First steps: The experiences of an academic team journeying into blended learning

Image by Melody Campbell via FlickrPhilippa Buckley and Fiona Gilmore presented today on a study of teacher educations as they develop a web based teaching approach. There was emphasis on working with students in an online environment. One of the key points is that they were very aware of what they wanted the students to get out of the course by the end. They were used to workign with a distance mode, but not within a technical framework.

They have been working on a number of smaller courses, and then weave them together in a way that was meaningful. The process involved course restructuring, as well as situating the study. The courses were 15 credit. Mass lectures were introduced, along with dula delivery cohorts, and teacm teaching. Courses were put on Moodle - which was quite challenging. Philippa and Fiona didn't have the technical skills to start with, and were working within a tight timeframe.

Because it was participatory research, ethical issues had to be considered in depth. There needed to be transparency around the results and what was being said in the research study write-ups. Two questions shaped the study: "How did a group of teacher educators develop and effective blended teaching course? How did the process challenge conceptions and existing teaching practices?"


Image via WikipediaThe development team followed a model where the academic staff member with the overview, worked alongside a technical advisor. The team of academics "knew what they wanted to do but did not have a clue how to do it!" This meant they took a very long time to get established...in a time poor environment. The initial steps forward were small, and were based around a culture of making concrete decisions and thereby keeping things moving forward. The communication style of the team was very open and direct. The technical support person was key, and differentiated the way that she worked with people. The access and transparency of Moodle was a bit of a surprise, and led to a culture shift.

They set out to developp and create a professional community that had a strong collaborative focus "It was a huge team on one site, And you know what they say about too many cooks. But you managed not to burn anything". Around the innovative pressures, one participant said "I just feel that my technical abilities are not matched and I see that it consumed so much of my time and that the workload doesn't reflect that, I just don't see how I can sustain that. And I found that really frustrating to the point I was in tears." And this was a factor that lurked behind them.

The results so far include the recognition that the professional conversations were essential and were focussed on the pedagogy, where they started to think about their online teaching in a very different way. Much of the shifting in practice has since been transferred to the face-to-face students. The conversations have been very rich, and have really enhanced the practitioners involved in the programme.

Students as professional developers - Sylivia Martinez (ACEC 2010, Day 2)

Image by hazelowendmc via Flickr

Sylvia Martinez keynote speaker on the second day of the ACEC 2010 conference, spoke about teacher development. She was keen to suggests that students can train ans support staff and teachers, provide technical support, develop resources and communicate for schools, and help peers. This was an inspirational presentation, which continued to reinforce the message that appears to be coming through as a key theme at this conference - empowering students and valuing what they have to contribute to learning. It is giving learners and learning purpose, authenticity, and space for students to take responsibility. Scaffolding and guidance are still important, but the students are helped to so something that they are passionate about, and something that enables them to embrace 'citizenship' of learning communities. It's what the students and the teachers do that counts.

The idea is to build a technology ecology where the student is doing something authentic - giving them real problems to solve - one of which is using technology in schools. So, the mantra is waste nothing, including talent, energy and passion. Students can provide informal technical support, for example drop in sessions for staff. Students need to know something and to take ownership and responsibility, an increased sense of purpose. It is not just about the technology it is about the philosophy - student-centered and focussed.

There are a lot of kids and adults who have things to share in the form of ideas and passion. Students care about their education, and rise to the challenge of leading events for teachers. It is worth looking at the Tomaz Lasic 'Catch a teacher day' initiative (Perth). Also, the Media Smart days which were organised by students, where there were student and teacher run workshops on media and technology topics.

Sylvia Martinez emphasised the importance of projects, and the key associated notions of tech support, professional development, and student technology fluency. She suggested that projects are graded by a peer-mentor - this gives different types of kids opportunities to shine and to show off their talents.

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