tread softly: making secure steps towards wider adoption of pedagogically-focussed e-learning at...
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Tread softly: making secure steps towards wider adoption of pedagogically-focussed e-learning at Brighton Business School
Sue Greener and Asher RospigliosiUniversity of Brighton
[email protected]@brighton.ac.uk
Back story• Learning and Teaching Fellowship grant, UoB• Three phase project:– Initiation– Support– Feedback
• It grew….
Annual Learning and Teaching Conference
2009 ConferenceFriday 10th July 2009: From spark to flame
Research enquiry (dream?)
Beginning with the perceived “problem” of adoption of new technologies by academic staff
How do experienced and new academics begin to fit e-learning into their personal pedagogies?
Bringing a psychological and sociological perspective to the problem of adopting TEL - how does this offer us insight into wider technology adoption strategies?
Could we help to enthuse, encourage, support those who were not natural early adopters?
Surfacing initial assumptions
• Roger’s model (1962) of innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority and laggards – does it help?
• Moore (1991) crossing the chasm between early adopters and the follower groups
• Anderson et al (1998), based on Geoghegan (1994) – just two groups: early adopters (EA) and mainstream faculty (MF)
• Four factors stop us crossing the chasm/gap– Ignorance of the gap– The technologists’ alliance– Alienation of mainstream faculty– Lack of compelling reason to adopt
Where do you place yourself on technology adoption
• UofB (MF) • CAL (EA)
Innovator Early adopter Early majority Late majority Laggard0
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Innovator Early adopter Early majority Late majority Laggard let IT skills dip due to change of role, now
starting again.
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What is your job?
• UofB (MF)
teacherphd studenttechnical demonstrator
• CAL (EA)
teacher
learning technologist
researcher
manager
research manager
What VLE does your institution have?
• UofB (MF)
No VLE
blackboard
elgg
YouTube
• CAL (EA)
No VLE
blackboard
sakai
interactive white boards only
second life (this week)
Xlearning platform (own university - Portugese)
moodle
Who do you use TEL with?Campus-based courses – f2f T&L
Distance courses – fully online
Distance courses – blended with f2f
Education for children under 11
Education for young people under 19
Education for people over 19 at UG level
Vocational education or training for > 19
Education for people over 19 at PG level
Work-based training
community learning
english language teaching
• CAL (EA)• UofB (MF)Campus-based courses – f2f T&L
Distance courses – fully online
Distance courses – blended with f2f
Education for young people under 19
Education for people over 19 at UG level
Vocational education or train-ing for > 19
Education for people over 19 at PG level
Work-based training
initial teacher education
learning support
software like Endnote.
How long have you used TEL?
• CAL (EA)• UofB (MF)
More than
ten ye
ars usin
g TEL
5-10 years
using T
EL
Less t
han 5 ye
ars usin
g TEL
0123456
More than
ten ye
ars usin
g TEL
5-10 years
using T
EL
Less t
han 5 ye
ars usin
g TEL
0
2
4
6
8
Why did you take up TEL?
• CAL (EA)• UofB (MF)
Inspired by a conference journal articleInspired or encouraged by a colleagueInspired or encouraged by a learning techWanted to experiment to improve quality in L&TRequired to by policycurious about how ICT might be relevantnot enough materials available locally (China)
Inspired by a conference journal articleInspired or encouraged by a colleagueInspired or encouraged by a learning techWanted to experiment to improve quality in L&TRequired to by policyteach students what is available on DSApart of PGCert course.used technology for de-sign: transfer to teachingnot enough materials available locally (China)
Had you used TEL as a learner?
• UofB (MF) • CAL (EA)
experince of tech as a learnerNo experince of tech as a learnerLearning and using in paral-lell
experince of tech as a learnerNo experince of tech as a learner
What barriers did you face?
Access to appropriate software
Lack of knowledge about appropriate software
Steep learning curve on software
Concern about how technology related to learning
Lack of adequate time to exper-iment and build
Lack of encouragement to adopt technology in learning
Too much pressure to adopt technology in learning
resistance from academic col-leagues to students using equipment
• UofB (MF) • CAL (EA)Access to appropriate software
Lack of knowledge about ap-propriate software
Steep learning curve on software
Concern about how technology related to learning
Lack of adequate time to exper-iment and build
Lack of encouragement to adopt technology in learning
alienating environment due to poor online facilitation
opposition to innovation
resistance from academic col-leagues to students using equipment
No barrier
What support might have helped?
• UofB (MF) • CAL (EA)
1 -2- 1 coaching from a learning tech
One-to-one coaching from a colleague
Group training on software
Training / showcasing potential of tech for learning
Dedicated time to innovate in your learning and teaching
Reward for innovation in T&L
good online facilitation
1 -2- 1 coaching from a learning tech
One-to-one coaching from a colleague
Group training on software
Training / showcasing potential of tech for learning
Dedicated time to innovate in your learning and teaching
Reward for innovation in T&L
good online facilitation
proven materials and quality evidence of educational bene-fits
better understanding of students' needs by col-leagues
funding for hardware and software
Qualitative responses 1
• What surprised them? • EA: – mainly positive • MF: more negative
• What didn’t they like?• EA:• MF:
“how motivating it is when students learning
becomes fun”
“learning moves out of your control”
“colleague inertia”
“It takes hours”
What was familiar about this learning process?
• EA focussed on problems with software, crashes, problem solving
• MF focussed on time taken and related to ease of use
“like learning Word only easier”
What contradicted your prior beliefs?
• EA tended to find external responses contradicted their prior beliefs:
• MF focussed on personal perceptions which were contradicted:
“technology is a tool not a solution”
“student confidence in using software is always lower than I
expect”
“that it would be complicated and that I would
fail to understand it”“found it more useful and less
scary”
When asked to reflect on the experience of first using new technology to enhance learning
• EA:
• MF: some were excited about technology, some feeling over-stretched, some more relaxed than they were, found routines difficult to remember, some, as with technologists, focussed on learning not technology.
• No clear distinction with application of hindsight
“it’s much more about pedagogy in my
classroom, not the technology”“regaining
confidence – enjoying learning new skills again”
Problems they faced1. Students’ digital literacy2. Staff resistance3. Technology seen as gimmick4. Lack of time to learn5. Pressure to conform to VLE6. Availability of software, hardware
• No distinction here between two groups• Some saw problems as politically based (institutional strategies,
resourcing)• Few saw problems in making sense of technologies in relation to
learning and teaching• Everyone in study had persisted with using new technologies
Examples of ideas offered for encouraging adoption• Showcases, demonstrations,
workshops/training – show it is relevant and useful to improve experience of teaching and learning for both students and teachers
• Guest speakers in best practice• Contact with experienced colleagues,
buddying, coaching• Sharing student feedback• Shadowing those with experience• Team-working• Focussing on pedagogic gains (student
motivation etc)• Enthusing and encouraging• Time to play (sandpits)• Senior manager commitment• Adopting technologies for peer assessment
and feedback• Using less jargon-ridden language• Relating adoption to promotion/career
paths/staff review• Small project funding• Celebrating achievements, encouragement of
scholarship
• No obvious distinction between our two groups
• Strategies focus on pedagogic beliefs, perceived usefulness, role modelling (how), experimentation, reward, access to resource, promoting awareness, mainstreaming
A touch more literature
• A more complicated picture than we thought
• Technology Acceptance Model
• Liao and Lu (2008) discuss TAM and alternates and derive “relative advantage” and “compatibility” as drivers to new technologies adoption by teachers
• Compatibility? With beliefs, values, teaching philosophy…..
So how can we better analyse the different responses of academics in relation to TEL?
So how can we better analyse the different responses of academics in relation to TEL?• By teaching beliefs? Pedagogies in practice? student, teaching
and content-centred (Greener 2008)• By discipline? Becher and Trowler (1989) work on academic
tribes• By sub-discipline, including hard/soft, urban/rural,
convergent/divergent and pure/applied focus? (Trowler 2009)• By internet use? Peripherals, normatives, all-rounders and active
participants? (Eynon 2009)• Are Eynon’s “active participants” similar to Drent and
Meelissen’s “personal entrepreneurs” (2008)?• Could other academic groupings be distinguished by skill sets
(Deursen & van Dyk 2009)
Which leads us to the future of this project
• New staff engagement – action learning project• Profile analysis of academic staff in HE in relation to TEL.– digital skillset– degree of digital independence– pedagogic beliefs– openness to sharing and learning
• Practical application: not just focussing on technology adopters/champions .
• We need to tread softly in the mainstream and understand better how to meet their needs.
Had I the heaven's embroidered cloths,Enwrought with golden and silver light,The blue and the dim and the dark clothsOf night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:But I, being poor, have only my dreams;I have spread my dreams under your feet;Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
William Butler Yeats