Learning and Teaching
Why use ASCEND?
What is ASCEND?
ASCEND is an online resource to help you understand how well you are engaging with your studies. It provides a picture of how often you engage with your studies on an individual level as well as an indication of how this compares to other students on your course.
It is really important that at the end of your studies you have developed subject knowledge as well as the skills and competencies recruiters are looking for and ASCEND helps you do this.
It is designed to be used in two ways:
- A resource to reflect on the way you engage with your studies e.g. see how well you use certain resources, could you be spending more time accessing the library etc.
- A resource to aid discussions with your personal tutor, teaching staff and other support services as they support you through your studies.
ASCEND measures your engagement in various ways including:
- Library use
- E-resource usage
- Coursework submission
- Moodle activity
This data is then calculated by ASCEND to provide your engagement rating, which could be one of six: High, Good, Partial, Low, Very Low, None
The engagement ratings are designed to offer some feedback about your patterns of engagement over time to help guide your own activity with your studies. They are never used as part of the assessment process. It is important to note that your engagement rating is not the only indicator but is a helpful tool to be used in association with other sources of data e.g. grades, attendance, feedback from tutors and peers.
Your individual engagement is plotted on a graph to show your engagement pattern which can be mapped against others in your year and on your course. The engagement rating is calculated every night, so the information is as recent as the previous day’s activities. This means you don’t have to wait for assessment results to get an idea of how well you are engaging.
Why should I use ASCEND?
Your engagement is a strong predictor of what you may achieve and how likely you are to progress.
Evidence from another institution using this system showed that in 2016/17 95% of students with High engagement progressed to their second year, as opposed to less than 16% of students with Very Low engagement.
How can I use ASCEND?
There is a range of information that you can explore in the different sections:
Engagement Your engagement graphs and ratings
Profile - Key information about you and how to contact your tutor
Interactions - Actions that have taken place with your tutor, or through referrals to student support services
Resources - A breakdown of the individual resources you have used.
When should I use ASCEND?
It is best to start logging in from now and then as often as will help you but at least regularly throughout the year. Experience from other universities shows that first year students who regularly login in to ASCEND are more likely to progress to their second year of study.
The diagram below gives some pointers on what to look for and think about whilst using ASCEND