As someone who teaches professional and personal development, I spend a great deal of time encouraging students to embrace lifelong learning, stretch their comfort zones and invest in their own growth.
Recently, I decided to practise what I preach. I enrolled at university. I expected to gain new knowledge and fresh perspectives. What I hadn’t anticipated was how out of touch I would be with what it felt like to be a student. There were new systems to navigate, and unfamiliar terminology and expectations to understand. Despite years working in higher education, I was unsure if I was looking in the right place for digital resources, interpreting a task correctly or contributing something worthwhile. It reminded me how institutional norms can feel when you do not have prior experience to draw upon and of the emotional labour that often sits behind student participation.
At the same time, I have found a real pleasure in not being the person facilitating the learning. Instead of leading activities, I am experiencing them. Instead of guiding discussion, I am contributing to it. It also reminds me about the importance of curiosity. In my work, I often encourage students to hold on to that curiosity because it is one of the qualities employers value most, according to the World Economic Forum’s The Future of Jobs Report 2025. Curiosity is not something we should lose as expertise grows; if anything, it becomes even more important.
- Teaching is a verb: what sets good teachers apart
- Embed career readiness throughout a student’s journey
- What future-proofing a course really means
I was also reminded about well-being from a learner’s perspective. This might not sound revolutionary, but spending a full day online brought back memories of Covid-era exhaustion and how tiring sustained remote learning can be. The course’s regular breaks and lunch hour proved instructive. I don’t think I had experienced this since I worked as a Saturday shop assistant, and the difference it made was notable. I returned to each session feeling more focused.
I also realised the value of mixing up learning experiences, including group case studies, quizzes and interactive drawing activities. I use these techniques in my own teaching to maintain student interest, but this experience has made me think more about the role of pace, breaks and variety of teaching in supporting learner well-being. It was clear that these help students remain engaged and reduce overwhelm.
The programme, which is delivered by the Graduate Futures Institute and hosted by the University of Warwick, is already shaping how I think about my own teaching for the coming academic year. I haven’t discovered any new secret to effective learning, but I am experiencing first-hand the impact of thoughtful, inclusive practice. The tutors have created a strong sense of community, acknowledged different starting points and made expectations clear. None of these approaches is groundbreaking, but each requires skill and effort on the part of the educator.
From the learner’s perspective, they feel powerful. I find myself taking notes on the teaching style, as much as the content of the programme. Some might call this reflective practice; others might call it borrowing colleagues’ best ideas.
Either way, it underlines that good teaching is less about having the answers and more about creating the conditions in which students feel empowered to learn. The experience also reinforces the importance of professional development for educators. While budgets are increasingly constrained, creating opportunities for teaching colleagues to continue learning remains vital. Making time for our own learning can enhance our compassion and empathy for students, while also improving our well-being and job satisfaction. In turn, this can improve our practice and the student experience.
Inclusive by design
Inclusive education principles have been embedded throughout the course by a process of design; the participants’ experience of inclusive practice supports them to apply similar approaches within their own roles and institutions. Inclusion doesn’t come from doing things that are complicated or technical as much as it does from thinking about needs that students might have. Often good inclusive practice is about taking the time to consider assumptions and cultural knowledge and communicate them explicitly, benefiting everyone, as established in universal design for learning.
The programme has inspired changes to my teaching plans, including redesigning sessions to provide students with more opportunities to shape discussions, ask questions and engage in ways that suit them. I will place greater emphasis on meeting students where they are. This might include opportunities for them to reflect on the kind of learner they are and how they can best benefit from learning activities, and what I can do as an educator to make each session valuable.
These early experiences of the programme raise the question of whether more academics could benefit from first-hand insight into the student learning experience. Conferences and disciplinary events remain invaluable, but they rarely recreate the emotional reality of being a student. If we want to understand student confidence, inclusivity, belonging and engagement, there is value in occasionally returning to the learners’ side of the classroom. Not because it provides all the answers, but because it reminds us of what it feels like to be a student again.
Marianne Savory is a lecturer and director of student experience and opportunities at Leeds University Business School. Beka Kimberley is a careers consultant at the University of Cambridge. Laura Oxley is a careers consultant at King’s College London. Afua Kudom is a careers consultant at University of London Careers Service. Beka, Laura and Afua are all educators with the Graduate Futures Institute.
If you would like advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the Campus newsletter.
comment