How to create a happy campus

Advice from all corners of higher education on how to make your university a better place to work and study

How to make a happy campus

They say that happiness is subjective, but after two years of teaching on Zoom, mandatory lock downs and isolation from the campus community, academics and university staff could be forgiven for wanting a little more of it in their lives. While the pandemic has pushed staff and student mental health and wellness higher up the agenda, most who work in the sector would attest that there is still a great deal to be done. From much-needed adjustments to research culture to the latest thinking around student welfare, this collection brings together practical tips and advice on how universities can create a more harmonious and enjoyable atmosphere on campus and online.

From struggle to strength: positive psychological growth through teaching and assessment

Kathleen Chim and Benjamin Chan offer practical advice on creating meaningful pedagogies, assignments and assessments that promote positive psychological growth in challenging times

Kathleen Chim, Benjamin Tak Yuen Chan

Hong Kong Metropolitan University

In the classroom

Freewriting is a useful exercise for university students to help cure writer's block

Focused freewriting is the cure for students’ writer’s block

Freewriting for five minutes warms up the brain and begins to fill students’ blank screens with material that gets their writing going. Anne Carlisle talks through the process

Anne Carlisle

Colorado State University Global

A group of university students arguing. We should teach students how to work together as a team

Why do we expect students to work well in groups if we don’t teach them how?

If we’re going to assign team projects, and if we really believe working well in a group is important, we must teach effective group processes, says Todd Zakrajsek

Todd Zakrajsek

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Two young women in eating sandwiches in park

How to facilitate the small changes in teaching that make a big difference

Through their podcast, Alastair Stark and Sebastian Kaempf champion the ‘sandwich conversations’ between colleagues that lead to impactful incremental shifts in teaching practice

Alastair Stark, Sebastian Kaempf

The University of Queensland

Getting students outdoors can be a huge boon for learning

Bringing learning to life: nine tips for teaching in outdoor places and spaces

David A. G. Clarke reflects on his experience of teaching in outdoor spaces and provides valuable tips on how to take higher education outside the classroom

David A. G. Clarke

The University of Edinburgh

Unmasking the scientist: breaking down anonymity to build relationships when teaching online

Simple solutions to link students’ names to faces and build a rapport with individuals in your class when teaching online, by Kelly Edmunds and Bethan Gulliver

Kelly Edmunds , Bethan Gulliver

University of East Anglia

Changes to research culture

University researchers are too critical of themselves and others

Researchers are too critical – we need to give ourselves (and others) a break

It doesn’t have to be like this. Critical thinking means looking for the evidence – that is evidence both for and against, says Hugh Kearns

Hugh Kearns

Flinders University

Being an early career researcher does not need to be lonely

Don’t believe the hype: being an ECR needn’t be a lonely existence

Finding ‘PhD pals’ in the same boat, but also learning to communicate your work effectively outside the research bubble, is crucial for ECRs, says Rebekah Ackroyd

Rebekah Ackroyd

University of Cumbria

Academics who practise what they preach will always be more effective in the classroom

Professors who ‘practise what they preach’ help humanise research management

There is a need in academia for professors to match teaching and research with professional practice – and be fairly compensated for it

James Meredith

Colorado State University Global

Mental health is becoming an increasingly important issue for higher education and universities

Three big mental health questions that academia must talk about

A reckoning with how we handle mental health in higher education is long overdue, says June Gruber

June Gruber

University of Colorado Boulder

The sector’s mental health workers need help too

More assistance must be offered to help students survive, let alone thrive – and the same goes for student crisis interventionists like me, says Lula Torres

Lula Torres

InsideTrack

Focus on students

Advice on helping students to form social bonds and join clubs and societies after two years of isolation

Building student social networks offline

Becky Lewis explains how to purposefully encourage and support students in forming social bonds and groups after two years of remote learning, isolated from their peers and lecturers

Becky Lewis

University of East Anglia

Advice on applying user experience thinking to enhancing your student services in teaching and on campus

Are you optimising the user experience for your students?

Kevin Curtis provides an introduction to simple user experience (UX) techniques that can help when considering how students and staff engage with higher education services and their campus surroundings

Kevin Curtis

The University of Portsmouth

Advice on handling individuals' names with respect to create an inclusive learning environment

Say my name: the importance of correct terms, titles and pronunciation

Jane Bryan shares lessons in handling people’s names with respect and sensitivity, ensuring correct use and pronunciation to boost feelings of belonging within institutions

Jane Bryan

The University of Warwick

Advice and tips for creating a happy campus at university for staff and students

A pedagogy of kindness: the cornerstone for student learning and wellness

Fiona Rawle outlines a pedagogy founded on human connection, care and compassion that improves student learning outcomes

Fiona Rawle

University of Toronto Mississauga

I took an alternative route to academic success – and I’m happier than ever

I ignored senior management and marketing departments and experimented with making my work more accessible and interesting – it paid off, says Jonathan Wilson

Jonathan Wilson

Regent's University London

Practical wellness advice

The stress continuum is a traffic light system that might help university staff and students discuss well-being

Conversations around stress must move beyond ‘I’m fine, how are you?’

Sara Metz offers practical advice on adopting the ‘stress continuum’ – a shared language and system to help staff and students reflect upon and discuss their well-being

Sara Metz

Colorado State University Global

Yellow paper figure surrounded by headlines about health and money anxieties, Covid uncertainty

How educators can help manage Covid anxieties on campus

Simple strategies can allow teachers to connect more deeply with students and help prepare them for stressful professional environments

Michael Ellwood

The University of Queensland

Advice on using a free online mindfulness programme to support student well-being

How to foster student well-being with online mindfulness training

Adam Kay explains how educators can effectively use an innovative, freely available, and research-backed online mindfulness programme for student well-being

Adam Kay

The University of Queensland

Wellness is a larger part of higher education now than ever before but there is more to do

Beware the futility of higher education’s wellness theatre

Surface-level emphasis on self-care without discussing systemic problems in HE runs the risk of gaslighting students who face very real barriers, says Fiona Rawle

Fiona Rawle

University of Toronto Mississauga

Zoom meetings don’t have to be quite so painful

Simple actions can help avoid common pitfalls in the design and execution of online team meetings, say Rob Angell and Ben Marder

Rob Angell, Ben Marder

University of Southampton, The University of Edinburgh