Qualitatively different ways of experiencing Higher Education Teaching Excellence : A phenomenographic enquiry into the conceptions of teaching practitioners of their experiences of higher education teaching excellence within College-Based Higher Education

Swift, Roshani (rosh) and Saunders, Murray (2021) Qualitatively different ways of experiencing Higher Education Teaching Excellence : A phenomenographic enquiry into the conceptions of teaching practitioners of their experiences of higher education teaching excellence within College-Based Higher Education. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

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Abstract

This thesis uses a phenomenographic research approach to find out the different ways in which teaching practitioners from College Based Higher Education (CBHE) understood their experiences of what they considered to be Higher Education (HE) teaching excellence. The research outcomes contribute to existing literature on HE teaching excellence and policy developments within the Teaching Excellence Framework by providing insights into how CBHE teaching excellence is understood by those most involved in the delivery of CBHE pedagogic practices. Methodologically, this research extends the phenomenographic approach to CBHE pedagogic practices contexts. The research outcomes were informed by data from structured interviews involving a heterogenous group of 30 teaching practitioners. Data analysis provided a hierarchically-inclusive outcome space illustrating four categories of description representing the qualitatively different ways in which these teaching practitioners understood their experiences of CBHE teaching excellence. These categories were also evaluated against two key research perspectives on HE teaching excellence to assess the extent to which they aligned with and/or built upon these perspectives. Exploring the understandings of such practitioners was important because they occupy central roles within CBHE teaching practices and contribute significantly to institutional enhancement of HE pedagogy.