Putting it all together: lessons from collaborative practice [A-064] Home : ALT Annual Conference 2019

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Wed, Sep 4 2019, 11:00am – 12:00pm

Authors: Jean Duckworth, Hazel Partington, and Kevan Williams

Room: Room 2.11

Theme: Wildcard

Type: Research/practice (20mins)

Description

Session Description

A myriad of changes are taking place within UK Higher Education. These are, in part, driven by political, social, economic and technological factors. This presentation focuses upon technological change and explains how one course team, made up of learning technologists and academics, within a large UK university, use digital technology to create a dynamic, creative learning curriculum for e-learners. Since starting the delivery of courses using e-learn in 2006 the course team have collaborated and developed a relational approach to learning which is underpinned by a combination of digital technologies. Whilst the application of digital technology to support learning increases accessibility and flexibility for students, it also raises issues including: Lack of information, limited ICT expertise amongst learners, insufficient or unreliable internet access, equipment failure, software compatibility, and staff confidence in digital education.

Often little attention is paid to the development of skills (both student and staff), and on how to choose and use the available tools to support a cohesive and integrated curriculum within e-learning, and there is an expectation that staff and students can simply transfer an on-campus style of curriculum design and delivery to Technology Enhanced E-Learning. This, we believe, is not the case. Of note, and interest to conference participants will be the course team’s reflections on their decision making around the use of, and integration of Blackboard, Adobe Connect, Sway, Forms and Teams. The course team will present their experience of the features of the software used and module delivery that render digital teaching an attractive option to students, academics and institutions. We will offer an account of our underpinning pedagogy and how the team have chosen to layer digital technologies to support the student experience. In particular, an example of a recent development will be presented showing how our induction strategy makes use of Sway, Adobe Connect, Skype and Outlook to help orientate students to the virtual landscape, provide them with opportunities for socialisation and help them to build confidence in themselves as e-learners.

Contrary to popular belief, done well, digitally mediated learning can offer enhanced connectivity, personalised teaching, accessibility and inclusivity. The presentation will cover aspects from online induction through module delivery to the feedback received from students.

By attending this presentation, participants may be able to reflect on aspects of course design and delivery relevant to their own institutions or courses.