Research into teaching

Our current major research focus is on the LSE PhD experience, particularly on students seen to be potentially at risk of withdrawing/ not completing, and on students taking more than four years' full-time study to complete. To date, we have:

• analysed a student survey of PhD debt;
  
  
• undertaken a comprehensive analysis of research into UK PhDs;
  
  
• undertaken a detailed analysis of documentary evidence on procedures in departments;
  
  
• started a series of interviews with PhD students; and
  
  
• planned interviews with research student tutors, supervisors and others involved in PhD support.

Findings from the study are already informing the training provided to new PhD supervisors. We plan to build on this work further and produce good practice guides, which will draw on interesting developments both internally and externally.

Future plans may include:

• involvement (in collaboration with a data analyst working in the Teaching Quality Assurance and Review Office) in analysing student drop-out/ exam failure at undergraduate and MSc levels;
  
  
• development of a longitudinal and/ or cross-sectional study of factors involved in student success/ failure (here, we anticipate developing a study that explores the relative weighting of 'extrinsic' or 'pre-entry' factors (eg prior grades, age, gender, English language proficiency, financial situation), 'process factors' (ie courses chosen, department, possibly some teaching elements including online course support) and 'intrinsic' factors (following on from the work of Trigwell and others on the impact of students' self-perceptions of their ability to succeed, motivation and approach to learning)); and
  
  
• where appropriate, collaborative work/ support of action research on specific issues within departments (eg impact of online learning on student performance; effectiveness, from a student perspective, of different approaches to provision of feedback on assessed work; impact of changes in assessment practices on student learning).

For further information on our research strand please contact Dr Gita Subrahmanyam on ext 6079.

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