Teaching and learning in virtual worlds: is it worth the effort?

Educators have been quick to spot the enormous potential afforded by virtual worlds for situated and authentic learning, practising tasks with potentially serious consequences in the real world and for bringing geographically dispersed faculty and students together in the same space (Gee, 2007; Johnson and Levine, 2008). Though this potential has largely been realised, it generally isn’t without cost in terms of lack of institutional buy-in, steep learning curves for all participants, and lack of a sound theoretical framework to support learning activities (Campbell, 2009; Cheal, 2007; Kluge & Riley, 2008). This symposium will explore the affordances and issues associated with teaching and learning in virtual worlds, all the time considering the question: is it worth the effort

Transforming pre-service teacher curriculum: observation through a TPACK lens

This paper will discuss an international online collaborative learning experience through the lens of the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework. The teacher knowledge required to effectively provide transformative learning experiences for 21st century learners in a digital world is complex, situated and changing. The discussion looks beyond the opportunity for knowledge development of content, pedagogy and technology as components of TPACK towards the interaction between those three components. Implications for practice are also discussed. In today’s technology infused classrooms it is within the realms of teacher educators, practising teaching and pre-service teachers explore and address effective practices using technology to enhance learning

Towards a Research Strategy on Learning & Teaching. Report of a study to assist HEFCE in the development of a long-term research and evaluation plan to underpin its policies on learning and teaching

The Council commissioned the Centre for Higher Education Research and Information (CHERI) to conduct a scoping study to assist in the development of the Council’s longterm research and evaluation strategy for learning and teaching. Members of the project team have conducted interviews with a large number of HEFCE staff and with staff and representatives of other national bodies and higher education institutions, have scrutinised HEFCE research and evaluation reports, and have investigated the approaches and experiences of a number of other countries

Research and evidence use in experiential learning: perspectives and experiences of undergraduate nursing students.

For a number of years, research and evidence-based practice (EBP) have become essential concepts in the global provision of healthcare, and have become increasingly reflected in professional codes and educational standards. There have been considerable developments in the implementation of research and evidence into practice - for example, through the emergence of clinical guidelines. However, there is also a growing body of literature that reports on the challenges faced by nursing in the implementation of research and evidence into practice. Concomitant with the development of research and EBP in nursing, providers of preregistration nursing education have developed a range of educational approaches to support the training of preregistration nursing students, reporting such approaches to have a variable impact on knowledge, understanding and students' attitudes towards such subjects. While this is important, there is little research that explores how students perceive and experience learning about research and EBP in the practice placement setting. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore how final-stage preregistration nursing students - studying at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the United Kingdom - perceived and experienced learning about research and EBP in the context of the clinical placement elements of their programme. The study adopted a qualitative approach guided by a grounded theory method, with an unstructured focus group and individual interviews used to collect data. The chosen method was informed by the outcomes of two scoping reviews, undertaken from 2014–2016, which explored educational approaches to teaching research and EBP. Adopting a methodological framework, the scoping reviews sought to clarify working definitions as well as determining the conceptual boundaries of the topic. The scoping reviews revealed a range of educational approaches, which resulted in varying levels of impact in terms of enhancing students' knowledge, perceptions and attitudes regarding research and EBP. However, a key challenge in teaching research and EBP is that students struggle to see its relevance for nursing practice. Additionally, the reviews enabled an exploration and examination of the extent, range and type of prior research activity around the broader topic area. While the scoping reviews demonstrated a global consensus that research and EBP are critical topics in undergraduate preregistration nursing education, they also highlight the challenges of providing appropriate, meaningful and effective approaches to teaching and learning. Teaching and learning about research and EBP in preregistration nursing education is multifaceted and occasionally complex, influenced not only by pedagogical approaches, but also by the known and reported barriers to research and EBP use in the real world of practice. Ethical approval was granted by the respective ethics committee at each HEI. The sample comprised one focus group and two individual in-depth interviews with a total of six students, representing the fields of mental health and adult nursing. The interviews varied in duration from 25 minutes to 75 minutes. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and data were analysed using coding techniques drawn from Straussian grounded theory, to enable the identification of themes. While data did not enable the development of an emergent theory, four themes were identified - "experiencing practice", "the role of the professional nurse", "power and authority in practice" and "education". Students were able to identify and articulate learning in the HEI, and to recognise the importance of research and EBP. However, the experience of practice placements made learning challenging. This reflects the reported challenges from other studies as well as the tensions of bridging the gap between learning in the context of HEI and the placement environment. The study presents a conceptual model, representing (from the perspective of undergraduate nursing students) the differentiation between learning in an HEI and learning in clinical practice placement. The model represents a dynamic overview, emphasising the transient nature of learning in practice, and the differing relationships that students have as learner when in practice and when at an HEI. This differentiation is perceived as "different worlds". The conceptualisation of learning about research and EBP in practice placements demonstrates a need for the re-articulation of the relationship between HEIs and practice placement providers, to ensure that students are adequately supported and provided with opportunities to apply evidence into practice. There is also a need to connect a culture of learning - in the spirit of research and EBP in the classroom - with a practice placement environment that considers the needs of a new generation of learner, as well as considering the nature and purpose of experiential learning in matters of contemporary health and social care policy, and the standards of professional, statutory and regulatory bodies

Police functional adaptation to the digital or post digital age: discussions with cybercrime experts.

This article examines the challenges of functional adaptation faced by the police in response to technologically driven changes in the nature of crime. It also recounts how research under the auspices of a ‘dark web’ research project resulted in a search for an effective approach to engaging with investigators dealing with cybercrime. In doing so it tested, as a research methodology, a standard change implementation tool (problem tree analysis) from the Disaster Management and Sustainable Development (DMSD) discipline. This in turn resulted in significant consideration being given to the physical space in which that methodology is used. It presents the results of a workshop held with cybercrime investigators (not all were police officers) in terms of the importance of four key organisational and cultural issues (management, leadership and institutional ethos within the police; the risks of over-complication and exaggerated distinctions between cyber and real world policing; ethics; and knowledge, training and development) alongside the development and acquisition of new technical capabilities

Digital Rights and Responsibility in Education: A Scoping Review

Studies on digital rights in education have both gained attention and provided a framework for research, policy and practice in educational research within the field of educational technology. The potential benefits we appreciate in Internet use are inseparable from the maximum risks involved. Faced with this responsibility, individuals demand that their rights and freedoms be guaranteed in the digital environment according to their various roles as students, teachers, families or staff. This scoping review selects and analyses 54 theoretical and empirical studies from the last decade (2013-2023), identifying the main topics investigated as privacy protection in online environments, right to digital security or cybersecurity, and right to digital education. The review underscores the need to guide efforts towards digital education for citizens because the legal regulation of rights and responsibilities is necessary but insufficient. The paper also makes arguments about acceptance, limitations and implications for teacher training.European Regional Development Fund’s 2014-2020 Operational Program, the Andalusian Government, and Spain’s Department of Economic Transformation, Industry, Knowledge and Universities (Project A.SEJ.46.UGR 2020)