| Festival of Learning
programme 2026
The 10th Festival of Learning took place on Wednesday 17 June 2026 at Park Campus.
View the full programme below. Recordings of the various sessions will be available soon.
If you have any questions about the Festival of Learning, please email [email protected].
Jump to: Welcome and introduction | External keynote AM | Parallel sessions 1 | External keynote PM | Parallel sessions 2 | Interactive panel |
9.30 – 9.40am: Welcome and introduction
With Clare Marchant, Vice-Chancellor.
9.40 – 10.40am: External Keynote
Truth or dare? What role does digital literacy play in transforming universities?
Professor Susannah Quinsee, Vice-President (Digital and Student Experience), City St George’s, University of London.
11am – 12.30pm: Parallel sessions 1
Jump to: 1A – Academic exchange | 1B – Academic exchange | 1C – Panel | 1D – Workshop
1a – ACADEMIC EXCHANGE: REIMAGINING PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
This session will be chaired by Paul Roberts (School of Arts, Culture and Environment Representative on the Festival of Learning Planning Team).
Four presentations of 15 minutes, each followed by 5 minutes of open audience questions.
Arran Stibbe (School of Arts, Culture and Environment)
This presentation discusses the free online course “The Search for New Stories to Live By: Econarrative and Ethical Leadership” produced by a team at University of Gloucestershire and included in the United Nations SDG:Learn programme. This course is for anyone who is aware of the trajectory of society towards collapse under ever-growing inequality and environmental destruction, and who wants change at the only level that can make a difference: finding new stories to live by. This presentation describes the purpose of the course and the life-changing impacts reported by participants.
Emma Rose (School of Education, Health and Science) and Miriam Cowling (Level 6 BSc Occupational Therapy student)
In 2022, Health Education England emphasised the need for Allied Health Professions (AHP) to broaden their scope and offer learning beyond clinical, traditional models, offering new opportunities. This concept is supported by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists in their strategic directions for 2025-2026, and the HCPC (Health and Care Professions Council) Standards of Proficiency for Occupational Therapists (2023), which both highlight the need to expand practice and recognise the potential of occupational therapy in new and emerging areas.
This occurs through role emerging placements, which take place in an organisation that does not have an established Occupational Therapy role, with an educator overseeing the student experience through long-arm supervision (NHS England).
The BSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy programme at UoG has embraced this and offers role emerging placements across primary care, day centres, retirement villages, charitable trusts and commercial sectors. These placements have enabled students to gain a real sense of leadership and professional identity through application and consolidation of their learning, bringing together academic theory and workplace practice to develop skills and competences needed to register.
This session will provide the student’s perspective as we invite a Level 6 student to reflect on her two role emerging placements.
Yvette Putra and Frazer Bufton (School of Arts, Culture and Environment)
Architecture curricula emphasise design teaching within a studio environment, simulating real-world conditions, nurturing creativity through making, encouraging collaboration among students, and enabling mentorship from studio leaders. In principle, this component is supported by complementary subjects such as drawing and modelmaking, materials and structures, and history and theory. Among these, the relevance of history and theory to design is the most difficult to convey to students, since the former typically shares more with the humanities than the creative arts.
The second year of the BA Architecture was developed to address this by linking a design module with a history and theory module through a common focus on urbanism. Since their implementation, however, these modules have presented more challenges than successes in achieving this aim. But the recent Revalidation Project has provided an opportunity to reassess their shortcomings, build upon their strengths, and move closer to effectively bridging this gap, ultimately preparing students for meaningful engagement in professional practice.
This presentation explores this ongoing journey, highlighting how critique and reflection, though often difficult, foster necessary conversations within the teaching team, and how we navigate the balance between student expectations and the values required for ethical, responsible professional practice in a twenty-first-century context.
Kenny Lynch, Lou Best, Sam Scott (School of Arts, Culture and Environment) and Iain Robertson (University of the Highlands and Islands) with Andrew Arkle and Josh Thorne (Level 6 Geography students)
Current debates in higher education – particularly around decolonisation, cost and environmental implications of fieldwork – prompt renewed scrutiny of long-distance fieldtrips. While fieldwork remains central to the Geography Subject Benchmark, recent scholarship has raised concerns about its sustainability and inclusivity.
In the context of institutional commitments to both Widening Participation and Net Zero, the Geography team asked a practical and pedagogical question: What would a lower cost and lower carbon field trip look like if it were designed to match or even exceed the learning experience traditionally associated with international destinations such as British Columbia?
We report on a collaborative project involving academics, students and external partners to design, trial, and evaluate a UK based alternative fieldtrip in the Scottish Highlands. Our findings show that high quality, lower carbon fieldwork is achievable without compromising academic rigour or student experience. Indeed, UK locations provide challenging and engaging environments that enable stronger relationships with local communities and reduce barriers to participation.
We argue that such approaches offer a viable and desirable model for future fieldwork design, aligning pedagogical value with ethical and environmental responsibility. They are not without their challenges. We offer learning from our project that may be transferable to other programmes.
This project received funding from a Learning Innovation Award (Shape Teaching) and the Janet Trotter Trust.
1B – ACADEMIC EXCHANGE: AUTHENTIC DIGITAL LEARNING
This session will be chaired by Tracy Longden-Thurgood (School of Education, Health and Science Representative on the Festival of Learning Planning Team).
Four presentations of 15 minutes, each followed by 5 minutes of open audience questions.
Alyson Meredith and Rachel Sullivan (School of Education, Health and Science)
The rapid introduction of generative artificial intelligence (AI) into educational settings presents both opportunities and challenges for Initial Teacher Education (ITE). This presentation reports on a qualitative study exploring how secondary PGCE students are using AI tools during school‑based practice, and how they perceive the implications for pedagogy, professionalism and pupil learning.
The project aimed to move beyond questions of efficiency and ask how trainee teachers make sense of AI as a pedagogical tool. Data were generated through focus‑group discussions with two postgraduate cohorts (July and December), allowing trainees to reflect collectively on classroom experiences, perceived benefits, risks, and institutional guidance. Thematic analysis was used to identify recurring patterns across contexts and subjects.
Findings indicate that while trainees value AI for reducing workload and supporting lesson preparation, they express strong concerns about inaccuracies, hallucinated content, curriculum misalignment and biased or misleading outputs. Participants consistently emphasised the need for subject knowledge, critical evaluation and professional judgement when using AI. Tensions were also evident between staff and student use, alongside inconsistent school policies and uneven access to training.
The presentation offers clear take-home messages for staff across the institution: AI should be framed as a tool to support, not replace, professional expertise; explicit guidance and staff development are essential; and ITE has a crucial role in modelling ethical, critical and pedagogically sound AI use. The discussion invites delegates to consider how best practice around AI can be embedded coherently across programmes and departments.
Ed Horley and Emma Collins (School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences) with Daryl Jones (School of Arts, Culture and Environment)
This presentation will walk the audience through the process of developing an interactive crime scene simulation in virtual reality. The project, funded by a Learning Innovation Award (Explore & Share), was designed to utilise evolving technology and attempt to produce an accessible form of student assessment. This involved the creation of a crime scene in the Crime Scene House – a site of active learning provision – and collaboration between Criminology and Games (Programming) to then scan the area into the virtual reality space.
The presentation will show the audience the process of creating the physical space, the technology and techniques used to scan it into virtual reality and then the work to make that 3D environment as interactive as possible. We will discuss the challenges – particularly relating to time and technology – of producing an interactive, virtual environment and consider implications for both student assessment and distance learning provision.
There should be an opportunity for any volunteers in the audience to try out the virtual reality crime scene should they wish to.
Alan Marvell and Louise Livesey (School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences)
As Higher Education faces increasing pressure to become more efficient, institutions are looking at automation, data-driven systems, and artificial intelligence to optimise teaching and learning. This presentation examines what optimisation means in the context of global doctoral education, drawing on empirical research into blended and online teaching practices. It explores how technologies and automated delivery models may reshape pedagogical design, credentialing processes, and the roles of both students and teachers. While these developments promise greater efficiency and wider access, they also raise concerns about pedagogical design, shifting forms of academic labour, and changing relationships of trust within Higher Education. The presentation argues for a values-driven approach to optimisation, one that places human connection, epistemic integrity, and informed pedagogical judgment at the centre of doctoral education.
Jordan Allison (School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences) with Hasini Maheshika Adihetty (MSc Data Science student) and El Charles-Jones (MSc Cyber Security student)
CyberSecSim is a browser-based scenario game developed as part of a Learning Innovation Award (Shape Teaching) project at University of Gloucestershire. It supports students in practising cyber security management decisions in realistic organisational settings. While students may understand individual security concepts, they often struggle to balance trade-offs between budget, security controls, organisational reputation and staff wellbeing. The project therefore aimed to design a low-setup, classroom-ready game and evaluate whether it improves decision-making confidence and core cyber security self-efficacy.
The game presents a fixed set of short scenarios, including phishing surges, ransomware response and BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policy decisions. In each scenario, students choose one of three options; consequently, organisational metrics are updated and immediate feedback is provided. In addition, the game captures a decision log and final scores to support reflection and analysis.
Evaluation uses a brief pre/post questionnaire and will report early findings from initial teaching sessions, including changes in decision-making confidence and security self-efficacy, alongside student perceptions of usefulness and realism. Moreover, decision-log patterns will be analysed to show how different cohorts prioritise technical, financial and human factors when making choices. The session will share guidance for adopting scenario-based games, including what worked, what did not and why.
1C – Panel: Moving Beyond Surface-Level EDI: Lived Experience, Complexity and Challenge
This session will be introduced by Jordan Wintle (Associate Head of School for Education, Health and Science – Outreach and Student Recruitment).
Members of the School of EHS Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Group
This panel brings together colleagues from the School of Education, Health and Science (EHS) Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Group to open up a more honest conversation about equality, diversity and inclusion. Rather than revisiting familiar, surface-level approaches (for example, small curriculum tweaks or one-off interventions), we want to focus on the deeper, more complex realities that shape people’s experiences in higher education.
Drawing on a range of lived experiences, the panel will explore how identity intersects with wider institutional, psychosocial and political systems, and what this means for how staff and students experience belonging, engagement and success. We are particularly interested in creating space for the kinds of conversations that are often harder to have, where there are tensions, uncertainties and no simple answers.
The session will be facilitated by a member of the EHS EDI Group, with time for audience reflection and discussion. It is intended as a space to think collectively about what more meaningful, sustained EDI work might look and feel like when we move beyond compliance and towards a more relational and critically engaged approach.
1D – Workshop: From Dialogue to Deeper Learning: Embedding the Circle of Enquiry to promote inclusive education
This session will be introduced by Adrian Long (Deputy Chair of the Festival of Learning Planning Team).
Davy Hambling (School of Education, Health and Science) with Rafahiyah Akhtar (Level 5 Social Work Student Research Lead), Probjoth Singh (Community Representative and Researcher), Joy Bevan (DERA Project Lead) and DERA members
The Circle of Enquiry, originated in Dr Joy Bevan’s (2021) doctorial study, is a creative educational and community participatory action research (CPAR) method promoting equality of participation, intergroup dialogue and transpersonal (mind/body/soul) learning. It has recently been incorporated into an Ethics module on the BSc Social Work degree, and findings from research with students as to how they received this approach will be shared.
The workshop will be facilitated by members of the Diverse Ethnic Research Alliance (DERA) who will take you through how to facilitate the Circle of Enquiry method. The method shifts students from passive recipients of knowledge sat behind desks, creating open, non-hierarchical space, for them to be reflexive co-creators of deeper learning about self, others and topics that can often be complex to teach e.g. culture, racism, spirituality, displacement, colonialism and hope.
Through direct participation, you will experience how the Circle of Enquiry creates space for students from diverse cultural backgrounds to feel seen, heard, and agentic within groups. Learn for yourself how this translates into richer, deeper representative and inclusive educational experiences, countering othering, divisive metanarratives and echo chambers.
Come ready to enquire, listen and learn from one another. Come ready to be surprised by what we learn and co-create together.
This project received funding from a Learning Innovation Award (Shape Teaching).
1.30 – 2.30pm: External Keynote
Against the Comfortable Curriculum: Inclusion, Decolonisation, Justice and the Trouble with “Good Practice”
Professor David Webster, Senior Advisor in Pedagogy & Practice, Buckinghamshire New University.
2.45 – 3.45pm: Parallel sessions 2
Jump to: 2A – Lightning presentations | 2B – Panel
2a – LIGHTNING PRESENTATIONS: ENHANCING THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE
This session will be chaired by Paul Roberts (School of Arts, Culture and Environment Representative on the Festival of Learning Planning Team).
Four presentations of 5-6 minutes, each followed by 2-3 minutes of open audience questions.
Red Kellino (Careers and Employability Team)
Hi everyone, I’m Red from the Careers Team. We all have vital messages to deliver, but are they being heard? Today, I’m sharing three frameworks I’ve learned to help us move beyond sharing mere anecdotes and start using narrative as a strategic tool for student connection.
From the first hunter-gatherers huddled around a fire to the modern lecture theatre, stories have always been the heartbeat of human communication. Whether we are delivering in the curriculum, supporting students through life’s hurdles, or simply sharing a “good yarn” about the weekend, we all know that the right story makes people sit up and listen.
However, many of us might feel that storytelling is an innate talent, that some are clearly better at than others. What do we do if we don’t see ourselves as natural-born narrators and our cupboard of great tales seems bare?
In this 5-6 minute lightning presentation, I will share three practical strategies to help every staff member put narrative at the heart of their work. We will move beyond the idea of “just telling a story” to using narrative as a strategic tool for connection. Attendees will leave with:
- Actionable Take-Home Messages: A method to transition from “sharing anecdotes” to using story as the primary vehicle for your key messages.
- Accessible Techniques: A simple practice to ensure your “story cupboard” is never empty, applicable to both academic and professional service roles.
- Institutional Best Practice: A collaborative framework for building a shared ‘story bank’— humanising student interactions and amplifying our collective institutional voice.”
So, pull up a chair, gather round the fire, and let’s unlock the storyteller within. Welcome to ‘Storytime with Red.’
Katie Bateman and Catherine Hamblin (Careers and Employability Team)
We invest significant time and energy in shaping the student experience – but what happens once students cross the graduation stage? This lightning presentation explores how a consistent approach to post-graduation engagement can lead to stronger, more sustained graduate outcomes.
Drawing on practical experience, the session will share what “doing this well” looks like in reality: from aligning teams and processes, to maintaining meaningful contact with graduates as they navigate the transition into work. Central to this approach is GradBoost, a newly launched targeted support offer for unemployed graduates or those not yet in graduate-level work. Designed to extend the student experience beyond graduation, GradBoost provides structured, timely interventions that help graduates rebuild confidence, develop employability skills, and re-engage with the labour market.
The session reflects a shift away from one-off interventions towards proactive, ongoing engagement – recognising that graduate outcomes continue to evolve long after students leave us.
Jess Hale (Academic Registry)
What does “student experience” actually mean when you’re navigating a new country, a new academic system, and a complex web of personal identities?
This session explores the findings of a Master’s research project centred on the School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences. By moving beyond “one-size-fits-all” labels, this study uses an intersectional lens to uncover how the unique backgrounds of international postgraduates – from culture and gender to socioeconomic status – shape their journey at University of Gloucestershire.
Why Attend?
- Fresh Data: Gain insights from recent focus groups that reveal the lived realities of our international postgraduate community.
- The Intersectionality Edge: Learn why understanding overlapping identities is the key to moving past generic support strategies.
- Actionable Practice: Walk away with clear “take-home” messages on how we can collectively foster a more inclusive and supportive environment for every student.
Join the conversation as we challenge existing definitions and bridge the gap between institutional data and the authentic student voice. Let’s work together to turn these perspectives into best practices that resonate across the entire University.
Seb Burnett (School of Arts, Culture and Environment) and Charlotte Chivers (Countryside and Community Research Institute)
Review of our collaborative project between the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI), Animation students and an external animation studio, discussing how these partnerships can provide real-life, industry-focused learning experiences.
2b – Panel: Digital Technology and Ethical Conflicts
This session will be introduced by Tracy Longden-Thurgood (School of Education, Health and Science Representative on the Festival of Learning Planning Team).
Aimee Georgeson and Clare Kirkpatrick (School of Education, Health and Science) with Rachel Kruger (MA Social Work student) and Bianca Holland (Education and Community Officer, UoG Students’ Union).
Rachel, Clare, Aimee and Bianca will discuss concerns regarding the rapid expansion of digital technology, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), within higher education institutions.
Taking an ethical position, Rachel will explore implications of the rapid expansion of AI, outlining the approach she takes regarding student learning.
Aimee will include research, a national and a global case study to highlight the impact on people with lived experience and the importance of this awareness on social work practice.
Clare will emphasise robust evidence from multiple perspectives to elevate student learning and provide clarity on emerging research in this area.
Bianca will share her research into this topic from student perspectives.
Health and social care workers are situated on the frontline, often working with marginalised people and communities who are living with the consequences of climate collapse. In order to understand the impact on the people we will be working with, the panel will explain how the extraction of resources needed for AI contributes to more severe and frequent consequences.
The panel will engage with some challenging ethical ideas, including how digital technology exploits marginalised communities, indigenous people, and the natural world. Understanding the concerns regarding the use of AI will enable students to consider their own use and the implications for practice once qualified.
The approach Rachel, Aimee, Clare and Bianca will use in their discussion provides triangulated evidence from lived experience, research, and their own professional/clinical experiences. Students who can critically analyse complex topics, by providing robust evidence, are likely to achieve better grades, as well as more sustainable ethical practice. Understanding the barriers to achieving sustainability prepares students for ethical practice and leadership in their own fields.
4 – 4.30pm: Interactive panel
Join our University Learning and Teaching Leads for an open, interactive panel discussion exploring the realities, challenges, and opportunities shaping learning and teaching across our institution. Chaired by Graham Parton, Head of School for Education, Health and Science and the University’s Executive Dean for Teaching and Quality, this session offers a unique opportunity to engage directly with those leading pedagogical practice and strategy.
Whether you’re curious about what’s coming next with the 2027 Teaching Excellence Framework, looking to refine your own practice, or keen to explore how institutional priorities translate into the classroom, this is your space to ask questions, share perspectives, and challenge thinking.
To help spark discussion, you might consider questions such as:
- How are we responding to changing student needs and expectations?
- What does effective, inclusive teaching look like in practice?
- How can we make assessment and feedback more meaningful?
- How do we balance innovation with consistency and quality assurance?
- How can we support staff development in a rapidly evolving educational landscape?
Come ready to ask, reflect, and contribute to the conversation.
Tracy Longden-Thurgood
I am the Learning and Teaching Lead within the School of Education, Health and Science, with over 25 years’ experience across healthcare practice, organisational development, and higher education. With a background as a Biomedical Scientist and strategic HR professional, I bring a distinctive perspective that connects clinical practice with pedagogy.
My work focuses on enhancing teaching quality, supporting staff to adopt evidence-informed, student-centred approaches, and designing inclusive, practice-based learning that bridges theory and real-world application. I have particular expertise in curriculum design, assessment and feedback, with a strong interest in how authentic learning supports professional identity development.
As a values-led leader, I am committed to challenging practice, fostering innovation, and creating meaningful learning experiences for both students and staff.
Alan Marvell
Learning and Teaching Lead in the School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences, and Academic Course Leader for Logistics Management.
As a National Teaching Fellow and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, I am recognised for my commitment to experiential learning, industry engagement, and student-led teaching.
Within BCSS I lead on assessment design and constructive feedback/feedforward, and support subjects undertaking Curriculum Transformation. As the Sustainability Lead for the Curriculum Transformation Project, I work with subject teams across UoG to explore integration and strategies for student learning.
Overall, I am committed to inspiring a deep sense of curiosity in students and creating an environment in which they can flourish as learners.
Paul Roberts
I am the Learning and Teaching Lead within the University of Gloucestershire School of Art, Culture and Environment, with a background in photojournalism and documentary practice. Alongside my academic role, I have worked as a sports photographer with The Press Association, The Football Association, and Getty Images, producing internationally published work.
My work focuses on curriculum design, assessment strategy, and the development of industry-aligned, practice-based learning. I have particular expertise in photojournalism and documentary photography education, with an emphasis on preparing students for sustainable careers.
I lead on teaching and learning enhancement within the School, supporting curriculum transformation and inclusive pedagogic practice. My research interests centre on documentary filmmaking and contemporary visual storytelling.