ESCalate seminar, Swansea Metropolitan University 3 June 2008 Digital tools for blended learning...

ESCalate seminar, Swansea Metropolitan University 3 June 2008

Digital tools for blended learning

[email protected]

[email protected]


The context

Undergraduate degree programme

Education Studies

Childhood and Youth Studies

First year shared core module:

ICT and Learning in the 21st Century

15 credits, second semester


The students

Predominantly white middle class school leavers

2006-07: 92 students

2007-08: 92 students

85% female

Variation in ICT confidence/competence


The module

15 creditsBlended learningLecture series (12 weeks: 10 F2F + 2 online sessions)

Technologies for learning (informal and formal)Games and LearningVirtual worldsCollaborative e-learningE-world issuesPersonalised learning and digital technology

Post-lecture online discussions replaced face-to-face seminars


Module assessment

25% - contribution to online discussions

75% - digital concept map on chosen theme from list of five

1st year modules: formative; progression only


The tools

WebCT course resources discussion groups blogs

Wiki

Email

SMS messages (txttools.co.uk)

Concept mapping software (cmap.ihmc.us/)


Initial survey

• Engage with the subject using ICT

• Entry point survey/ exit survey

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Don't Use

Use Sometimes

Use frequently


Online Activity

• The two cohorts were mixed and grouped

• 16 groups of 5-6 students

• Weekly questions following from topic

• Discuss in small groups (online) and agree collective response

• Posted to forum and shared

• Commented and feedback


Online responses

• Quality of the postings and responses was high

• Suggested word length of 150-250 words but many exceeded this

• References were included

• More than one question each week

• Students regularly sustained discussion well into subsequent weeks topic


Diversity of posting

• Supported each other in the ‘Technical Topic’

• Assessment anxieties – Concept maps were new to almost all of the students

• Additional technologies introduced – collaborative spaces


Use of Tools

• A number of groups explored using Wiki as a way of formulating a response

• Showed good use of collaborative tools (wiki includes a section for discussion)

• Connect wasn’t apparently adopted

• SMS & IM – may well have been used amongst each other – left to groups to organise their own communications

http://dll.ex.ac.uk/wiki/index.php?title=ICT_%26_Learning_Group_16

http://connect.exeter.ac.uk/e1008/


Feedback on blended working

Benefit from ICT Module

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Collaboratewith others

Understandthe module

con

See thebenefits of ICT

i

Socialize in agroup of s

Improve myICT skills

Question

Res

ponden

ts

Helped a lot

Helped a little

Did not help


Comments on working online

• A new learning experience. interesting to know others views on the discussion topic

• I thought it was good at allowing discussions among people who may not have contributed in seminars

• Very useful, helped to show a different way of working in discussions.

• Very helpful when reviewing the course and get the latest information

• Was really good for finding out what was going on if you were stuck



• When motivated it was extremely interesting and enjoyed commenting and writing opinions on WebCT, however I found it easy to forget because there was no face to face discussion

• Easy to use but unreliable dependent on internet connection and other students

• it took a while to work sometimes which was annoying but was interesting and fun



• I found this time consuming and frustrating when other group members did not contribute

• It was hard as a lot of people harly ever contributed so it was hard to get hold of them online

• I found there was often too much to follow on WebCT and I wasn't interested in using it


Students views on feedback

Feedback from staff and students

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

tutor feedback student feedback

Was essential

Helped a lot

Helped a little

Did not help


Concept maps• Helped me plan my work + think critically although

needed more tutor backup• Helpful to know that essays may be improved by using

them• Initially i was confused but i attended the workshop

which was really useful• I found concept maps the most interesting part of the

course

• I found the idea of concept mapping quite a challenge, being limited in ICT skills & patience! But the assignment proved easy enough to do.

• The positives were outweighed by the negatives - was not good as a form of assessment


Concept maps

• Difficult to grasp concept at first. However, found very beneficial to my learning.

• Was an interesting way of putting ideas together-good change from essays.

• Found cmaps really easy to do after much concern. Think they will be useful in future.

• It was easy to use but didn't really see the point of it


Attitudes to CMAP

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Learning Cmap Reflection-critical cmap

Self-evaluationcmap

Focus cmap

helped a lot

helped a little

didn't help


23 positiveit was helpful to be updated on when lectures and workshops were happeningvery useful - would like it for all subjectsI thought it was useful for alerting us as to changes in lecture times & when online discussions were up on WebCT

8 negativeI barely received any - those that I did were not useful pointless as I know my timetable

SMS Feedback

Strategic use next time

Alert students to question of the weekprior to lectureAlerts about topical TV and Radio programmesSpecific follow up questions arising fromthe topic of the week


Thoughts at this stage

• Majority of students appreciate new experiences but some find them difficult

• Impressive quality of students’ analysis and reflection facilitated by the online environment

• How to we engage with the ‘refuseniks’?• Tutor overload meant text tools used for logistics rather

than teaching – plan to be more proactive next year (Technical problems with implementation of voting tool)

• Tutor time! May be related to structure of WebCT – rather rigid for students. Elgg?

ESCalate seminar, Swansea Metropolitan University 3 June 2008 Digital tools for blended learning...

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