The team behind the ACU Thrive first-year success model has been awarded the 2024 Vice-Chancellor's Staff Excellence Award for Holistic Education.
The team was recognised for their outstanding collaboration with academic staff to develop high-quality learning experiences that support students transitioning to university.
Since 2022, the Learning Experience Design (LXD) team has partnered with more than 200 academic staff to support the ACU Thrive program across more than 70 undergraduate units.
The team includes James Nicholson, Helena Williams, Michael Sobek, Michelle Craig, Annelisa Sipos, Mary Jarrott, Michala Stenzel, Bianca Muteve, Jacob Dyer, Matthew Harrison, Emma Lusk, Jessica Florent, Jo Excel Rinon and Rupert Russell.
Manager, Learning Experience Design James Nicholson said it is wonderful to see the team recognised in this way.
"This award is testament to the creativity, skillset, responsiveness and sustained effort of each team member, often in challenging and changing circumstances," Mr Nicholson said.
"Every day, they strive for excellence, not only because they take pride in their work but also because they genuinely care about the staff and students they support."
The ACU Thrive model is based on a flipped classroom design where the traditional learning environment is reversed, and students are given the opportunity to access their learning content online to prepare for class in advance. This allows students to learn new content at their own pace, in their own time and ensures students can use class time to participate in activities and collaborative discussions with their peers.
A key aspect of the program has been a collaborative approach to working with academic staff to adopt evidence-based teaching practices. For example, the LXD team has advocated for the introduction of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which ensures learning environments are inclusive, adaptable and capable of meeting the diverse needs of our students.
Another aspect is the improved quality and consistency of thousands of video learning resources for students, whilst also making the video-creation process easy and accessible for staff. In addition, the team have produced many bespoke videos tailored to ACU's specific context and mission, further enhancing our students' learning experience.
The impact of the program is clear. Year-on-year, ACU Thrive has reported higher student retention rates amongst the commencing cohort, higher grade averages in ACU Thrive units, high SELT scores in ACU Thrive units, and higher levels of engagement.
By enabling both academic growth and personal development, the LXD team has contributed to flourishing lives by helping students transition into higher education successfully. Their efforts to modernise teaching practices and foster inclusive learning environments have created thriving communities within ACU, directly supporting the university's mission to promote the common good.
Looking forward, the team plans to continue to enhance the way ACU provides evidence-based teaching for all students.
"The model is constantly being refined as we see the results and receive feedback from staff and students," Mr Nicholson said.
"Over time, we will take the lessons learned from ACU Thrive into successive teaching years, ensuring our commitment to ongoing improvement in the student experience benefits all ACU students."
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