Teaching-focused staff contribute to REF results too
But are often overlooked in celebrations of research excellence
The paperwork was done months ago, the impact statements carefully drafted and edited until they perfectly summarise the stellar work done by research teams across the country. Now the results of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) are out, and the cogs of the university PR machines are whirring with their self-congratulatory articles, tweets and social media posts. Behind the scenes emails are circulating around departmental and faculty mailing lists quoting REF positions and other vital statistics.
Reading these, you might think that it’s only research-focused academics whose work contributes to REF results. Occasionally there’s a mention of the army of research support staff. But there are some people who never have that spot in the limelight. They are the teaching and scholarship-focused lecturers, and all this world class research wouldn’t be possible without this often overlooked group of staff.
Teaching-focused lecturers go by many names: university teachers, teaching fellows, lecturer (education focused). Undergraduate education is the focus of their work and they often do the heavy lifting of teaching core modules to large classes in the first few years of degree programmes. These core education activities tend to carry large administrative burdens, from recording attendance to delivering different types of teaching activities, which are not always compatible with running research groups.