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Over 60,000 km2
Approx. 55,000 residents
The Federation of Lapland's Municipalities (LKF) Kiruna, Gällivare, Jokkmokk, Pajala
If we were an independent country...
•But we would have twice the geographical area of Belgium!
•We would be as large as 60% of Iceland
Iceland's population density: approx. 3 residents per km2.
(In the ice-free region, approx. 3.4 residents per km2.)LKF's population density: approximately 0.9 residents per km2.
Belgium's population density: approx. 340 residents per km2.
1. Our region – our circumstances
2. Our mission
3. Our experience of distance education and mixed forms of teaching
Distance education as a tool for creating
growth in northernmost Sweden
Our industries :
1. Our region – our circumstances
2. Our mission
3. Our experience of distance education and mixed forms of teaching
Distance education as a tool for creating
growth in northernmost Sweden
Mission Cooperation
Mission Needs-driven Educational Programmes
- Distance-bridging solutions
- Cooperation with employers
- Adaptation to meet changing needs
Labour shortage Lack of people
Unemployment Labour shortage
1990s
Today
The challenges:
1989-90 LKF established
1990- First higher education courses held
1999- Kraftfält Norr – cooperation within new areas
2004- Cooperation for upper-secondary schools and adult education…
2010- The present…
Independent administration under the Upper-secondary School Committee from 1 January 2010
Lapplands lärcentra – direct administration under the governing council – from 1 July 2010
One municipal federation with two administrations:
Ongoing efforts to determine needs:
Needs of the private sector
Public sector needs
Demand from individuals
Common denominators in two or more LKF municipalities
= large enough groups
= feasible!
•Cooperation with employers – from start to goal
•Cooperation with the two northernmost universities – a 21-year partnership
•Cooperation – with one another
1. Our region – our circumstances
2. Our mission
3. Our experience of distance education and mixed forms of teaching
Distance education as a tool for creating
growth in northernmost Sweden
From the Lapland Model to web-based programmes:
Students travel to meetings
Teachers travel to meetings
Video conferencing
Learning platforms FirstClass
Video conferencing
M-star/MarratechLearning platformsFirstClassVideo conferencing
Fewer meetings...
Fewer physical meetings…
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
?
LKF lobbied for fewer meetings/trips and greater use of technology.
Accessibility was prioritised
LKF lobbied for a balance between meetings (preferably held at learning/study centres) and the use of distance-bridging technology.
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
LKF increasingly needs to emphasise the importance of "live", physical meetings, subject guidance, group studies.
Quality a priority?
What determines an appropriate "mix"?
The target group Knowledge objectives, "nature of the subject"
External circumstances
What determines an appropriate "mix"?
The target group:
-Study skills-Work discipline-Work experience-Personal maturity-Physical impairments-Learning difficulties-Language, reading ability-Computer skills
-Etc., etc...
We have a number of tried-and-tested ingredients in our "pantry"...
Physical gatherings, group discussions, local instruction
Video conferencing using one-way or two-way communication
Adobe for small groups and for guidance
Our learning platforms
Contact with employers Workplace-based training, (LiA, VFU) Traineeships, Project work
LKF's evaluation of programmes at Study Centre '98-'99
•Students on de-centralised programmes from Luleå University of Technology.
•Students at what was then the Nursing College in Boden
•"Distance groups" within the Adult Education Initiative (1997-2002)
•Teachers instructing within the related programmes
• A total of approx. 80 students and approx. 15 teachers asked to provide feedback
Common to all of the programmes chosen were their three main components:
- Video conferencing - Written communication - Physical Meetings
(FirstClass)
The purpose of the evaluation was to investigate utilisation of the new technology.
The questions focused on sound and visual quality, drop-outs and interruptions...
Did they receive sufficient technical support?
Did the students feel that teachers had sufficient knowledge of how the technology could be used and vice versa?..?
The technical questions were weighed against the subject
Communication, group-size, teaching methods
The working hypothesis was that the quality-related problems experienced during the programmes were caused either by the technology itself, or by a lack of knowledge about how it should be used.
A clear majority of all of the problems experienced were not related to the technology itself.
Common problems experienced were
- A lack of information about the programme as a whole and the timetable, not least of all prior to the start date- A lack of structure in the courses (and, in some cases, unprepared teachers)- Too little communication between transmissions and physical meetings
What results would the same evaluation yield today?
Thoughts and Conclusions:
•The majority of what we do today falls under the category of "mixed forms of teaching".
•The particular "mix" varies and "the recipe" has proven to be decisive in students' success and goal-achievement.
•Functioning technology and technical support is incredibly important.
•Even more important than the technology itself is the context in which we use it.
Most important of all are "old" pedagogical truths:
•Clear information to students prior to and during the programme
•Structure
•Varied work methods
•Opportunities for dialogue/group dynamics/activity/laboratory work
•Teachers should be thoroughly familiar with the subjects they teach
•Allow students to shape their education
•Early, "live" meeting if the programme includes distance work
•Connection to working life
Additional thoughts and conclusions:
•When utilising new technology, it is important that our focus does not centre entirely on that – there are no universal solutions!
•The biggest changes in ICT-use between 1998 and 2011
did not occur in the education sector, but within people's working lives and leisure time.
•Today, we are preparing our students for a completely different reality than we were 15 years ago...