Abstract:

The benefits of staff-student research partnerships at the individual and institution level are widely reported. Brew (2006) finds that student research, carried out in partnership with academic staff, fosters intellectual and practical capabilities, important to contemporary society. Goodyear and Zenios (2007) suggest that higher education should be seen as preparation for students’ engagement in collaborative inquiry. Huet et al. (2013) conclude that undergraduate research has an impact on students’ holistic growth by developing a set of transferable competencies. The evidence of this research reveals that the participation of students in research related activities can promote students’ engagement, and contribute to transformative changes in the way students approach learning. These learning experiences give students the knowledge, ability and skills to cope, in the future, with the uncertainties of the knowledge economy as well as acting within a 'super-complex' future (Barnett, 2000). However, the evaluation of the students’ development of research competencies is not well investigated.

The Student Academic Development Research Associate Scheme (SADRAS) is a programme developed in the academic year 2012-13, at an English University, to stimulate partnerships between students and staff (c.f. HEA, 2014). Through educational research, the collaboration outputs have functioned as change agents and for instance have improved the academic experience, learning communities and stimulated course development.

Beside the rationale for and the outcomes of engaging students in a research-based education the paper will present the results of an evaluation study, conducted in 2013-14, among the students and staff that collaborated as research partners outside the formal curriculum. The objective of the study was to evaluate the SADRAS programme, and understand the partnerships in terms of engagement, mutual expectations and satisfaction. The data provide a rich insight into the awareness and understanding of the staff-student engagement in research related activities, and reinforces its importance. The value of this study is the investigation of the research competencies students developed as a result of participating in the programme.

The data was collected by a survey among students and staff involved. It demonstrates the benefits of the scheme. For instance, students benefited from the development of research competencies, and skill related to communication and teamwork. Staff benefited through supporting their students, engaging in educational development and carrying out institutional research.

References
[1] Brew, A. (2006). Research and teaching: Beyond the divide. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
[2] Goodyear, P., and Zenios, M. (2007). Discussion, collaborative knowledge work and epistemic fluency. British Journal of Educational Studies 55(4), pp.351–68.
[3] HEA (2014). Framework for partnership in learning and teaching in higher education, The Higher Education Academy, York: The Higher Education Academy.
[4] Huet, I., Baptista, A.V., & Ferreira, C. (2013). Developing Undergraduate Students' Generic Competencies through Research Activities. In C. Nygaard, N. Courtney, & P. Bartholomew (eds.), Quality Enhancement of University Teaching and Learning: theories and cases. Faringdon: Libri Publishing.

Keywords:

Research-based education, staff-student partnerships, research competencies, educational research, evaluation.