The Course Director role is a key role and one that many academics undertake at some stage during their time at ARU. Course leaders play a pivotal role at ARU and inspire trust and foster a sense of belonging and inclusion.
We have created a Course Directors' Toolkit on The Heron and Anglia Learning and Teaching's work also involves the development of a Course Directors' network - contact [email protected] to join. Take a look at the Course Directors' Companion and the Course Directors' Induction resource.
This year’s Course Directors’ Conference will be held on our Chelmsford campus on Thursday 11 September 2025, from 10.00 until 16.00.
Theme: Cultivating an excellent course experience for students in a challenging period
Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity seem to characterise the student experience, as shown in our NSS results and comments. Whether it is teaching, assessment, AI, global unrest, climate change or the cost of living, what is the role of the course, and your role as leaders through course directorship, in bringing out an excellent student experience?
This year’s conference offers a space for Course Directors to co-create responses to these challenges and to reveal opportunities for engaging our students deeply by sharing the best of our practices. How do we lead our course teams and students to make sense of change, making sure we are responsive, critical, and creative in how we develop our course identities, reflect real world change in our disciplines and professions, and embody change in the ways we engage our students?
Answering these and similar questions together will reveal the value of the Course Director in leading rich and engaging courses.
Programme for 2025 - see room information on the Heron (login needed)
9.30 Registration
10.00-10.20 Welcome with Professor Kamil Omoteso, DVC Education
Introducing the problem of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity & Ambiguity (VUCA) - Professor Andrew Middleton, Anglia Learning & Teaching
10.30-11.00 Round Table #1 - How can we get a consistent experience?
Consistency across course teams can help to promote engagement in the age of VUCA.
How do you develop consistency in your approaches to active learning, inclusive assessment, focused feedback, and making sure students feel informed and included?
11.00-11.15 Break
11.15-11.45 Round Table #2 - Strengthening the course team
Alignment of teaching and support approaches can lead to a sense of growth and connection from module to module.
What approaches can be taken to align and connect the taught experience making sure all module leads and teachers on the course are aligned, pick up and resolve issues, support each other, and build resilience?
11.55-12.25 Parallel Workshops - pick one
Either:
Using AI and smart apps to streamline the Course Directors’ role
Led by Elsa Ranjith, the session will identify how technologies and apps can be used to make the Course Director’s role more manageable. Proposals will be generated, initial solutions suggested, and a special interest group formed.
OR
Support me! Co-developing a Course Director’s CPD Programme
Led by ALT, we will work together to devise a series of development sessions for Course Directors. A list of session ideas and outcomes will be generated. ALT will use this to develop a CPD Programme.
12.30-13.20 Lunch and networking
13.30-14.20 Whiteboard Challenges -‘Creating an Exhibition’
Room Leaders will introduce the afternoon session methodology.
Feel free to use graphic metaphors, diagrams, and cartoons! This will be part of your end of day walking exhibition – so think about how to communicate to your visitors!
Make and submit a whiteboard capture video to Padlet that we can add to the conference toolkit.
Whiteboard Challenge #1
AI: What does student satisfaction look like?
Using comic strips to create mini-stories or a multi-dimensional map, illustrate how student belonging and satisfaction can be fostered to drive engagement – using stick people is fine!
Feel free to add annotations and signposts to your artwork.
OR
Whiteboard Challenge #2
Changing journeys in an age of VUCA
Discuss how your thinking about AI has changed over the last 2 years or so. What does it mean for society, your subject, your profession, and you? How is this sense of change something that will help your students to develop as leaders?
In your table group create a drawing that captures this. Either a single image or visual metaphor with a caption or an annotated map of many different perspectives.
OR
Whiteboard Challenge #3Where are you going?
Draw your future vision for your course. Be adventurous. Show your course in relation to the world beyond education.
Populate your drawing with speech bubble comments about ‘what works’, ‘hopeful messages’, ‘words of caution’, what alumni have said, and what students are telling you.
14.30-15.15 Leadership development workshop
Led by Alex Moseley, Head ALT
The workshop will explore what leadership means to the Course Director role and identify strategies that can be deployed to enhance the course experience for students and for the teaching team itself.
The session also aims to identify follow-on CPD activities for deepening leadership and directorship attributes.
15.15-15.45 Keynote Panel - “Is ‘Course’ Undervalued?”
Chaired by Professor Andrew Middleton
The panel will discuss what the value of ‘course’ is, what we can improve now, and how this can be embodied in our next Education Strategy.
The panel will be composed of the Deputy Deans for Education.
15.45-16.00 Exhibition Round Up
Photos from whiteboards displayed in PowerPoint – artists invited to share their thinking!
16.00 Conference ends
Forums
Each Faculty convenes its own Course Director Forums on a regular basis during the academic year. These provide an excellent opportunity to keep abreast of recent developments at ARU, and to share practice with other Course Directors. Contact your Director of Learning Teaching & Assessment for more information on the dates/venues for Course Leader Forum meetings in your own Faculty.
AHESS – Hannah Durham ([email protected])
HMS – Michelle Hawkins ([email protected])
FSE – Adrian Scruton ([email protected])
B&L – Natalie Kite ([email protected])