7. Dean’s Forum – Autumn 2014
“The steps taken by some colleges to increase both
student and staff knowledge and confidence with
Moodle was very much welcomed by reps who
explained that Moodle has potential to be a great
learning resource but currently levels of
understanding on how to fully utilise it remain low.”
8. Post-digital speech – Nigel Carrington, Nov 2014.
“UAL is currently educating students in the use of
digital as a normal part of their approach to art,
design, communication and the creative life. This has
nothing to do with the now-discredited idea of digital
natives. It has everything to do with the power of well-
directed education.”
9. Post-digital speech – Nigel Carrington, Nov 2014.
“I don’t wish to paint an unrealistic picture of UAL’s
achievements in this area. There is of course still a
cultural gap in some areas. Some people – and yes,
disciplines – have yet to understand the relevance of
digital technology. Some portfolios are less adapted to
digital. We know we have more to do in these areas.”
10. E-Learning at University of the Arts London
“I think having some definitions of that, going beyond the
tools and going into the white space of it is something that
would be really useful to talk about and formalizing that as
part of our review so that we can think about a unit or a
certain kind of method of delivery…”
Programme Director
20. http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/partners/4e-framework.htm
4E Framework – Leeds Beckett University
What can technology “enable” us to do?
How can technology “enhance” what we already do?
How can technology “enrich” our learning experiences?
How can technology “empower” learners and teachers?
21. Workflow
enables: curation of visual and other resources + group work
enhances: visibility/sharing of work
enriches: reflection and collaboration
empower: promotes student practice and increases confidence
We have a new working relationship with ULCC who host our Moodle – this includes the provision of the underlying infrastructure we need to develop Moodle
Moodle upgrade is scheduled for July 2015 and will bring some usability improvements to the interface
We are working on practice focused online guides
Significant work is being done on improving the infrastructure for MyBlogs and Workflow. We have been working with IT on the stability of MyBlogs by protecting the service from non-UAL login attempts.
“The Digital Student Experience at UAL” builds on the “E-Learning at UAL” (2013) report. It draws on qualitative and quantitative data from students and acts as student perspective companion to the Programme Director focus of the 2013 report. “The Digital Student Experience at UAL” will be published in late April. Underpinning work for the report can be found here:
The service roadmaps are designed for technical members of staff. They give a brief overview of our development plans and will be regularly updated: http://elearningsupport.myblog.arts.ac.uk/service-status/service-roadmaps/
As the main services we provide are Open Source we can continue to modify and improve them. This will be an ongoing evolution. In parallel to this it’s important to discuss/frame our teaching and learning aspirations and how technology can support these.
In essence we need to move away from predominantly thinking of the technology as a ‘solution’ in of itself. This way of thinking in terms of solutions works where we are modelling a highly structured process such as feedback or assignment submission but is less helpful where we have platforms such as Moodle and Workflow which are much more ‘open’ and don’t prescribe a particular way of working.
There is recognition that alongside improving Moodle technically we need to understand how best to ‘fully utilise’ it. The emphasis here is then on understanding the role/value of Moodle and how best to take advantage of that at courses level.
The digital integrated into learning & teaching
Facilitating conversations with students about their ‘learner owned literacies’
Discussing the overlaps between formal and informal digital practices
Focusing on ‘understating the relevance’ rather than simply teaching technical skills.
This is then about developing ways of working with the technology in specific leaning and teaching contexts. Appropriating the ‘white space’ the technology offers rather than imagining that the tech prescribes a particular way of working.
The effective embedding of practice using digital technology is highly contextual.
The eTeam CLTAD will support the building of capacity in the colleges rather than growing central provision.
It’s important then to provide frameworks in which the value of digital technology can be understood.
The ‘3 boxes’ model is designed to layout the potential of digital technology across a continuum that spans from ‘tools’ to ‘places’. It is a good was to initiate discussions about digital technology in learning and teaching/creative contexts.
The ‘4 Es’ approach is designed to explain the role and value of specific elearning plaforms.
The Visitors and Residents idea has underpinned work at many institutions.
Spaces = digital places we reside in to ‘be with other people’ – the motivation to engage is about connecting with others. This could be via objects/artifacts or discourse
Tools & Resources - The use of digital technology as a source of information and/or a collection of tools for completing specific tasks.
Shop Window - The use of the Web to present work.
Spaces - The Web as a series of spaces/places in which we can enact practice and engage in discourse
Draws on work around Visitors and Residents + Jiisc work on The Digital Student Project http://digitalstudent.jiscinvolve.org/ + discussions with UAL collegues
The modes of engagement require or facilitate certain capabilities or attributes.
Many students do not expect their institution to go beyond the ‘Shop Window’ approach towards ‘Spaces’ but there is a desire for advice and support in this area. This is especially relevant if we believe we should be equipping students with more than a qualification by supporting them in the development of a burgeoning ‘professional’ identity online.
Mapping the ‘capabilities’ of some of the key UAL TeL services shows the potential value of them across the tools/spaces continuum.
Moodle is a useful course hub and used predominantly as a ‘tool’ not a ‘space’. Using it well in this mode is the main aim. This involves good organisation and editorial/comms processes + help from VLE Co-ordinators/CLTAD getting set-up with structure and design.
It’s also advisable to have an annual audit and tidy of Moodle based course sites.
Moodle has the organising principle of the course at it’s heart.
MyBlogs and Workflow have the individual/student as their root principle.
Given this Moodle acts as a good ‘home’ for courses while MyBlogs and Workflow, with their focus on the individual, work more like most Social Media services. Both MyBlogs and Workflow then have various mechanisms to ‘collate’ student’s activity back into groups to manage larger cohorts.
Generally scale, in terms of student numbers, is a significant factor in deciding which platforms are going to work for a course.
Mapping Web-based services across the 3 boxes.
The 4E model provides a simple way to describe the role and value of specific services.