Engineering and Physical Sciences e-news: January 2015 Welcome to the January e-bulletin from the ’s STEM Education Centre. It is designed to provide you with information about STEM - related events, resources, news and updates that may be of interest to you and your colleagues.

STEM Policy and Practice News Gender gap in university admissions rises to record level Women accepted to study at university outnumbered men by record levels last year, with female applicants dominating entrance to medicine, law and biology undergraduate degrees.

The 2014 admissions data from UCAS, the UK’s universities clearing house, also revealed record numbers of acceptances for disabled people and Asian and black ethnic groups, with a falling proportion for students from independent schools.

While women have outnumbered men in admissions for years, the 2014 figures show the gap has widened to nearly 58,000, with women making up more than half of students in two- thirds of subject areas. Men remain over-represented in most STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects, most notably in engineering where there are 20,000 more men than women, and computing science, where there are 17,000 more.

Women are particularly strongly represented in subjects allied to medicine, with 32,000 more women accepted in 2014. In medicine and dentistry – among the most competitive undergraduate courses – there were 5,000 women and 3,800 men accepted last year.

The success of female applicants mirrors the trend in GCSE and A-level results, with girls outperforming boys across the grade scale. In 2013, girls received A* or A grades at GCSE in 25% of papers taken, compared with nearly 18% of boys’ papers.

UCAS said a record 36,000 UK applicants who declared a disability were accepted by universities – an increase of 3,700 on the previous year. The 45,000 UK students from Asian ethnic groups and 30,000 from black ethnic groups were the highest numbers ever placed through Ucas.

The growth in students from state schools has lowered the proportion of UK entrants from the independent sector. In 2007, privately educated students made up 11% of the 256,000 acceptances but last year the proportion was 9% of 307,000.

The UCAS data also showed that many students are applying to university with qualifications other than A-levels. Last year the number accepted onto degree courses holding Btec qualifications – the equivalent to A-levels, usually in vocational subjects such as business studies – rose to 85,000, almost double the number that held BTECs in 2008.

Quality of European research threatened by cuts British universities risk losing their position as world-leading institutions if proposed cuts to the European Union research budget go ahead, according to the president of University Alliance.

Horizon 2020 is worth £67bn over the next six years (2014-2020), with UK academics in line to receive £2bn in the first two years of the programme.

But in a European Commission legislative proposal this week, plans have been tabled to divert money away from Horizon 2020 to the newly created European Fund for Strategic Investments.

This new funding pot is not dedicated to front-end research, but is designed instead to bolster Europe’s economy and create jobs.

Concern about the proposed cuts has been growing among universities and research organisations in the UK and EU. In De cember, universities and research bodies from across Europe issued a joint statement arguing that cuts to Horizon 2020 would impact on the budgets of the European Research Council (ERC), jeopardise the support available to early career researchers, and damage access to research infrastructures across Europe

Maddalaine Ansell, chief executive of University Alliance, said the proposal – which is expected to pass – was a backwards step for UK and European researchers.

“UK universities get up to 20% of their ex ternal research income from the EU. So a hit to the Horizon 2020 budget will have a significant negative impact on our research base.” says Ansell.

She adds: “ Many Horizon 2020 funding streams are directed towards those parts of the economy with the greatest potential to grow sustainably. They give particular support to SMEs. A reduction to the Horizon 2020 budget will impact on universities’ capacity to drive innovation within SMEs and to promote growth in their local areas and region. ”

Anonymise admissions, says race equality report The overhaul of admissions, in which applicants would be identified by a number rather than their name, would reduce “unconscious bias” against students from ethnic minorities by university admissions staff, according to a study by the race equality thinktank the Runnymede Trust.

The recommendation is based on evidence that black and ethnic minority students are less likely to secure a place at top universities even when they have the same grades.

Once A-level grades a re taken into account, 52% of applications by white British students to universities resulted in offers compared with only 44.7 % for black Caribbean students, 42.6 % for Bangladeshi students and 39.6 per cent for Pakistani students. For those from black African backgrounds, the offer rate was 39.6 per cent.

The analysis is an update on work published in March 2013, which led the report to conclude that admissions at Russell Group universities were “far from fair” .

Her findings were later disputed by UCAS, whose own analysis found that much of the difference in offer rates was caused by ethnic minorities applying to highly competitive courses, such as medicine or dentistry. However, it said that universities may want to investigate the “ small differences ” in offer-making.

On the latest report, Wendy Piatt, director general of the Russell Group, pointed out that “ a crucial piece of the jigsaw ” was missing because the research took no account of whether students had taken the right A levels for their intended degree course.

“Real progress ” had been made in improving the diversity of the student population at Russell Group universities, she said.

“The numbers of black students accepted by Russell Group universities went up 40 per cent between 2010 and 2014 and the number of Asian students by 13 per cent, ” she said, adding “we are keen to see this trend continue further ”.

A spokesman for UCAS said: “ Data such as an applicant’s ethnic group, religion or sexual orientation is only released to HE providers after decisions or offers have been made. Ad missions professionals do have access to applicant names and there is no evidence that this causes any bias in decision making.”

Vikki Boliver was one of the contributing authors to the Runnymede Trust's publication, Aiming Higher: Race, Inequality and Div ersity in the Academy and shares her insight in ‘The Conversation’ here: http://bit.ly/The_Conversation

The report - Aiming Higher: Race, Inequality and Diversity in the Academy – is available here: http://bit.ly/Aiming_higher_report

Dowling Review: Call for evidence The UK’s national academy for engineering has announced a call for evidence to enable government to support the development of more effective collaborations between UK businesses and universities.

Dame Ann Dowling, president of the Royal Academy of Engineering, has been asked by the Minister for Universities, Science and Cities, Greg Clark MP, to lead a review examining how government can support the development of more fruitful relationships between UK businesses and UK university researchers.

The academy is looking to both the private and academic sector to come forward and share their experiences in managing collaborations and ventures with each other and suggestions for how government can help facilitate productive relationships.

The aim of the review is to help businesses and academia to better understand each other’s needs, interests and constraints and to develop trusting relationships which will allow them to share long-term strategic plans. The findings will advise government on the best course of action to foster these collaborations between industry and academia.

The review will consider the implications for the full spectrum of research disciplines and businesses of different sizes, types and sectors.

Dame Dowling said: “ We want to hear from individuals and organisations that are involved in business-academia collaborations and the successes and challenges that they have faced in building productive ongoing relationships. But we also want to hear from those who did not succeed. To make a parallel with the world of research, a negative result is still a very valuable result and will be essential in generating a comprehensive body of evidence .”

Information on ‘how to submit evidence’ can be accessed here: http://bit.ly/Dowling_review_call_for_evidence

Carter review says universities ' key ' to teacher training The importance of universities’ role in teacher training has been stressed by a major government-commissioned review of the field.

However, the review, which was drawn together by a panel involving university and schools representatives, has also prompted criticism over a suggestion that the postgraduate certificate of education – one the main academic qualifications offered to students – should be “ optional ” to qualifying as a teacher.

In his foreword to the review, Sir Andrew Carter – who led the review – said “partnership is the key” and that the “diversity of provision, whilst identified as a challenge by some, is probably a strength of the system ”.

“Sometimes universities will take the lead, som etimes and increasingly, it will be the schools that lead the way ,” he writes. “However, neither can do it alone and our review has made recommendations that emphasise the strength of working together within a system that is increasingly school led.”

The report highlights specific benefits university involvement can bring – including evidence- based teaching and access to research – which was supported in its recommended changes to policymakers.

“We believe it is critical that ITT [Initial Teacher Training] should teach trainees why engaging with research is important and build an expectation and enthusiasm for teaching as an evidence-based profession,” the report says. It also states that there are “many universities that are home to world-leading research and assessment organisations”.

“Overall, we’re pleased with the report,” said James Noble-Rogers, executive director of the Universities Council for the Education of Teachers. “It emphasises the strengths of school- university partnerships and there doesn’t seem to be any kind of suggestion that the university role should be marginalized.”`

However, Michael Gunn, vice-chancellor of Staffordshire University and chair of the Million+ group of universities, said a recommendation in the review that the postgraduate certificate in education should be regarded as “ optional ” to qualified teacher status “flies in the face of the evidence of high performing countries like Finland”.

“The next government must make a clear commitment to university-led teacher education provision and to a teaching profession where professional and academic qualifications and professional development become the norm.”

He also said: “The implication that high quality teacher education is not linked to whether that provision is led by schools or universities is misleading when universities deliver high quality ITT and underpin national and regional teacher supply.”

The Carter review of initial teacher training (ITT), together with the Government’s response is available here: http://bit.ly/Carter_Review

Too many young people are “off the radar”, says Public

Accounts Committee As many as 148,000 young people aged 16–18 in England could be classed as “NEETs” – not in education, employment or training – according to a new report from the Public Accounts Committee which examined how many members of this age group are participating in education and training.

The Committee issued a war ning that too many young people simply fall “off the radar” once they leave compulsory education at the age of 16, with local authorities often having no idea what they are doing with their lives, despite having a legal duty to track the activity of all 16 – 18 year olds in their area. The report warned that, nationally, the activity of 7% of young people is unknown, but in some local authorities the proportion is as high as 20%.

The report was critical of local authorities for failing to provide help paying transport costs, highlighting a ‘postcode lottery’ with 63 local authorities located in areas with relatively high travel costs who are not currently providing any support.

It also criticised the lack in provision of adequate careers advice which might enable many young people to successfully make the transition to the world of work. The Department of Education transferred responsibility for providing careers advice to schools in 2010, but the report argues that this was not matched by sufficient additional resources.

Although the Public Accounts Committee did not argue for schools or councils to be given extra resources, it recommended that individual local authorities should collaborate more often to share experiences over which kinds of schemes have been effective when it comes to tracking young people, providing careers advice and helping them pay travel costs.

The report - 16–to-18–year–old participation in education and training is available here: http://bit.ly/PAC_report_16_to_18

Launch of new post-16 maths qualifications New high-quality maths qualifications, which teach pupils how to use and apply maths in real situations, are designed to encourage thousands more pupils to continue studying maths beyond age 16, School Reform Minister Nick Gibb has announced.

As part of the government’s commitment to raising standards in the subject, 6 new core maths qualifications will be included in school and college performance tables from 2017 and as part of the TechBacc (Technical Baccalaureate) measure from 2016.

The government has outlined the ambition that, by 2020, the great majority of young people will continue to study maths to age 18. Core maths offers a way for students who achieve at least a C in GCSE maths to continue to study the subject, allowing them to maintain and develop their mathematics even if they do not wish to pursue a full A level.

Students who reach the end of secondary school without achieving a grade C in GCSE maths now have to continue to work towards the qualification within their post-16 education.

The new courses will allow pupils to build on their maths skills using more advanced methods and techniques. They have been developed with the support of employers, universities and professional bodies to ensure they offer pupils the relevant knowledge and skills to progress to further study and the world of work.

Election 2015: Dyslexia sector's vision for the future The Dyslexia-SpLD Trust, the combined voice representing organisations that work to improve outcomes for individuals with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties, has launched its election action plan for ‘Educating, employing and training people with Dyslexia-SpLD for 2020’ .

The manifesto recognises that taking steps to ensure the accessibility of education, employment and training for people with dyslexia and SpLD is both a challenge and opportunity for any future Government.

Their manifesto can be accessed here: http://bit.ly/dyslexia_spld_trust_manifesto

Activity Opportunity Contributions sought for Education in Practice: the University of Birmingham’s new Learning and Teaching Journal ‘Education in Practice’, the University of Birmingham’s new educational journal was launched in November 2014 and the Editors would welcome further contributions for future editions.

The journal has been designed for all University staff working in support of enhancing the student learning experience, be they academic members of staff or staff from professional or support services.

It provides an accessible publication route for those looking to disseminate learning and teaching practices, ideas and developments or outcomes from projects in a scholarly manner; further, contributions are welcomed from both undergraduate and postgraduate students discussing learning, teaching and educational matters.

Papers for the next edition, to be published in March, should be submitted by mid-February.

If you wish to discuss your ideas, please contact either Jon Green ( [email protected] ) or Michael Grove ( [email protected] ).

Submission details and guidelines are available here: www.birmingham.ac.uk/eip The November 2014 issue of Education in Practice is now available. To download either a full copy or to access each article individually, please click here: http://bit.ly/UoB_EiP_Nov_14

Publications and Resources New: Transitions in Undergraduate Mathematics Education We are delighted to announce the publication of a new book, 'Transitions in Undergraduate Maths Education'.

Written to meet the needs of university lecturers, teachers and tutors, this book forms a guide to understanding key issues, good practice and developments in learning and teaching in mathematics within higher education.

Each chapter is focused around an important transition point and written in a style that brings together published and evidence-based literature from across the higher education sector, analysing this in a scholarly manner to identify practical recommendations and 'tips' for both new and more experienced higher education practitioners alike.

The development of this book has been supported by The Higher Education Academy, national body for learning and teaching in UK higher education.

Transitions in Undergraduate Mathematics Education is now available to buy from www.Lulu.com at a cost of £6.11 (plus postage and packing). http://bit.ly/Lulu_Transitions

Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE) Cross-Party Science and Engineering Debate 2015 As the 2015 General Election approac hes, Britain’s main political parties are starting to draw lines on key issues. But where do they stand on science, and what would they do differently if they form a Government later this year?

On 14 th January 2015 CaSE brought together the science spokespeople of the three main parties to debate the issues. The Minister for Universities, Science and Cities, Dr Greg Clark MP; his shadow counterpart in the Labour Party, Liam Byrne MP; and the Liberal Democrats’, Dr. Julian Huppert MP faced questions from the 300-strong audience on a range of topics including science funding and immigration.

You can watch a video of the full debate here: http://youtu.be/_bMhvA1c-j8

Open Glossary on ‘Open Data’ This is a resource created by Jon Tennant and Ross Mounce and developed through crowdsourcing to equip people with the terminology that is used within discussions about the general field of open scholarship. Additionally, it possesses numerous external resources that may be of use.

As a ‘live’ resource, it is expected to updated every few months and can be viewed here: http://bit.ly/Open_glossary

Engaged learning in MOOCs: a study using the UK Engagement Survey This Higher Education Academy published study sets out to answer the question: how can we know what learning is taking place in MOOCs, and from there identify MOOCs’ potential for future use in HE?

Using a specially-adapted version of the HEA’s UK Engagement Survey (UKES) 2014, the research team at the University of Southampton asked participants who had completed one of two MOOCs delivered through the FutureLearn platform and designed and run at the university about their experiences as learners and their engagement with their respective MOOC.

The results also show that both of the MOOCs were successful in enabling many participants to feel engaged in intellectual endeavours such as forming new under standings, making connections with previous knowledge and experience, and exploring knowledge actively, creatively and critically.

This study is available here: http://bit.ly/MOOCS_engaged_Learning

Liberating learning: experiences of MOOCs This is third report in an HEA series investigating learning in MOOCs, which sought out accounts of learning from people who completed one of the University of Southampton’s MOOCs during 2014. The research wanted to gain insights into why participants had chosen to study in this way, and to learn more about the issues and opportunities they had encountered.

The study also offers a ‘four quadrant’ framework to support course design of MOOCs, which will be beneficial to educators and learners alike.

This report can be accessed here: http://bit.ly/Liberating_Learning

Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education Special Edition: Digital Technologies in Learning Development Digital technologies are pervasive in every aspect of Higher Education, and though their use is undoubtedly common in learning development activities, this field is underreported as an area of expertise. This special edition of the JLDHE focuses on ways in which digital technologies are used in the work of learning developers, academic teaching staff or other practitioners seeking to improve student learning.

The journal can be viewed here: http://bit.ly/aldinhe_special

Education Technology Action Group: our reflections The Education Technology Action Group (ETAG) was established in 2014 by Ministers from DfE and BIS to advise on how digital technology might empower teachers and learners by enabling innovation across schools, further education and higher education sectors for the benefit of students, employers and the wider economy.

This publication considers discusses and makes recommendations in three key areas:

• Access, equity and funding

• Leadership and professional development

• Assessment and accountability

It concludes that the use of digital technology in education is not optional and calls on all interested parties to engage to enable progress to be made.

Education Technology Action Group: our reflections is available here: http://bit.ly/ETAG_our_reflections

Education Policy Outlook 2015: Making Reforms Happen The Education Policy Outlook is designed to help education policy makers with reform choices. It addresses the need for improvement in education in a comparative manner, while taking into account the importance of national context. Through a review of different countries’ experiences in implementing education reform, the publication offers directions and strategies to facilitate future changes.

The 2015 edition provides a comparative review of policy trends. It explores specific reforms adopted across the OECD over the past seven years to help countries learn from one another and choose the reforms best adapted to their needs and context.

The Education Policy Outlook 2015 is available to view online here: http://bit.ly/Education_Poicy_Outlook_15 Events Birmingham Popular Maths Lectures Watson building (School of Mathematics), Edgbaston campus The Birmingham Popular Maths Lectures are open to anyone with an interest in Maths, particularly those studying for A-level and above. There is no need to book just come along to the Watson building from 7pm for a 7.30 pm start.

Upcoming Lectures: Wednesday, 18 th February 2015 - The real science behind Parallel Universes - Dr. Tony Padilla ()

Wednesday, 18 th March 2015 – Mathematical Lego: building a model plant – Dr. Rosemary Dyson (University of Birmingham)

Further information on each of the lectures is available here: http://bit.ly/UOB_Maths_Popular_Lectures

New-to-teaching Higher Education Academy events for STEM subjects During 2014-15 the HEA is holding discipline-specific and theme-specific new-to-teaching events as part of the HEA enhancement event series, with four in either STEM or STEM- based disciplines. These sessions will especially benefit early-career academics or those in teaching only roles, e.g. teachers engaged in ad hoc delivery, postgraduate and PhD students involved in teaching, and learning support practitioners.

There is no charge for delegates from subscribing institutions.

You can find out more about each of the events, and book your place, at the links below.

19 February 2015 - New-to-teaching in STEM, London: http://bit.ly/HEA_event_London_STEM

19 February 2015 - New-to-teaching in Computing, London http://bit.ly/HEA_event_London_Computing

4 June 2015 - New-to-teaching in MSOR, London http://bit.ly/HEA_event_London_MSOR

2 July 2015 - New-to-teaching in laboratory-based subjects, Cardiff http://bit.ly/HEA_event_Cardiff

Student Engagement: An event organised by the Institute of Physics Higher Education Group Wednesday, 25 February 2015, (11:00 – 15:45), University of Leicester The key variable in determining the performance of students on degree programmes is their level of engagement. The principal component of this is 'time-on task' but it also involves a number of other aspects of participation in the university community. Instruments for measuring engagement have been developed in North America and Australasia and used to inform curriculum change and are potentially more instructive than the NSS. The HEA has run pilot projects with a number of institutions to test the concept in the UK. The meeting will discuss the use of these surveys in approaches to student engagemen t and the significance of the results.

To register please visit here: http://bit.ly/Student_Engagement

Jisc Digital Festival Monday, 9 th – Tuesday, 10 th March 2015, International Convention Centre, Birmingham At Jisc Digital Festival 2015 you will hear from celebrated digital advocates and consider those issues at the heart of digital education and research.

In his keynote session Simon Nelson, CEO, Futurelearn will be talking about MOOCs, online learning and virtual environments. You'll also hear from Professor Carole Goble from the who will be offering her insights into research data management and data centres.

Who should attend: sector leaders, senior managers, IT directors and IT experts, heads of libraries and library professionals, academics, teachers and policy makers.

Further information regarding this event, including registration details, is available here: http://bit.ly/Jisc_Digital_Festival_15

International Higher Education Forum 2015 Thursday, 19 th March 2015, Congress Centre, London This forum provides insights into the latest developments, trends and opportunities for universities – all through its access to the some of the most experienced professionals in the sector, government and partner organisations, and to senior representatives from a wide range of countries of interest to UK higher education institutions.

Find out about what lessons can be learnt from our international counterparts. Hear from the UK HE International Unit and others about existing opportunities and how to access them.

For further details can be found here: http://bit.ly/International_HE_Forum_2015

8th IMA Conference on Mathematical Education of Engineers th Monday, 20 April 2015, Loughborough University This conference provides a forum for the exchange of ideas, practices and pedagogy in the mathematical education of engineers. Within this framework, university mathematics teachers together with engineering colleagues and participants from industry are able to discuss enhancement and reflect on the engineerin g mathematics provision in the context of ever increasing demands of competence, effectiveness, quality and relevance.

For further details, including registration details (which will open next week), can be found here: http://bit.ly/Maths_Education_Engineers

7th National Dyscalculia & MLD Conference

Thursday, 25th June 2015, London This conference brings together the worlds of research, maths teaching and SEN expertise. You will hear two keynote speakers and be able to choose three workshops from twelve topics that will give you access to cutting edge research and opportunities to engage with leading practitioners and trainers.

For all teachers of numeracy and maths, SENCos and Learning Support teachers, LA inclusion and numeracy support teams and Educational Psychologists.

Further information, including registration details, is available here: http://bit.ly/dyscalculia_conference

Sharing Information to Support STEM Educational

Enhancement If you have any opportunities or information relating to STEM Education activity that you would like to share with colleagues in the University through our monthly e -bulletin, please contact Daryl Davies with details.

And finally If you have received our e-bulletin from a colleague and wish to be added to the circulation list or alternatively wish to be removed from it, please contact Daryl Davies.

Deadline for contributions for next month’s newsletter is 23 February 2015. Contributions should be sent to [email protected]

For further enquires please contact [email protected] .