A new and stronger perspective on good education is the promise of VU's new Students-As-Partners programme. After-hours discussions, co-determination, or having students create their own(s) education are just a few ways student involvement can contribute to better education. However, engaging students also has its challenges. How and where do you find the right students? How do you deal with rewards and the rapid turnover of students? How do you build the relationship between employee and student?
The VU Students-As-Partners program addresses these challenges and supports teachers and students to improve education together. By sharing experiences, establishing a vision and offering training, we strengthen the quality of education and contribute to student development.
Lessons learned
There are already some examples of initiatives through which experiences can be shared, such as A Broader Mind at VU Amsterdam, Springlab VU of the VU Faculty of Medicine and the Honours course Rebuilding Education. Students are already fully involved in these initiatives, with this collaboration going beyond teaching evaluations.
Getting started with Students as Partners?
Are you new to Students as Partners, or unsure whether you’re already engaging with it? More often than not, you might already have come a long way.
Within Students as Partners, various partnership roles between students and educational staff are distinguished and structured in a theoretical framework. These range from simply informing students, to full collaboration in a partnership where students and educational staff operate at the same level.1 So if you actively involve your students in the choices you make about education, you're already practicing Students as Partners!
Want to know more?
The Students as Partners-framework is laid down in a VU-structure. For each level or role, examples are available showcasing how VU colleagues have strenghtened their education. You can find information about the framework, the VU-structure, and inspiring practical examples here.
1. Healey, M., & Healey, R. L. (2019). Student engagement through partnership: A guide and Update to the advance HE framework (04).
