Symposium Keynote Speakers Announced

We are thrilled to announce our keynote speakers for this year’s Symposium. We are honoured to be joined by three international scholars. On Day 1, we welcome Dr Manja Klemenčič (Harvard University), who will speak about student agency, conceptually and with relevance for practice. Dr Klemenčič will bring her expertise on student agency and frames of socio-cultural and institutional expectations to engage in learning and teaching, as well as projects and governance, which will launch us well into the conference and into Day 2, where we will focus on institutional practice more broadly. On Day 2, we welcome Lovisa Håkansson and Dr Ulrike Schnaas (Uppsala University), who will introduce and examine Active Student Participation (ASP) as an institution-wide project and practice. Their session will be a mix between theory, practice, participation and discussion about the potential of ASP pedagogy to contribute to democratic sustainable futures at and beyond the university.

Register for the Symposium now: https://studentvoiceaustralia.com/2022-symposium

Article of interest

Adrian Cardinali (UNE) has raised some important questions about the barriers of student voice and representation in higher education from the last few decades of governmental changes and attitudes in ‘Student voices silenced: they need resources to speak out’, published in CMM this week. Read, think, discuss!

https://campusmorningmail.com.au/news/student-voices-silenced-they-need-resources-to-speak-out/?utm_source=sendgrid.com&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=website

We’re hiring!

Student Voice Australia are seeking a motivated student to provide administrative and communications support for our 2022 projects and events. Check out the role here: https://careers.adelaide.edu.au/cw/en/job/509943/project-support-officer and get in touch if you have any questions! Applications close 14 June. Good luck!

New Student Voice Toolkit!

We are thrilled to launch the new VET Student Representation Toolkit, developed by Holmesglen Institute, which has been specifically designed for enhancing student voice and establishing student representation in the VET context. Check out the Toolkit via our Reports, Tools & Publications page.

Student Partnership Agreement at UTS

UTS has begun work on a Student Partnership Agreement! There are some brilliant SPAs across Australia, and we are thrilled to see UTS undertaking this venture. Read about it here: https://www.uts.edu.au/current-students/news/student-partnership-agreement-enhance-student-experience

New resource: evaluation tool

The ‘Questions for evaluating a student voice or partnership project’ tool has been designed to consciously reflect on your practice with student partnership and voice projects. Use the questions to examine an existing project or when developing a new initiative, and, on reflection, consider the authenticity and agency of student engagement and participation.

Access the questions via the Resources, Tools & Publications page or via the above link.

Article of interest

‘Student voice in higher education: the importance of distinguishing student representation and student partnership’, by Kelly Matthews and Mollie Dollinger, presents a much needed discussion about the differences between student representatives and student partners and the importance of recognising how they can work together. If you’re a staff member, student rep, student partner - or both! - you will find this article an insightful, interesting and possibly even provoking read.

Matthews, K.E., Dollinger, M. Student voice in higher education: the importance of distinguishing student representation and student partnership. High Educ (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-022-00851-7

Date announced for first Students with Disability Leadership Collective

The first session has been scheduled for 8 June at 11:00am (ACST). Find our more and register your interest for the session here: https://studentvoiceaustralia.com/students-with-disability-leadership-collective

SVA Symposium and Student Summit

Both events are now open for registrations and abstract submissions. Visit the pages on our website (under ‘Symposia’) for information about both events and register your attendance via the links below:

Student Voice Summit: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/2022-student-voice-summit-tickets-325393880857

SVA National Symposium: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/student-voice-australia-national-symposium-2022-tickets-324552263557

Make sure you share the details with your colleagues!