The Potential Impact of the TEF on Engaging ‘Hard to Reach’ Students

Abstract

Taken at face value, the Teaching Excellence Framework criteria will exert pressure on Higher Education institutions. To be successful, this requires reconsideration of the recent trend where a professional services industry has developed to provide ‘add-on’ co-curricular and support services. Instead, academics and professional staff must work in partnership to incorporate provision into the mainstream curriculum, through changes to assessment, learning design, tutoring support etc. This indicates an acceleration of the shift towards ‘blended professionals’ and ‘hybrid academics’ (Whitchurch, 2008) in order to deliver a truly inclusive curriculum, in the widest sense. Higher Education institutions (HEIs) need to embed a range of good practice, academic and otherwise, into the experience of all students, thus including and engaging hard-to-reach individuals.