1.1.3 Teaching Capability Framework
Enabling teaching excellence through academic development, recognition and evidence-informed practice aligned with contemporary higher education standards.
Purpose
This initiative establishes a university-wide Teaching Capability Framework that defines the capabilities required for contemporary teaching excellence at UOW.
The Framework will provide a shared foundation for academic development, recognition, promotion and educational practice—supporting teaching as a professional practice that evolves over time in response to changing student needs, emerging technologies and future workforce expectations.
By 2027, UOW will have an endorsed Teaching Capability Framework with clear pathways for academics to develop, demonstrate and be recognised for teaching capability across their careers.
Strategic alignment
| Strategic goal | Establish a Teaching Capability Framework to guide academic development, recognition and evidence-informed teaching practice aligned with contemporary higher education standards. |
|---|---|
| Measure of success | A university-wide Teaching Capability Framework established and launched, with initial integration into academic development and defined pathways for adoption across performance and promotion processes. |
Context
Educational excellence and student success are central to UOW’s strategic direction. Across the sector, there is increasing emphasis on teaching as a professional practice, with expectations for ongoing capability development, evidence-informed teaching and stronger alignment between teaching quality, recognition and career progression. At UOW, there is a significant opportunity to further strengthen how teaching capability is defined, developed and recognised through a more coordinated, institution-wide approach.
This initiative responds to:
- The need for a shared institutional understanding of teaching capability and excellence
- Opportunities to better connect professional learning, recognition and career progression
- Increasing expectations for high-quality, student-centred and future-focused teaching
- The impact of emerging technologies, including AI, on teaching and learning practice
- The importance of supporting continuous capability development across academic careers
Approach
The initiative will establish a university-wide Teaching Capability Framework that articulates the capabilities required for contemporary teaching excellence at UOW and provides a shared foundation for academic development, recognition and evidence-informed teaching practice.
The Framework will be developed through an iterative process of design, alignment, consultation, testing and refinement, ensuring it is informed by staff perspectives, institutional priorities, contemporary higher education standards and evolving sector expectations.
The initiative will be delivered through four interconnected pillars operating in parallel, ensuring the Framework is evidence-informed, contextually relevant and designed for institutional adoption.
- Define the core structure of the Teaching Capability Framework
- Establish capability domains, descriptors and developmental expectations
- Draw on sector benchmarking, institutional priorities and contemporary standards
- Create a shared language for teaching capability across roles and career stages
- Align the Framework to UOW strategic priorities and key initiatives
- Ensure consistency with relevant institutional frameworks and quality standards
- Connect the Framework to learning design principles, AI-enabled education and future-focused practice
- Position the Framework within broader academic development and teaching excellence activity
- Engage academic staff, students and professional staff in co-design and consultation
- Draw on student experience data, educator feedback and institutional evidence
- Test and refine the Framework through iterative validation
- Build institutional ownership, credibility and relevance
- Establish pathways for integration across academic development, recognition and promotion
- Align professional learning and teaching excellence initiatives to the Framework
- Develop guidance, tools and resources to support use in practice
- Enable progressive adoption across institutional processes
Indicative timeline & milestones
Mid
2026
Key activities
Initiative commencement and benchmarking
Key outputs
Initial capability domains and design principles
Late
2026
Key activities
Consultation and evidence gathering
Key outputs
Discovery and evidence report; draft framework architecture
Early
2027
Key activities
Framework refinement and alignment
Key outputs
Draft framework and capability pathways model
Mid
2027
Key activities
Validation and governance engagement
Key outputs
Consultation report; alignment mapping; resources developed
Late
2027
Key activities
Finalisation and endorsement
Key outputs
Framework endorsed; adoption roadmap and evaluation framework
Assistant
