Higher education is witnessing an increased shift towards intensive block learning models. However, the success of these immersive models hinges not merely on temporal restructuring but on the deliberate cultivation of meaningful Student-Staff Partnerships. This blog examines how institutions can leverage partnership frameworks to maximise the pedagogical benefits of condensed delivery whilst navigating inherent structural challenges.
What is block curriculum and how does it differ from conventional delivery models?
Block learning represents a fundamental departure from traditional semester-based curricula. Rather than studying multiple subjects concurrently over extended periods, students engage with one subject at a time in compressed timeframes.
Examples from Australian HE
Victoria University's Block Model has demonstrated notable improvements in first-year pass rates and retention, particularly amongst equity cohorts, whilst Southern Cross University's transition to six-week blocks yielded elevated student satisfaction and progression. These studies reveal a critical insight: effectiveness correlates not with intensity per se, but with the degree to which students are 'deeply involved in shaping the learning experience'.
What is Student-Staff Partnership and how does it add value for staff and students?
Student-Staff Partnership (SSP) represents a fundamental re-conceptualisation of power dynamics within higher education, engaging learners as active collaborators in the design, delivery and evaluation of educational experiences.
For students, meaningful partnership enhances academic engagement, fosters deeper approaches to learning and cultivates metacognitive awareness. Most significantly, SSP enhances sense of belonging and institutional connectedness - factors consistently linked to retention and success.
For staff, partnership provides direct insights into student learning experiences, enabling responsive pedagogical decisions. Rather than relying on post-delivery evaluation surveys, ongoing partnership enables real-time adjustment.
How can we model SSP within block learning through a whole institutional approach?
The integration of SSP within block learning environments demands intentional structural design and institutional commitment. The Greater Manchester ‘Enabling Student-Staff Partnership’ Framework provides comprehensive institutional response to this challenge, grounded in six core principles: mutual respect, shared responsibility, reciprocity, inclusivity, transparency and empowerment (Nahar, 2025). Aligned with the TIRIAE agenda (Teaching Intensive, Research Informed, Assessment Enabled), the framework positions SSP as central to educational excellence rather than peripheral enhancement.
The framework's phased approach acknowledges temporal constraints whilst maintaining fidelity to partnership principles. Foundation building establishes partnership objectives and collaborative norms at each block's outset, followed by role clarification wherein specific structures - from small volunteer design teams to whole-cohort approaches - are defined with clear communication protocols. Critically, feedback pathways are established proactively, enabling formative insights to flow continuously rather than congregating at stressful summative endpoints. The accompanying Student-Staff Partnership Facilitation Framework (Nahar, 2025) operationalises these phases through actionable templates, facilitation guides and evaluation instruments adaptable to local contexts.
Addressing structural challenges requires recognising that condensed timetables limit developmental partnership work. The Greater Manchester model addresses this through pre-block preparation and integrated skill-building that distributes capacity development across academic cycles. Reflexive evaluation mechanisms ensure critical examination of who participates and whose voices are privileged, addressing research showing minoritised students may experience partnership differently.
Leading by example: the Greater Manchester Business School Students-as-Partners panel
Greater Manchester Business School (GMBS) exemplifies how institutional SSP frameworks translate into practice through its formal Students-as-Partners panel. Established following the Enabling Student-Staff Partnership Framework and guided by its principles, the panel enables student volunteers to engage meaningfully in curriculum transformation and change initiatives in partnership with staff, moving beyond tokenistic consultation towards genuine co-creation within intensive block teaching contexts.
The panel employs a multi-layered collaborative approach, working strategically with academic staff, quality assurance teams and senior management to ensure holistic partnership approach where diverse voices are represented. By embedding student voices at multiple organisational levels, from module teams to executive leadership, GMBS ensures partnership operates as institutional infrastructure rather than isolated initiative.
Critically, the panel approaches change through research and scholarship, conducting collaborative inquiries into learning and teaching practices that enhance both staff and student experiences. For instance, student panel members have co-researched and developed a research-informed evaluation approach for assessment and feedback practices within block curriculum to identify optimal assessment sequencing within five-week blocks, ensuring formative feedback on early tasks genuinely feeds forward to subsequent assessments. This method of partnership approaches yields dual benefits: students develop research capabilities and experience how learning is driven by good pedagogy and scholarship whilst staff gain evidence-based insights that inform pedagogical refinement, creating a virtuous cycle of continuous improvement grounded in authentic collaboration rather than assumption.
Creating space for meaningful partnership
The integration of Student-Staff Partnership frameworks within block learning represents essential infrastructure for sustainable intensive delivery. Implementing successful student staff partnership within condensed block learning environments demands advance micro phased planning, prioritisation of high impact tasks and careful resource planning that help dialogue exchanges to thrive. The Greater Manchester framework, exemplified through GMBS's Students-as-Partners panel, demonstrates that block models' transformative potential emerges not from intensive focus alone but from purposeful collaboration between multiple stakeholders. By embedding partnership principles throughout compressed cycles - through structured frameworks, multi-layered governance and research-informed practice - institutions can realise enhanced engagement, narrow equity gaps and cultivate graduate capabilities.
Ultimately, SSP within block learning reminds us that intensity should not mean inflexibility; rather, concentration creates space for meaningful partnership when institutions commit to treating students as democratic collaborators in shaping educational excellence.
Nurun Nahar is an Assistant Professor and leads on Student-Staff Partnership at the University of Greater Manchester. Nurun is also a Co-convenor of the RAISE Partnership Special Interest Group. Nurun’s research expertise sits on the intersection of technology enhanced learning and student-staff partnerships. You can find out more about her research on student staff partnerships by clicking here.