer. There was an important emphasis on co-construction in the planning of the event, both in terms of constructing the discussion prompts and regarding aspects such as audience engagement. 

Why did we do it?

The event was organised in order to develop a well-rounded understanding of student’s experiences with disability at York and to give students a platform through which to share these experiences and challenges and have these experiences heard and recognised. We also wanted to highlight the importance of student voices in the tackling of barriers to inclusivity and accessibility within HE.

What did we find?

The students involved, both as panellists and from the audience, gave a range of insights into their experiences with an invisible disability, and how these experiences impact their sense of identity and belonging and their learning at University. The panellists gave honest and frank recounts of their experiences and perspectives on a range of issues and provided key recommendations on where support could be provided or improved for students with invisible disabilities at York. These insights were extremely well received by the audience, with a clear sense of gratitude and learning from attendees at the end of the event. 

What did we learn?

Lived experiences and perspectives can vary greatly between students. Therefore it's critically important we provide spaces for these multiple perspectives to be shared, discussed and listened to by the University,  rather than generalising a single student voice and story when looking at disability and similar inclusivity topics. This event also showed a high level of engagement from those within the HE community when listening to student voices and perspectives, indicating that such discussions are valued both in hearing shared perspectives and in their professional development and learning. 

Reflections and recommendations

  • Create spaces for open and honest dialogue between students and students and staff within the University 
  • Encourage and respect student feedback, especially on challenges regarding inclusivity and lived experience. 

To find out more get in touch with inclusive-learning@york.ac.uk 

Inclusive-Learning@York: placement student partners

This case study highlights the benefits of paid student roles within higher education, and particularly within work on inclusion. Valuing student input and time through paid work experience is not only inclusive practice in action, but also a meaningful way to involve students in discussions around inclusive learning and teaching. 

An example from Inclusive-Learning@York

What did we do?

The Inclusive-Learning team employs a variety of student roles throughout the academic year. Through these roles and other collaborative areas of work with students, the team makes a commitment to empowering students, engaging students in the decisions that affect their learning and challenging traditional power relations between students and staff. 

An example of such a student partnership is this year's placement roles. Two students, Alice and Rachel, are currently undertaking an undergraduate placement year with Inclusive-Learning@York as Research and Communications assistants. Their work so far has spanned projects within the team and working across other areas of the university. For example, they have launched Inclusive-Learning@York social media accounts and started a monthly newsletter for students and staff, alongside working on independent projects including the organisation of discussion events, workshops and most recently developing an online learning course on inclusive practice for students.

Why did we do it?

“With a lot of emphasis on self-drive with projects and ideas, our role has enabled us to focus on what we are passionate about. Our overall aims were to create opportunities for other students and staff to come together by creating spaces, such as discussion events and workshops, to speak openly about challenges at university. Using our position as both staff and student, we have been able to bring these two groups together with more ease.”
-Alice

What did we find?

“We have found that this placement has allowed us to create impact during our time at York by giving us responsibility for our learning and teaching environments. It is empowering to take part as a student-staff member, as it creates increased reciprocation between students, staff and the University as an institution, going beyond the boundaries of our degrees. It has enabled us to gain skills that will be helpful in our lives beyond university, while providing the University with the benefit of our student knowledge and experience.”
Rachel

Reflections and recommendations:

  • Consider getting students on board with projects from their very conception
  • Allow students to pursue areas of interest and encouraging them to start their own projects
  • Consider the benefits of paid roles and internships: how can paying students to take part in institutional roles increase the access and outreach of student jobs?

Additional resources