About Enhancement Themes

This initiative aims to enhance the student learning experience in Scottish higher education by identifying specific areas (themes) for development which encourage academic and support staff and students to share current good practice and collectively generate ideas and models for innovation in learning and teaching. The themes are part of the Quality Enhancement Framework for Scotland.

The enhancement themes work is planned and directed by the Scottish Higher Education Enhancement Committee (SHEEC), which manages the programme activity in the context of a five-year plan.

Flexible Delivery was announced as one of the Enhancement Themes, with work commencing in 2004.

About Flexible Delivery

Institutions face a growing challenge to develop and adapt their provision to support mass higher education in the 21st century, and to allow greater flexibility for today's large and diverse student body. In addition, a fast pace of change - including technological, political, social and economic factors - impacts from the external environment.

Taking into account these influences, Flexible Delivery is being interpreted in the widest possible sense, to encompass not only modes of study, but also methods of delivery, together with underpinning support and infrastructure. The theme represents a vision of:

• a learner-centred model of pedagogy and learner support, appropriate to the needs of the individual learner
• a high quality learning environment, supported by efficient and effective business and administrative processes.

The Flexible Delivery Steering Committee, membership of which is drawn from across the Scottish Higher Education sector, aims to be informed by exemplars of good practice in HE Institutions world-wide, technological projects being undertaken within the UK and changing practice in learning and teaching to promote flexibility.

By providing a picture of, and tools for a learning environment that addresses the diverse needs of different types of learners, the Committee aims to transform the way HEIs in Scotland consider flexible delivery, taking into account the work of JISC and the Scottish Funding Council (SFC).

The work was focused on 6 development projects, with one of those projects - accessing JISC and Higher Education Academy resources to support flexible delivery - resulting in this resource. The project team comprised Roy Leitch and Wendy Nightingale of the Interactive University, Carole Higgison from Bradford University, and Jane Plenderleith and Veronica Adamson of Glenaffric Ltd. The resource was designed and structured by Glenaffric Ltd to map onto the flexible delivery typology agreed in consultation with the Scottish HE sector in 2004-05, and uses the social bookmarking tool del.icio.us to compile and categorise available resources - an excellent example of social software in practice.

This introduction is a summary of information that can be found on the QAA Scotland and Enhancement Themes websites. Further information on the overarching themes can be found on the Enhancement Themes website together with associated publications and details of other activity.