Deep dive into role STEM-ByALs-ForALs programme has played in professional journey of participating ALs, and exploration of future directions for the programme

• Project leader(s): Rupesh Shah
• Theme: Other
• Faculty: STEM
• Status: Current
• Dates: July 2024 to July 2025

The STEM-ByALs-ForALs programme was set up in 2015, initially just for Science ALs to help build community cohesion and offer a way for science ALs to share good practice. The programme has been running successfully for 9 years, and has adapted to changing circumstances. From its initial base in Science, it was extended to include all STEM ALs when the STEM Faculty was created. And then the programme provided invaluable support for ALs in isolation during Covid. 

It continues to help ALs feel part of the STEM community and moreover it offers a platform for discussion and exchange of ideas and teaching tips. To ensure we have solid evidence for the value of the programme, and in order to explore possible ways of ensuring that it continues to meet the needs of STEM ALs in future years, we are proposing this project. 

The aim will be to understand the impact of the programme upon ALs in order to inform development of the programme.

There will be two phases of the work.

1.Survey of STEM ALs: We will conduct a short survey of current STEM ALs to ascertain general levels of awareness and engagement with the programme, their perceptions of usefulness of the programme and ideas for how the programme might be enhanced or improved.

2. Focus group discussions with selection of participants: We want to gain some more qualitative information from specific groups of people about the impact of the programme. We will do this through a series of 3 or 4 focus group discussions. 

We have defined a number of target identities in terms of how they have interacted with the programme, including ALs who we could classify as regular participants of the programme, those who have facilitated sessions, and certain individuals on whom we think there could have been significant impact (kinds of impacts we can image are learning new strategies for supporting challenging students, or to expand their skills portfolio and further their own careers). There are also those who appear to have come to only one workshop and have found that helpful, who we would like to talk to.

Areas that we will seek to explore with ALs include in the focus groups:

• Ideas they have picked up from STEM-ByALs-ForALs workshops which has enabled them to improve their teaching practice
• Practical tips they have learnt from colleagues through participating in the STEM-ByALs-ForALs programme
• Relationship between participation and sense of belonging within the STEM AL community and the impact of any changes in a sense of belonging upon their practice and student outcomes.
• Experience of facilitating workshops and influence upon skills portfolio and career progression
• Value of the various informal parts of the programme, such as online journal club, informal drop-in and discussion sessions
• Additionally, we will seek to explore the participants ideas for future directions and challenges for the programme.

From the responses, ALs who appear to have particularly benefited from their participation in the programme, or who have interesting ideas for future directions, will be identified, including any who have felt particularly marginalised or isolated.  They will be asked if willing to participate in focus group discussions to further explore ways to take the programme forward to ensure it meets future needs of STEM ALs.

We will also try to reach those who have not attended the programme and have not been aware of it to see if we can get more views from them about the issues affecting attendance.