Integrating Real and Virtual Learning Spaces

Undoubtedly, the widespread introduction of Learning Management Systems over the past few years has had significant impact on online learning by enabling lecturers to easily upload and disseminate learning resources, as well as providing the potential for new forms of online interaction. However, LMSs have had significantly less impact upon the sorts of interactions that can occur in class: both lecturer-student and student-student. This article considers ways in which campus based students can benefit from the integration of real life and virtual interactions. It reflects upon lessons learned from the use of a prototype Learning Management System and explores ways in which virtual and real spaces may combined to address specific academic needs. This is illustrated in two scenarios that outline ways in which virtual learning spaces may be integrated with face-to-face teaching within a campus based context. A third scenario offers a glimpse of future integration of real and virtual learning spaces which allow students to develop and share learning resources. Finally, a set of common principles underpinning the development and support of these methodologies are outlined

Hypermedia learning and prior knowledge: Domain expertise vs. system expertise

Prior knowledge is often argued to be an important determinant in hypermedia learning, and may be thought of as including two important elements: domain expertise and system expertise. However, there has been a lack of research considering these issues together. In an attempt to address this shortcoming, this paper presents a study that examines how domain expertise and system expertise influence students’ learning performance in, and perceptions of, a hypermedia system. The results indicate that participants with lower domain knowledge show a greater improvement in their learning performance than those with higher domain knowledge. Furthermore, those who enjoy using the Web more are likely to have positive perceptions of non-linear interaction. Discussions on how to accommodate the different needs of students with varying levels of prior knowledge are provided based on the results

A scholarship program for academic staff to develop exemplary online learning tasks

There is a strong impetus for blended learning approaches to be more widely adopted in higher education but finding an effective model for professional development of teaching staff can be problematic. In 2009, Curtin University developed an eTeaching and Learning Scholarship program for academic staff to develop exemplary online learning tasks that could be shared with the university community and inform future online teaching within their disciplines. This paper describes the design of the professional learning program together with early encouraging results that indicate both the willingness of the eScholars to incorporate additional learning technologies to extend the affordances of the university provisioned systems and to embrace authentic learner-centred tasks

Investigating attributes affecting the performance of WBI users

This is the post-print version of the final paper published in Computers and Education. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2013 Elsevier B.V.Numerous research studies have explored the effect of hypermedia on learners' performance using Web Based Instruction (WBI). A learner's performance is determined by their varying skills and abilities as well as various differences such as gender, cognitive style and prior knowledge. In this paper, we investigate how differences between individuals influenced learner's performance using a hypermedia system to accommodate an individual's preferences. The effect of learning performance is investigated to explore relationships between measurement attributes including gain scores (post-test minus pre-test), number of pages visited in a WBI program, and time spent on such pages. A data mining approach was used to analyze the results by comparing two clustering algorithms (K-Means and Hierarchical) with two different numbers of clusters. Individual differences had a significant impact on learner behavior in our WBI program. Additionally, we found that the relationship between attributes that measure performance played an influential role in exploring performance level; the relationship between such attributes induced rules in measuring level of a learners' performance

Factors Affecting Academics’ Involvement in TEL Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

Reinforcing the level of essentiality of understanding the factors that influence the involvement in TEL-oriented CPD and the challenges to the sustained expansion of their expertise not only for academics, but also professional bodies and educational developer for effective integration of digital technologies in teaching and learning remains is the current emphasis on strategic continuing professional development (CPD) programmes of technology enhanced learning (TEL) within higher education. A naturalistic approach and making use of qualitative method were applied in achieving the inquiry, using semi-structured interviews. The perceptions and views of twelve academics from one college in Qassim University (QU) in Saudi Arabia is going to be explored and discussed during this study; although academics had both internal and external motivations towards the value of involvement into TEL CPD opportunities, the findings indicated that significant challenges existed to the active participation of TEL programmes, including time and workload, relevant and realistic programme content that address needs, opportunities to practise the use of TEL, and accessibility and awareness. Furthermore, the fundamental conclusion of this paper that should be taken into account is that the vast majority of academics would like to involve and also value the importance of TEL CPD when their inhabiting factors are addressed; so as to impact positively on their academics into TEL CPD, the sufficient role of management support and institutional culture within Saudi organisations of higher education are highly recommended. Keywords: Continuing Professional Development (CPD), Technology-enhanced Learning (TEL), Involvement, Lecturers

Online interaction impacts on learning : teaching the teachers to teach online

This paper explores the importance of interaction in the online teaching environment and the important role of staff development in developing teacher presence online. Professionally developing staff to use information and communication technologies is viewed from the standpoint of diffusion of innovation, moving from early adopters to mainstream majority, and targeting staff development at this latter group. Approaches to staff development using information and communication technologies are described, and recommendations for staff development for online teaching are made

Embedding and sustaining change in technology-enhanced education : lessons learned from a cross-institutional transformation project

Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge the work of Liz Foulis of Lauder (now Carnegie) College and Julie McCran from Edinburgh’s Telford College for the contribution they made as members of the core project team. We are also indebted to Heather Sanderson, the project manager, Dr Peter Easy who chaired the project steering group, and to other members of the project management team (Isabel Craig, Pascale Gay, Fred Percival and our administrator Anne Wardrope). Roger Rist and Laurence Patterson comprised the project’s evaluation team, while David Griggs produced the video case studies. TESEP was funded through a two-year grant from the Scottish Funding Council to Edinburgh Napier University in partnership with Edinburgh’s Telford College and Lauder College, Dunfermline.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Learning from the rhetoric of academics using educational technology

Seminar presentations, by academics successfully using educational technology to support their courses, form a visible part of many staff development programmes. These events contribute to developing a community of academics that use educational technology and are sharing experiences on its use in supporting teaching and learning. We draw on classic rhetorical analysis to highlight the epideictic or ceremonial form of these presentations we see as exemplary of these events. These presentations tend to be quite distinct from how educational technology research or best practice is disseminated. We argue that this epideictic form is a vital component in emerging communities of practice and, for example, communicates the value of working collaboratively. While the underlying intuition is widely acknowledged, our analysis offers a framework to view these conscious and stylistic choices across learning communities

A Coding Typology to study dyadic interactions in International Negotiations : Extending the IPA model

Publisher PD

A Coding Typology to study dyadic interactions in International Negotiations : Extending the IPA model

Awarded the ‘Prof. Martin Rahe Best Paper Award.’Peer reviewedPublisher PD