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Explore the hardships and issues faced by students and discover the role of the Students' Union in supporting them. Learn how to make a positive impact as a Course Rep.
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The Wider Picture: The issues that students face Advanced Course Rep Training Lisa Burton and Richard Buckley
Session Objectives • To consider the contribution that you can make as a Course Rep to an individual student’s ability to tackle the issues that they face and enjoy a complete student life • To explore the hardships and issues faced by students of all backgrounds, both within the context of the university and in wider society • To identify and locate the role of the Students’ Union in ‘having a positive impact on the lives of all our students’
Contents • Picturing the ‘typical student’ • Our survey says… The Top 5 current student issues • Who can students turn to? • Your rights as a student: the difference a Union can make • Break
Contents • Fighting the good fight: planning your own campaign • The ‘not so typical student’: being truly inclusive and representative • Debrief/any questions?
Picturing the ‘typical student’ What qualities define the ‘typical student’ and what do they have going through their mind? As we did at basic Course Rep training - draw them on flipchart paper, emphasising the parts of their anatomy relating to those qualities
Our survey says…The Top 5 student concerns What are the National Union of Students’ Top 5 campaigns relating to student welfare? What do you think the Top 5 campaigns should be? Does NUS have its priorities right? What are the Top 5 concerns for students in your halls/flat/course/School?
Who can students turn to? In the University: Student Services • Access Funds Centre (debt; financial hardship) • Careers Service (employment and careers) • Chaplaincy (pastoral matters) – CofE, Reformist, Catholic, Methodist, Quaker, Buddhist… • Counselling Service (personal difficulties) • Disabilities Service (mobility- and sensory-related disabilities, mental health issues and learning difficulties)
Who can studentsturn to? In the University: Student Services (cont…) • International Student Advisers • Jobshop and Volunteer Centre (employability; work experience; transferrable skills development) • Student Welfare Service (financial hardship and bursary/loan entitlements; course-related issues and examination regulations) Also in the University • Skills Plus • Library Services
Who can studentsturn to? In the Students’ Union • Advice and Representation Centre (appeals, complaints, disciplinary cases, financial disputes, misconduct; advice for reps and elected officers, including Caucus Groups for minority students) • Student Activities Centre (Skills Sessions; Student Community Action, One Planet – for developing employability and making new friends) All 100% independent of the University and 100% confidential
Who can studentsturn to? If a student turns to you – what help can you offer them and where can you point them? Look at the case study on the sheet in pairs, bearing in mind the sources of help available to you
Your rights as a student:the difference a Union can make Current Experience i.e. ‘My student experience…’ e.g. Halls accommodation is £100 per week… Problems or difficulties i.e. ‘Could be better…’ e.g. This leaves little money for food, clothes, transport… Injustice injection i.e. ‘Should be better…’ e.g. Similar Uni’s to ours charge £85 per week! … Action required i.e. ‘What can I do about it?’ e.g. Sign petition; come to meeting; etc… Source: National Union of Students – Campaigning Training
Your rights as a student:the difference a Union can make Case study 1: 24-Hour Library Campaign • Students identified lack of library access at busy times – exams and dissertation hand-in – as an issue • At AGM 2006, students voted for 24-Hour Library as their choice of Priority Campaign for the Union • The Union collected over 3000 postcards signed by students calling for a 24-Hour Library service • The Union also liaised with the University’s Library Services and Senior Management to secure support for the proposals • The postcard campaign was backed up with posters, T-shirts and flyers to raise awareness amongst the student community, all with the ’24’ theme • The campaign was a huge success and 24-Hour Library services at peak times have been built into the University’s opening policy
Your rights as a student:the difference a Union can make Case study 2: Coach Lane Campus Cash-point Campaign • Students at City Campus have long since enjoyed free cash-point machines, and School Reps and Course Reps from Newcastle Business School successfully argued for one – to be installed around Easter • But students in Coach Lane Campus still have to pay £1.75 for each withdrawal – an unnecessary burden on students who already face unprecedented levels of debt • The Students’ Union facility in Coach Lane offers free cash-back, but students are increasingly calling for a free ATM • With support from academic staff, the Chair of Coach Lane Campus Students’ Union has established a feedback box on the campus to collect students’ views on having to pay for cash withdrawals • Signatures are running in the hundreds – it’s surely only a matter of time…
Your rights as a student:the difference a Union can make Case study 3: Fools Rush In – The Housing Campaign • Accommodation is normally the most expensive outlay that a student makes, with rents reaching up to £100 a week in areas such as Jesmond • Housing is also a complicated social and political issue, with the local Council making political capital out of student housing in residential areas; many students deciding who to live with before they’ve really got to know them; and students not being aware of their contractual rights and duties • Meanwhile, the city of Newcastle actually has a housing surplus, meaning that there’s no reason for students to rush into finding a house • The VP Education and Welfare teamed up with the Union’s Marketing team to devise the Fools Rush In logo to promote the message of not signing up for housing until after Christmas • The Union also secured an agreement with the University to withhold the publication of Student Housing 08/09 – which lists approved, accredited landlords – until after Xmas and to include full advice from the Union on your rights and obligations as a tenant
Fighting the good fight:planning your own campaign What would you like to change or raise awareness of, in the University or in the student community? Devise your own campaign, bearing the following in mind: Is it a change campaign or an awareness campaign? Who are you aiming to influence? (The University? Government? Students’ opinions?) Who are your potential allies? (Academic staff? Any groups in the wider community?) What kind of tactics will you be using? (High profile publicity campaign? Subtle engagement?) What would you like to see as the end result? Any catchy slogans/logo you could use to ‘brand’ your campaign?
The ‘not so typical student’ – being truly inclusive and representative Think about how the difficulties that the following groups of students might face: • Black and Minority Ethnic Students • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans Students • Women Students • Mature Students • Part-Time Students • International Students Each section of the student community has a Caucus Group, with a Chair who represents the Group’s interests on Student Council to ensure that campaigns are truly inclusive. Lay Student Councillors are elected from the whole student community – their job is to be representative of all students
The ‘not so typical student’ – beingtruly inclusive and representative Some questions to think about: Is the University inclusive? Is the Union inclusive? How could you make your work as a Course Rep more inclusive?
Those objectives again… By the end of this session, you should have: • considered the contribution that you can make as a Course Rep to an individual student’s ability to tackle the issues that they face and enjoy a complete student life • explored the hardships and issues faced by students of all backgrounds, both within the context of the university and in wider society • identified and located the role of the Students’ Union in ‘having a positive impact on the lives of all our students’
