FET5601 Learning Design for Flexible Contexts

The article by Achtemeier, Morris and Finnegan (2003)  focusses on the literature relating to current best practice for teaching within an online context. As the authors note, because of technological advances, online learning is becoming more and more popular as institutions attempt to maximise resources.

The evaluation of courses is something that is of concern to me and one that, in my experience, I have found difficult to gauge. Previously I have used online questionaires to gauge course effectiveness and success however I believe that a facilitator needs to put certain processes in place in order to ensure that the online environment meets the needs of the students. However, this article is more about the design of evaluation instruments in the online environment.

I found the Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education to be a good guide to best practice in teaching and learning online.

• Encourage student-faculty contact
• Encourage co-operationg among students
• Encourage active learning
• Give prompt feedback
• Emphasize time on task
• Communicate high expectations, and
• Respect diverse talents and ways of learning

( American Association of Higher Education, 1987 as cited in Achtemeier, Morris and Finnegan 2003)

The authors outline examples of a eCore evaluation instrucment (their evaluation questions) based on the above principles and questions focus on giving prompt and effective feedback, course goals and objectives, the page layout and the standards for evaluation.

The authors research found that there was gaps between the “guidelines suggested for effective teaching and learning and the principles that were evaluated by the end of course evaluation instruments” (Achtemeier, Morris, Finnegan 2003)

Learning design is primarily about creating guideposts, not describing how to walk on a particular path. It is a mistaken assumption that design can create learning. The best that a well designed course, workshop, or work-integrated learning resource can offer is the climate in which a learner can choose to learn. (Siemens, 2005)

In the article ‘Learning Development Cycle, Bridging Learning Design and modern Knowlege Needs’, (2005)  Siemens highlights changes brough about by technology, how this has impacted on the social environment and how learning design methodologies reamain unchanged.

Siemens argues that, because of the emerging knowledge needs of todays employees and students, learners are no longer passive recipients of knowledge but require a learning environment where students and employees can create and experiement and create their own connections. This reflects very much a student centred approach.Resounding most with me was Siemens observation that modern learning designers

 

 ”must create environments, networks, access to resources,and increase the capacity of learners to function and forage for their own knowledge.”

Based on feedback received on my project outline, I realise that I need to adapt some of my original ideas for the project. At first I was going to base my project on the interactive web resource, ‘Gallipoli, the first day’. However, I realise that many of the design considerations have already been decided with this resource whereas  this project requires that I design the project. Even though my original thoughts were that I would use this resource and then build learning activities based on this resource, as I delve further I see that this may not be the way to go. Alternatively, I have another idea, which, staying with the them of Gallipoli will enable me to develop another, similar learning experience but one that is more authentic in terms of my own context and project requirements. The analysis phase has seen me reconsider the needs of the learner and, even though the web resource Gallipoli, the first day, is highly engaging, the learners that I am developing for are not overly confident with online learning and need lots of structure and predictability. The online course (project) that I will develop, will therefore need to provide support in terms of use of media and instructional text.

The other issue that has influeced my decision is the technology itself and how students will engage with the technology (ie. previous experience or not with online learning) As noted by FGCU (2006)

“Principle:
1.1.5 Audience analysis should also include the learner’s technology skills and previous experiences with online courses.”

After testing the resource, Gallipoli, the First Day, on a couple of different computers and using different internet speeds the outcomes were inconsistent. In a nutshell, to gain the most from this resource requires a fairly fast computer and internet speed which means that students may be disadvantaged if their technology is not up to speed.

Reference: Florida Gulf Coast University. (2006) Principles of Online Design, Instructional Design, Retrieved on April 18, 2011 from http://www.fgcu.edu/onlinedesign/designdev.html

The readings on the analysis phase is starting to make the process clearer. In a nutshell, the analysis phase involves the who, the what, the when and the where of the training program or learning program.  The analysis phase involves looking at the needs of the learner and designing the program from there, and, as much as possible, trying to provide a supportive environment to cater for diversity of needs.  In my context, looking at my students (with lower literacy levels) looking at the curriculum that needs to be taught and adapting to suit the needs of my students. It is also looking at the context of distance learners and the technological platform that is to be used.

Although the reading ‘Big Dog and Little Dog’s Performance Juxtaposition focuses very much on the business environment, I have been able to draw parallels to my own, educational context.  The points below can also be applied to my students:

• What business (educational) needs will be met?
• What will the learners/performers do differently and better?
• Who will be able to see and confirm these changes?
• How will we measure and document the results?

Needs Assessment

In their article, ‘Needs Assessment, the First Step’ Rouda and Kusy discuss a needs assessment with the first step being the gap analysis. This, to me, is what I do in my teaching….looking at the current situation and then the desired outcome. The second step, in the needs analysis, is to identify priorities and importance and to determine if the needs are real and worth addressing, and how important they are to the organisation.

This site has been set up as my reflective journal for FET5601, Learning Design for Flexible Contexts.

The initial readings for this course set the scene well for me. I can see the relevance to my context . The article by Laurillard, and the way the author questioned the role and validity of universities within the current educational climate brought home to me the challenges that universities face in ‘keeping up’ with competition from the corporate sector. I was actually quite surprised to read that many universities still follow the transmission of knowledge model.  However the authors quite rightly point out that  keeping pace with the pressures of university teaching mean that many academics have been unable to go “beyond the traditional forms of academic teaching” (Laurillard, 2002 pg.20)

So what is this conversational framework all about? In essence, it is about an approach that discusses the teaching/learning process.

The conversational approach looks at the on-going learner-teacher interaction, and particularly in Laurillard’s model, at the process of negotiation of views of the subject-matter which takes place between them in such a way as to modify the learner’s perceptions. (Pask & Laurillard, 2010)

In Laurillard’s model, the conversational framework is often specific to technologically driven conversations or teaching that is delivered via technology.