Embedded Teaching or Academic Skills Curriculum: re-thinking how we teach academic skills at university

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to explore the teaching of academic skills to Undergraduate and Postgraduate Radiography students at the University of Bradford. The focus is on the review, design, and delivery of academic skills to students between years 2021 and 2024, alongside the development of a three-tier system for academic skills delivery (direct – hybrid – consultancy).

The analysis of students’ understanding centres on key stages of their learning throughout their Undergraduate and/or Postgraduate studies. It focuses on the core skills required for their assignments in each academic year, helping students recognize the connection between their practical knowledge, the supporting theoretical framework, and the academic skills necessary to develop their literacy. The importance of core skills is crucial, as academic literacy is "highly specialised" (Basset and MacNaught, 2024). As such, it integrates seamlessly into the curriculum rather than being delivered as ad-hoc instruction. This emphasis ensures that core skills are introduced at the right stage of the students' learning, which was the foundation of the project's development. Throughout this process, students are guided to understand the value and application of academic skills for both their academic and professional development. It is in the integration of theoretical and practical skills that the most successful academic outcomes were achieved.

The project was initially designed as a fully integrated approach to teaching academic skills but has since evolved into a hybrid model that combines academic skills training with consultancy and a fully academic-led study skills’ teaching. This presentation outlines the development of these modules, the lessons learned from their delivery, and feedback from academics currently involved in delivering the study skills sessions. It is hoped the presentation opens a discussion around questions of academic skills support within modules and how effective such support really is. It is the aim and scope of this presentation to suggest different options of study skills provision that form the basis for a study skills curriculum and thus more holistic, centralised academic learning experience within the HE environment.