Workshops
Boosting enrolment: How can we attract more students to the Faculty?
Chair: Amy Colman
This data-driven workshop aims to explore strategies to increase student enrolment and retention within the Arts Faculty. Participants will be presented with statistical data on past and current student registrations, retention rates, and enrolment flows so as to analyse key trends and challenges. Using this data, attendees will collaborate to develop actionable proposals and strategies to attract more students to the Faculty's programmes. The session will culminate in the development of recommendations for committees and/or working groups to further discuss and refine these proposals and strategies, ensuring sustained growth and ongoing engagement within the Faculty.
Programme logistics: How can we enhance our undergraduate offerings across the Faculty?
Chair: Keith Sciberras
This workshop will engage with the current structure of the undergraduate programmes. It will discuss issues that might require strengthening or be of concern. The topics will include individual weighting of study-units, percentage weighting of annual components, compulsory study-units, synoptics, dissertations, Erasmus mobility, and programme flexibility. Opportunities for interdisciplinary frameworks will be discussed and explored. The session will provide a platform for reflection on how programmes can engage with wider aspects of the Humanities, whilst at the same time concentrating on the specifics of the subject requirements.
Student belonging and identity: How can we promote more cohesion and a sense of Faculty identity across departmental cohorts?
Chair: Simone Azzopardi
This workshop aims to explore how the Faculty can actively foster a stronger sense of community and collaboration among Arts students across various departments. It seeks to identify the underlying factors that limit interdepartmental cohesion, and propose actionable steps to build a more unified and engaged student body. By identifying why students may feel siloed within their own disciplines, the workshop will generate concrete methods to promote collaboration and engagement. The discussion will consider input from students on what kinds of events, initiatives, or resources would help them connect across departments and develop a shared Faculty identity. The ultimate goal is to present a practical action plan that proposes events, projects, or structural adjustments that ensure sustained cross-departmental engagement, fostering a vibrant and cohesive student community within the Faculty of Arts.
AI in the Humanities: How can we promote positive AI use in teaching and assessment?
Chair: Marija Grech
The use of GenAI is becoming more ubiquitous in higher education, with universities around the world adopting a range of policies and guidelines to help regulate its use (access UM’s guidelines for staff). This workshop aims to explore what ‘positive’ or ‘safe’ uses of GenAI might look like in the context of a Humanities degree and to discuss some of the specific issues and concerns that arise in our respective disciplines. Participants will be encouraged to think about concrete ways in which GenAI can be used to enhance rather than to undermine critical thinking, creativity, and student engagement, and to propose possible strategies, resources, and/or structures that could be developed within the Faculty to help promote positive use amongst students.
