Enhancing learning and teaching through funded, in-house, learning and teaching projects: A report on a research project

In the current quality enhancement climate that dates back to Dearing (NCIHE, 1997), many universities are encouraging their staff to research into their own teaching practice, to innovate and to disseminate new ideas, strategies and resources to their peers, and many provide funding to support such work. This article is in two parts. The first explores the University of Hertfordshire’s (UH) use of in-house funds to support small-scale development projects that are designed to enhance the quality of learning and teaching. It reports research that sought to assess what ‘value-added’ effect such funded projects might have in terms of spread of use, longevity and impact. The second provides a perspective on this research from the Director of Academic Quality (Learning and Teaching).