Enhancing Curriculum Delivery for Postgraduate Enhancing Curriculum Delivery for Postgraduate Distance Learning Through New TechnologiesDistance Learning Through New Technologies

Ming Nie and Alejandro ArmelliniBeyond Distance Research Alliance

University of Leicester, UK

Plan

• The DUCKLING project context and aims• Challenges and technologies to address them• Research methods• Work done and in progress• Results so far• Next steps• New challenges

DUCKLING context

• DELIVERING UNIVERSITY CURRICULA: KNOWLEDGE, LEARNING AND INNOVATION GAINS

• Started in January 2009, funded by JISC for 2 years• 3 DL programmes in 2 disciplines– MA in Applied Linguistics and TESOL– MSc in Occupational Psychology and Psychology of Work

www.le.ac.uk/beyonddistance/duckling

Challenges in curriculum delivery

• Students feeling distant and isolated• Students not satisfied with the feedback provided• Time-poor students• Materials too ‘dry’• Materials’ relevance to work-based contexts

3 technologies to address the challenges

• Podcasting

• E-book readers

• Second Life

• Action Research• Stakeholders:

– Past/current students– Two course teams– Employers

• Data collection and analysis:– Programme/course documentation– Surveys and in-depth interviews– Blackboard discussion board– Discussion with staff

Research methods

Podcasting

• Started in April 2009• Psychology

• Education

Dissertation Module 4 assignment

Research methods

Individual assignment

feedback

17 4 10 12

IntroductoryLanguage

change and variation

Standard English

World Englishes

Bilingualism and language

choice

Discourse analysis

2 1 2 3 1 2

Producing Outstanding Dissertations

Key message Sections Purposes Duration Who

Navigate handbookInformal supplement to handbook

1Introduction/InspireGet students to use handbook

1 min Andrew

SocialiseHelp at design stageSupervisors: who they are

2 State who we are and roles 2 mins All

Structure of dissertationDifferent routes 3 Explain/ Discuss

deliverables 4 mins Sue

Help you to do justice to workProcedures, adviceExpectations

4 Outline of the whole podcast series 2 mins Ray

• Building student-tutor relationship– Resembling direct communication– Personalised and live– Less distant, but closer and more connected

• Providing clearer and more detailed information– No need to ask further questions through BB

• Repeating and reassuring• Thinking and planning ahead• Increasing flexibility and mobility

– iPod, iPhone or MP3 player– On the move, on bus or in a car

Results from Psychology podcasts

Student quotes…

It’s nearly like you could have the conversation with have the conversation with them them [tutors]in a room. You feel you’re getting some of getting some of their time their time to listen to their input… The stress and The stress and emphasis tonesemphasis tones, all of that come across in the podcast.

Podcasts made me feel closer to my tutors feel closer to my tutors and I think they help you to build a relationship build a relationship with them.

I found that they [podcasts] reassured me that I was on reassured me that I was on the right lines with what had startedthe right lines with what had started, and for the assignment I haven’t yet started, [they] helped me helped me concentrate my thoughts concentrate my thoughts more.

Second Life

• Starting in October 2009• Psychology– Training and Development

module– Simulation of evacuation

procedure from an oil rig– Comparative study

• Education– All students– Visiting Languagelab and

observing classes

E-book readers

• Starting in September 2009• 15 Psychology and 8 Education students• SONY PRS-505

– Memory capacity: 192MB, 200 books– Expandable with Memory Sticks and SD cards– Cost: £145 + VAT

• Pre-load course materials and podcasts• Copyright issues: e-books and journal articles

Next step …

• More podcasts– Module assignments (Psychology) and feedback

(both)– Podcasts for Materials Development module

(Education)– Student-created podcasts for assignments

(Education)• E-book readers

– More course materials available for students to download through BB

New challenges…

• Curriculum Design and Delivery• Open Educational Resources (OERs)

Learning Futures 2010 is the 5th International Conference to be hosted by the Beyond Distance Research Alliance, and will take place from 7th — 14th January 2010

For the first time this conference will be entirely online, and we invite you to join us to explore positive disruption for learning from a variety of worldwide perspectives and themes

For further details please see: www.le.ac.uk/beyonddistance/festival/

own learning in HE

Thank you! Any questions?