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Reflections on Implementing a Learning to Learn Module: Learning for Success @ University
1. Reflections on Implementing a
Learning to Learn Module:
Learning for Success @ University
Suzanne Guerin
UCD School of Psychology
UCD Fellow in Teaching & Academic Development
Email: Suzanne.Guerin@ucd.ie
Advisory Committee on Information Literacy,
Annual Information Literacy Seminar, 14th June 2012
2. Collaborators
• Project Team
– Judith Archbold – UCD Teaching & Learning
– Joe Brady – Dean of Arts
– Barbara Dooley – College of Human Sciences VP for Teaching &
Learning
– Suzanne Guerin – Fellow in Teaching & Learning
– Niamh Moore – Fellow in Teaching & Learning
– Feargal Murphy – College of Arts & Celtic Studies VP for Teaching &
Learning
– Geraldine O'Neill – UCD Teaching & Learning
– Sara O'Sullivan – Fellow in Teaching & Learning
– Bairbre Redmond – Dep. Registrar for Teaching & Learning
• Module Implementation & Evaluation
– Suzanne Guerin & Geraldine O’Neill
3. Background
• Recognition of the importance of the first year
experience for success at university
• Institutions that achieve first-year excellence
place a high priority on the first-year among
competing institutional priorities and accept a
significant share of responsibility for first-year
student achievement (Krauss et al., 2005, 381)
• Building on work of UCD Fellows in Teaching &
Learning (2007-2009)
– See http://www.ucd.ie/teaching/fellowships/
4. Module Development
• September 2009 – June 2011
– Review of possible online learning resources
– Development of project aims and implementation plan
• Project aims:
– To help students make the transition to university life
– To improved study skills at first year level
– To ease transition from second level to third level
education
– To promote greater engagement at first level
• Decision to focus on Arts programme – approx. 1400
students in first year, concern re engagement and
dropout, very diverse student group
5. Implementation
• June 2011 – December 2011
• Palgrave's Skills4Study Campus (S4S) provided an
interactive online resource upon which to build a
module
– Getting Ready for Academic Study
– Reading and Note-making
– Referencing and Plagiarism
– Critical Thinking Skills
– Writing Skills
– Exam Skills
• The resource was introduced to 380 first year Arts
students in September 2011 as part of a new
module PSY10110 Learning for Success @ University.
• Module delivered in Semester 1 over nine weeks
6.
7.
8. PSY10110 Learning for Success @
University
• Learning Outcomes • Assessment
– Developed an understanding of – Regular small stakes
what is expected of a university assessment with feedback
student;
– Engaged in the process of – Palgrave ‘Skills 4 Study’
learning at university both as an Online assessments (n=5)
individual and in groups; 60%
– Enhanced your time – Journal: A reflection on the
management, information and application of skills
general organisational skills; developed in this module to
your broader study pathway
– Improved your critical thinking, in UCD (500 words) 20%
writing and reading abilities;
– Group-based critical
– Identified your optimal learning thinking and writing
style and its implications for your assignment 20%
University learning.
9. PSY10110 Learning for Success @
University
• Key principles • Delivery
– Exposed to variety of aspects – Four large group lectures
of learning at university with in-class tasks and
activities
– Interactive class sessions
– Two small group tutorials
– Clarity around requirements
and expectations – One in-class small group
workshop
– Regular communication with
students – Blackboard VLE
– Face-to-face sessions build on – Skills4Study Campus
and apply S4S content
– Module complete before the
main assessment period
10. PSY10110 Learning for Success @
University
• Topics • Activities
– Transition to University – Red-Green Quiz
– Time Management – Time management fairy
– Reading and Note-making – Reflecting on staff use of
Blackboard
– Library Skills, Referencing &
Plagiarism – UCD Library card game
– Critical Thinking Skills – Reviewing evidence
– Writing Skills – Developing a self evaluation
framework
– Exam Skills
11. The Blended Design
• Using Fink’s (2003) Module Design Steps and
Littlejohn & Pegler’s e-learning work (2007), a
blended approach to this module was designed and
implemented.
NB: The Sequence and Active Learning
Fink (2003)
13. Information Literacy Skills in PSY10110
• Central to the module are skills related to
accessing, assessing and using resources and
information
– Using the library to find resources and materials
– Evaluating sources critically
– Appropriate citation and referencing
• Relevant Topics
– Tutorial on library and information skills –
Developed in collaboration with Ursula Byrne
and Susan Boyle UCD Library
– Workshop on critical evaluation of information
20. Module Evaluation
• September 2011 ongoing
• Student & staff views will be captured
• Student survey data collection
– Consents received from 104 LSU students and 48
history/geography students (comparison)
– Phase 1 of survey completed in Semester 1
– Phase 2 of survey ongoing (end Semester 2)
• Interviews with staff in UCD and other settings
• Observations and reflections from delivery
• Insights from Module Feedback Survey (31%
response) and student performance
21. UCD Module Feedback Survey
• Completed for all undergraduate modules
• Five core (quantitative) questions
– Overall I am satisfied with this module
– I have a better understanding of the subject after
completing this module
– The assessments to date were relevant to the work
of the module.
– I achieved the learning outcomes for this module
– The teaching on this module supported my learning
• Agreement rated from Strongly agree to Strongly
disagree
• Mean scores calculated per item (high score = 5)
24. Three Most Helpful Elements
• Online assessments and/or resources (including
Blackboard)
– The downloading of various handouts were useful.
Some of the tests made me more focused
– The online cafe for this module which allowed
students to ask any questions about the module.
The skills for study resource and the groupwork
• Specific skills
– The content helped me get used to the workload in
university it also helped me figure out how to
reference and how to write essays
– This module helped me settle in to college. Helped
me to understand black board. Helped me to think
critically.
25. Three Changes
• Consistent criticism of mandatory
nature of the module
• Sense that skills were basic or had already
been developed
• More or fewer tutorials
• More or less use of online information
• More or less group work
• Very difficult to find a clear pattern
26. Reflections and Observations
PROS
• Good engagement for those who attend
• Positive experience for students:
– Active learning (e.g. using blackboard);
– Finding out about other module assessments;
– Experiential time-management;
– Immediate feedback on grades.
• Development of Library resources and a Tutor Guide for
future offerings
• Good grades and (relatively) good engagement in the
‘Skills4Study’ (S4S) on-line assessments
• Clear evidence of learning in written assignments
• Students who engaged with the module seemed to benefit
27. Reflections and Observations
CONS
• Declining attendance over 8 weeks
• Initial reaction of some students : ‘do I have to do this?’,
‘why were we picked?’, ‘how do I do the minimum?’
• Poor student online skills, slow to adapt
• Concern (staff and student) about workload management
• Some doing very well on S4S without reading the material
• Concerns re integrity of S4S assessments and uptake of
final assignment
• Problems with multiple offerings within one module – led
to significant confusion and undermined group work
across the module
• Concerns re suitability for students taking language and
linguistics modules
28. Recommended Changes
• More initial input on
accessing Blackboard & S4S
• Revisit weighting of the S4S
assessments – Assignments
showing more variation
• Sequencing needs to
consider social interaction
and managing student
expectations
• Look at location options
• Maintain small group
structures
• Simplify structures: One
offering per module code
29. Conclusions
• LSU as scaffolding!
• Very beneficial
experience to date
• Understanding of
positive and negative
experiences
• Impact of the module
must be examined
• Evaluation is key …
… but further learning will
emerge with full roll out
30. References
Cottrell, S. (2003) The Study Skills Handbook, 2nd
Edition. London: Palgrave
Fink, L. D.. (2003). Creating significant learning
experiences: An integrated approach to designing
college courses. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Harwood, D., McLaughlin, S. (2011) A Module in “Study
in Higher Education” The STAR Project,
http://www.ulster.ac.uk/star
Littlejohn, A., & Pegler, C. (2007) Documenting e-
learning blends, In, Preparing for Blended E-Learning.
pp70-93. New York: Routledge.
Wingate, U. (2006) Doing away with ‘study skills’,
Teaching in Higher Education, 11, 4, 2006, pp.
457-469
