Call for Papers for Special Issue: Student Engagement and Partnership in Ireland

The All Ireland Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (AISHE-J) and the National Student Engagement Programme (NStEP) are delighted to announce a call for contributions to a Special Issue on ‘Student Engagement and Partnership in Ireland’. This is jointly edited by NStEP and AISHE and submissions will be reviewed by both academic experts and student reviewers. The Special Issue will be published February 2022.

We invite submissions from students and staff from across higher education with an interest in enhancing the role of students as decision-makers in the learning community. We encourage joint student-staff submissions and student papers.

Both student engagement in decision-making and the intertwined concept of students as partners, have become a core feature of enhancement activities across Irish higher education. Meaningful engagement with students as a core constituent of the learning community re-imagines the relationship between students and staff, providing opportunity to foster a deeper connection to the institution and opens up the possibility of co-creating change. However, developing an authentic vision of engagement that truly involves the student as an influential partner is challenging. This Special Issue provides an opportunity to gather practice, perspectives, and experiences of the process of engagement and partnership between students and staff. We welcome submissions that can provide an understanding of the challenges and enablers to authenticity in student engagement practices, policies, and processes, and would encourage students and staff to collaborate and co-author.

We are seeking:

1. Rapid Responses – short articles (1,000-2,000 words) that reflect on or critically consider current experiences of student engagement and partnership in Irish higher education.   We would welcome rapid responses co-authored by staff and students.
2. Full papers (no more than 5,000 words) that reflect on and critically consider key issues in student engagement and/or partnership within the context of Irish higher education and beyond. We are particularly interested in papers that explore the processes of student engagement and partnership practices.
3. Experiences – short pieces (500 – 1,000 words) – short reflective pieces that focus on experiences of student engagement in decision-making and fostering meaningful partnerships.

We welcome contributions that address any aspects of the following:

• Learning and teaching
• Assessment and feedback
• Student representation and peer-to-peer initiatives
• Governance and quality arrangements
• Institution-wide initiatives
• Discipline-specific issues
• Processes of engagement and partnership
• Models of partnership
• Values, concepts, and theories
• Future-focus and emerging trends
• Sustainability of practices
• The experiences of educators and students
• Diversity and inclusion in student engagement
• Tools to promote engagement and partnership
• Student engagement and partnership in a post COVID-19 world.

Early submissions: 30^th June 2021

Final submission: 30^th September 2021

Publication: 28th February 2022

Please submit via the journal website: https://ojs.aishe.org/index.php/aishe-j/about

We are particularly keen to hear from students!

Student expressions of interest

Before deciding to commit to writing a full submission, there is an opportunity to submit an expression of interest. AISHE and NStEP will then contact you to discuss the expression of interest and offer any advice on how best to get started and support you through the process. Just contact info AT aishe DOT org.

There will be further opportunities offered later in the year to support students who may wish to write a submission for the Special Issue. AISHE and NStEP will announce further details in due course, including opportunities for staff and student co-authors to explore how to achieve the most from your partnership.