June 2002/31
Issues paper

This report is for information only

Teaching and learning infrastructure in higher education

Report to the HEFCE by JM Consulting

This is a review of the requirements for infrastructure for teaching and learning in UK universities and colleges of higher education. It assesses the extent of remedial investment required, and sets out the conditions needed to manage this infrastructure on a sustainable basis. The report is primarily concerned with current needs, but looks at trends and developments and their implications for the infrastructure required to support them. It makes recommendations that need to be considered in the context of ones made in the related reports for research infrastructure.

Table of contents and introduction (read on-line)

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Contents

Executive summary and recommendations

1    Introduction
      1.1    Terms of reference
      1.2    The science report
      1.3    Study method
      1.4    Scope, definitions and terminology
      1.5    The report

2    Development of teaching and learning and its implications for infrastructure
      2.1    Introduction
      2.2    The size of the student population
      2.3    Types of student and implications for infrastructure
      2.4    The HE sector
      2.5    The funding of teaching
      2.6    Pedagogy (contact time, group sizes etc)
      2.7    Structure of the curriculum and the academic year
      2.8    Libraries and learning resources
      2.9    Information and communications technology
      2.10    Other support to teaching and learning
      2.11    Space utilisation
      2.12    Conclusion: teaching, learning and infrastructure

3    The teaching infrastructure
      3.1    Introduction
      3.2    The value, financing, and condition of the estate
      3.3    Capital funding of HE infrastructure
      3.4    Management of assets and infrastructure
      3.5    Categories of investment need
      3.6    Requirements: generic institutional infrastructure
      3.7    Requirements: the well-found teaching environment
      3.8    Requirements: advanced infrastructure
      3.9    In summary

Appendix A    Terms of reference, and list of individuals and organisations consulted

Glossary of terms

Introduction

1.    This report reviews the requirements for infrastructure for teaching and learning in UK universities and colleges of higher education. It assesses the extent of remedial investment required, and sets out the conditions needed to manage this infrastructure on a sustainable basis. The report is primarily concerned with current needs (2001-06), but also looks at current trends and developments and their likely implications for the infrastructure required to support them.

2.    These requirements for teaching and learning are part of a broader picture. It is a feature of UK higher education that teaching and research are conducted in the same institutions, often using some shared accommodation and facilities, and their infrastructure requirements are therefore closely inter-related. Therefore parallel reports on the infrastructure needs of research have been published.