Sensing the tempo-rhythm of practice: The dynamics of engagement

Researchers have conventionally used objective, discrete and linear assumptions of time and space when constructing metaphors such as acquisition, transfer and progression to theorize learning and change. This chapter offers an alternative starting point. It suggests that the notion of practice-based learning and change is better conceptualized as dynamic patterns of human actions and materialities that are often comfortably familiar, yet paradoxically novel leading to possibilities for remaking those practices. Building upon philosophical and postmodern understandings of time and space, I introduce the concept of tempo-rhythm to highlight attention to the significance of practice dynamics for learning and change. Tempo-rhythm is a metaphor borrowed from the dramatic arts (Stanislavski, 1979) that describes how actors incorporate speed, intensity and variability into their movement and speech actions to engage the audience in the shared experience of character-building and performance. I illustrate how the tempo-rhythm of chefs engaging in practice together goes beyond what can be observed, experienced or designed to be purposive in vocational learning. This focus on practice dynamics suggests that learning of an engagement kind requires practitioners to interact in emergent ways that add novelty, variety and intensity to work practices, shaping meaning and commitment to the changing patterns of practice in everyday work life

An effective way of designing blended learning: A three phase design-based research approach

Online learning is common in higher education, but has its drawbacks. As a result, blended learning (BL) has emerged as an alternative to alleviate the challenges of online learning. The purpose of this design-based research study was to determine what elements were needed to assist a higher education instructor inexperienced in designing and teaching a BL course to successfully create and implement it, and to document the instructor’s perceptions about the first experience of teaching a BL course. The BL course was designed, implemented and redesigned to make the BL course an effective and efficient learning environment through the three phases of this design-based research. Qualitative and quantitative research methods including instructor interviews, learning environment observations and student surveys were employed to collect data. Results indicated that iterative analysis, design and evaluation of the created BL course provided an opportunity for the researchers to find applicable solutions to any real-world problems that the instructor faced in the course. Besides, the design and implementation of BL led the instructor to shift from a passive teaching approach to an active teaching approach and allowed the students to become active and interactive learners through the process of three iterative design cycles. Although challenges were identified, she had an overall positive perception toward teaching the BL course. © 2019, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature