The application of technology enhanced learning

The application of technology
enhanced learning to
enhance the ‘student learning
journey’
Associate Professor Michael Sankey
Director, Learning Environments and Media
Presented at the University of South Africa, Tuesday 16 September 2014

Introduction
 Establish a context
The student learning journey
 The staff learning journey
 Current trends with technology
 Strategies in response
By M Glasgow: Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-ND 2.0)
Available from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/glasgows/105457650/

Our context
• Founded in 1967
• A distance-ed provider since 1977
• Fully online programs since 1997
• 2 Faculties: BELA & HES with 12 Schools (2x6)
• All Schools have external programs
• More than 200 under-grad and
post-grad award programs

Student numbers
• All students 27,235
• On-campus 7,235
• External/online 20,000 (73%)
• International 5,824 (1,100 ONC)
The vast majority of USQ students access information
services online
Most Students and Staff know what they’re getting
themselves in for when they come to USQ 

Academic Services
Academic Services
Learning and Teaching
Services
Learning Environments and
Media
Library ICT Services
Administrative
team

The wider landscape
 Post-Bradley – Major themes: Widening
Participation & Quality
 Government’s 40/20 targets by 2020
 40%, 25 – 34 year olds, bachelor or above
 20%, HE enrolment from low SES background
 A new single national regulator - TEQSA

Regional universities context
 Year 12 completion rates 20% lower than
those in capital cities
 12% adults in regional communities have a
degree compared with 27% of adults in
capital cities
 32% of regional Australians aspire to higher
education compared to 62% in capital cities
 6 universities in regional Australia (RUN) -
UNE, USC, UB, CQU, SCU, USQ
Source: Perkins (2012)

Different layers
USQ Website (Sitecore) the public facing site
USQStudyDesk
• Student Portal
• All Course-based
activity
_______________
• Repository
USQStaffDesk
• Staff portal
• Staff facing for
PD activities
_______________
• Repository
USQOpenDesk
• OER/OEP
• Inter-institutional
activities
_______________
• Repository
USQ ePortfolio (Mahara)

Technologies
 The role of Mentors and Champions
should not be underplayed
 Threshold standards level playing field

Defined minimum standards
1. An introductory message, posted before the start of
semester, which:
 welcomes students to the course;
 introduces the teaching team for the course;
 describes how the StudyDesk space will be used during the semester;
 explains how students may obtain support by appropriately directing
academic or technical. enquiries.
2. Checking of discussions and other student access areas
on at least three [3] working days per week in order to:
 monitor and moderate comments and discussion by students;
 manage course operation by responding to student enquiries &
activities.
3. Student requests for clarification or assistance should be
responded to as soon as possible, but certainly within 48
hours during the working week.

TEL PD model
Students Staff
USQ Website
AskUSQ RightNow
USQStaffDesk
1. Staff Dev gateway
2. PLAS & Induction
3. Staff eLE
4. Clover
5. Linked to ePortfolio
USQStudyDesk
1. Student Induction site
2. Learning Centre site
3. Student eLE
4. Course based ass’nce
5. Linked to ePortfolio
Equella

Cross institutional planning
Academic
Division
Academic
Services
Students and
Communities
Corporate
Services
Research
Division

Some current strategies
 Every course has an online presence
 Every student has a named person to contact
 Minimum standards for all courses
 Threshold expectations – a common wireframe
 Learning Innovation & Teaching Enhancement
(LITE) teams
 Significant media enhancement available
 Strong focus on the Student Learning Journey
(SLJ) and personal learning environment (PLE)
 Increased emphasis on enabling staff

Some current trends
 Print – Progressively reducing but still wanted by
some - but will be gone by February 2015
 Digital content – Increasingly more accessible &
able to be used on mobile devices
 CDs – popular for many years
but will also be gone by
February 2015
 Physical spaces – Comfortable
places to meet, study, eat, talk
and recharge.
 BYOD – Closed two computer labs

The Student Learning Journey
(SLJ)

Accessing the Student Voice
 Professor Geoff Scott in his report Accessing
the Student Voice (2005) concluded that ‘it is
the whole experience that matters to students.
Students are not concerned about whether or
not a particular interaction is academic or
administrative, but they are concerned about the
quality of the interaction. In this context, the quality
of interactions in the pre-enrolment phase is just as
important as the quality of face-to-face and/or
virtual interactions in academic study or in
completing study (including graduation ceremony
and membership of the Alumni Network)’.

Discernable periods in SLJ
The early
weeks
Continuing
study
Student Learning Journey
Application &
offer
Decision to
enrol
Enrol
Experience of first
semester
Completing
study
Unforseen
events
Alumni
Graduation
The SLJ is a series of interactions between students
& the Uni. Identified 9 student groups with some
150 individual points of interaction.

SLJ Online Services
ENGAGE
• Enquiry Management (RightNow)
• Future Student Website
• Application
• Information in 8 languages
•Open Day & Info Evening Programs
•Residential College Applications
• Careers Resources
• Scholarships & Application Forms
• Disability Resources
• Student Representation
•Web Campaign pages
•New International website
•New program Guide
• Chat for enquiries
ENROL
•Admission/Offer/Accept/Defer/
Decline
• Course re/Enrol (add, swap, drop, edit)
• View exemptions processing
• Create/Amend Study Plan
• View Class Enrolment
• Enter/Update Personal details
• Enter/Update/Request Support –Disability
• Fee Invoicing, calculator & payments
• Student ID Cards
• Student Loans
• Program Enrol (Cancel, Reinstate, Leave of
Absence)
ORIENT & TRANSITION
•Orientation on Moodle
• Access to StudyDesk
• Access to UConnect
•UConnect Announcements & Alerts
•UMail activation and passwords
•Oncampus timetable
• Personal SRO details
• Student Services Videos
• Tutorial Registration
• Res College Invoicing & Pmts
• Fee Acc. Enquiries & CAS Forms
• Student Guild Website
• Current students website
•Online Forums – Clubs & Societies
LEARNING SUPPORT
•AWARE Program
• ALS Online Resources (TLC)
• Enquiry Management (RightNow)
• Counselling Resources
• Careers Counselling
•Employment, WIL, Mentoring
• Intern. Stud. Assistance Line
• Digital Learning @USQ site
•Wimba workshops in maths
• Counselling & Health Promotion
• Academic Intervention Form
• Personal Counselling
• Learning Centre web page update
• TLC in other languages
• Student Services CO Engagement
PROGRESS
•Check Study Package Status
• View & Print Unofficial Transcripts
• Exam Timetables
• View & Update Exam Centres
•Results
•USQ Handbook
• Policy Library
• View & Update Statistical Data
• Scholarships & Loans
• Disability Support
•Employer Speed-Networking
• Student newspaper
•CRM Retention Intervention
• Send/Update Profile form
• Alpha list of Alumni Profiles
• Chapter listings
• Chapter tool-kit
• New Chapter EOI form
GRADUATE
• Academic Dress ordering
• Ceremony Registration
•Graduate Employment Resources
• CareerHub Jobs Database
•Graduation Ceremony Videos
•Online Payment for Graduations & replacement
Testamurs
• e-Newsletter
• Alumnus of the Year Awards
• Personal, Professions and
bus.dev. opportunity listings
•CareerHub Mentoring
ALUMNI

Some key things
 Student relationship officers (SROs)
 Academic learning support
 Peer assisted learning
 USQ Retention strategy
 Communities of Practice (CoPs)
 Graduate skills and capabilities
 ePortfolios
 Closing the loop

SRO Network
STUDENT MANAGEMENT DIVISION
 Recruitment & Admissions – prospective and new students
 USQ International – prospective and new students
 Student Support & Retention – current and continuing
students
FACULTIES
 Student Support staff in each Faculty based at Toowoomba
campus
CAMPUSES
 Discipline based SROs based at Springfield & Fraser Coast
campuses

RELATIONSHIP FRAMEWORK
Individual or specific
support (individual
students)
Specific or targeted
support (specific
students)
Must have (all
students)
ADVICE
Course and program
advice, retention etc
Available and common
to specific student
cohorts and/or
individuals
EXPERTISE
Individual academic
advice, career or
personal counselling etc
Specific, individual
advice and support
SUPPORT
Student support,
recruitment and
retention etc
Available and common
to all students and / or
cohorts

Proactive support
 Retention Management
 Introduction
 Week 4
 Week 6
 Week 10
 Week 15
 Week18
 Study Desk Inactivity
 Intervention points
 USQStudyDesk (LMS) Inactivity
 Assignment Non-Submission
 Missed Exams
Dana
Shani
Damien

Scaffolding support
 Start out reasonably basic and introduce
Year 1
Basic interaction,
formative activities:
discussions, quizzes,
interactive, structured
content.
Year 2
Ramp-up peer-peer
Summative online
activities
Year 3-4
Self-directed,
Work-integrated,
Problem-based,
Simulations
complexity

Academic learning support
Online and face-to-face sessions for
communication skills and maths:
 Individual or small group consultations
 face to face
 phone
 email
 online chat
 Workshops
 Meet-Up
 Course-based assistance

Pre-USQ
(Future
student)
Commencing/
First Year
(Current
student)
Later Year
(Current
student)
Graduate
Ready
(Current
student)
Shaping
Aspirations
Admission
&
Integration
Involvement
& Retention
Graduate
Transitions
Connects
students
throughout
student
academic
journey
USQ
Student
Targets
Retention/
engagement
with single-entry
access
using CRM &
USQStudyDesk
USQ CRM & SRO Processes
Student Personalised Academic Road to Success (SPARS)
1. First
Contact
• Personalised
learning
needs
assessment &
identification
2. Learning
Plan
• Personalised
action plan
generated
3a.Preventive
Interventions
• When no
actions
taken by
students
• Early alerts
• Reminders
3b. Assertive
Interventions
• ‘At risks’
students
• Flags to
academics
4. Closing
the Loop
• Feedback
from
student
• Surveys
5. Multi-channel
Communications
• Email
• Chat
• Internet
• Social
networks
• Etc future
6. Reporting
& Analytics
• Reports
produced
• Data
intelligence
for retention
management
Academic Support Learning Environment
TLC
Resources
TLC
Consults
– F2f &
virtual
TLC
Work-shops
Meet-Up
&
variations
of student
peer
support
USQ
Open/
OERs
USQ Other
Services
Resources
e.g. Library,
Counseling,
Career, SROs
Programs
Schools
Courses
OAC
Beyond USQ
- MIT, iTunes
U, Other
Universities,
Khan Academy,
Integrates
academic
learning
resources and
support
Source: Kek (2012))

SPARS in detail
What students see
 First contact - self-assessed
academic ‘problems’
 Personalised learning plan –
targeted learning resources
and support
Back end
 Pro-active & early warning interventions
 Closing the loop
 Multi-channel and mode communications
 Analytics for reporting and decision-making
and continuous improvements

Meet-Up
 54 Meet-Up groups meeting
 Sessions are different from tutorials as they
are:
 led by students who have done the course,
responsive to their needs
 interactive, informal and fun
 they encourage discussion
and develop understanding
of course content
 concerned with how to learn
as well as what to learn
 supervised by qualified
academic staff

The role of the teacher
 They are our
interface.
 In most cases
they want to...
 but are not
confident
 and not overly
aware of what
others are doing
 Staff are also on a learning journey! They need to be using
the same tools they use to teach to also learn

Example short course
 A Key: Get the staff using the same tools as the students (if it’s
good enough to dish-up for the students it should be good
enough for us)
Image accessed 24 February 2012 from:
http://www.fusionhq.com/package/templates/0/eatingdogfood.jpg

Staff portfolio
 Professional
portfolio
 Evidence for
promotion
 Teaching tool
 Interest group
interaction
 Linked with the
LMS
 15,000 Portfolios – 47,000 pages

Communities of Practice
Groups of people who share a passion
for something that they know how to
do and who interact regularly to learn
how to do it better. CoPs provide an
opportunity to create a learning
community around an area of interest or practice,
to share and develop practice and build personal
and professional knowledge and expertise.
21 + CoPs – e.g. CoP for Faculty technology mentors

Key eLearning trends
 Many opportunities are emerging for HE that are closely aligned with
educational technology:
 Ongoing evolution of online, blended and collaborative learning
 Growing ubiquity of social media (scaffolding towards a
profession)
 Open education practice (OEP) aligned with massive repositories
open education resources (OERs), Open Badges, etc.
 Rise of data-driven learning and assessment (using analytics)
 Personalised learning and agile approaches to change
(innovation)
 Shift from students as consumers to students as creators
(flexibility)
 Some Uni’s are capitalising on these opportunities, others are watching
closely, but being slow to commit.
 Because “there be dragons in them there hills”

eLearning enablers
 Locally we are seeing:
 A much greater emphasis on flipped classroom
 More focus being paid to learning and educational
analytics
 Opportunities around, HTML5, App’s, 3D Printing
 Some would say Games and Gamification.
 But I’m yet to be convinced – it’s a lot of work – not sustainable longer term –
better ways to spend our money
 Notions of the Quantified Self
 Making it possible for students to link learning with their career to create a
professional social presence
 Virtual assistants to help students at times when they
are struggling
 Linked with CRM and KM systems

The Lecture
The Tutorial
The Library
From and To
The LMS
The
Student
Multimodal
resources
+
HTML5
LMS
+
LTI
+
Apps
+
Cloud
E-Portfolio
The
Library
+
OERs
The
Lecture
Tutorial
The
social
space

Challenges
 The days of the LMS as ‘the monolithic system’ are
numbered
 Low digital fluency/literacy among Academic staff
 Emerging TEQSA standards for e-Learning
 Relative lack of rewards for teaching in the e-environment
 Competition from new models of education – agility
 Scaling of teaching innovations – limited innovation
pipelines
 Expanding access – it comes with a cost
 Importantly; consistency, consistency, consistency

Taking the bull by the horns
 To aspire to be flexible, collaborative, learner-centred,
technology enabled and grounded in
sound pedagogy
 is a noble aspiration and very easy to say
 but it’s much more than just being about the
eLearning systems
 It’s about having our whole house in order
 That means ensuring we have a quality
management framework in place
 One predominantly built around the practice of
distributed leadership
 and the learning community (staff and students).

6EOLE Quality Management Framework
Establishing a quality
framework
Building distributed leadership
Resourcing
Evaluation
Organisational
structure
Planning
Technologies
Improvements
Governance
Planning
Implementation
Evaluation
Review
Quality experiences &
outcomes:
Aligning elements
Interacting formally &
informally
Through & across
hierarchies
Palmer, S., Holt, D., Gosper. M., Sankey, M., and Allan, G. (2013) Exploring distributed leadership for the quality management of online learning
environments. European Journal of Open, Distance and e‐Learning, 16 (2). pp. 61-75

Why Mobile Devices?
 Technology is constantly evolving at a
phenomenal rate – especially true in the case of
computing and mobile devices
 Since the Australian release of Apple’s iPad (May
2010), the subsequent development, distribution
and adoption of a plethora of different mobile
devices (smartphones and tablets) using various
platforms and operating systems, it has become
essential for HE institutions to investigate,
analyse and evaluate the ways in which these
devices can be incorporated into Learning and
Teaching to enhance student and staff learning

Key Technology Trends
- Gartner 2013
By 2015:
 Smartphones will account for 80% of all mobile
phones sold (in well-established markets)
 Only 20% of these devices will use Windows
 50% of all notebook purchases will be tablets
 The top operating systems will be:
1 Apple’s iOS
2 Google’s Android
3 Windows 8

Mobility @ USQ
 This rapid development of technology has launched a global
trend to enhance the ways in which we develop and deliver
courses and L&T resources
 Currently, USQ has implemented the following initiatives to
facilitate access to USQ resources for staff and students
from mobile devices:
 USQ Mobile website
 USQ Library mobile website
 Moodle mobile skin for USQStudyDesk courses
 Institutional imaging of iPads for general student
lending in the Library (Toowoomba Campus)
 With increased internet coverage enabled almost ubiquitous
access, we have seen a huge increase in our websites being
accessed by mobile devices

“I DON’T HAVE TIME TO WASTE”

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