Charting the evolution of the Student Digital Champions at the University of Plymouth

Abstract

The University of Plymouth Digital Education department supports staff and student partnerships through the employment of a team of student workers who act as Student Digital Champions. It has been recognized widely that students can make valuable contributions to the development of their peers and the digital capabilities of staff by sharing their experiences and running sessions related to the use of digital technologies. Working collaboratively, this student initiative facilitates the strategic goals of the University around 'content capture' and the development of the 'student voice,’ by drawing upon those valuable experiences of existing students to provision peer support.

Within the SDC programme, the student workers act as advocates for the development of their peers' digital skills, as well as informing Digital Education on how to optimize emerging technologies and digital trends for greater student engagement. These include activities such as making suggestions for technology use and purchases related to teaching and learning, facilitating technology training sessions, alongside a commitment of staff and resource support within a range of schools.

With its physical presence based primarily in the University library and Student Services Hub, the SDC program has grown to support over 100 student face-to-face interactions in January alone of this year. It has also been complimented by the development of an online equivalent scheme, project managed by experienced Student Digital Champions. The face-to-face drop-in support combined with the digital space makes the SDC service accessible across the student community at Plymouth.

Two of the SDC’s who have been with the programme since its inception, remaining with the institution as postgraduates, have this year have had their responsibilities expanded and been titled as Senior Student Digital Champions. This has allowed some transfer of responsibility from the staff team and enabled the digital space development project to self-manage within the SDC team. These additional responsibilities have also included the coordination of tasks for the newer team members and the provision of facilitation training, to enable the newer SDCs to make the most out of their roles.

This interactive session charted the journey of the Student Digital Champion programme from its beginnings in 2020, during the COVID pandemic, up until its recent expansions.