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Puzzled by GDPR? It’s UK law from May 2018….

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) becomes law in the UK this May.

Despite the vote to leave the European Union, the Government has confirmed that they will adopt the GDPR, which will therefore be law in the UK from 25 May 2018.

How does it affect learning and teaching?

Well, all members of University staff have certain responsibilities under our Data Protection Policy to:

  • be aware of the Data Protection Act (and therefore GDPR) and what it means to the University
  • follow the policy and procedures for handling personal data
  • consult with the Information Security Officer (Compliance) for advice and guidance when necessary

Wherever personal data is held about anyone, staff, students, visitors etc. there is a legal requirement to comply with the regulation.

The University takes it’s responsibilities for GDPR seriously, and has a number of Information Security Officers who deal with compliance, but there are local requirements and schools and units should familiarise themselves with the changes.

Newcastle University IT service (NUIT) has put together some brief guidance on how the GDPR affects schools, some Dos and Don’ts and some useful links to further guidance from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and the regulation itself on the EU website.

There is a Brief Update and Guidance (PDF) from the Registrar.

 

How can I find out more?

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Star Case Study: Dr Rajesh Tiwari: Flipped Classroom Videos

Enhance the variety of teaching, create a resource students like to engage with and save time in the long run.  These are just a few positive outcomes Dr Rajesh Tiwari, School of Engeneering,  has seen through his use of videos when using a flipped classroom approach.

The videos work brilliantly well when Rajesh wants to give information about practical skills, as well as when there are difficult concepts that need some extra explanation.

Photo of Dr Rajesh Tiwari, School of Engineering
Dr Rajesh Tiwari, School of Engineering

Student Voice

Students have fedback some really positive comments about the videos: Continue reading “Star Case Study: Dr Rajesh Tiwari: Flipped Classroom Videos”

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Learning and teaching in HE: join a weekly #LTHEchat

An image of a bird symbolising a weekly chat on Twitter about HE.
Take part in the weekly #LTHEchat

If you are interested in connecting with other people who work in learning and teaching in higher education, you might be interested in #LTHEchat – a weekly social media based event. Every week, people from the UK and beyond take part in a one hour Twitter based chat about a topic related to learning and teaching. Continue reading “Learning and teaching in HE: join a weekly #LTHEchat”

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Case Study: Class generated content: Student Perspective

Picture of Sarah Atkinson

By Sarah Atkinson former Speech and Language Sciences student and current MSc student in the School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences

“Professional Issues… Sounds fascinating.” Thus my (admittedly extremely sarcastic) thought  upon hearing a module of this name would comprise the greater part of my workload during semester one of my final year becoming a speech and language therapist.

Despite hearing great things about it from my forebears in the year above, the prospect of this module did not fill me with delight. I certainly could not have guessed it would turn out to be one of the most enjoyable modules I have had the happy chance to participate in. Continue reading “Case Study: Class generated content: Student Perspective”

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Higher Education Academy: Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE)

The Higher Education Academy will be launching the  2018 Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE) on 5 March 2018.

These awards aim to celebrate collaborative learning and teaching initiatives that positively impact on the student experience in creative and innovative ways. Each award will recognise a team who have enabled a change in practice for colleagues or students at an institutional or discipline level.

Only one bid can go forward from each institution. To become the Newcastle University bid you are invited to put forward a draft claim (max 1000) and a draft of the dissemination and impact plan (max 2000 words). Please note you do not need to submit a draft of the Institutional statement of support. Continue reading “Higher Education Academy: Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE)”

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Downtime on Hadrian’s Wall @VindolandaTrust

As we move into the weekend and we start to think about how we are going to spend our downtime, and pursue leisure activities, we’d like to share a video with you which gives a lovely insight into leisure time on Hadrian’s Wall.

Meet Dr Andrew Birley, one of our guest contributors to Hadrian’s Wall: Life on the Roman Frontier. We asked Andrew to talk about his one of his favourite objects at Vindolanda where he is Director of Excavations.

Hadrian’s Wall: Life on the Roman Frontier is a Newcastle University free online course lasting 6 weeks which starts on Monday 19 February (www.futurelearn.com/courses/hadrians-wall)

We can’t wait for Monday! Can you?

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Learning and Teaching Workshop: 8th-9th March

Following the introduction of the Teaching Excellence Framework in 2017, UK Universities are required to demonstrate a culture of continuous improvement in the quality of learning, teaching and student experience that students receive.

The University aims to achieve this by delivering an educational experience within a research informed, supportive and engaging academic environment that adds value to learning. Such added value will ultimately provide students with opportunities to develop both personal and professional skills and attributes, enhance their career prospects, and prepare them for active participation in society as responsible and ethical global citizens.

The learning and teaching workshop (8th – 9th March) will be hosted by Newcastle University Business School but is open to colleagues from any discipline within business, management or social science. Continue reading “Learning and Teaching Workshop: 8th-9th March”

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Education Strategy – consultation Open Forum

Last week we launched a University wide consultation on the draft of a new Education Strategy – further details of the Strategy are in this blog post.

We said then that we would be arranging a number of Forums to give colleagues across the University the opportunity to discuss and give feedback on the current draft.  Each of these Forum meetings will be led by Suzanne Cholerton as PVC – Learning and Teaching, and they will take place between 12:00 and 13:00 on 5, 15 and 22 March 2018.