School of Education at Bath Spa. Higher Education Practice and Educational Development. Mathematical physicist (retired), life long learner, water baby! SFHEA, FSEDA, SEDA PDF Vice-Chairhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mr63ye2iac24 [contains quote post or other embedded content]21 Jul 2026 15:15 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mr63ye2iac24https://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mr5dchmspk2hThat’s a research project at doctoral level, not a PhD. [contains quote post or other embedded content]21 Jul 2026 07:53 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mr5dchmspk2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqzok7eats2oHMRC badly need a very simple version of self assessment for people without complications just wishing to declare additional untaxed income, with no claiming anything back/complications etc. Every year all I really want to tell them is one number - outside my PAYE I’ve earned £X untaxed. [contains quote post or other embedded content]19 Jul 2026 21:03 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqzok7eats2ohttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqu4d63qnk24Chatting authentic assessment today at School Dev day and the topic of definitions/what people mean came up, with some of the different understandings present around the room. Most of these are all different answers to authentic to what?17 Jul 2026 15:54 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqu4d63qnk24https://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqp4h3tyud2tThe Do’s and Don’ts of SoTL Research Ethics. Infographic created by various contributors (below) and presented at the recent SEDA SoTL-CoP meeting: Beckingham, S., Dean, C., de Blacquiere-Clarkson, R., Fedoruk, L., Gormley, C., Potter, J. and Smith, E. E. (2026) https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.2117630615 Jul 2026 16:13 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqp4h3tyud2thttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqp3gboxjs2tI've just finished an external examiner post, after year extension, and through changes/reaccreditation. Its a strange end of era feel when they finish, a relationship with a place after a long time, feeling a part of things and working with the people too. So many people working hard!15 Jul 2026 15:54 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqp3gboxjs2thttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqp2yfujyk2tVenice (I love water) Bologna (food! + atmosphere and uni town) Paris (naturally) Bath (beauty, chilled, cultural, my home I feel relaxed returning to) London (melting pot of history, people, pros, cons, raw, global mega city, 1000 villages merged, my original home) Non-city: various islands/coasts [contains quote post or other embedded content]15 Jul 2026 15:47 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqp2yfujyk2thttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqms2vbvf22mI came from a numerical ref background, moving to education took a while to get used to name/date. Then more to appreciate some why, and the need to know at the very time reading what/who is cited is more relevant. But ouch looks bad with over citing… Colour for citations helps though for me. [contains quote post or other embedded content]14 Jul 2026 18:02 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqms2vbvf22mhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqjtt7oyi22cSeveral things stuck from early lifeguard training (pool, others will give further open water advice): * Drowning often doesn't look like what you think it does * Diving in as a lifeguard is not the first thing to do * In panic, those drowning often try to grab/climb on you and can pull you down. [contains quote post or other embedded content]13 Jul 2026 13:55 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqjtt7oyi22chttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqjokiyjxs2rWe've just launched the first edition of our university in house L&T journal: Learning Innovations: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/projects/teaching-expertise-guide/learning-innovation/ This is aimed at providing an in house, peer reviewed but externally facing/shared, opportunity for publications on Scholarship of Learning and Teaching.13 Jul 2026 12:21 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqjokiyjxs2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mqcilrdnvs22Blast from the study past. Though I always felt the library of all places ought to have been central and on the lake in or near the crashed starship enterprise effort. [contains quote post or other embedded content]10 Jul 2026 15:46 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mqcilrdnvs22https://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq7adol52c2yWhilst the NSS is naturally imperfect, measures/targets debates etc etc, with what it is, to get the levels of results now showing for the sector is quite something really. You wouldn't guess from public debate or gov 'policy'... = about a made-up HE. https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/data-and-analysis/national-student-survey-data/provider-level-dashboard/09 Jul 2026 08:40 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq7adol52c2yhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq5kkx5pnc2qThis type of thing is happening a lot now. MS have clearly done something (smells 'chuck genAI at everything') to their spelling/grammar checkers and keeps going haywire. I also get spelling corrections trying to change it to a) something wrong but also b) to erm how it's already written... [contains quote post or other embedded content]08 Jul 2026 16:38 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq5kkx5pnc2qhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq4n3667zk2yFunnily enough, if the outcome was 25 institutions that *didn’t* include Birmingham I’m sure they’d not be happy about it… See also cuts as “too many uni’s” - no not that one! “Too many students at uni” - no I didn’t mean my kids! Etc etc [contains quote post or other embedded content]08 Jul 2026 07:50 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq4n3667zk2yhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq4l3is4n22aSomething noticed in discussions on AI at yesterday’s symposium: there feels like a gap opening up. We hear about how latest models do xyz, some more qual shifts like agentic. But… Most of the conversations and issues being discussed re AI in HE seem pretty much the same as two years ago…08 Jul 2026 07:14 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq4l3is4n22ahttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq2dptkvjs2cFinal discussion on risks and challenges loos at issues for creative students (amongst others) How do they enter and fit in a world with vast amounts of low quality “creative” slop output? Our model of assessing outputs as linked to author, effort and learning under threat, so… [contains quote post or other embedded content]07 Jul 2026 09:57 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq2dptkvjs2chttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq2bposj7k2cNext up, v2 of a PGCHE project looking at a local AI trained on course materials. Good statement of the issue: Students want quick help Lecturers want genuine learning ChatGPT gave “confident” responses (Confident not meaning right as we know from well this decade…) [contains quote post or other embedded content]07 Jul 2026 09:21 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq2bposj7k2chttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mq2a2qajrc2gAt our annual learning and teaching symposium today at Bath Spa for a day with colleagues and hearing some new insights and examples of practice. Coinciding with the launch of our in house journal, Learning Innovations. 40 talks, videos and poster coming up…07 Jul 2026 08:52 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mq2a2qajrc2ghttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mpq3lwt4ik2cThis is a 25 year long battle in my head for which of these is the coolest. Noether tips it as favourite (and as the cherry on top of the whole lagrangian mechanics “holy mathematics Batman” moment). It is with sadness I realise the vast majority of people will never know them… [contains quote post or other embedded content]03 Jul 2026 08:05 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpq3lwt4ik2chttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mplbbvozgk2fLatest SEDA blog on showing 'bad' teaching. It can be an important part of demonstrating-teaching in many subjects to ensure you don't just say what you are doing/to do, but also find ways to look at what you do not, chose not to do. https://thesedablog.wordpress.com/2026/07/01/lets-be-bad-%F0%9F%98%88/01 Jul 2026 10:04 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mplbbvozgk2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mpiwvjmndc2qAttendance/engagement issue is multi-faceted, all of the usual noted factors necessary to consider, *but* not sufficient (eg cost of living, covid etc, definitely there, but not enough explanation). This aspect, around effort, aligns with some discussions and experiences, seems worth exploring more [contains quote post or other embedded content]30 Jun 2026 11:52 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpiwvjmndc2qhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mpinx6gd322qIt would be interesting to see a live map showing the cold spots for HE in subject areas. Ideally using those maps that use travel time instead of distance. Data on the population excluded (from local/live at home study) might be relevant too.30 Jun 2026 09:12 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpinx6gd322qhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mpfzrsa54c2t143 emails from my week away - that must be a record low. I congratulate colleagues for taking it chill in the heatwave!29 Jun 2026 08:06 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mpfzrsa54c2thttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3modoum66e22gImposter syndrome? [contains quote post or other embedded content]15 Jun 2026 16:20 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3modoum66e22ghttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mnzhw4f3tk2hThe Student Academic Experience Survey (2026) is now out (HEPI/AHE), with a few trends getting early comment, including the value for money one (spoiler alert: 13 year high point). Aside from the headlines there are usually some random sections worth scanning. https://www.hepi.ac.uk/reports/the-student-academic-experience-survey-2026/11 Jun 2026 14:49 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mnzhw4f3tk2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mnyy4cjsec2sMet no one with even the vaguest clue what's happening, largely thinking this is just a normal public sector squeeze. The point people realise, as with all things like this (NHS too) will be way past the point things broke and take a lot more than a small step back to fix. [contains quote post or other embedded content]11 Jun 2026 10:06 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mnyy4cjsec2shttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mnxejlnvbc2eTopical given the recent #uksotlalliance meeting. Scholarship takes many forms and we also need to expand to new ones. [contains quote post or other embedded content]10 Jun 2026 18:43 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mnxejlnvbc2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/gilesdrmartin.bsky.social/post/3mnulanrnhc2pThis is like a team-up of my early/mid 00s memories: chatting on the Bad Science forum by day, watching Buffy/repeats by evening (some PhD research done at some point). (and that's now my local supermarket...) [contains quote post or other embedded content]09 Jun 2026 16:05 +0000at://did:plc:f32o7b4awpit7kede6yg57ed/app.bsky.feed.post/3mnulanrnhc2p