Post on 25-Jun-2015
description
WIPO Academy:The key role of tutors
Ray CorriganSenior Lecturer in
Technology
OU Origins and teaching methods Charter granted 1969
First student intake 1971
First Degree Ceremony 1973 with 900 graduates
All students receive tutorial support
Blended learning
The Open University in 2009 Europe’s biggest University Currently 250,000 registered students
In the top five UK universities on teaching quality ratings
Internationally renowned for excellence of teaching and research
Teaching QualityPercentage of Subjects Ranked “Excellent”
since 1995
1 Cambridge 96.3
2 Loughborough 94.4
3 York 93.8
4 LSE 87.5
5 The Open University 86.7
6 Oxford 85.7
7 Essex 84.6
8 Imperial 81.8
9 University College London
77.4
10 St Mark and St John 75
The Open University is ranked 5th in the UK (above Oxford University)
Why?
Our tutors
People and places
1,124 full time academic staff
1,200 academic related staff
200 academic staff based in the 13
Regional Centres around the UK
2000 other staff in design, administrative
and operational divisions like student
services
People and places
8,000 part time tutors
Exam venues in 90 countries
OU student population represents 35%
of UK part time higher education
More than 3,000,000 students ‘through
our doors’ since 1971
Tutorial SystemAllows scaling-up of Operation
Full time staff
8000 ALs
Materials can include…. High quality illustrated printed materials Course calendars CD-ROMs/DVDs for interactive exercises DVDs to illustrate case studies Websites and e-conferencing Web tools Study guides Residential schools Local tutors Assignments Examination
Quality Assurance
Multi skilled course team in course materials and curriculum development
Continuous assessment / evaluation by students and staff
Internal and external monitoring of tutors, assessments and examinations
OU Directly teaching students in… Austria Belgium Canada Cyprus Denmark Finland France Germany Greece
Ireland Italy Luxembourg Netherlands New Zealand Portugal Spain Sweden Switzerland
OU Partnerships in… Brazil Bulgaria – NBU China – PKU,
CCRTVU Czech Republic – OMI Ethiopia – Ministry of
Education + BC Hong Kong – OUHK Hungary – ECBS India – NIIT, Delhi
University Middle East – Arab OU
New Zealand – OPNZ
Romania – CODECS Russia – IIM LINK Singapore – UniSIM Slovakia – OMI South Africa –
UNISA, SBL, edegree
Spain – UOC Uzbekistan
Secret of success…
For 40 years…
And >1 Million graduates…
…?
Foundation stones
Course team – peer reviewed materials
Central infrastructure Regional infrastructure People in touch with people
The key
People… Goodwill… Tutors…
The key
The tutor His/her support for the student Facilitating student self help
People in touch with people system
Full time staff
8000 ALs
How do you support?
You’re the expert You’re the teacher You’re the educational adviser You’re the ‘critical friend’ (adviser) You’re the personal contact You’re the friendly face You’re the motivator
DL students unique problems
Studying alone At home Isolated Real life problems Fitting it in Study skills
Motivating students to study
Students study from home
Have contact via email/phone/occasional tutorials/web-tools
Questions: how do they measure their progress? how do they gain motivation to study? how do they avoid falling behind?
Pace and level
Students need to know that they are studying at the right pace the right level
Pace is partially addressed by using a calendar which says where students should be within the course
Assessment is important Why?
Outcomes of assessment matter to: self-esteem
Grades crucial to career advancement, further educational
opportunities, sponsorship Helps to schedule pace of study Provides motivation
Formative and summative assessment
summative assessment: contributes to final grade
formative assessment, module tests, saqs: helps student reflect and assess progress without
having to worry about influencing grade Tutor role – generating teaching activities and
sample answers
Module tests, saqs
Enables learners to monitor their understanding and progress
It should be diagnostic so feedback is designed to identify areas in need of improvement
Helpful if start early in the course
Formative assessment, activities, tests
Exists within course texts Self Assessment Questions (SAQ) and activities In Text Questions (ITQ)
Generated by tutors These are used to enable students to engage with
texts They interrupt reading in order to avoid the illusion
that simply reading the text is providing sufficient understanding
Summative assessment
Most OU assessment is summative
Students are highly motivated if their grade depends on doing the work
WIPO DL course exams
Forms of assessment
Assessment Multiple choice (module tests?) Tutor generated VLE tests?
End of course assessment Examination Dissertation: i.e. project report, essay
Possible tutor generated VLE quizzes Multiple choice
have to have a correct answer
Automatic marking possible in some cases can design automatic feedback to give guidance on
why students might have chosen the wrong answer
If designed well they don’t have to be set around numerical questions
They don’t test students ability to explain answers
OU continuous assessment
Tutor marked assignments (TMAs) usually but not always summative designed to:
assess and grade students as they progress on a course
provide feedback on progress and how to improve Typically 6 TMAs on a 60 point course and 4 on
a 30 point course
Tutor marked assignments
Key teaching tool for tutor WIPO DL courses: One2one and VLE forum Feedback as important as grade awarded Tutors spend about an hour marking and commenting
on each assignment Comments have to motivate as well as inform students
should if possible be positive must be clear as to exactly why and where marks were
lost
Assessment and learning
Some students are assignment focused they study the minimum required to pass each assignment
Many more are assignment conscious assignments have a substantial influence over their study
behaviour
Students spend most time on what is assessed Tutor role to help focus
The key role of tutors: what students expect contact at the beginning of the course providing constructive feedback giving online or face-to-face tutorial support facilitating the exchange of ideas between students guiding them in their studies and monitoring their progress helping them to prepare for an exam referring them to their regional or national centre for
support
The key role of tutors: what you provide You’re the expert You’re the teacher You’re the educational adviser You’re the ‘critical friend’ adviser You’re the personal contact You’re the friendly face You’re the motivator
You’re connected to WIPO and other tutors
Tutoring online
Tutor networking/sharing online
Managers should network too
The key role of tutors: what you provide You’re the expert You’re the teacher You’re the educational adviser You’re the ‘critical friend’ adviser You’re the personal contact You’re the friendly face You’re the motivator
You’re linked to WIPO, other tutors & students
Thanks and Qs