Foundations in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (FLTHE) Stage 2

The FLTHE programme has been designed to support colleagues within the university who are new to teaching/ supporting student learning and those with closely defined teaching responsibilities, such as visiting lecturers, professional services, clinician-educators, demonstrators, and postgraduate research students who teach. The programme aims to provide you with an introductory foundation in key elements of learning and teaching in Higher Education, to help you develop as a reflective educational professional, and to gain Associate Fellowship of HEA.

The programme is accredited by Advance HE, the international body which champions teaching excellence. On successful completion of the programme, you will be entitled to become an Associate Fellow of the HEA (AFHEA), an internationally recognised certification of your development within the Higher Education learning and teaching context.

Who is this programme suitable for?

This programme is suitable for individuals who are new to a role in teaching and/or support for learning in HE or may have a limited teaching portfolio; for example, some sessional/ part time staff or early career researchers with some teaching responsibilities. You may be a new or experienced member of staff with specific roles in supporting HE learning such as technicians, librarians, professional staff, learning technologists, careers advisors, etc. It is not role dependent; you will need to explore whether you have sufficient evidence of appropriate teaching and or/support for learning practice to successfully complete the programme.

In order to confirm whether you are eligible for this programme, please use the Advance HE Fellowship Category Tool which will indicate the fellowship level which best describes your practice.

Please see the Academy webpages for more information about these programmes/ routes:

• Academic Development Programmes

If you are working as a lecturer in the university, then it is likely to be more appropriate for you to register for the Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (PGCAP) which is also run by The Academy.

Is FLTHE the only route to Associate Fellowship?

There are two different routes to Associate Fellowship (AFHEA) within the University. This programme, FLTHE, supports participants through a taught route to Associate Fellow category for those with less than 3 years of teaching experience.

For those with 3 or more years of experience teaching and/or supporting learning in Higher Education there is the University of Liverpool Teaching Recognition and Accreditation (ULTRA, non-taught, account of professional practice) route to Fellowship. Although these are different paths to Associate Fellowship, they are both based on participants meeting the same standard, drawn from the PSF and demonstration of meeting Descriptor 1 (D1) of the Framework. Please see the Academic Development web pages for further information, where the content also details options for routes to other Fellowship categories.

• Developing your teaching

FLTHE pre-requisites

In order to register to complete the FLTHE Stage 2 programme, you will need to have attended Stage 1 of the programme: Introduction to Supporting Student Learning. 

You are also required to have confirmed and current responsibility in teaching or supporting student learning to engage in this programme in order to successfully achieve Associate Fellowship.

If you believe you already have a basic grounding in pedagogic practice in Higher Education (for example by completing a similar course at another institution), then you can apply to be exempted from completion of ISSL before registering for FLTHE. Please contact the programme administrator to discuss this option.

• Email: theacademy@liverpool.ac.uk

Teaching/supporting student learning requirement

How much teaching/ supporting learning is sufficient?

In order to participate in this programme and to meet the requirements for Associate Fellowship status, participants must:

• Be teaching or supporting learners within a clearly defined HE setting (level 4 or above)
• Be involved in teaching or work supporting learners which takes place across the duration of the programme
• Have sufficient teaching or work with learners to complete the work-based elements of the programme and evidence effective practice in 2 areas of activity. You will be asked to reflect productively on the teaching you do, to evaluate your teaching and plan a change in approach, to be observed teaching for at least one hour.

Simply delivering one or two lectures or classes during the course of the programme will not be enough to enable you to successfully complete the assessed portfolio.

Your teaching commitment can include demonstrating in practical classes, supporting student learning in placement/practice settings, working as a technician to support learning, leading seminars and tutorials, giving lectures, marking and providing feedback on assessments, or supervising project students. You might have a role within professional services where you are supporting and enabling student learning.

If you are unsure whether your teaching commitments meet the requirements for the programme even after using the Advance HE Fellowship Category Tool, please contact the programme director to discuss this before the start of the programme:

•  Email: theacademy@liverpool.ac.uk

Register to participate

If you have already completed Stage 1 of FLTHE, and would like to register to complete the remainder of the FLTHE programme (Stage 2), please apply for Stage 2 of the FLTHE programme:

• Apply for Stage 2 of the FLTHE programme

Please look carefully at key dates for each cohort before you register as you will need sufficient teaching/ work with learners at the time of the cohort to be able to complete successfully and be able to commit to approximately 40 hours additional study.

Key programme dates

Stage 2 cohort 1

Stage 2 cohort 2

Stage 2 cohort 3

What to expect on the programme

Teaching on the programme is a mixture of online and face to face (with opportunity for hyflex participation for those who cannot attend face to face sessions in person). There are three workshops which you will be expected to attend to support your learning on the programme. In addition, asynchronous learning is provided via the Canvas site which will guide you through the key experiences and activities for the programme outside of the classes and support your completion of the assessed portfolio.

How is the programme assessed?

The programme is assessed by a portfolio bringing together reflections on a series of activities and experiences throughout the programme. These include observations of teaching, a practice-based case study and critical reflections on your practice with learners. The portfolio is mapped against the requirements for Associate Fellowship of HEA (AFHEA) including providing Authentication of your Practice (evidence of your teaching or support with learners). Alternative submission formats are possible following discussion with programme lead.