The Global Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. Alicja's work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
About Alicja
I am a hybrid academic, with a wiggly career path and years of exposure to different countries' educational systems, cultures, and ways of thinking. At the University of Plymouth, where I have worked since 2006, I combine the role of Learning Developer for the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business, with the roles of Lecturer in Education and Associate Lecturer in History. I use this bridging position to enhance student experience and reinforce the link between the academic and pedagogic missions of the university.
My most recent publication, a co-edited book How to Be a Learning Developer in Higher Education, maps out the field of Learning Development in UK HE while critically engaging with this academic practice. My forthcoming book explores the transformations in teaching after the pandemic.
My key external role is leading the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education.
I also co-host a podcast: The Learning Development Project
Supervised Research Degrees
Ed.D. in Education, second supervisor: ‘Conceptualising pupil voice – listening and hearing pupil experience(s)’
Ph.D. in Education, second supervisor: ‘How can informal education and intercultural competence development become more accessible to forcibly displaced people through social innovation and social entrepreneurship in Plymouth’
Ed.D. in Learning Development, External examiner: 'The framing and value of Learning Development work in British Higher Education: An illuminative evaluation of professional practice', University of Portsmouth
Teaching
As a Learning Developer, I focus on building students' academic confidence by helping them develop strong academic skills, including writing, presentation making, conducting research, and working collaboratively.
In my role as a Lecturer in Education, I teach on undergraduate modules and International EdD, as well as supervising BA, PhD and EdD students.
In my role as a History lecturer, I teach on a range of modules related to US and World History. I also supervise undergraduate dissertations.
Contact Alicja
Room 102, 3 Endsleigh Place, Drake Circus, Plymouth, PL4 8AA
+44 1752 585149
alicja.syska@plymouth.ac.uk
