Head of the Learning Development Centre
Aston University
e.l.pope@aston.ac.uk
0121 204 3097

I am the Head of the Learning Development Centre (LDC) at Aston University and have been involved with the Write Now CETL since 2006. The Learning Development Centre brings together experienced staff to provide coordinated academic development activities to help all students achieve their full potential. The LDC proactively works with staff and students to develop academic writing through the provision of workshops, tutorials and resources.

My role supports the work of the Write Now Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Aston University, and includes overseeing the highly successful Writing Mentor programme at Aston.

I have had the opportunity to get involved with some exciting projects, including the CETL supported project ‘In Their Own Words’, which aims to develop online resources that enable students to share their experiences of academic writing and their journey throughout the student lifecycle. The online resources are designed to help students better understand their approach to academic writing.

An additional project seeks to develop a holistic model of support that addresses plagiarism and improves the quality of academic writing amongst students at Aston University. This project explores how the formative use of Turnitin plagiarism prevention software and peer writing mentors can support learning.