In this extra post, Sabina Savadova shows how she created a practical and confidence‑building study skills mini-course for students of the BA Childhood Practice programme, which is part of the widening participation strategy at the University of Edinburgh. Sabina is a Teaching Fellow in Childhood Studies and Practice at Moray House School of Education and Sport.
Establishing the need for a study skills mini course
Early Years Practitioners from non-traditional backgrounds join the BA Childhood Practice programme (BACP) to enhance their leadership roles, aligning with Scottish Government policy aimed at upskilling the Early Years workforce (Scottish Government, N.D.). Supporting these students’ to develop study skills on this programme reflects the University of Edinburgh’s Skills for Success framework, which includes fostering lifelong learning and developing skills in research and inquiry through ethical engagement (University of Edinburgh, 2023). Therefore, there was a need to make this targeted support practical, inclusive and future‑focused.
Piloting an in-person mini-course
I piloted a mini-course comprised of ten sessions, which included skill development on:
- critical reading and thinking,
- building an argument,
- referencing,
- preparing posters and presentations.
To reduce timetable pressure, I delivered short, 20‑minute, in‑person sessions at the start of Year 2 and 3 classes, and embedded examples from their assignments into the content.
The tone of the sessions was practical: the materials also included checklists, worked examples, and a “now what?” slide to turn tips into action. Early feedback was encouraging, with one student noting that the presentations were:
“informative and with straight, clear examples. I love the ‘now what’ and to improve your study skills as it shows how to improve in the future.”
Building a community
To foster a learning community, I also established a Teams channel for study skills, encouraging students to share resources and engage in knowledge building (Northedge, 2003). This also allowed students to share their questions and comments with me and their peers, fostering the development of a learning community (Wenger, 1999). While this channel facilitated some peer exchange and was appreciated by the students in their feedback, it did not become as interactive as anticipated. I believe this was mostly due to students being busy, working professionals and already having an established informal group on WhatsApp.
The lesson I learned here was that I needed to meet students where they already were in their peer support. A lighter‑touch Teams hub, which included clear signposting and timely reminders, could complement rather than replace their existing peer network.
Moving the course online
After the pilot phase, students asked for a standalone, structured offer that could be available at the start of the programme and accessible on demand before assignments. With support from IT services at Moray House, I turned the mini‑course into short, voice‑over presentations with downloadable templates, annotated exemplars, and links to simple digital tools (for example, citation managers, poster layouts). Alongside the presentations, a newly developed handbook was produced, compiling written narratives of each presentation into one accessible document. As one student commented:
“Study skills sessions are interesting, and I’m glad they are online to revisit, as they will be valuable.”
We embedded the modules in our main course page and flagged them in course handbooks and during welcome weeks. This asynchronous offering respected varied schedules and allowed students to use them as they liked in their academic journeys.
Evaluating the project
Developing strong academic literacy enhances student success (Gettinger & Seibert, 2002). The positive student feedback about the study sessions highlighted the significance of introducing these sessions at the beginning of the programme separately, in order to better equip students to meet academic demands. As Principal Investigator on a Student Experience Grant project, I worked with colleagues and two research assistants to run online surveys and focus groups to gather student feedback on the pilot project. Most students reported high satisfaction and confidence. For example, one student said in the online survey:
“There are so many skills that I didn’t have before starting the course. The study skills class helped develop the skills, e.g. referencing and good academic practice to allow me to build upon them.”
What’s next
Moving forward, our programme team plan to introduce the online mini‑course during induction, build in short live Q&A sessions at key points in the semester, and partner with wider university colleagues for targeted support. Longer‑term, we are exploring student‑led workshops where BACP students share study hacks with each other that work in busy professional lives.
References
Gettinger, M., & Seibert, J. K. (2002). Contributions of study skills to academic competence. School Psychology Review, 31(3), 350-365.
Northedge, A. (2003). Rethinking teaching in the context of diversity. Teaching in Higher Education, 8(1), 17-32.
Scottish Government. (N.D.). Retrieved 15 February from https://www.gov.scot/policies/early-education-and-care/early-years-workforce/
University of Edinburgh. (2023). Widening Participation Strategy 2030. https://www.ed.ac.uk/sites/default/files/atoms/files/widening_participation_strategy_2030_a4_web.pdf
Wenger, E. (1999). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge University Press.
Sabina Savadova
Dr Sabina Savadova is a Teaching Fellow in Childhood Studies and Practice and Academic Cohort Lead for BA Childhood Practice Programme at Moray House School of Education and Sport. She is passionate about co-creating peer support network within the BACP programme. Her research focuses on very young children and digital media, including areas such as parental mediation, children’s digital rights, educational technologies, and online child safety.
