University of Gloucestershire has developed an innovative blueprint to set quality standards in sustainability learning and empower students to influence their education and build their professional skills.
The University-led project – funded by the UK Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) – is enabling students to ask important questions about the authenticity and depth of sustainability learning at their university, and drive high-quality Education for Sustainability (EfS) into mainstream university courses.
In partnership with King’s College London and University of the Arts London, the cutting-edge project drew on best practice and an Education for Sustainability assessment approach developed at the University, that can be applied to courses across the UK Higher Education (HE) sector.
Students played dynamic roles as co-producers in the project team, with over 130 students acting as quality assessors and rating their courses, using an online speed-training and then creating an ‘anti-greenwash education kit’. The kit was inspired by the feedback from student assessors, national student quality advisers, and recommendations from a student-led review of EfS development in higher education through the eyes of the learner.
The digital resource equips students with simple principles to appraise the quality of EfS in their courses, and also enables academic teams to benchmark their course innovations to reflect best practice in EfS and the priorities of students.
- Visit the project website – with details of the project’s quality principles and course rating criteria, project findings, and short film clips from the project partners.
- Explore the Anti-greenwash Education kit – a speed-learning tool with short films, explanations and examples.
- Watch the project webinar hosted by QAA
- Read the WonkHE blog
.We’re excited that this project is starting a new dialogue, to trigger a step change in how we advance quality sustainability learning across higher education.
The project’s principles are based on new practice developed at University of Gloucestershire, where we are integrating a quality-led learning strategy for sustainability, and giving the students to power to challenge and rate their sustainability learning right across the portfolio.
This is no longer a niche issue but central to where the education of the future has to go. Our student collaborators have helped spotlight what matters most to them – to build their professional skills in sustainability and maximise the impact they can have as graduates leading this change
EfS is the most significant way universities can change the world for the better. We need all students, in all courses, to get this learning, and we don’t want to see the sector slide into curriculum greenwash.
This project has been inspiring – being part of educational change at a university where students are intrinsically involved as part of our commitment to dynamic education for a sustainable future.
This University of Gloucestershire-led project was funded by QAA in its Collaborative Enhancement Projects cycle 2021-2023.