2. Learning gain?
Are there different ways of thinking about
and capturing learning gain?
Different metaphors of learning and a
range of assessment practices.
Photos: Manchester Met
4. Acquisition metaphor
Knowledge is seen as an entity – learners either receive (transmitted)
knowledge entities or knowledge is constructed individually. Tutors’
role is either to provide the knowledge or to aid learner in her or his
individual construction process.
Wegner and Nückles (2015)
5.
6. Participation metaphor
Knowledge is not something a person possesses, but something a
person does. Learning does not mean you ‘get’ something, but through
learning you ‘become a part of a learning community of practice’. Not
an individual activity. Tutors are not providers nor facilitators in
knowledge construction, but rather experts or full participants within a
community.
Wegner and Nückles (2015)
7. Discussion
How do we recognise learning in relation to:
• the acquisition metaphor? (in what situations are tutors facilitators
and providers?)
• participation metaphor? (in what situations are tutors full participants
in the learning community?)
List as many ways as you can think of in five minutes…
5 minutes
8.
9. Participation Metaphor and Communities of
Practice in taught courses
What might a Community of Practice
look like?
• Who is in the community?
• How does legitimate peripheral
participation (LPP) fit in? LPP - learn to
talk rather than learning from talk?
• Is there correlation of increased
confidence with increased belonging?
10. Sketching the community
1. Consider a disciplinary area
2. Discuss how integration into a CoP might be characterised in the
curriculum. Think about the practitioner.
3. Do current assessments (of, for, as learning) capture this? How? Can
this be characterised as learning gain?
4. Can you think of an assessment which demonstrates these aspects?
10 minutes
11. Learning gain?
Can the participation metaphor be used to integrate
learning gain into assessments? Using the assessment you
have previously identified, produce 2 proposals and 2
challenges.
• Is legitimate peripheral participation a way of
demonstrating learning gain?
• What steps could we take to make this more explicit?
• What are the challenges of thinking about capturing
learning more holistically?
10 minutes
12. Concluding slide
What could we do next as a
community?
Are there other conversations we
could be having?
Do you have any exemplars
(please add contact details) ?
13. References
Lave, J. and Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
Sfard, A. (1998). "On two metaphors for learning and the dangers of choosing just one." Educational researcher 27(2): 4-13.
Swaffield, S. (2011). "Getting to the heart of authentic Assessment for Learning." Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy
& Practice 18(4): 433–449. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0969594X.2011.582838
Wegner, E. and Nückles, M. (2015). "Knowledge acquisition or participation in communities of practice? Academics’
metaphors of teaching and learning at the university." Studies in Higher Education 40(4): 624-643.
Photos all CC licensed or used by permission of Manchester Metropolitan University
Slides at https://www.slideshare.net/rmforsyth
Powerpoint timers by Dave Foord, CC licensed from www.a6.training.co.uk
Editor's Notes
Question: Which of these metaphors is dominant in your own experience of HE teaching?
In pairs
Copy of paper with the definitions from Wegner and Nuckles then blank space
Tell us something that relates closely now to something you do, and something that doesn’t
Why does it matter to make this explicit?
What are students primarily thinking about?
Makes us think about practice in a different way
Sheet with definitions of each of these on
Use model here plus outline of ‘being a biologist’ as a sample (might need to add something about assessment)
Lots of things happening here which relate to assessment as and for learning; how can we capture them so that they are of more value to individuals (students and staff)
Discussion.
Need post-its
Should we continue to develop this? How? Who?