Emerging Technologies in Higher Education: A guide for HE practitioners

Structure of presentation 1. Introduction / emerging technologies and

changing T&L practices in HE 2. NRF project ‘Emerging ICTs in HE’ – main findings 3. Emerging Technologies in HE guide 4. Three Case Studies 5. Authentic learning for ET 6. Key points for effective practice

Emerging Technologies and Changing Teaching and Learning Practices

Current context

Johnson & Adams (2011:3)

‘schools, colleges and universities are attempting to teach knowledge and skills for jobs that no longer exist, and …teachers are not fully involved in educational innovation and curriculum development’.

Open University Innovating Pedagogy (2012:7)

“Although lecturers and students are seemingly embracing emerging technologies enthusiastically, it is taking longer for institutions and policy makers to adopt and implement them. Institutions and policy makers are not yet fully engaging with these technologies to understand the usefulness of these technologies and therefore administrative policies may slow down or halt adoption.”

COL 2008, 16

The promise of emerging technologies

Johnson, L., Adams Becker, S., Estrada, V., and Martín, S (2013). Technology Outlook for STEM+ Education 2013-2018: An NMC Horizon Project Sector Analysis. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

• table on top trends

table on top trends

Although the use of emerging technologies is on the rise in Higher Education globally and locally, it is seldom used in a way that facilitates transformative teaching and learning.

Ng’ambi, Bozalek & Gachago (in press)

Emerging pedagogies

Open University Innovating Pedagogy 2012 and

2013 report

http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/innovating/

the innovations are not independent, but fit together into a new and disruptive form of education that transcends boundaries between formal and informal settings, institutional and self-directed learning, and traditional education providers and commercial organisations

Sharples et al (2012:6)

Emerging Technologies in South African Higher Education

‘ICTs in South African HE’ NRF project

How could qualitative outcomes in education be realised by using emerging technologies to transform teaching and learning interactions and paradigms across higher education institutions in South Africa?

Phase 1 of Project - Survey

In what ways are emerging technologies used in innovative pedagogical practices to transform teaching and learning across South African HEIs?

August – Sept 2011

Phase 1: Survey

1. What are the technologies academics are using?

2. How are SA lecturers using these technologies?

3. Is the use of these technologies transforming teaching and learning practices?

4. Are they leading to qualitative outcomes for students?

Research questions

1. Survey sent out in 2011 to all HEIs in South Africa

2. App. 250 responses

3. Closed and open ended questions

4. Follow up interviews with 21 educators who provided rich evidence

5. Write up of case studies

Methodology

Findings of project

What are emerging technologies?

Veletsianos’ (2010) identified five characteristics: 1. They are not necessarily

new; 2. They are evolving; 3. They go through hype

cycles; 4. They are not yet fully

understood and not yet maturely researched and

5. They have the (often unrealised) potential to disrupt

Our team concluded (Gachago et al., 2013) that: • Veletsianos’ definition was

able to take account of the contextual complexities in South Africa

• And identified two additional characteristics

6. They were used by passionate innovators and

7. They were empowering for students and lecturers

What emerging technologies are used?

• Research databases were the most common • Social networking and communication tools, • Open educational resources • Tools for accessing and producing learning

artefacts • Tools for recording learning activities for later

review and reflection • Low uptake of bandwidth intensive technologies • Many view the LMS as the most innovative

technology that they have used

Emerging technology Regularly At least once Never

Research databases 61.5% 13.0% 24.0%

Social media 48.0% 19.5% 30.5%

Social networking 44.5% 19.0% 35.5%

Instant messaging 38.0% 17.5% 44.5%

E-books 37.5% 28.5% 33.0%

Web-based documents 36.5% 25.5% 35.5%

Blogging 34.5% 22.5% 39.0%

Bibliographic management 33.0% 25.5% 34.5%

Internet phone 32.5% 20.0% 47.0%

Open educational resources 31/0% 29.0% 38.5%

Wikis 27.5% 26.5% 43.5%

Podcasting / vodcasting 23.0% 27.0% 49.0%

RSS feeds 23.0% 14.0% 50.5%

Multimedia / digital stories 20.0% 26.5% 52.0%

RLO

Use of emerging technologies in SA (n=262, 22 institutions)

Most innovative T&L practice with technologies

So what is emerging in Paris may be some years off emerging in Parys…

Parys by vls.wikipedia.org (CC)

Why use emerging technologies?

• There are three reasons why people use emerging technologies: 1. Pedagogic concerns 2. Pragmatism, to solve practical problems 3. External pressures

• Obstacles: lack of knowledge or skills, and resources • But lack of resources also drives adoption

• Who makes it happen?

1. Individuals who are passionate about technology and teaching 2. Adoption is not systemic or well supported by universities

Personal interest: I am passionate

about technology 29%

It is available at my institution

23%

Institutional workshop /

demonstration 10%

My institution requires this of

me 8%

My colleagues had positive

results using this technology

8%

My students demanded this

5%

I experienced it as a student in my

studies 4%

Other: To improve learning

3%

I saw this at a conference

3%

I read about it in a paper

3%

Incentive (funding, policy)

2%

Motivators for use

Institution 53% Lecturers

attitudes and skills 25%

Students attitudes &

skills 22%

Challenges

Emerging technologies make it possible to teach in new ways

• Emerging technologies can support authentic learning (Herrington, Reeves and Oliver, 2010) – Exposing students to real-world contexts

– Tackling ill-defined problems that need be approached in multiple ways

– To provide coaching and scaffolding

• Less effective in providing – opportunities for students to articulate their growing

understanding

– authentic assessment

1. Citizen journalism 2. Collaborative women’s

health programme 3. Digital storytelling in

education 4. Adaptive management of

resources / Biodiversity 5. Critical thinking in

Physiotherapy

What can emerging technologies do?

Emerging technologies can be used to: • Collaboratively construct knowledge through interaction,

feedback and reflection • Collaboratively design teaching materials and plan

curricula • Allow a more personalised, flexible way of learning • Change the role of students in learning and the power-

relationship between students and lecturers • Increase access to social learning networks • Facilitate both informal and formal learning • Support diverse students’ needs • Support students learning in a second or third language

Doing it right…

• Emerging technologies do not necessarily lead to better learning outcomes

• May simply reinforce traditional ways of teaching • One exemplary process:

1. identify a learning goal 2. Select an activity that results in an artefact 3. Have students present the outcome and record the

presentation 4. Have students reflect publically on the goal, artefact and

presentation, and 5. Research and write a reflective essay on the task

• Requires institutional engagement with innovators

1. Context matters – sometimes an LMS is still emerging

2. Passionate educators / agency more transformative impact that institutional support

3. We are learning differently – focus on meaningful learning in authentic contexts

4. Power to the learners & community!

5. Connecting / Participating / Global citizenship

Emerging themes…

11 case studies 7 institutions 16 educators 13 tools 1 guide

1. digital storytelling at CPUT 2. role play in an online

discussion discussion forum at Wits

3. Towards sharing and reflection in Obstetrics at UCT

4. digital academic identity makeover at SU

background challenges innovation benefits of emerging technologies key points for effective practice

CS1 Final year pre-service student teachers’ use of digital storytelling in diverse classrooms in South Africa Daniela Gachago, Eunice Ivala, Janet Condy, Agnes Chigona, Cape Peninsula University of Technology

• My computer is the nucleus of my workspace • When I need information I go online • Besides IM or email my cell phone is my primary method of

communication • I’m usually juggling five things at once • My attention span is very small • I want instant gratification • I get bored very easily

Oblinger 2008

Challenge: new generation of students

Oblinger

Images

Innovation

• Replacement of teaching portfolio

• Development of digital story

• Reflection on journey to becoming a teacher

Digital stories

Everybody has a story to tell

Image from Flickr by whateverything (CC)

Give marginalised, silent people a voice

Planning of DST projects

Intro

Research / brainstorming

Scripting Storyboarding

Images

Photostory/ iMovie/

Moviemaker Narration

Background sounds &

Music

Screening

Visual literacy

Academic literacy, Planning & sequencing

Performance

Multimedia skills

Information literacy

River of Life

River of Life

So yes, if you get exposed to another person’s culture,

surely you will respect that culture eventually and you

will learn about that person and you see that person

with more respect and in a

better light.

Sharing your story

Everybody has their own story to tell. So digital story allows you to tell your specific story and share it amongst everybody in your classroom.

Benefits

• Development of variety of digital literacies

• Polished product

• Personal growth through reflection, sharing and listening to each other’s stories

• Development of class cohesion and team building

1. What is digital literacy? Three components of digital literacy emerge from the literature

Social awareness (understand your identity, collaborate, adapt

communication to context/audience)

Knowledge of digital tools (hard/software awareness/competence – ICT literacy?)

Critical thinking (evaluating, contextualising – information literacy?)

Newman, 2009

Key points for effective practice

• Step by step planning

• Team approach / teaching

• Access

• Scaffolding and coaching

• Student assistants

• Free software

• Virus management

• Continuous reflective practice

Role play in an on-line discussion forum

Case Study-4 Roshini Pillay –Wits

*

CS4 Discussion Forums

Purpose of Group work or meso practice

• To Serve the needs of it's members

• Growth and skill development

• For support

• For counselling

• For mutual aid

• To belong to a collective

What happens in a group?

• Commonality

• Variety of resources and viewpoints

• Sense of belonging

• Skills practice

• Feedback

• Vicarious learning

• Groups replicate real life

• *

• Meso practice\ Group work – A Social Work intervention

which is, ‘a goal directed activity with small treatment and task groups aimed at meeting socio emotional needs and accomplishing tasks’

(Toseland & Rivas, 2009, p12)

*

The course used a blended learning approach as students were requested to conduct collaborative work both face-to-face and online using the WebCT learning management system

Role play Role play is a powerful tool for the enactment of a social role in an imagined social situation

Getting students to play either the role of leader or member at different points facilitated learning, empathy and skill development

Role play is used for- assessment, teaching and simulation

Role play increases awareness, understanding of interpersonal skills and allows for corrective feedback (Toesland and Rivas, 2009)

Discussion Forum :an asynchronous online dialogue or conversation that takes the form of a series of linked messages organized around a common subject or theme (Swan 2005) that occurs on a platform for conferencing and learning that spans both time and space between students and teachers (Gilbert & Dabbagh, 2005)

Discussion Forums offer a flexible platform that enables active interaction and collaboration between and amongst students and educator /s in the learning process

Discussion Forum Posts

Students were asked to create discussion forum posts that contain at least 3 original messages and to respond to 2 messages posted by classmates

Reflective practice was encouraged as it is a ‘deliberate effort to review actions and the knowledge that informs them (Schon cited in Barry & O' Callaghan, 2008, p. 56)

Reflection helps gain insight on how individual activity and outcomes contribute to the learning experience (Conrad & Donaldson, 2004 ) and can occur in the on-line environment (Brookfield, 2006)

In the online environment, members have the opportunity to expand the possibility of reflection through collaborative techniques with other learners (Glowacki-Dudka & Barnett,2007)

The Course • Aim- to teach students how to design, plan, implement and assess meso level

interventions • WebCT learning management system was used to provide a virtual platform for

discussion forums and placing relevant multi-media course content • 21 lectures over 10 weeks • 6 virtual online and class groups were created around a social issue such as

addiction • Students adopted the roles of a group member or group worker/leader • The groups were risk free, safe rehearsal environments to experiment with the

group processes and skills prior to working with clients in the field • Meso practice exercises that mirrored the procedures and activities of treament

interventions

• Total number of posts- 904,highest number of post by a student was- 71

• Total amount times spent on course on the learning management system 289 hours

Quotes

• I know of a friend who has being to rehab, stayed clean but because of the environment and circumstances within the household, addiction was the only comfort”

• Free to share -the ice breaker today was a bit boring, SORRY, didnt have time to think it over I totally forgot that I was the leader for toda (y)

• i agree with u sameera... but however i wont entirely say that their family and background is the cause for their action, that is just making excuses because after all everyone has the ability to think for themselves and make decisions or alternatively they using a form of defence mechanism by projecting blame onto others .. they know the harms of substance abuse (hence gain knowledge from tv, radio, other members) yet they still CHOOSE to carry on?

Quotes • I dont think that will work. the more something is illegal the more

peope do it its like people were cursed, we always do what we are told not to

• Conflict -Today there were some revelation about how group memebers felt personally but this did not affect the way in which the group co-operates. I think there was a bit of intensity due to the conflict that was brought up during our ice breaker and later delt with. the group was not their usual out-going, vibrant selves. use of poetry – my Master -I have a master of an evil kind He totally controls my body, soul, and mind

• Education -SANCA website , http://www.sancanational.org.za/stats_usage.htm , states that alcohol is the most highly abused sustance. This is alarming and it seems this problem is increasing amongst South African's. Hopefully stricter laws will be put in place in terms of shebeen's and restaurants selling alcohol on sunday's

Social Networks Adapting Pedagogical Practice (SNAPP)

A quantitative software application developed by researchers from the University of Wollongong, Australia (Dawson, 2009)

Key Points for Effective Practice • Guidelines and scaffolding

• Openness

• Expert performance

• Motivation

• Tracking and monitoring

• Social presence , supplement discussion with social media such as Twitter

• Netiquette

• Time awareness

References • Barry, P., & O' Callaghan, C. (2008). Reflexive Journal Writing Nordic Journal of Music

Therapy, 17(1), 55-66. • Brookfield, S. (2006). The skillful teacher (2 ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. • Conrad, R., & Donaldson, J. A. (2004). Engaging the online learner: Activities and

resources for creative instruction. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. • Dawson, S., Bakharia, A., & Heathcote, E. (2010). SNAPP: Realising the affordances of

real-time SNA within networked environments. Paper presented at the 7th International Conference on Networked Learning 2010, Aaborg- Denmark.

• Gilbert, P., & Dabbagh, N. (2005). How to structure online discussions for meaningful discourse:a Case study. British Journal of Educational Technology, 36(1), 5-18.

• Glowacki-Dudka, M., & Barnett, N. (2007). Connecting Critical Reflection and Group Development in Online Adult Education Classrooms. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 19, 43-52. http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/

• Swan, K. (2005). Threaded Discussion. http://www.irma-international.org/viewtitle/12039/

• Toseland, R., & Rivas, R. (2009). An Introduction to Group Work Practice. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

• Some images *were obtained from http://www.gettyimages.com Royalty free

CS 7: Towards sharing and

reflection in Obstetrics

Health Sciences Faculty

Veronica Mitchell, University of Cape Town, South Africa

http://uidynamics.deviantart.com/art/Google-drive-icons-298235532

@ HELTASA

New curriculum initiative 2 student groups in 2013

Obstetrics practical rotation

15 deliveries = competence

Year 4 students

Obstetrics in Year 4

Weak health system

?

Student buy-in

Trust in sharing Time commitment re online feedback

Logistics

Google accounts in place

Sharing of docs and folders

Digital fluency of students

Variation in internet connection

Preparedness for the unexpected

e.g. Cuban students with Spanish keyboards

Teaching resources – assistance

Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology

New curriculum initiative

Google Drive

?

educators should consider

using technology

to enhance communication

and provide richer,

more meaningful platforms for

the social construction of knowledge

Rowe, M., Bozalek, V. & Franz, J. 2013. Using Google Drive to facilitate a blended

approach to authentic learning

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cloud computing

“

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hikingartist/5726834773/sizes/s/in/photostream

Synchronous

&

Asynchronous

Collaboration

Dialogue

Why Google Drive

Collaboration - expanded potential Net generation learners

New opportunities / affordances

?

Affordances

A changing educational landscape

Anytime / Anywhere

Agency and choice re sharing

Accessible on mobile App

Affordable because Google is FREE

Student managed rather than institutional LMS

?

Active self-assessment in a line

Wordle using Google forms

Google docs in class

Away in placements

Feedback & sharing

Process

Engagement in the

vacuum

Using Google forms & Wordle

Reflective teaching tool

http://opencontent.uct.ac.za/Health-Sciences/Probing-Professionalism-Towards-Positive-Practice

Students’ feedback…

Very helpful / beneficial

New online skill

Learnt to respect the work of others

Importance of sharing

information

Introducing Google Drive in all years

Promoting blended learning approaches

Self-organization / Self-regulation

Effective practice

The shifting

educational landscape

is opening up

new opportunities

through emerging technologies

Technology enhanced learning spaces

Online engagement

… universities will need to manage the look, feel, and overall characteristics of virtual and online environments with as much deliberation and care as we manage physical space.

Katz, R. 2008, The gathering cloud: Is this the end of the middle? The tower and the cloud: Higher education in the age of cloud computing.

“

Thank you

CS9: Digital Literacy

The Online Scholar

Noëlle Cowling

Faculty of Military Science Stellenbosch University

Background

• Small Multi-Disciplinary Faculty on satellite campus in Saldanha

• Challenge wrt staff and student readiness for e-learning

• Student group diverse with highly disparate competencies

• Faculty members diverse ito willingness to utilise technology in teaching – resistance can be a challenge

• Current online learning is too static and not sufficiently interactive

Intended Outcomes

• Enhance staff digital literacy wrt Web 2.0

• Improved digital literacy should carry over into teaching practice

• Improving staff online profiles

• Create platforms to share research and teaching online

• Improved collaboration with other scholars

• Create a safe space for staff to explore and develop

• Increased visibility of scholars and their work

The Challenge

• The Faculty of Military Science is isolated

• The online sharing ethos clashes with the military culture of securing information

• Research collaboration ito research between scholars in the FMS and other institutions less than half the national norm

• Lack of confidence wrt utilizing new technologies

• Lecturers responsible for uptake of new tech in courses

• Training and support effort is often directed to the student level and not the staff level

Established Practice

• Past training often focused on the LMS, in 2012 we introduced sessions on specific emerging tech

• Not enough HOT and follow through in terms of introducing new tech

• Most staff currently have limited online profiles

• Only a handful of approx 65 faculty are actively curating research online

• Almost no research dissemination effort after publication

• Ltd active sharing of ideas etc via blogging, Twitter etc

Affordances

Tools were selected based upon various affordances:

• Tools selected were:

– Academia.Edu

– LinkedIn

– Slideshare

– Twitter

– Google Sites

Academia.edu • Collaboration • Research streams and updates • Curatorship • Networking • Tracking tools • SEO

LinkedIn • Widely used in the Faculty • Can embed Slideshare presentations • Great SEO

• Slideshare

– Media Sharing Service so encourages extended literacy with regards to other sites such as YouTube and Flickr

– Great platform to share teaching ideas

– Promotes Open Education

– Provides Information on who accessed your presentations

• Twitter

– Micro Blogging

– Aggregator of latest information

– Dissemination Tool to ensure research gains traction

• Google Sites

– Ready platform for e-portfolio

– Robust echo system incl many apps and tools

– Track citation impact

– Offers research and teaching tools

– One common online identity

Description of Intervention

• A teacher to teacher type intervention

• Process – Utilise 5 selected tools

– Introducing one a month over six months

– Develop digital literacy skills

– Create, enhance and improve online profiles and collaborative efforts.

– Finally participants will be encouraged to create e-portfolios for life long and life wide learning and curatorship.

Description of Intervention • The Project Group

– 5 Faculty members selected – Demographically diverse - Middle of the road tech users

• Survey used to assess their use of online profiles • Outcomes constructed to ensure buy-in and listed as

– Improved digital literacy – Digital makeover – Curatorship competencies – Expansion of networks and collaboration opportunities – Awareness of research impact – Participation in the growing open access environment

Key Points for Effective

Practice

• Maintaining enthusiasm and “buy-in” from staff

• Strong selling points are required to ensure continued participation

• Ensure that some of the tools are not replicating the functions offered by other and that management of too many streams becomes difficult

• Find a balance between maintaining momentum in the project and creating a pressure situation for participants

• Provide rapid training for each tool with best practice guidelines

• Provide ongoing feedback and support

• It is crucial not to lose sight of the fact that that the primary aim of developing digital literacies remains the end goal of this venture, with the development of the online identities being a secondary goal.

How did I design my learning activity?

• Ensure that the tools selected complemented each other

• 6 month timeframe in order to provide a month to master each tool and ensure the activity fitted into one semester

• Rapid group training sessions of one hour per tool in order to fit training into a lunch break and make it accessible to all faculty members

• Each tool is therefore presented as an independent entity with a “clip-on” type of approach

• Personalised support model designed to ensure support and contact for continued commitment

Conclusions & Recommendations • The project is still formative and adjustments are

ongoing

• One recommendation is to design an online course for this intervention

• The intervention creates safe spaces for scholars to explore a number of Web 2.0 tools in a manner which is directly relevant to them

• Interesting research possibilities ito how participants developed and if their research networks prospered.

Conclusions & Recommendations

• One recommendation by our web manager is to do away with static online profiles on the Faculty website and instead create links to social networking buttons

• The training has since been made accessible to all interested staff members. The initial group will continue as planned however for purposes of evaluation and development

Additional Information

The Survey Results

Two excellent guides

• http://openuct.uct.ac.za/article/academics-online-presence-guidelines

• http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2011/09/29/twitter-guide/

References

• Bower, M. (2008). “Affordance analysis – matching learning tasks with learning technologies Educational Media International.” Vol. 45, No. 1, March 2008, 3–15.

• Conole, G. and Alevizou, P. “A literature review of the use of Web 2.0 tools in Higher Education.” A report commissioned by the Higher Education Academy, The Open University, August 2010.

• Czerniewicz, L., & Brown, C. (2005). “Access to ICTs for teaching and learning: From single artefact to inter-related resources.” International Journal of Education and Development using ICT [Online], 1(2).

• Dunlap, J. and Lowenthal, P (2012). “Intentional Web Presence: 10 SEO Strategies Every Academic Needs to Know.” Boise State University, 2012.

• Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2004) “Digital Literacy: A Concept Framework for Survival Skills in the Digital Era.” Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia. 13(1), 93-106.

• Goodfellow, R. (2011) “Literacy, literacies and the digital in higher education.” Teaching in Higher Education, Vol. 16, No. 1, 131144.

• Greenhow, C., Robelia, B. an Hughes, J. (2009) “Learning, Teaching, and Scholarship in a Digital Age Web 2.0 and Classroom Research: What Path Should We Take Now.” EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER, 38: 246.

• Hanson, J. (2009) “Displaced but not replaced: the impact of e-learning on academic identities in higher education.” Teaching in Higher Education, Volume 14, Issue 5, pages 553 – 564.

• Henderson, M. and Bradey, S. “Shaping online teaching practices The influence of professional and academic identities.” Campus-Wide Information Systems, Vol. 25 No. 2, 2008, pp. 85-92.

References cont… • Herrick, D.(2009 ) “Google This! Using Google Apps for Collaboration and Productivity.” SIGUCCS’09, St. Louis,

Missouri, USA. • Hiradhar, P. and Gray, J. (2008) “From a social digital identity to an academic digital identity: Introducing

ePortfolios in English language enhancement courses.” Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, V34(3) Fall.

• Kelly, B. and Delasalle, J. (2012) “Can LinkedIn and Academia.edu Enhance Access to Open Repositories?” In: OR2012: the 7th International Conference on Open Repositories, Edinburgh, Scotland.

• Kemp, B., & Jones, C. (2007). “Academic Use of Digital Resources: Disciplinary Differences and the Issue of Progression revisited.” Educational Technology & Society, 10 (1), 52-60.

• Kirkup, Gill (2010). “Academic blogging, academic practice and academic identity.” London Review of Education, 8(1), pp. 75–84.

• Priem, J and Costello, K.L. “How and why scholars cite on Twitter.” ASIST 2010, October 22–27, 2010, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

• Ross, J. (2011) “Traces of self: online reflective practices and performances in higher education.” Teaching in Higher Education, Vol. 16, No. 1, 113126.

• Veletsianos, G. (2011) “Higher education scholars’ participation and practices on Twitter.” Journal of Computer Assisted Learning.

• Veletsianos, G. and Kimmons, R. “Networked Participatory Scholarship: Emergent techno-cultural pressures toward open and digital scholarship in online networks.” Computers & Education 58 (2012) 766–774.

Emerging technologies and authentic learning

Authentic task Authentic context Reflection Collaboration Scaffolding Expert performance Multiple perspectives Articulation Authentic assessment

Any questions?