Steve Rutherford
@cardiffrutherford.bsky.social
Professor of Bioscience Education, Cardiff University. National Teaching Fellow. PFHEA.
#LTHEchat Thanks everyone!! I really enjoyed the chat, and thank you @suebecks.bsky.social for the kind invitation to submit a blog. Love everyone's responses!! Thank you. Thanks also to Claire for her support before hand and manning the LTHEchat during this!!!
February 4, 2026 at 9:04 PM
#LTHEchat Thanks everyone!! I really enjoyed the chat, and thank you @suebecks.bsky.social for the kind invitation to submit a blog. Love everyone's responses!! Thank you. Thanks also to Claire for her support before hand and manning the LTHEchat during this!!!
#LTHEchat Thank you everyone for the wonderful replies and insights to the questions! Really inspiring to see people's underpinning thoughts that inclusion and partnershp are so important!
February 4, 2026 at 9:02 PM
#LTHEchat Thank you everyone for the wonderful replies and insights to the questions! Really inspiring to see people's underpinning thoughts that inclusion and partnershp are so important!
A6 #LTHEchat YEah that element of trust from above is a key, I agree. Often the lack of apparent trust is linked to a fear response of losing control, I think. But good communities are based on trust and the undestanding that life can be scary! :-)
February 4, 2026 at 8:59 PM
A6 #LTHEchat YEah that element of trust from above is a key, I agree. Often the lack of apparent trust is linked to a fear response of losing control, I think. But good communities are based on trust and the undestanding that life can be scary! :-)
#LTHEchat A6 That element of 'we are all learning here' is fundamental, I agree. It's not just about setting something up for 'other people' to engage with. Everyone needs to be a co-creator
February 4, 2026 at 8:58 PM
#LTHEchat A6 That element of 'we are all learning here' is fundamental, I agree. It's not just about setting something up for 'other people' to engage with. Everyone needs to be a co-creator
A^ #LTHEchat Thanks for this insight, Danielle (and I LOVE the cake analogy!). Yeah, there needs to be buy-in and energy, as well as resources (time and support) from the top. But also enthusiasm/buy-in from the bottom.Without that bottom-up engagement, the LC just becomes another imposed structure
February 4, 2026 at 8:56 PM
A^ #LTHEchat Thanks for this insight, Danielle (and I LOVE the cake analogy!). Yeah, there needs to be buy-in and energy, as well as resources (time and support) from the top. But also enthusiasm/buy-in from the bottom.Without that bottom-up engagement, the LC just becomes another imposed structure
A6 #LTHEchat Succinct and clear, thanks @nigelfrancis.bsky.social It needs to be from both directions, and the two sides of the interaction need to actively encourage engagement from the other side
February 4, 2026 at 8:54 PM
A6 #LTHEchat Succinct and clear, thanks @nigelfrancis.bsky.social It needs to be from both directions, and the two sides of the interaction need to actively encourage engagement from the other side
#LTHEchat A5 Absolutely!! There needs to be openness to innovation, and also a certain amount of courage to allow staff to take risks and be supported for those risks. Knowing someone will have your back if things don't quite work out is essential! (and often lacking, sadly)
February 4, 2026 at 8:53 PM
#LTHEchat A5 Absolutely!! There needs to be openness to innovation, and also a certain amount of courage to allow staff to take risks and be supported for those risks. Knowing someone will have your back if things don't quite work out is essential! (and often lacking, sadly)
#LTHEchat This is great. Authentic environments for the learning and/or assessment help build that sense of community within the discipline. :-)
February 4, 2026 at 8:51 PM
#LTHEchat This is great. Authentic environments for the learning and/or assessment help build that sense of community within the discipline. :-)
A5 #LTHEchat SOme great ideas, thanks. In research I have done, the academic environment is a key factor. If the learning activities encourage discussion, peer interaction, and openness then LCs thrive. Where there is no interactive activities in a pedagogy, LCs struggle, as they don't always form
February 4, 2026 at 8:50 PM
A5 #LTHEchat SOme great ideas, thanks. In research I have done, the academic environment is a key factor. If the learning activities encourage discussion, peer interaction, and openness then LCs thrive. Where there is no interactive activities in a pedagogy, LCs struggle, as they don't always form
A5 #LTHEchat This is an interesting idea. Slowly building the envirnment where students (and staff) perceive it as normal to engage in these kinds of interactions and dialogues. Once it becomes the norm, it is much more likely to be sustained
February 4, 2026 at 8:48 PM
A5 #LTHEchat This is an interesting idea. Slowly building the envirnment where students (and staff) perceive it as normal to engage in these kinds of interactions and dialogues. Once it becomes the norm, it is much more likely to be sustained
A5 #LTHEchat LOVE these so much!! Making them actually meaningful, and promoting discussion and thinking about the discipline as well as the person. Banal icebreakers can often have a negative effect!
February 4, 2026 at 8:47 PM
A5 #LTHEchat LOVE these so much!! Making them actually meaningful, and promoting discussion and thinking about the discipline as well as the person. Banal icebreakers can often have a negative effect!
#LTHEchat YEah, relinquishing that 'control' that we, as academics have (and often cling to), is a very important factor, but also quite a scary one. Especially in an environment of metrics and student satisfaction. How do we encourage and support this 'letting go' to provide the courage to do so
February 4, 2026 at 8:46 PM
#LTHEchat YEah, relinquishing that 'control' that we, as academics have (and often cling to), is a very important factor, but also quite a scary one. Especially in an environment of metrics and student satisfaction. How do we encourage and support this 'letting go' to provide the courage to do so
#LTHEchat A3 Love this perspective. The plurality of LCs in their forms and the people who are found within them is very important to maintain
February 4, 2026 at 8:44 PM
#LTHEchat A3 Love this perspective. The plurality of LCs in their forms and the people who are found within them is very important to maintain
#LTHEchat A5 This is a very challenging question. Any community or partnership lives or dies by the environment in which it is embedded. So how do we develop learning environments that support the idea of a LC, but also retain the learning gain that we, as experts, hopefully provide
February 4, 2026 at 8:42 PM
#LTHEchat A5 This is a very challenging question. Any community or partnership lives or dies by the environment in which it is embedded. So how do we develop learning environments that support the idea of a LC, but also retain the learning gain that we, as experts, hopefully provide
#LTHEchat A4 Really loving the ideas of 'ownership' of the LC by the very participants in the LC that are coming out from these posts. Awesome.
February 4, 2026 at 8:41 PM
#LTHEchat A4 Really loving the ideas of 'ownership' of the LC by the very participants in the LC that are coming out from these posts. Awesome.
#LTHEchat Creating that open 'safe space' is important. Encouraging all participants to share their ideas and perspectives without fear of judgement or ridicule. "No such thing as a stupid question" is an important rule to embed and a culture to encourage
February 4, 2026 at 8:40 PM
#LTHEchat Creating that open 'safe space' is important. Encouraging all participants to share their ideas and perspectives without fear of judgement or ridicule. "No such thing as a stupid question" is an important rule to embed and a culture to encourage
#LTHEchat Lovely point. LCs can have subcommunities within them. Provided that these are not exclusive or divisive. But helping people to find their own 'tribe' within that community is very useful
February 4, 2026 at 8:38 PM
#LTHEchat Lovely point. LCs can have subcommunities within them. Provided that these are not exclusive or divisive. But helping people to find their own 'tribe' within that community is very useful
A4 #LTHEchat LOVE this. Building the community according to the needs of the users and what THEY want. Especially with the students' side of the LC. What would most benefit them from this relationship? To know this we need to actually ASK THEM :-)
February 4, 2026 at 8:37 PM
A4 #LTHEchat LOVE this. Building the community according to the needs of the users and what THEY want. Especially with the students' side of the LC. What would most benefit them from this relationship? To know this we need to actually ASK THEM :-)
A4 #LTHEchat A key element of this has to be the language used. For example, I try to encourage people not to address emails/posts to students with "Dear Students", as this automaticall sets us a 'them-and-us' ambiance to the message.
February 4, 2026 at 8:35 PM
A4 #LTHEchat A key element of this has to be the language used. For example, I try to encourage people not to address emails/posts to students with "Dear Students", as this automaticall sets us a 'them-and-us' ambiance to the message.
A4 #LTHEchat Co-design is essential, yeah. Thanks for flagging that. Unforunately the co-design doesn't always happen, and what people brand as 'student engagement' is just "we did it then asked the students what they thought". Proper co-design, as you say, is MASSIVELY powerful for all involved!
February 4, 2026 at 8:34 PM
A4 #LTHEchat Co-design is essential, yeah. Thanks for flagging that. Unforunately the co-design doesn't always happen, and what people brand as 'student engagement' is just "we did it then asked the students what they thought". Proper co-design, as you say, is MASSIVELY powerful for all involved!