CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 1

CSU Learning Technologies

Framework Version 5

3rd May 2017

Version 5 approved by the Learning Environments Committee on 3rd May 2017

Version 4 approved by the CLTC on 23rd August 2016 via the Learning Environments Committee

Version 3 approved by the CLTC on 5th May 2015 via the Learning Environments Committee

Version 2 approved by the Information and Learning Systems Committee on 20th February 2014

Version 1 was approved by CSU Curriculum, Learning and Teaching Committee; Academic Senate and

Information and Learning Systems Committee in 2010

Review Working group: Assoc Prof Philip Uys (convenor, Learning technologies Unit, DSL); Tim

Klapdor (uImagine, DSL); Ryun Fell (Learning Resources Unit, DSL); Pete Greening (Office for

Students); Paul Bristow (DIT); Vanessa Salway (DLS); Cade Whitbourn (WSO).

Developed in cooperation with the Educational Technology Reference Group.

Feedback has been received through wide consultation with staff across the University in the creation

and update of the Framework.

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Table of Contents

1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................................................. 4

1.1 PURPOSE ......................................................................................................................................... 4

1.2 CONTEXT ......................................................................................................................................... 5

2. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 6

2.1 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE FRAMEWORK ................................................................................ 6

2.2 DEFINITION OF “LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES” ................................................................................. 7

3. A VISION FOR THE USE AND RESEARCH OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES ................................................ 8

3.1 VISION ............................................................................................................................................. 8

3.2 OBJECTIVES ..................................................................................................................................... 8

4. KEY VALUES AND PRINCIPLES OF USING LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES ..................................................... 10

4.1 VALUES .......................................................................................................................................... 10

4.2 PRINCIPLES .................................................................................................................................... 10

5 PRINCIPLES GOVERNING THE INTRODUCTION OF NEW LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES .............................. 11

6. KEY DRIVERS ............................................................................................................................................ 13

6.1 EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT ............................................................................................................ 13

6.2 INTERNAL PROFILE ........................................................................................................................ 14

7. STRATEGIES FOR INCREASING THE APPROPRIATE USE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES ......................... 16

8. RELATED POLICY AREAS .......................................................................................................................... 17

8.1 ACCESS AND EQUITY ..................................................................................................................... 17

8.2 INDIGENOUS PERSPECTIVES ......................................................................................................... 19

8.3 ALIGNMENT OF PEDAGOGICAL APPROACHES .............................................................................. 19

8.4 EVALUATION PROCESSES AND PRACTICES ................................................................................... 19

8.5 CSU ASSESSMENT POLICY ............................................................................................................. 20

8.6 LEGAL AND ETHICAL STANDARDS ................................................................................................. 20

8.7 COPYRIGHT .................................................................................................................................... 20

8.8 COMMUNICATIONS POLICY .......................................................................................................... 20

8.9 MINIMUM EXPERTISE AND USAGE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES BY TEACHING STAFF ............ 21

8.10 EXPECTATIONS OF STUDENTS IN USING LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES ......................................... 21

8.11 INTRODUCTION AND MATURITY OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES ............................................... 21

9. STANDARDS OF THE REQUIRED SYSTEMS ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE .............................. 22

10. STRATEGIES FOR PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AND TRAINING ............................................................... 22

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11. GUIDELINES FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE USE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES ....................................... 23

11.1 SUPPORT FOR TEACHING STAFF AND LEARNING AND TEACHING SUPPORT STAFF ................... 23

11.2 STUDENT USER AND LEARNING SUPPORT .................................................................................. 23

11.3 COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND SERVICES .......................................................................................... 24

12. THE GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE SUPPORTING LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES INCLUDING COMMITTEES 25

13. SUPPORT OF CSU’S GRADUATE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND CURRICULUM PRINCIPLES .................... 26

14. HIGH LEVEL INDICATORS OF SUCCESSFUL LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES USE AT CSU ............................ 26

16. APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY ........................................................................................................................ 27

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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1.1 PURPOSE

The Framework guides the governance, policy and practice needs for learning technologies at Charles

Sturt University (CSU) and defines the provision, use and application of learning technologies at CSU.

The Framework provides a structure through which planning and goal-setting will occur to guide future

development; that is, it aims to provide a strategic and operational pathway for development to follow.

The Framework contains the enduring philosophy and principles, while the Learning Technologies Plan

describes in a more exact way what CSU will implement in the next two-year period and how success

will be evaluated. The Learning Technologies Plan will describe the implementation of the Framework.

The Plan will be appraised annually by the end of April for currency, to allow for appropriate budget

allocation.

Relevant policies will have to be reviewed and appropriate resources allocated to ensure that the key

tenets of the Framework are implemented.

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1.2 CONTEXT

The Framework aligns with the CSU Strategy including the sub plans supporting Our Students:

Transforming Learning & Teaching, and Our Internal Capabilities. The organisational design of CSU needs

to support and respond to the key tenets of the Framework, for instance in the formulation of position

descriptions and the way that work is organised.

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2. INTRODUCTION

The Framework has been formally reviewed to align with CSU strategy. The Framework and the Plan will

be reviewed annually to ensure currency and to enable input to the annual budget process; these will be

revisited if required outside this regular cycle.

The Learning Environments Committee (LEC) is the custodian of the Framework and the Plan.

The Frameworks of other Australasian universities were initially analysed, drafts were developed by the

Working group in consultation with the Educational Technology Reference Group, and drafts were

submitted and commented on by the Information and Learning Systems Committee (ILSC) - which has

been replaced by the Learning Environments Committee (LEC) - Curriculum Learning and Teaching

Committee and Academic Senate.

The Framework addresses online, on-campus -, blended (mixed-mode), mobile education and CSU’s

focus on education for the professions. The Framework aligns with the CSU Strategy and the University

plans.

2.1 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE FRAMEWORK

The Framework guides the governance, policy and practice needs for learning technologies at CSU and

defines learning technologies use at CSU.

It provides a structure through which planning and goal-setting will occur to guide future development;

that is, it aims to provide a strategic and operational pathway for development to follow.

The Framework interprets and informs current University Strategy and University Sub-plans to ensure

the development, provision and use of learning technologies advances learning and teaching towards

positioning CSU as the leader in online education. It positions learning technologies to support

professional education, to enhance engagement and a successful student experience. As such, it

integrates and informs Faculty learning technologies needs and the related support requirements of the

Divisions. It draws on and informs the Initiatives and Strategy Implementation (ISIP) and the list of

projects as well as divisional plans.

The Plan will reconcile learning and teaching plans and technological roadmaps (to be developed as a

partnership between DSL and DIT) which describe necessary developments over a two-year period.

The Framework provides a coordinated means to identify and respond to current and emerging

requirements for learning technologies across CSU’s campuses and sites, in order to respond to the

needs and expectations of CSU students and the changing needs of the higher education sector.

The Framework ensures that learning and teaching innovation and development at CSU will encompass

both innovation in pedagogical approaches to the use of learning technologies and the learning

technologies themselves, with the emphasis on their role in collaboration, communication and mobility.

As such, it links to CSU’s Graduate Learning Outcomes and Online Learning Model.

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New learning technologies are constantly emerging, and they present research and possibly pedagogical

opportunities. Many small groups and individual CSU staff are researching emerging technologies in

creative and innovative ways. The Framework provides a vision of this complex interconnected mix of

educational concerns and helps with the balance between research and actual learning and teaching

The Framework provides guidelines for the introduction and use of learning technologies, to ensure

student success and engagement, high quality learning and teaching practices and learning resources,

and the coordinated deployment of learning technologies and productive work-processes. As such, it

addresses the need to engender creative interest and enthusiasm in the use of learning technologies

and support the appropriate uptake of learning technologies by the majority of teaching staff.

2.2 DEFINITION OF “LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES”

“Learning technologies” are the broad range of information, communication and related technologies

that are integrated in well-researched educational theory and practice for the direct purpose of effective

design, development and facilitation of learning and teaching (AECT, 2012; ALT, 2012; Schmid et al.,

2009).

Learning technologies include, but are not restricted to, information and communication technologies

(computers and networks, mobile devices, video conferencing and multimedia, including audio/visual

and online production) and physical teaching and learning spaces.

The term includes the use of technology by teaching staff, teaching support staff and students – owned

by CSU, privately or by third parties - within a diverse range of learning and teaching spaces, both online

and on-campus (physical, virtual and blended i.e. a combination of physical and virtual spaces in

learning) and the necessary support processes. It includes hardware, infrastructure and software that

are supported centrally in the University and by faculties, and external educational technologies (EETs).

Learning technologies include enabling technologies that allow and ensure that other prominent

learning technologies are working.

Improvement in learning technologies can support the needs of researchers as a secondary goal.

“Learning technologies” excludes administrative computer systems (such as Banner and CASIMS).

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3. A VISION FOR THE USE AND RESEARCH OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

CSU has a diverse and dispersed educational environment with multiple campuses nationally and

various international partner operations, and the University provides both on-campus and online

facilitation of learning.

3.1 VISION

The vision for the use of learning technologies at CSU is that they increase student success and

engagement, and enrich and personalise the CSU student experience through innovative learning design

and talented teaching; underpin innovative and engaging online teaching; and are matched to the

course profile and research areas of the institution. These elements need to be integrated within

scalable educational practices and a malleable organisational design within an increasingly digital and

mobile landscape.

3.2 OBJECTIVES

The objectives for learning technologies use at CSU are to:

a. Support and enhance student success, engagement and the student experience, in particular

to address the diverse learning needs in ways that personalise the learning experience, and

further add choices and learning opportunities for students:

● enrich diverse and innovative research-based pedagogical approaches;

● enrich course planning and course level environments for students and staff;

● facilitate learning at a distance through practices that align with the CSU Online Learning

Model;

● facilitate Adaptive Learning and Teaching, with its constituent elements of data-informed

practice, personalised support and personalised learning, to enable responsiveness to

student learning needs

● develop a seamless integration of technology into the student learning experience;

● demonstrate leadership in the integration of learning technologies in learning and teaching;

● articulate in the University curriculum a commitment to integrate design standards and

models of practice, principles with learning technologies;

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● increase the level of learning technologies use by all teaching staff in line with university

directions;

● provide shared learning spaces and teaching experiences through development and

enhancement of the necessary physical infrastructure and the Online Learning Environment

(OLE);

● facilitate access by all students whether online or on-campus and provide communities of

learning and practice for dispersed staff and students;

● facilitate academic and student networking and collaboration across courses; and

● support the effective use of learning technologies, and provide guidelines for those privately

owned and/or used by teaching staff and students.

b. Strengthen CSU’s recognition as a national leader in online learning

● Implementation and ongoing development of the Online Learning Model;

● be responsive, proactive and flexible to emerging needs, opportunities, challenges and

feedback from the CSU community;

● develop open education practices;

● develop and implement online learning standards.

c. Support and enhance CSU’s distinctive educational programs for the professions:

● support collaborative networks and partnerships within CSU and with professional and

industry affiliations;

● provide extensive learning technologies support for students on work placements.

d. Where possible, also provide support for strategic and applied research:

● foster the creation and sharing of knowledge through collaborative learning, professional

development and, as a secondary goal, supporting research higher degree students and

research environments.

e. Support flexible pathways to CSU and support links with CSU’s TAFE partners

through comparable systems.

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4. KEY VALUES AND PRINCIPLES OF USING LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

4.1 VALUES

a) CSU believes that the appropriate integration of learning technologies and pedagogy enhances

learning and teaching and thus the student experience.

b) Learning technologies (specifically our Learning Management System - Interact2) have the

capacity to improve access to information and increase knowledge; to enhance learner-content,

learner-teacher, learner-learner and learner-institution engagement; and allow a variety of

assessment practices.

c) CSU values and promotes digital literacy and fluency as an integral part of the multiliteracies

which staff and students acquire during their time at CSU to be work-ready for their professions.

4.2 PRINCIPLES

Student learning experience: supports the quality of the student learning experience across all physical,

blended and virtual learning and teaching spaces.

Enriches pedagogy: supports and enhances pedagogy.

Strategic alignment: aligned with the goals, values, strategy and mission of CSU in relation to learning

and teaching.

Fostering innovation: designed to foster innovation, creativity and transformative change.

Equivalence of learning outcomes: ethical obligations of flexible and blended learning including

equitable and accessibility of use.

Discipline pedagogies: negotiates the specific needs of different disciplines.

Resilience: there cannot be a guarantee that learning technologies will always under all circumstances

work as intended, which necessitates back-up plans.

Accommodates technological change: accommodates the nuanced shifts fundamental to rapid

technological change.

Continuous renewal: designed to foster a dynamic environment of continuous renewal, simultaneously

leading and responding to developments in university learning and teaching at all levels.

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5 PRINCIPLES GOVERNING THE INTRODUCTION OF NEW LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

Need

There should be a stated curricular or pedagogical need or opportunity and vision for the

implementation of the new technology that is identified through student and staff consultation and

dialogue or tied to systemic developments such as learning theories, paradigm shifts, technical

affordances, societal trends and research imperatives.

Improvement

New technologies need to show that they contribute to student success, engagement and enhance the

student learning experience or support those delivering enhanced student experiences. This could be

achieved through evaluation including case studies at other educational institutions or other parts of

CSU, as well as pilots at CSU.

Introduction

Centrally supported learning technologies should be introduced in a sustainable way.

Selection of learning technologies is to be guided by relevant Enterprise Architecture Principles to

support risk management and optimal use of University resources.

Integration

Teaching staff are to integrate external technologies such as external online technologies into their

learning and teaching in line with the University’s External Educational Technologies for Learning and

Teaching Policy and Guidelines to ensure a coherent learning experience.

All learning technologies do not have to be provided or supported centrally but integrated appropriately

wherever possible.

Innovation

Innovation in the integration of learning technologies should be encouraged as it is critical for CSU to be

the leader in online learning in Australia.

Teaching staff are to be encouraged and rewarded to research learning technologies use as part of the

scholarship of teaching.

Designated professional staff such as educational designers and learning resources staff committed to

learning and teaching innovation in the Division of Student Learning (DSL) should be encouraged to

investigate learning technologies, developments, and trends to support learning and teaching. Pilot

activities should be conducted without risking disadvantage to learning and teaching of participating

students

DIT and DSL staff will engage with innovative activities and need to enhance efficiency in mainstreaming

and inform on market directions, technology trends and related research publications.

Minimise large scale change

Large scale change caused by changes in learning technologies should be minimised and should be

managed where it is necessary.

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Professional development and support for teaching staff and students

Skill development in the use of the technology both technically and pedagogically need to be both

attainable and scalable, and professional development should be ongoing.

Technical assistance and support need to be readily available, whether the technology is maintained

either internally or externally.

The technology needs to be supported by standards, policy (see section 8 below), procedures, guidelines

of use and resources. This would include alignment to the CSU strategy and University plans and

programs.

The technology is to be supported by a collaborative community of users that have invested in the

introduction and implementation process and are supported by appropriate ICTs such as micro-blogging.

Resourcing

There needs to be ongoing budget consideration and planning for the future or or for specific

timeframes.

Governance

Investment in new learning technologies takes place through the following governance mechanisms:

1. Initiatives and Strategy Implementation Plan (ISIP) Governance Committee or Vice Chancellor's

Leadership Team (VCLT) approval for strategic investment.

2. Faculty and School Management approval in accordance with the delegations policy for non-

centrally supported investment.

Enterprise Architecture Principles, the CSU Digital Information Security Policy, the External

Educational Technologies for Learning and Teaching Policy, and the Learning Analytics Code of

Practice inform the necessary considerations for technology investment decisions.

Learning technologies can be introduced following an agreed process of contacting the Director,

Learning Technologies in the Division of Student Learning or the Enterprise Architecture and Liaison

group in the Division of Information Technology.

Evaluation

There needs to be ongoing assessment and evaluation of the effectiveness of the technology for

learning and teaching or stated need/intention.

Standards

Learning technologies should align with the Enterprise Architecture (EA) principles that include risk

management, and adhere to information technology standards to support integration where

appropriate.

● Unnecessary duplication - Where existing applications and technologies can provide an

equivalent function they should be used in preference to adopting new technologies. This both

provides students and staff with less applications to learn and CSU with less applications to

manage

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● Integration – present learning technologies as part of a cohesively designed whole to support

contextualisation and maximise usability

● Support – ensure staff and student training and support models are developed and well

understood before broadly implementing new technology

● Governance – ensure compliance with existing committees, policies and processes when

implementing new technology to support necessary authorities, assurances and risk mitigation

actions are considered

● Evaluation / Health – the efficacy of learning technologies will be regularly reviewed in order to

optimise the overall organisational learning technology portfolio.

● Resourcing – the acquisition of new technology must include consideration responsibilities for

ongoing funding and maintenance of technology.

6. KEY DRIVERS

6.1 EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT

● The opening up of the Australian higher education market and the removal of caps on

enrolment of students, and the continued increase in institutions providing online education,

have required increased emphasis on the student experience. It puts pressure on universities to

extend the learning, teaching and support environments and create optimal student learning

experiences through learning technologies;

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● The need to up-skill CSU students and staff to meet the challenges of the information and

knowledge society and the expectations of external stakeholders such as employers and

external assessment bodies;

● The need for accessible, user-friendly and flexible access to education to meet the societal and

life-wide and lifelong learning continuum;

● The abundance of free and open education resources (OERS) and relationships made more

accessible via the Internet is opening up new opportunities and challenging educators’ roles in

sense-making, coaching, and credentialing;

● People expect to be able to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want to;

● There is an increasing range of cloud-based services and platforms, i.e., externally hosted, and

notions of IT support are increasingly decentralised;

● The prevalence of information and communication technology (ICT) in everyday use, e.g. social

networking, wearable technology, cloud-based services, access to information sources, and our

increasing literacy in terms of visual media, reinforces the expectation that technology is

fundamental to the learning environment. This is reinforced by the integration and embedding

of ICT in curriculum and “good practice” in primary and secondary schools, given additional

impetus by Commonwealth government policy;

● The pervasive use of mobile technologies in everyday life;

● Changing business models and new partnerships within Higher Education;

● Standards and guidelines that CSU needs to adhere to like the AQF and TEQSA standards.

● Universal adoption of the LMS, other popular learning technologies and use of social media in

higher education means that more needs to be done to differentiate the methods, practice and

experience of learning with technologies.

6.2 INTERNAL PROFILE

a) The student profile of skills, access and expectations needs to be considered. There is mounting

evidence that using generalised characterisations, like “digital natives”, to form assumptions

about our student technology profile are unhelpful and inaccurate. To this end, the University

will monitor student needs, expectations, capabilities, etc., via a biennial Learning Technologies

Survey, with the results reflected in this Framework.

The results of current and previous Learning Technology Surveys can be found at DSL’s

Academic Compass homepage.

b) The technology profile of teaching staff, changes in institutional expectations and standards

around learning and teaching (e.g. introduction of the Online Learning Model and Quality Online

Learning and Teaching (QLT) Standards) and other organisational practices/strategies that

impact on teaching (e.g. casualisation) need to be considered. One input to this will be the

results of the biennial staff Learning Technologies Survey, along with other Academic Compass

surveys. The results of this survey can be found on the Academic Compass homepage. In May

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2016 annual statistics noted that usage of paperless EASTS is growing, indicating a growing

preference by teaching staff to mark paperlessly in line with CSU policy.

c) Networking of students is increasing as they increasingly need to be able to work collaboratively,

and there is more cross-campus collaboration within Schools in a variety of disciplines.

d) There is an expectation in the University of minimum expertise and usage of learning

technologies by teaching staff across courses and within subjects.

e) There is an expectation of consistent use of learning technologies across subjects in courses.

f) The multi-campus environment within a “One University” concept within a common support

model presents challenges such as cross-campus schools and staff, cross-campus course and

subject offerings and facilitation, online and on-campus modes of facilitation, dispersed student

cohorts.

g) Providing support and access for international partners, as well as the transferable nature of the

internationalism of education, places demands on CSU to provide state-of-the-art learning

technologies and to consider international attitudes towards cloud-based technologies.

h) The heterogeneity in the learner characteristics and experience of our students and the need

for learning technologies to personalise the learning experience.

i) CSU supports student and staff Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) learning technologies.

j) Learning technologies use needs to take into account that some students don’t have the speed

and stability internet requirements to access CSU’s online systems.

k) Learning technologies need to support the following key university developments and initiatives:

- The service improvement program and common support model;

- Courses need increasingly to be online;

- CSU has fully transferred to Interact2 in 2015;

- New course design processes are being rolled out;

- Institution-wide approaches to Adaptive Learning and Teaching (data- informed practice,

personalised support and personalised learning) are required;

- Indigenous education strategy;

- Transitions project;

- Student success as per the Student Experience Program and aspiring to the Student

Experience Project Objectives;

Professional and Practice-Based Education Model;

- The Curriculum Renewal/Degree Initiative includes course mapping software, digital object

management systems (DOMS) strategy for digital learning objects, ePortfolios, Assessment

tools, interactive resources and collaboration technologies;

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- The CSU Learning Analytics Model, including the mapping of the drivers of student success

with respect to learning environments;

- Increased accessibility in regional areas, for students with low socioeconomic status

(LSES), and general accessibility.

l) Draft 2017-2022 strategy: “We will ensure we are at the forefront of innovative, quality online

teaching and learning that delivers a rewarding and flexible student experience. CSU

Online will be the largest provider of online higher education in Australia through to

2030.“

7. STRATEGIES FOR INCREASING THE APPROPRIATE USE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

Learning technologies use will be aligned to the outcomes and objectives for learning and teaching, and

the affordances of the learning technologies and learning spaces.

The emphasis should be on how the technology enables the usage of a richer range of learning

modalities for learning and teaching.

The increase in modalities will reflect the institutional aims established by the CSU University Strategy.

Scholarship of Teaching

Advance the recognition of, and the scholarship of teaching regarding learning technologies.

Organisational design

Have an organisational design, which includes position descriptions and how work is organised, that

emphasises the appropriate use of learning technologies and digital fluency.

Policy and guidelines

Appropriate policy should be developed and adhered to, such as occurred in dealing with the use of

external technologies and the approval of new learning technologies.

Support and guidelines should be developed and provided to all teaching and teaching support staff to

make appropriate choices in using CSU-provided and external learning technologies.

Support major learning technologies implementations with appropriate change management processes.

Particular emphasis should be placed on the consistent use of learning technologies within first year

subjects not only to help students transition to university, but to promote good practice. By

experiencing sound online and blended strategies and practices early within their academic career

students expect similar teaching practices from other courses and subjects. This should include

providing a coherent experience across a course without unnecessarily proliferating technologies.

Standards

CSU’s Graduate Learning Outcomes such as Professional Practice, Digital Literacies and Information and

Research Literacies need to guide the aspirations of Faculties and Schools. The QLT framework and

Online Learning Model are to be used to inform online subject design.

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Dissemination

Communities of Practice about learning technologies should be encouraged and supported.

The appropriate use of learning technologies needs to be promoted, shared and published by teaching

and teaching-support staff.

Regular forums should be available for the exchange of ideas such as CSU Ed, the Interact2 site “about

learning technologies”, webinars, Forums.

Professional development

Professional development must be provided for teaching staff including in probationary programs and

sessional staff; teaching support staff; learner support staff; and students.

Educational Designers, Educational Support Coordinators and Media Technologists in particular need

professional development to enhance their own knowledge and skills to enable them to act as

champions.

Access to well-documented exemplars of ICT-enabled learning should be provided.

Provision should be made for attendance at learning technologies conferences, e.g., CSU Ed, ascilite,

ALT, ED-MEDIA, of teaching and teaching-support staff.

Teaching fellowship schemes should be supported and explored for learning technologies use.

External educational technologies

Exploration of appropriate external online and off-line technologies should be encouraged and

experiences shared in line with the relevant Policy and Guidelines.

Change processes

Rewards schemes should be put in place to encourage innovation and integration in the integration of

learning technologies.

The Initiatives Handling Process should be used as appropriate.

Appropriate support for staff should be provided.

8. RELATED POLICY AREAS

8.1 ACCESS AND EQUITY

A central intention of the Framework is to ensure that no students or staff are disadvantaged by the

introduction or application of learning technologies. The intention needs to be embedded into practice

without impeding innovation and development but rather complementing and enhancing. The Access

and Equity Policy at CSU should ensure that no students are disadvantaged. It is not so much that

technology is accessible, but that it does not raise barriers to the quality of learning and teaching.

The diverse range of students and the diverse places of study are openly recognised by the Framework.

A wider and more appropriate use of learning technologies is not related to technology in itself, but to a

firm commitment by all sections within the University community to the centrality of student-centred

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learning design where students are allowed to work according to their strengths and with scope to

develop them.

The University should reference the CSU Web Policy, wherever it is helpful, as this policy excludes

learning and teaching technologies.

Charles Sturt University is committed to providing timely, accurate and accessible administrative and

online learning environment resources to all students, regardless of age, ethnicity or disability. More

information is available on the CSU Website Accessibility website

Hardware and software applications should meet the recognised needs of teaching staff and students

such as stability and retrieval of lost information.

Equity of access further needs to be ensured for international students and overseas partners through

CSU’s student support services and the website.

Assistive technologies should be maintained on campus, such as the assistive technology labs located

within Learning Commons facilities. These labs are focused on promoting tools and approaches useful

for assistive technology support rather than providing ongoing individual support to individual students,

which is critical for equitable learning technology use. Student target groups who may be identified as

needing special support include low SES groups. Financial support for low SES students should be

targeted to support of their own technology, e.g. a laptop subsidy.

A key point is that an assurance in policy form needs to be provided, that all students and staff at CSU on

CSU owned physical locations have equal access to good-quality wireless Internet connection. It is

becoming critical that students undertaking workplace learning need to have good access to a wireless

or mobile internet connection. Appropriate support mechanisms through Student Central need to be

available to students at work and on placement.

Equity of access needs to be ensured for international students and overseas partners through clarity

and effectiveness of CSU’s international student support services.

The following policies should be adhered to:

Disability and Work/Study Adjustment (Policy and Procedure)

Equal Opportunity Policy

CSU Disability Action Plan

CSU Web Policy

CSU Website Accessibility Guidelines

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8.2 INDIGENOUS PERSPECTIVES

A key issue within the Framework is to identify, improve and address ways to increase Indigenous access

to and participation in learning mediated through learning technologies.

The Framework considers and aligns with policies and initiatives such as:

- Indigenous Education Strategy

- Indigenous Australian Content in Courses Policy

- School of Indigenous Australian Studies

- Indigenous Curriculum and Pedagogy

8.3 ALIGNMENT OF PEDAGOGICAL APPROACHES

Effective pedagogy and the use of the affordances of learning technologies are to be aligned with CSU

strategy. As such, the effects on pedagogy of disruptive (i.e. technologies that lead to a transformation

of practice) and other technologies need to be guided to positive outcomes.

Criteria for assessing new technology are discussed below. In a rapidly changing learning technologies

world, research and evidence-based practice in learning technologies and pedagogy needs to occur

continuously and regularly.

8.4 EVALUATION PROCESSES AND PRACTICES

Evaluation is best predicated upon the educational outcomes of learning technologies and their role and

effects on institutional vision, frameworks, and action plans.

Evaluation processes and practices need to include the use of external technologies such as external

online technologies in learning designs and creating learning resources.

Targeted questions on learning technologies should be available in the Subject Experience Survey and

included in all relevant subjects and courses. This practice should continue with an ongoing learning

technologies survey conducted on a regular basis among teaching staff and students

Piloting needs to be expected as a matter of course in evaluating learning technologies.

The input of teaching and teaching support staff in the piloting and use of learning technologies should

be recognised in workload formulas.

Evaluation should include measurements relating to the user experience of the technology and its

impact on performance, workload and study.

An evaluation process to measure the impact of learning technologies on professional learning and

practice should be maintained at individual and School levels.

Schools, Faculties and teaching support staff should be assisted to identify and share learning and

teaching benefits that arise from specific uses of learning technologies.

Strategies and support programs should include mentoring, coaching and action-learning.

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 20

Longitudinal evaluations should be established to chart the effect and impact of learning technologies.

These evaluations can assist in the development of further governance, support and strategies that

inform related practices and policies.

Regular review of hardware and software should ensure that it meets the needs of teaching staff and

students such as stability and retrieval of lost information. Teaching staff in general need a higher level

of computer access than students.

8.5 CSU ASSESSMENT POLICY

All learning technologies with an application in assessment should be adequately supported to ensure

that user (staff and student) experiences comply with the CSU Assessment Policy: A Criterion-

Referenced Standards-Based Approach.

8.6 LEGAL AND ETHICAL STANDARDS

Legal and ethical matters need to be considered in particular with regard to the use of external

technologies and learning analytics.

Learning Technologies should align with the CSU Code of Conduct for Users of Electronic Facilities, for

instance in regard online related unacceptable practices.

Privacy and confidentiality should be ensured especially in the use of records databases in line with the

CSU Privacy Management Plan.

Students should be informed of how their data is being used and be able to discover under what third

party (and CSU) terms and conditions it is held and communicated.

Learning technologies should comply with licence requirements.

Intellectual property issues should align with CSU’s intellectual property policy.

The Framework considers and aligns with policies such as:

- Expectations of students and staff in the use of learning technologies within learning and teaching

- Academic Policy Library

- Teaching and Learning Educational Support including Code of Conduct for Users of Electronic

Facilities, e.g., external online (currently referred to as Web 2.0) information; internet

uncensored.

- Learning Analytics Code of Practice

8.7 COPYRIGHT

Copyright must adhere to the guidelines provided on CSU’s website at:

http://www.csu.edu.au/copyright/. Copyright issues associated with external technologies and CSU’s

presence in other countries, including international partners, must be addressed in consultation with

the Copyright Coordinator.

8.8 COMMUNICATIONS POLICY

A communication model should be developed for communication by and with teaching staff, teaching

support staff, students and student support staff that deals with:

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 21

- Plans

- Pilots

- Evaluations

- Service interruptions.

The model should consider the University and Faculty policies and guidelines for student communication

including:

- “Academic Communication with Students” policy http://www.csu.edu.au/acad_sec/academic-

manual/pcontm.htm

- The Communicating at CSU ‘charter’ at http://student.csu.edu.au/home/student-

charter/communication-at-csu

Technical standards are discussed in the next section.

8.9 MINIMUM EXPERTISE AND USAGE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES BY TEACHING STAFF

There is an increasing expectation in the University of minimum expertise and skilled usage of learning

technologies by teaching staff in alignment with the Curriculum, Learning and Teaching Sub-plan.

The expectation of higher digital literacy also needs to be reflected in the employment practices of the

University such as the competency building exercises of CSU.

See the “Internal profile” above for current engagement with learning technologies.

8.10 EXPECTATIONS OF STUDENTS IN USING LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

The required level of technology knowledge, familiarity and access needs to be formulated and

communicated during the enrolment process, in appropriate Study Link subjects, the Orientation

website, and the subject outline (particular to the subject).

It needs to be recognised that students from low SES might have difficulties in accessing the Internet.

See the “Internal profile” above for current engagement with learning technologies.

Consideration should be given to minimise cognitive load on students where they are required to use

many learning technologies with diverse user interfaces and information models.

8.11 INTRODUCTION AND MATURITY OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

A ‘maturity’ scale should be developed for technologies, locating them within adoption phases, such as

pilot, limited introduction, roll-out, maximum use.

A New Learning Technologies Approval Policy has been developed. This policy includes the Learning

Technology Classification Model.

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 22

9. STANDARDS OF THE REQUIRED SYSTEMS ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE

For ease of mainstreaming and integration within the CSU Online Learning Environment and to enable

integration with other CSU Systems, centrally supported learning technologies will need to comply with

Enterprise Architecture standards as described on the Enterprise Architecture web pages.

For externally hosted services, learning technologies will need to comply with relevant integration

standards and guidelines – this varies dependent on the educational service offering and need for

integration with other CSU Systems and should be discussed with DIT.

Internal and external systems will be evaluated through the Enterprise Architecture review process and

checklist.

10. STRATEGIES FOR PROFESSIONAL LEARNING AND TRAINING

a) Allocate a high priority to professional learning in learning technologies and student learning

mediated through learning technologies; a need for organisational commitment and leadership

from DSL staff;

b) Support the required digital literacy within a pedagogical framework;

c) Create a vision and coherent long-term plan for professional learning of teaching staff and support

staff in the use of learning technologies that is integrated in learning and teaching professional

learning strategies;

d) Ensure that professional learning is timely, focused, practical, ongoing, reflective and linked to active

learning. One-off, particularly the sit-and-get training type, professional learning sessions have

proven largely ineffective in promoting both commitment to and effective use of learning

technologies, but is valuable in getting started;

e) Engage teaching staff actively in their own learning, not merely ‘transmitting’ knowledge and skills to

them; relate professional learning activities to the authentic work of teaching staff;

f) Provide time for reflection and coaching/mentoring on a sustained basis, recognising that follow-up

support/strategies are as important as initial professional learning;

g) Promote continuous inquiry and improvement embedded in what teaching staff already do on a daily

basis;

h) Promote an organisational design that supports community-based learning through the development

of collaborative teams and collegial communities of learners/communities of practice; component

activities that are team-based to facilitate collegiality and collaboration;

i) Professional learning ought not be confined to skill-building activities but include a focus on

improving learning technologies practices as a means of increasing student achievement; connected

to a comprehensive change process focused on improving student learning;

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 23

j) A focus on pedagogy which allows for a deepening understanding of the learning process and a

greater appreciation of students’ needs, recognising that an ongoing process of inquiry into, and

reflection on, practice enhances professional knowledge, attitudes and skills;

k) Support and encouragement for teaching staff to contribute to, or lead, learning technologies

professional learning networks; evidence-based practice; action-research approaches to professional

learning activity;

l) Continually increase the capabilities of teaching support staff;

m) Deal with the professional needs created by the increased casualisation of teaching staff;

n) Develop a program for the mentoring of teaching staff by colleagues;

o) Professional learning through formal programs of the University;

p) Apply the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) framework to consideration of

pedagogy which is an integration of technological, pedagogical, and content Knowledge (Mishra &

Koehler);

q) Recognise the importance for learner support staff and teaching support staff to receive adequate

training.

11. GUIDELINES FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE USE OF LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES

11.1 SUPPORT FOR TEACHING STAFF AND LEARNING AND TEACHING SUPPORT STAFF

Support needs to be in terms of induction into the technology, using it well in terms of the technology,

and using it well in terms of its application in learning and teaching. Technology is not, by itself,

transformative.

Priority support needs to be provided to teaching staff and teaching support staff engaged with learning

technologies in the Online Learning Model pilots and targeted courses as part of the Curriculum,

Learning & Teaching (CLT) Framework strategic priorities.

Just in time (JIT) support should also be available to teaching staff regarding skills to use learning

technologies. This JIT support could be provided by tier 0 (self-help particularly online training), tier 1

(Service Desk and educational designers) and tier 2 support.

Learning technologies should be situated in physical, blended and virtual spaces to facilitate high-quality

learning and teaching; and to gain familiarity and competency in using learning technologies.

It is critical that learning and teaching support staff be adequately supported.

11.2 STUDENT USER AND LEARNING SUPPORT

Students should use learning technologies extensively and positively.

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 24

There should be Just-in-place (contextualised) support within the learning technologies.

There should be Just-in-time (needs basis) support for students learning online and on-campus.

Assist students in learning how to use learning technologies effectively – implement strategies for

helping students learn with technology the way they live with technology.

Increase the capacity of students for managing their own learning through personal learning

environments (PLEs).

Students need to embrace, be enthused by, and take responsibility for learning mediated through

learning technologies.

Digital literacy and fluency - set up a process for students to self-diagnose (tier 0 support) their learning

technologies competencies, with feedback that directs them to specific support avenues and/or

strategies such as eStudent Support with Academic Support, and Student Central.

11.3 COMPUTER SYSTEMS AND SERVICES

The range of systems and services referred to in this section is depicted on the CSU Supported Learning

Technologies Landscape.

Below is a high level view of this Landscape:

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 25

Reasonable uptime of systems should be defined and provided as part of service level guarantees.

Reasonable after hour’s services should be defined and provided.

Backup/fullback processes and plans, i.e., business continuity details, need to be included in service level

agreements (SLAs) as appropriate between systems’ custodians and DIT.

12. THE GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE SUPPORTING LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES INCLUDING COMMITTEES

The Director, Learning Technologies in the Division of Student Learning has overarching responsibility for

the implementation, ongoing support of, and reporting on learning technologies.

The Initiatives & Strategy Implementation Plan (ISIP) Governance committee is ultimately responsible

for funding and prioritising initiatives.

The Executive Director, DIT has overall responsibility for optimisation of the organizational technology

portfolio, and responsibility for technological standards, acquisition of information technology, contracts

and agreements and other matters as per the delegation schedule.

The Learning Environments Committee (LEC) is the primary learning technologies committee and

provides relevant input to the CSU Curriculum, Learning and Teaching Committee (CLTC).

The Academic Senate deals indirectly with learning technologies via the CLTC.

The CSU Educational Technology Reference Group ensures academic representation with regard to

CSU’s learning technologies, and reports to the Learning Environments Committee (LEC).

The Enterprise Architecture principles and standards guide technological decisions regarding learning

technologies.

Note: While the CSU Web Strategy Committee (WSC) deals with overarching web governance through

standards and principles, its governance excludes learning and teaching technologies. Input from the

Web Strategy Office (WSO) could be helpful though in designing Web-applications.

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 26

13. SUPPORT OF CSU’S GRADUATE LEARNING OUTCOMES AND CURRICULUM PRINCIPLES

Learning technologies need to support CSU’s Graduate Learning Outcomes and the many associated

initiatives such as the development of the CSU Degree principles, the Online Learning Model and the

Curriculum, Learning & Teaching (CLT) Framework.

14. HIGH LEVEL INDICATORS OF SUCCESSFUL LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES USE AT CSU

a) Successful scale-up of the Online Learning Model

b) Meeting the online KPI’s in the QLT Framework

c) The biennial? Longitudinal study of learning technologies use, skills and expectations of CSU’s

teaching staff and students (as well as their indication of satisfaction in the SES) will contribute

evidence of success.

d) Learning analytics on students and teaching staff - as available - will be used.

e) Increase in the research and publications associated with learning technologies as submitted to CSU’s

CRO database.

These evaluations will feed back to the LEC, the Student Experience Committee, the CSU Curriculum,

Learning and Teaching Committee and Academic Senate.

The feedback could indicate that certain learning technologies should be decommissioned or updated.

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 27

15. REFERENCE LIST

ALT, 2012. What is Learning Technology? http://www.alt.ac.uk/learning_technology.html

AECT, 2012. What is AECT? http://www.aect.org/About/default.asp

CAST, 2012. Universal design in learning principles.

http://www.udlcenter.org/research/researchevidence

Cope, B., & Kalantzis, M. (2000). Multiliteracies: The beginning of an idea. In B. Cope & M. Kalantzis

(Eds.), Multiliteracies: Literacy learning and the design of social futures (pp. 3-8). London: Routledge.

http://www.decs.sa.gov.au/thenetwork/files/pages/identity_web/multiliteracies.html

CSU, 2010. CSU Web Disability Access Action Plan.

http://www.csu.edu.au/webpublishing/docs/disability_access.doc

Mishra, P. & Koehler, M.J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for

teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108(6), 1017-1054.

Schmid, R. F., Bernard R.M., Borokhovski E, Tamim R., Abrami P.C., Wade C.A., Surkes M.A., Lowerison G.

(2009). Technology’s effect on achievement in higher education: A Stage I meta-analysis of classroom

applications. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 21, 95–109.

16. APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY

Blended learning – utilises both physical and virtual environments and may be defined as “a design

approach whereby both face-to-face and online learning are made better by the presence of each

other” (Garrison and Vaughan, 2008). Blended learning and teaching can occur at four levels of

granularity: activity-level blending, subject-level blending, course-level blending and institutional-level

blending (Graham, 2006). A blended learning design may also be enabling, incremental or

transformative. Enabling blends would address issues of access and equity to provide equitable

opportunities in face-to-face, print-based, blended and fully online learning environments. Enhancing

blends focus on incremental changes to the existing teaching and learning environment. Transformative

blends focus on a major redesign of the teaching and learning environment (e.g., problem-based

learning). Within CSU, blended learning would also include a further dimension of blending which would

allow predominantly print-based distance education subjects/courses to be combined with online

teaching and learning.

External online technologies – learning technologies not centrally supported that support online

collaboration and networking and the development of online objects

Interact2 – Interact2 is CSU’s online collaborative and learning and teaching system of which the hub is

Blackboard Learn. It is used for learning and teaching as well as for research and administrative

collaboration. Also included in Interact2 are other OLE tools such as EASTS (electronic assignment

submission), subject outline tool and SES (Subject Experience Survey).

Learning Sciences – a multidisciplinary field with the goal of better understanding the cognitive and

social processes that lead to effective learning in order to improve teaching and learning approaches

(Sawyer, 2014). The field includes disciplines such as “cognitive science, educational psychology,

CSU LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES FRAMEWORK 28

computer science, anthropology, sociology, information sciences, neurosciences, education, design

studies, instructional design and other fields” (Sawyer, 2014, p. 1).

LMS – A Learning Management System is an integrated computer-based platform for online learning

and teaching i.e. Blackboard at CSU.

Mobile devices – A set of portable technologies that provide wireless access to internet and cellular

phone network based information and services.

Multiliteracies – A set of literacies that are needed to operate in modern learning and teaching

environments such as literary literacy, information literacy, digital literacy, visual literacy and

communication literacy (Cope & Kalantzis, 2000).

OLE – The OLE is a collection of online learning and teaching services that includes Interact2 as hub, and

an array of online learning and teaching tools. The CSU Supported Learning Technologies Landscape

depicts the OLE.

Personal Learning Environment (PLE) – A PLE is made-up of a personal collection of loosely coupled

tools used for working, learning, reflection and collaboration with others.