Emerging technologies in Higher Education - A guide for South African Higher Education practitioners (pdf download)

> A guide for Higher Education practitioners

CHERYL BROWN &
DANIELA GACHAGO (EDS)

NOVEMBER 2013

> A guide for South African Higher Education practitioners

Editors:
Cheryl Brown

University of Cape Town

Daniela Gachago

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

Contributors:
Lucy Alexander

University of the Western Cape

Judy Backhouse

University of the Witwatersrand

Vivienne Bozalek


Agnes Chigona


Janet Condy


Noelle Cowling

Stellenbosch University

Andrew Deacon


Lorraine Fakude


Cheryl Hodgkinson-Williams


Eunice Ivala


Igor Lesko

OpenCourseWare Consortium

Veronica Mitchell


Dick Ng’ambi


Roshini Pillay


Michael Rowe


Alette Schoon

Rhodes University

Simone Titus


Kathy Watters


Graphic design / layout:

Lara van Otterlo, lara@evolve-graphics.co.za

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Acknowledgements:
We would like to thank the National Research Foundation for the funding that made this
project happen; all the researchers and PhD students who took part in this project and
added their invaluable insights, experiences and time to make this project a success; the
many passionate educators who completed our survey and gave up their precious time to
be interviewed.

Contents
Abbreviations

02

Foreword

03

Introduction: About this guide

05

Emerging technologies in South African HE

06

About the project ‘Emerging ICTs in Higher Education’

08

Overview of emerging technologies case studies

10

Emerging tools and technologies used

11

Emerging technologies case studies

15

Emerging technologies for authentic learning in HE

38

General guidelines for effective practice when using emerging
technologies in HE

44

Further reading on ‘Emerging ICTs in Higher Education’ NRF
research project

48

Bibliography

49

> Emerging Technologies in Higher Education I Nov 2013

01

Abbreviations:
CDS
CJ

Citizen journalists

CPR

Calibrated peer review

CPUT


DST

Digital storytelling

UFH

University of Fort Hare

HE

Higher education

HEI

Higher education institution

ICTs

Information and communication technologies

LMS

Learning management system

MOU

Maternal obstetric units

INGO

International NGO

NRF

National Research Foundation

OCWC

OpenCourseWare Consortium

OER

Open Educational Resources

RML

Rip-Mix-and-Learn project

RU

Rhodes University

SU

University of Stellenbosch

UCT


UWC


Wits

02

Center for Digital Storytelling



Foreword
Higher education (HE) worldwide is facing disruption from a global marketplace for online education,
especially through the introduction of massive open online courses (MOOCs) that offer free study from
world-leading universities. While the long-term effects of these innovations on traditional education
cannot yet be predicted, one side-effect is that they are exposing methods of teaching, learning and
assessment to public scrutiny. Instead of university teaching being conducted in lecture halls to 100
registered students, it is offered to 100,000 people online and discussed by international media. Is
connectivist learning better than direct instruction? Is peer assessment a viable alternative to proctored
exams? The questions raised by emerging technologies in HE are as much about new pedagogies as they
are about software platforms and business models.
Rather than seeing technology and pedagogy as separate domains inhabited by geeks or education
theorists, we now need to understand how they might fuse together to transform education. This
practitioner’s guide brings to teachers this challenge of developing transformations in education that
combine emerging technologies with innovative pedagogies.
The extent of the challenge is made clear in the report. There is increasing demand for HE, but diminishing
resources. The global marketplace for education undercuts the business model of traditional universities.
Students are becoming shoppers for courses. All of this instability comes at a time when there is a need
in society to produce graduates with skills in creativity, media literacy, and scientific inquiry.
As the guide indicates, South Africa has undeniable needs, and also unique opportunities. Rather than
trying to replicate the corporate virtual learning environments of the 1990s, based on a restricted model
of instructional design and centralised administration, South African higher education institutions (HEIs)
are exploring transformations in learning for a mobile, decentralised and networked world, developing
graduates who can contribute to the new knowledge economy and to the social good of the country.
From digital storytelling with pre-service teachers, to the teaching of obstetrics through a new dynamic
of sharing and reflection, the emphasis is on empowering learners and teachers to resource and manage
their own learning, within a technology-enabled community of practice.


03

The introduction of such learner-networked and teacher-supported practices requires teacher development,
to understand and deploy the new combinations of pedagogy and technology, and to ensure that the
innovations are safe, structured and productive. This involves a deliberate process of reflecting on one’s
own practice, considering students’ individual and collective learning needs, identifying opportunities
for transformation, developing new pedagogies that integrate emerging technologies, and engaging
in continual monitoring and evaluation of their effectiveness in practice. Many teachers may resist this
process for good reason: it requires considerable effort at a time of limited resources, within an education
system that has evolved to ensure consistency and to resist external interference. This is all the more
reason to celebrate those teachers who are exploring new methods.
Whatever the passion and creativity of individual teachers, these innovative practices cannot be scaled
up or sustained without the support of senior managers and policy makers – not to enforce change, but
to provide a space to innovate. The deepest and longest-lasting success will come from those institutions
that can overcome endemic fear of failure, stifling bureaucracy, micro-management, and blocking of
non-standard technology, to support and resource small-scale innovations and then find ways to enhance
success.
The case studies described in this report on emerging technologies in HE are all examples of how learning
mediated by technology might transform education. As well as being individual success stories, they are
part of a larger narrative of change in HE that empowers learners with new pedagogies to match their
personal and social technologies, and situates each HEI within a worldwide movement towards offering
open, accessible and inter-connected modes of study. As an open education resource, this practitioner’s
guide makes a strong contribution to that global enterprise.

Mike Sharples
Professor of Educational Technology
The Open University

September 2013

04


Introduction: About this guide
‘Emerging ICTs in Higher Education’1 is a joint project of eight higher education institutions (HEIs) and one
international non-governmental organisation (INGO), and is funded by the National Research Foundation
(NRF). The study, which started in 2011, aimed to investigate how qualitative outcomes in education can
be realised through the use of emerging technologies to transform teaching and learning practices across
differently positioned HEIs, in terms of monetary and cultural capital and geographical location. One of
the activities of the project has been the documentation of in-depth case studies of educators’ innovative
pedagogical practices using emerging technologies, with particular emphasis on those that would be
useful and affordable in resource-scarce contexts.
As an outcome we have developed this practitioner’s guide of selected case studies available from the
end of 2013. This guide provides a brief overview of the South African higher education (HE) context
and the introduction of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to respond to some of the
challenges that the South African HE landscape faces, an introduction to the project, and the key findings
that resulted from this project. At the heart of this guide, however, are 11 short case studies, in which
educators report on their experiences with introducing emerging technologies in their teaching and
learning practices.
These case studies are drawn from seven South African HEIs, both resource-rich and resource-poor,
from diverse disciplines such as Teacher Education, Nursing and Media Studies, covering a variety of
tools and technologies, such as traditional learning management systems (LMSs), but also a wide range
of social media applications, such as discussion forums, Facebook groups, Google Drive and blogs, to
address a variety of educational challenges. These challenges include: managing large classes, enhancing
interaction and collaboration among geographically dispersed students, facilitating critical reflection,
developing digital literacy skills or creating safe online spaces to practice professional skills.
For an overview of the many tools and technologies used in these case studies see ‘Emerging tools and
technologies used’. Authentic learning is then used as a lens to understand how these case studies
facilitated a more authentic learning experience for students. A summary of the key points for effective
practice emanating from the case studies conclude this guide. We are hoping that this wide choice
of applications of emerging technologies will offer the reader valuable insights into the benefits and
challenges of adopting innovative and creative ways to enhance teaching and learning in HE, and transfer
some of the passion and enthusiasm of these innovators to a wider audience.

1

http://www.emergingicts.blogspot.com


05

Emerging technologies in South African HE
Across the world, changes in HE are driving institutions to explore the use of ICTs to improve their
functioning and, in particular, to improve teaching and learning. These challenges include (Johnson &
Adams, 2011; Sharples et al., 2012):

• Increasing demand for HE together with dwindling resources

• Rise of distance education and with it globalisation of education

• Changing profile and expectations of students, increase in so-called ‘non-traditional students’

• New ideas on pedagogy and curriculum design

• The demand of the ‘knowledge society’ for a different kind of graduate.

In South Africa the HE sector faces not only these challenges, but also ones related to the unique
circumstances of this country due to its history and current circumstances. Most obviously, South Africa’s
racially divided past continues to be reflected in who enrols and who succeeds in HE, as well as in the
configuration of public institutions and their resourcing. Due to the historical legacy in South Africa, HEIs
are differently positioned in relation to resources and cultural capital, and yet all of them are required
to produce graduates who can contribute to the knowledge economy and the social good in South
Africa. HE in South Africa is further challenged by a largely dysfunctional public schooling system, high
unemployment coupled with a shortage of key high-level skills, and widespread poverty (Council of
Higher Education, 2010; Scott, Yeld, & Hendry, 2007).
Much has been written about the implementation and support of institutional learning technologies,
such as an institutional learning management system (LMS), to address some of the challenges
mentioned above and in particular to improve efficiency in administration and teaching and learning
in South African HE. Far less work has been done on exploring and engaging with the effective use of
emerging technologies in HEIs, such as social media or mobile phones, and how these influence teaching
and learning practices in our institutions. Currently institutional approaches to emerging technologies
are often characterised by fear, micro-management and blocking of tools, rather than a pro-active
engagement aimed at understanding the opportunities these easily available technologies could bring to
students and the institution (Committee of Inquiry into the Changing Learner Experience (CLEX), 2009).
However, there is increasing evidence that emerging technologies can have an influence across a range
of pedagogical dimensions, from direct teaching to social learning (Sharples et al., 2012).

06


While we recognise that the adoption of institutional technologies to enhance teaching and learning is
dependent upon institutional resources being allocated to fund, evaluate and reward these innovative
pedagogical practices as well as a supportive attitude among senior management, this project confirmed
that much of the adoption of emerging technologies currently is driven by the individual passion of
academics, and may not be systemic or well supported by universities. These educators take advantage
of the increasing availability of technologies creating new possibilities for using these technologies, and
as a consequence pedagogical and social practices are continuously being transformed.
In this guide we see how practitioners focused on their own practice in their respective disciplines,
reflected on their students’ learning needs, and developed practices using emerging technologies which
they could apply with their students. It is important to note that in this study, which aims to establish
effective teaching and learning practices in our own context, the South African HE arena, we focus less
on the tool selected by educators and more on the pedagogical considerations when using technology.

In doing so, we are drawing on Veletsianos’ (2010) broad and contextaware definition of emerging technologies, viewing emerging
technologies in education as ‘tools, technologies, innovations, and
advancements utilized in diverse educational settings to serve varied
education-related purposes’ (p.17).


07

About the project
‘Emerging ICTs in Higher Education’
This practitioner guide forms part of the National Research Foundation (NRF)-funded project entitled
‘Emerging ICTs in Higher Education’2 which was undertaken by researchers from eight HEIs in South
Africa and one international NGO (the OpenCourseWare (OCWC) Consortium) during 2011 – 2013. This
project emerged out of a call from the NRF for educational research to be undertaken collaboratively by
researchers from at least three institutions, of which one should be rural.
Researchers in this ‘Emerging ICTs in HE’ project have published widely in national and international
journals and presented at conferences (see: Further reading on ‘Emerging ICTs in Higher Education’
NRF research project). The main research findings distilled from this research include: 1. a deeper
understanding of how lecturers in South African HE interpret the term ‘emerging technologies’; 2. what
technologies educators are using; 3. what makes them use these technologies in their teaching; 4. the
impact of this use on students’ learning; 5. a shift of control from lecturer to the learner; and 6. the lack
of institutional engagement.
1. Context matters
We concluded that, in unpacking what is meant by emerging technologies, context matters.
Understandings among university lecturers differ based on the nature of their institutions, access
to resources, their disciplines and other group belongings, and their individual motivations.
Understandings vary both in terms of what are considered emerging technologies, and what is
considered to be innovative uses of technology (Gachago, Ivala, Backhouse, Bosman, & Bozalek,
2013).
2. Can an LMS still be emerging?
The project showed that lecturers at South African universities are using emerging technologies
in their teaching, but that the rate of adoption varies. There are also similarities and differences
compared to the use of emerging technologies internationally: as one would expect, social media,
blogging, podcasting or mobile technologies are (for example) technologies that many educators
have adopted in South Africa. However, other technologies that have attracted interest in HE, such
as Twitter or ePortfolios, are yet to be taken up in South Africa. In particular, bandwidth-intensive
technologies such as Virtual Worlds, online games or remote instrumentation are hardly used in our
context. Interestingly, a large number of respondents referred to the institutional LMS as the most
innovative technology used in their teaching, which reaffirms the highly context-specific nature of
emerging technologies. As one of our team members stated: ‘What’s emerging in Paris may be some
years off emerging in Parys’ (Bozalek, Ng’ambi, & Gachago, 2013).

2

08

For more information on the project and research outputs see www.emergingicts.blogspot.com


3. Passion for teaching and learning
The adoption of emerging technologies is driven primarily by pedagogic concerns and, to a lesser
extent, by pragmatism and external pressures from institutions, employers and professions, or
students. While obstacles to using emerging technology were identified, such as lack of knowledge
or skills, this lack of resources was as often as much the force driving the adoption as hindering it.
This project confirmed that much of the adoption of emerging technologies is driven by individual
passion and is not systemic or well supported by universities (Bozalek, Ng’ambi, & Gachago, 2013;
Gachago et al., 2013).
4. We are learning differently – but sometimes it’s also just more of the same
Emerging technologies make it possible to teach and learn in new ways. The project provided evidence
that emerging technologies can support diverse students’ needs and allow a more personalised,
flexible way of learning (Bozalek, Gachago, et al., 2013). On the other hand, the project has shown
that the use of emerging technologies does not necessarily lead to better learning outcomes, and in
some cases simply reinforces traditional ways of teaching (Ng’ambi, 2013).
5. Power to the learners
In some of the cases studied emerging technologies were used to promote collaborative construction
of knowledge among lecturers and students through interaction, feedback and reflection. This
resulted in shifts in the perception that students have of their own role in learning and in the power
relationship between students and lecturers. Affordable and accessible mobile technologies such as
Facebook or WhatsApp were found to be effective in increasing access to social learning networks,
facilitating both informal and formal learning, and supporting students who are learning in a second
or third language (Bozalek, Gachago, et al., 2013; Ng’ambi, Gachago, Ivala, Bozalek, & Watters,
2012; Ng’ambi, 2013).
6. Wanted: Institutional engagement
In order to harness the potential that emerging technologies have for improving teaching and
learning practices, HEIs would have to consciously develop governance structures and strategic
plans for infusing the use of these technologies into institutional life. This would require improved
communication between opinion leaders and change agents – such as the passionate educators
profiled in this guide – so that practices could be extended from a small pocket of innovation to other
educators and students in the institution. It is also important to provide recognition to innovative
users of emerging technologies in order to move from innovation to embedded practice (Bozalek,
Ng’ambi, & Gachago, 2013).


09

Overview of emerging
technologies case studies
The case studies which follow here have been collected as part of the ‘Emerging ICTs in HE’ project and
through a collaborative regional staff development short course on ‘Emerging Technologies to improve
Teaching and Learning in HE’. These case studies provide a wide range of examples of how educators
have integrated emerging technologies in their teaching and learning practices over a wide range of
institutions and disciplines. They describe the challenges educators were trying to address with the use of
emerging technologies, offer a short overview of the specific intervention and the benefits of the selected
tools and technologies, and perhaps most importantly, the key points for effective practice based on both
the rewards and challenges of the educators’ experiences using technology in their specific educational
contexts.
To start with we compiled a brief summary of the tools and technologies used, which in some case studies
overlap, even if used in different ways and to respond to different challenges. For further information
on the individual tools, links to a course wiki3 are provided, which was created by the 2011 and 2012
‘Emerging Technologies to improve Teaching and Learning in HE’ course participants.

3

10

http://www.checit.wikispaces.com


Emerging tools and technologies used
Blogs are web-based platforms which allow registered users to post their thoughts, reflections and
comments in reverse chronological order. Blogs often function as an online journal, but may be used for
knowledge sharing or reflection. They have become popular because of their wide scope for interactivity.
Blogs have a comment function, which facilitates a discussion on specific topics among participants.
They can be individually authored but also allow multiple authorships, and can be private or public. In
both case studies describing blogs, the blog tool used was Blogger4. For more information on blogs see
http://checit.wikispaces.com/blogs. [Tool used in Case Studies 5 and 10]

Calibrated peer review system (CPR) is a web-based software application that allows students
to review and assess each other’s work. It melds the pedagogy of ‘writing across the curriculum’ with the
process of academic peer review. This web-based, instructional tool can be used in any discipline with
any class size. CPR provides an opportunity to teach students using higher-order thinking skills required
in writing and reviewing processes. In a CPR assignment students not only learn their discipline by
writing, they also learn and practice critical thinking by evaluating calibration submissions and authentic
submissions from their peers. Educators design the assignment and create the calibration submissions
and the grading rubric. They also set up the grading criteria for the assignment, weighting the various
components in a way that is consistent with the goals of the course, and, finally, handle problems that
may arise if there are defaulting students or inconsistent grading. More information about CPR can be
found at http://cpr.molsci.ucla.edu/. [Tool used in Case Study 2]

Digital storytelling involves a digital story which is a narrated video of a short story (or educational
concept) combining personal experiences of the narrator with academic content. This is done by
combining recorded voice (telling the story or explaining the concept) with appropriate still or moving
images. Music or other sounds can be used to enhance the story and create a tone within the story.
These videos are generally 2 to 3 minutes long. The model of creating digital stories applied in the digital
storytelling project at CPUT (Case Study 1) is based on the Center for Digital Storytelling (CDS) workshop
model5 and involves weekly workshops in which participants collaboratively develop their stories. Freely
available software was used (e.g. Windows MovieMaker6 or Photostory7 for movie editing and Audacity8
for voice recording and editing). The use of media under the creative commons licence was promoted.
In Case Study 11 digital storytelling was adopted for a citizen journalism project, which is a term used
when people from the community create and post their news stories to social media platforms such as
YouTube or Twitter or write comments on an article online. In this case mobile video technology was used

http://www.blogger.com
For more information on this model see: http://www.storycenter.org
6
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-za/windows-live/movie-maker#t1=overview
7
http://download.cnet.com/Photo-Story-3-for-Windows/3000-12511_4-10339154.html
8
http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
> Emerging Technologies in Higher Education
4
5

I Nov 2013

11

Emerging tools and technologies used...continued
to capture video footage on personal mobile phones, creating a voice-over recording on Audacity and
editing the movie using Windows Movie Maker. These videos were then outputted in a format that could
be easily published online, disseminated through DVDs or transferred from one mobile phone to another
via bluetooth. For more information on digital storytelling see http://checit.wikispaces.com/digital+stories
[Tool used in Case Studies 1 and 11]

Discussion forums have been used extensively in online and blended learning scenarios to encourage
student communication and exchange. Forums have become a standard tool in institutional LMSs,
although lecturers often struggle to engage students in meaningful discussions around course content.
Case Study 4 used the discussion forum within their institutional LMS. [Tool used in Case Study 4]

Google Drive is an online collaborative working space for documents, spreadsheets, presentations,
drawings and forms. It enables real-time collaboration, as well as document versioning, highlighting
and annotation, offline access and enhanced editing features. Advantages include the facility to modify
content at any stage of the process, and the fact that text and images can be added and edited by multiple
group members. The automatic saving is a helpful time-saver and offers reassurance to students that their
work will not be lost through not saving it in time, thus possibly reducing their anxiety. The products can
be shared with others chosen by the group, adding to the sense of ownership of the students. It can also
be downloaded. Therefore if permissions are granted, it can be mailed to other people. Collaboration
becomes possible and visible. Further advantages that may be useful are that Google Drive can enable
feedback comments, instant messaging and notifications via email when changes are made. While Google
Drive (indeed, any collaborative editing platform) is not new, in the Physiotherapy (Case Study 3) and
Sport Science project (Case Study 7) it was used in an innovative way that challenged current thinking
around teaching and learning practices that aim to develop critical thinking in these students. For more
information see http://checit.wikispaces.com/document+sharing+%26+online+collaboration [Tool used in
Case Studies 3 and 7]

Google Groups were originally designed to facilitate web-based or email-based discussions among
dispersed users on specific topics. However, more recently Google Groups9 have also become useful as
mailing lists for a distinct group of users, such as students and facilitators in a course. The administrator
of a Google Group creates a common email address, and invites participants to join this group. Emails
sent to this email address will automatically be emailed to all participants linked to this group. For more
information see http://checit.wikispaces.com/newsgroups [Tool used in Case Study 6]

9

12

https://groups.google.com/


Google Sites10 is a structured web page-creation tool offered by Google as part of the Google Apps
Productivity suite. The goal of Google Sites is for anyone to be able to create a team-oriented site where
multiple people can collaborate and share files. It provides a container for the range of Google apps, such
as blogs, calendar and newsgroups. [Tool used in Case Study 9]

Portfolios, paper‐based or digital, are widely used in education programmes as they can provide
opportunities for self‐assessment, reflection and skills development. Key assumptions underlying all these
uses of portfolios is the value of making tacit knowledge explicit, irrespective of whether this knowledge
was gained in formal educational settings or informal environments. In the case study on design thinking
(Case Study 8), the eportfolio was used for its potential to help students make their learning design
thinking explicit, as a mechanism for integrating and reflecting upon their prior knowledge about
designing learning activities and the best practice recommended in the educational technology literature
with which they engage in the course. Over the years the course has made use of a variety of technologies
to serve as the platform for an eportfolio, including wikis within the institutional LMS and cloud-based
wikis such as www.wikispaces.com For more information on eportfolios see http://checit.wikispaces.
com/eportfolios [Tool used in Case Study 8]

Slideshare is a media-sharing service. It is primarily a tool for sharing presentations and as such it
has a potentially powerful teaching application. It shares a space on the web with other media-sharing
tools such as YouTube11 and Flickr12. Slideshare13 is influential for a few reasons: firstly, it encourages
academics to post and share their ideas and teaching and hopefully to carefully consider the standard
of their presentations; secondly, it promotes Open Educational Resources (OER); and lastly Slideshare
serves as a social discovery platform for users to find relevant content and connect with other members
who share similar interests. Slideshare encourages a number of specific skills towards digital literacy,
such as sharing in OER practices, and the potential to integrate video and other media. Media sharing
has become an important feature of Web 2.0 practice. You can choose to follow other users and access
information on who has viewed or downloaded your presentations. For more information on file and
media sharing visit http://checit.wikispaces.com/file+and+media+sharing [Tool used in Case Study 9]

Social networking sites (academic), such as Academia.edu14 or Researchgate15, are powerful
tools used by millions of academics to network professionally as well as upload their research papers to
a single, searchable destination. In a nutshell this is a social network devoted to academia. It offers the
added benefit of being able to select areas of academic interest, which subsequently sorts and streams
applicable content to the users. Site users are able to follow others in the same fashion as Twitter . It
provides online tools to embed each user’s connection to other social networking tools such as Twitter
and LinkedIn. By using this site to update and upload research and create links to other personal web
locations, the participants can easily acquire and practise some valuable skills within an environment
which makes sense to them, such as curatorship. [Tool used in Case Study 9]

10
11

https://sites.google.com
http://www.youtube.com

12
13

http://www.flickr.com
http://www.slideshare.net

14
15

http://www.academia.edu
http://www.researchgate.net


13

Emerging tools and technologies used...continued
Social networking sites (professional) include LinkedIn17, a business-oriented social
networking site which allows members to set up their professional profiles, including their educational
and professional career, and to connect with people in their professional field. Within the business
community maintaining a LinkedIn profile is a standard practice; within academia, however, LinkedIn
is not as ubiquitous. In LinkedIn’s favour is the fact that it is so widely used and that it enjoys great
authority on Google. Interestingly, a recent study in the UK points to the fact that LinkedIn is used by
approximately three times more academic staff than any other social networking platform. [Tool used
in Case Study 9]

Twitter: The microblogging platform Twitter18 allows registered users to post tweets through the
website interface, SMS, or a range of apps for mobile devices. Like most other applications, only short
messages not exceeding 140 characters [known as ‘tweets’] can be sent at a time. Twitter serves two
functions: first it is an aggregator of the latest information in a specific field (if you’re following the
thought leaders); and the second it is a dissemination tool. Most academics are aware that the research
process does not end with publication – ensuring that your latest research gains traction is critical, and
Twitter is an excellent tool for this. It is a good idea not to use Twitter in isolation, but to link it into
an overall social media strategy, for example, alongside blogging. New academic users on Twitter can
perhaps profit more from utilising it as a mechanism to find ‘signals’ (for example, up and coming trends
or interesting projects) about topics. For more information see http://checit.wikispaces.com/twitter [Tool
used in Case Study 9]

Wikis are websites, the most famous of which is Wikipedia. A wiki is an online authoring tool that is
developed collaboratively by a group/community of users. It can be used by all to publish new content
or edit existing content. Contrary to (for example) document-sharing tools such as Google Drive, it
allows the creation of interlinked sub-pages, called wiki pages. Wikis offer simple WYSIWYG (what you
see is what you get) html editors, so one does not need programming skills to set up a website. It is a
democratic and open tool. Most wikis keep older versions of wiki pages, which one can revert to should
somebody mistakenly overwrite content. Wikis can be open or private. External resources such as Word
documents or PowerPoint presentations can be attached and media can be embedded, such as images,
videos and podcasts. Wikis can be hosted remotely or locally installed on an institutional server. They can
be integrated into an existing LMS or used on their own. The type of wiki used by academics in the RipMix-and-Learn (RML) project (Case Study 2) was a ‘DokuWiki’19 which was set up by the project staff on
an institutional server. Case Study 10 in Sport Sciences used wikispaces20. For more information on wikis
see http://checit.wikispaces.com/wikis [Tool used in Case Studies 2, 8 and 10]
17
18

14

http://www.linkedin.com
http://www.twitter.com

19
20


http://www.dokuwiki.org/dokuwiki
http://www.wikispaces.com

1-11

Emerging technologies CASE STUDIES


15

Digital storytelling in
diverse classrooms
DANIELA GACHAGO, EUNICE IVALA,
JANET CONDY AND AGNES CHIGONA, CPUT

1

CASE STUDY

Background
This project investigated the use of digital storytelling (DST) as an alternative to paper-based teaching
portfolios which Education students complete as part of their ‘Professional Course’ at the Faculty of
Education and Social Studies at CPUT.
Teaching portfolios generally reflect on students’ ideas and objectives that inform their teaching, their
teaching philosophy and critical incidents that impacted on their teacher identity.
From 2010 students in this course could choose whether to create a traditional paper-based portfolio
or a digital story.

Challenges
•
Limited time spent on learning how to integrate ICTs in students’ own teaching during studies;
•
Development of digital literacies among students with different educational backgrounds,
languages, and ICT access and experience.

The innovation
The digital storytelling workshop model developed by the Center for Digital Storytelling (CDS) was
adapted to run over eight weeks with weekly workshops in a computer lab, in which the students
were guided in the development of digital stories. Steps included: visual brainstorming activities,
such as the ‘River of Life’, conceptualising stories in a story circle, scripting, storyboarding, collecting
images, recording audio, selecting background sounds and video editing. A final screening of the
movies completed the project.
Students used their own devices and technology as much as possible, to allow transfer of this project
into students’ own teaching practice. For example, the Khanya computer lab that was used for this
project is replicated in all government schools in the region.
There is equal focus on the process and product in this project. While the development of the actual
product, the digital story, is the students’ main focus in this project, the sharing of their stories (which
are often personal, and sometimes painful) in smaller groups, such as during the River of Life exercise
or the story circle, and the final screening of the stories at the end of the project – to which family
members, friends and other loved ones are invited – are equally important.

16

Emerging Technologies in Higher Education I Nov 2013

Benefits of emerging
technologies
•
Development of a variety of digital literacy
skills through the production of the digital
story (e.g. recording / editing audio,
recording / editing video, collecting /
editing digital images, publishing of video
content on the web);
• polished product that can be used or shared, e.g. in own teaching or as part of an online
A
portfolio / CV;
•
Personal growth through reflection, sharing and listening to each other’s diverse stories;
•
Development of class cohesion and team building.

Key points for effective practice
•
Thorough step-by-step planning: Complex projects involving large classes and various
tools and technologies need to be planned well ahead.
•

T
eam approach: Projects based on such diverse digital literacy skills will benefit from
involvement of an inter-disciplinary facilitation and teaching team with various skills.

•
Provision of access to infrastructure and resources: Due to students’ highly diverse
access to technology, some infrastructural access should be provided by the institution, e.g.
scheduled time in computer labs.
•

S
caffolding: Complex projects such as these need step-by-step guidance for students
provided by facilitators.

•
Student assistants/support: In this project facilitators were trained to support their
colleagues during the development of the project (especially important when dealing with
large classes).
•
Use of software that is freely available on the Web: To allow for ease of transfer of
the project into students’ own teaching practice, it is advisable to use technology that is
accessible in students’ professional practice.
•

V
irus management: When dealing with large classes in computer labs, a thorough virus
management routine is essential to avoid students losing work.

•

C
ontinuous reflective practice: The opportunity to reflect and research this project since
the very beginning has allowed us to continuously refine and improve the model implemented
in this project.

‘T
his project has proved very successful from both lecturers’ and students’
perspective. Student engagement was uncharacteristically high and students
enjoyed the collaboration with the team and their colleagues, sharing their
individual backgrounds and reflecting on their journey to becoming teachers.’

For more information on digital storytelling, including examples of digital stories, visit:
Center for Digital Storytelling website: http://www.storycenter.org
CPUT Digital Storytelling resources: http://edutechcput.wordpress.com/digital-storytelling-resources/
CPUTstories YouTube channel (examples of students’ digital stories): http://www.youtube.com/user/cputstories


17

ICT-enabled peer
assessment and
collaboration
IGOR LESKO, OCWC AND VIVIENNE BOZALEK, UWC

CASE STUDY

2

Background
The Rip-Mix-and-Learn (RML) project, which was implemented at UWC, focused on new innovative
practices, enabled through ICTs, in academics’ teaching practices. The aim of the project was also
to facilitate the sharing of experiences and lessons learnt among the project participants through
presentations and publication of articles in open access academic journals. The project focused,
in particular, on examining educational experiences and assessment, with an emphasis on peer
assessment methods among students, enabled through Web 2.0 technologies.

Challenges
•

Large classes make provision of appropriate formative feedback to students difficult;

•

A general lack of writing, referencing and evaluation skills among students;

•

Lack of students’ engagement in collaborative group work.

The innovation
Two innovations were trialled in this project:
1. wiki where students worked on joint assignments in groups, collaboratively creating and
A
editing content on the wiki.
2. Calibrated Peer Review (CPR) system, where students submitted their assignments to the CPR
A
server. Students were required to assess themselves and were assessed by their peers according
to a set of predetermined criteria.

The RML Project was initiated at UWC by Philipp Schmidt and it was supported financially through the
Shuttleworth Foundation (http://www.shuttleworthfoundation.org/)
More information about the RML project can be found at: http//free.uwc.ac.za/ripmixlearn/start
Information reported on in this case study is based on interviews conducted with Grant Hearn and Lorna
Holtman. Lorna Holtman implemented a Wiki in her postgraduate Philosophy of Science course. Grant Hearn
implemented CPR in his undergraduate Philosophy of Information Systems course. These interviews together
with interviews with the rest of academics involved in the RML project can be accessed here:
http://free.uwc.ac.za/ripmixlearn/podcasts
Lorna has written about her experiences here: Holtman, L. (2009). Using Wikis in the Teaching of a Short
Course on the History and Philosophy of Science. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance
Learning, 6(1).http://itdl.org/journal/jan_09/index.htm.

18


Benefits of emerging
technologies
Lecturers reported that the innovations:
•
Significantly improved writing skills, proper assignment construction, referencing and
reviewing skills;
•

Improved critical thinking skills;

•

Improved ability of students to work as part of a team;

•
Positively enhanced learning experiences through collaborations and through evaluating
other students’ work;
•

Students acquired digital literacy skills while working with online tools.

•

S
implicity: Use of tools that are simple, robust and require very little initial technological
support.

•
Support: When using applications that are not part of institutionally supported infrastructure,
such as Web 2.0 technologies, consider institutional support mechanisms when thinking of
rolling out such practices on a large scale.
•
Internet connectivity: Consider how students will access the Internet, since lack of
bandwidth is a serious hindrance to students’ participation in these activities.
•
Resistance: Consider risks in relation to peer assessment and engaging students in
collaborative group work, such as: students not feeling comfortable to act as assessors of
their peers’ work at inception, and students not participating equally in collaborative group
work or collaborative group editing process not taking place due to copying and pasting of
finished ‘product’ online.

‘ aking students active learners, through involving them in online peer
M
assessment tasks and collaborative group work, has been beneficial for
teaching and learning practices. Students learnt new skills, learnt to identify
strengths and weakness of their own work, and learnt how to evaluate and
process content prepared by others.’


19

Google Drive and
case-based learning
MICHAEL ROWE, UWC

CASE STUDY

3

Background
This intervention took place among second-year students in an Applied Physiotherapy module at
UWC. The need to implement graduate attributes across modules was a stimulus for the Physiotherapy
Department to implement case-based learning as a strategy. This, alongside an institutional imperative
to develop educational spaces that integrated technology to enhance student learning, resulted in the
expansion of classroom learning spaces online.

Challenges
•
Lack of critical thinking among students while on their clinical rotations. They typically tried
to memorise approaches to patient management, rather than attempting to solve problems
based on the patient’s unique clinical presentation.
•

Exhibition of low levels of technological literacy.

The innovation
Using Google Drive, students worked collaboratively to develop their own notes based on authentic
cases. Students summarised these weekly notes as case presentations, which were then shared with
everyone in the class. These collective notes and summaries could be viewed by all students and
facilitators anywhere and at any time, provided one had an Internet connection through Google Drive.
Facilitators’ roles changed from preparing lecture content to providing feedback to groups guiding
students through the cases in class time, as well as providing comments, suggestions and questions
online in Google Drive. Continuous use of ‘Feedback’ documents enabled students to provide the
teaching team with comments and suggestions on the course, and the team to respond with changes
or comments.

Michael Rowe wrote about his experiences in the following article: Rowe, M., Bozalek, V., Frantz, J. (2013).
Using Google Drive to facilitate a blended approach to authentic learning. British Journal of Educational
Technology, 44(4), 594–606. doi:10.1111/bjet.12063
He also reflected on his blog: http://www.mrowe.co.za/blog/design-principles/phases-of-the-project/iterativecycles/3-2-authentic-learning-google-drive/

20


Benefits of emerging technologies
•

Creation of alternative spaces for enhanced communication among facilitators and students;

•
Moving content out of the classroom, creating space for discussion and engagement beyond
the classroom borders.

•

Critical thinking tasks: In order to develop critical thinking skills, learning tasks must be
created that require students to think critically.
•
Time awareness: Integrated case-based learning (in online and physical spaces) is way
more intensive and time-consuming than lectures, and requires more input and preparation
on the part of the facilitators.
•
Resistance: Students (and colleagues) will initially resist the change, but will change their
point of view as the benefits of the approach become apparent.
•
Loss of control: By giving the students more control over their own learning, facilitators
must also be open to being challenged, and should be confident enough to encourage this
from the students.
•
Digital literacy skills: Often wrong assumptions are being made about students’ ability to
use technology for learning. Just because they’re on Facebook doesn’t mean they know how
to use online spaces effectively as part of their learning practices.

‘ ntegrating online and physical spaces is a powerful way to encourage students
I
to think of learning as something that happens anywhere, and at any time.
When incorporated with a case-based approach to learning, we found that
communication between students and staff members changed, with students
taking more and more control over their learning. They developed critical
attitudes towards themselves and their role in their own learning, as well as
towards authority figures.’


21

Role-play in an online
discussion forum
ROSHINI PILLAY, WITS

CASE STUDY

4

Background
Meso practice’ is a course taught to second-year Social Work students using blended learning at Wits,
to facilitate development of professional practice skills which students require when working with a
group of clients in a structured manner.

Challenges
• ack of authentic contexts for students in which to practice, in a safe teaching environment, the
L
professional skills – such as assessment, communication and conflict management – essential in
their professional practice as social worker.

The innovation
Students were asked to form small groups focusing on a particular social condition, such as substance
abuse, gambling, HIV/AIDS or single parenting. The groups then engaged in multiple activities and
exercises in class, and online in the discussion forum within their institutional LMS, and had to assume
the role of either social worker or a group participant.
During the course students were required to undertake ‘real-life’ exercises, like using ice-breakers and
holding discussions that mirror the procedures and activities of treatment groups. The posts in the
discussion forum allowed students to ask questions about the social condition the group was working
on and to comment on the activities conducted in class. Each week the role of group social worker
was rotated and an evaluation of the group process was shared.

The experiences in this case study have been presented as follows:
Pillay, R., Alexander, L. (2012). Cultivating Reflective Spaces: Experiences with Asynchronous Online
Discussion Forums in Training ‘Social Good Professionals’ at Two South African Universities. Presentation at the
2012 Heltasa conference, Stellenbosch University, 28-30 November 2012.

22


• safe environment in which students could experiment with the group process and skills
A
before conducting groups with clients in the real world;
•
The discussion forums were helpful to share ideas and information relevant to the course;
•

Social media such as Twitter facilitated peer support;

• blended components of the course encouraged collaboration and participation of students
The
without barriers imposed by time and space extending learning beyond the classroom.

•

G
uidelines / scaffolding: Give students guidelines on how to develop discussion posts and
develop a rubric for evaluation.

•

O
penness: Allow students to find answers to open questions.

•

Expert performance: Invite experts to post to the forum on specific topics to start discussion.

•

L
inking in-class with out-of-class work: Encourage students to view posts by making
reference to them in class.

•

M
otivation: Allow incentives for posts (e.g. 10% of course mark allocated to discussion
posts).

•

T
racking and monitoring: Use tracking tools of the LMS to assess student use of forum.

•

S
ocial presence: Allow students to create a social presence, e.g. by adding a joke, complaints
about funding and support for each other.

•

N
etiquette: Make students aware of the ethics of online communication and social
networking.

•

T
ime awareness: Be aware of the considerable time spent by the lecturer in managing both
the classroom and online component of the course.

‘ he use of the discussion forum helps to encourage debate beyond the classroom
T

as students were able to share views on social conditions, non- compliance to
group norms and personal stories about divorce and being raised by a single
parent. Students were able to use the discussion platform as a reflective tool
to obtain feedback on their leadership skills and participation in the group.’


23

Blogs to enhance
reflective practice
LORRAINE FAKUDE, UWC

CASE STUDY

5

Background
This case study explores the educational use and value of blogging by postgraduate Nursing Education
students at UWC. As professional nurses, students are expected to be reflective practitioners in their
clinical practice. This requires clinical reasoning and decision-making skills. A blog was used to enhance
critical reflective dialogue within a constructivist learning environment.

Challenges
Part-time students’ need for flexible learning environments: most students who are registered for the
course are part-time students employed as professional nurses at various clinical practice environments;
hence a more accessible medium was needed to facilitate virtual student discussions during periods
when they are not attending on-campus seminars.

The innovation
Students were requested to maintain a group blog throughout the 14 weeks of the semester, focusing
on identified topics by the lecturer and also reflecting on the group project each group had to do on
Curriculum Development.
A set of criteria was provided for the marking of the blogging activity. The criteria included in the
rubric were: critical thinking, integration/synthesis of concepts and principles related to the topic/
issue being debated upon, reflection on own experiences, writing standard and maintaining timelines.
Content and thematic analysis of the postings on the blogs was done using a rubric to determine the
level of the discussions (higher-order instead of lower-order discussions), which also formed part of
the assessment mark.

24


•

Blogs assisted students to become subject matter experts through a process of regular scouting,
filtering and posting of comments and reflections on course content;

•

Increased student interest and ownership in learning;

•

Promotion of students’ legitimate participation and enculturation into a community of practice;

•

Provision of opportunities for diverse perspectives;

•

Collection and sharing of resources among lecturers and students by posting hyperlinks related
to the topics under discussion.

•
Time awareness: Adequate time needs to be spent to make the students more comfortable
when introduced to a new teaching and learning strategy. In this case students were given
a whole first semester to become accustomed to the tool before it was integrated into the
second semester module.
•
Ongoing encouragement and support: Students must receive ongoing encouragement
and support from the facilitator.
•

Technical support: Technical support to be on hand when needed (e.g. Help file).

‘ ollaboration among students is essential to knowledge building as it provides
C
them with an opportunity to discuss and reflect on their learning as well as
their experiences in their practice environments. The need arose for electronic
learning activities that were authentic, learner-centred, relevant to students’
lives, and also activities that allowed students to explore their own social and
cultural identities.’

Lorraine Fakude has discussed her experiences here:
Fakude, L. (2012). Blogging to Enhance Reflective Practice in Nursing Education. Conference for Higher
Education Teaching and Learning in South Africa (HELTASA), Cape Town, 27-30 November 2012.


25

Google Groups to
enhance engagement
LUCY ALEXANDER, UWC

CASE STUDY

6

Background
The School of Public Health at UWC has offered its Postgraduate Programme in Public Health in
distance form since 2000. Students are distributed across up to 17 countries in Africa. A Google
Group was integrated into the module design to increase opportunities for developing the social
presence of the course leader and students, furthering student engagement with peers or critical
friends, and creating collaborative learning opportunities which included peer review.

Challenges
•

Students study in isolated environments, which is considered detrimental to study motivation;

•

Difficult to build student-to-student relationships for peer support because of the distance nature
of the course and students’ varied time constraints as working health professionals.

The innovation
A Google Group was selected as a tool for facilitating group tutorials because of its non-synchronous
discussion forum nature, which is ideal for working professionals. Using Google also overcame
connectivity issues related to using the institution’s website. A programme schedule which included
three 10-day online tutorials was circulated early in the semester so that students and staff could plan
accordingly for three intense engagements over limited periods of time.
Tutorial topics and activities were designed to be relevant to and part of assignments, and to assist in
pacing students across their module. Paired activities and peer assessment were integrated into the
second tutorial, which led to completion of part of a graded assignment. Furthermore, discussion
group activities drew on the varied experience and location of participants to provide authentic
problem-solving tasks within diverse contexts: this was regarded as critical to learning for Public
Health professional development.

26


•

Students’ engagement with each other was encouraged, and served to
orientate them to the programme, the module, and the distance medium.
This introduced them to one another and to the richness of each others’
experience, contributing to the authenticity of learning tasks;

•

Regular, easy, non-synchronous contact proved useful and was well
utilised. By inviting regular interaction and collaborative learning it
provided the possibility of peer-to-peer support, and maybe peer pressure;

•

Multiple learning outcomes: In this instance the Google Group enabled
participants to achieve curriculum outcomes (by learning about a specific disease and its
prevention), to develop and share a PowerPoint presentation which could be (and in one
instance was) used in training community health workers in Angola;

•

Flexibility of engagement: The containment and archival clarity that a Google Group provides
was a benefit to this process (as opposed to email), and the establishment in advance of three
10-day intensive tutorials, each of which included two weekends, enabled participants to
engage intensively and then withdraw until the next tutorial on Google Groups.

•

Access to technology: Freely available tools which use low bandwidth should be selected.

•

Experience: Tried and tested tools for distance education should be used.

•

Course design: Integration of the tool in course design facilitates meaningful participation.

•

Planning: Advanced planning is necessary.

•

Regular support: Regular participation by facilitators is essential.

•

Scaffolding: Discussion groups enable a process of scaffolding tasks by giving interim
feedback.

•

Multiple resources: The process encourages accessing of multiple sources of information.

•

Social presence: Discussion groups focus on community building and social presence;

•

Collaboration: Discussion groups can facilitate collaborative knowledge sharing, debate
and learning.

‘ iscussion groups can provide opportunities for increased engagement by
D
students, especially those studying at a distance; but it is the design of learning
activities which is critical. Offering students tasks which are authentic and
collaborative, and involving them in problem-solving in authentic contexts
can facilitate some of the benefits of Social Constructivism.’

Lucy Alexander has discussed her experiences here:
Pillay, R., Alexander, L. (2012). Cultivating Reflective Spaces: Experiences with Asynchronous Online
Discussion Forums in Training ‘Social Good Professionals’ at Two South African Universities. Presentation at the
2012 Heltasa conference, Stellenbosch University, 28-30 November 2012.


27

Towards sharing and
reflection in Obstetrics
VERONICA MITCHELL, UCT

CASE STUDY

7

Background
The ‘Obstetrics Block’ is a seminal moment in undergraduate medical students’ studies. This is viewed
as a rite of passage in their journey to become real doctors. While Obstetrics ought to be a curricular
space for students to learn from good role models who display compassion and care, in South African
Maternal Obstetric Units (MOUs), poor role-modelling and human rights violations happen all too
frequently.

Challenges
•

Students’ resistance to the sharing of difficult personal issues, although reflection is promoted
throughout the curriculum;

•

Time pressures of students who are required to work with a loaded theoretical and practical
curriculum;

•

Limited access to ICTs for students during clinical practice.

The innovation
In this case study students located in their practical Obstetrics learning rotation are encouraged to
engage in online reflective dialogue using a ‘Six-step Spiral for Critical Reflection’ in which they
examine their personal experiences.
Google Drive was introduced to students. They were divided into smaller groups (so as not to make
the task so daunting), each with their own shared folder on Google Drive. Access was facilitated by
encouraging students to also use the Google Drive app on their mobile devices.
The six-step reflective task was presented to students before they went on placement into the MOUs.
Since this activity does not carry marks, ample time was spent to make explicit the benefits and gains
of this project. Students were provided with an anonymous example from a previous student’s work.
Students’ online reflections were then complemented with a face-to-face group workshop in which
shared narratives were presented and role-played to their peers followed by discussions on their role
as change agents.

28


•

Enabled the shift of classroom power and control towards
more student ownership for developing knowledge and
valuing the collective contributions of their peers;

•

Enhanced individual and collective inquiry processes by
using flexible and collaborative online tools as well as
offering a product available for sharing with others;

•

Collective co-construction of knowledge resulting from students unpacking their experiences,
leading to mutual learning and interpretation of their individual reflections;

•

As students move to satellite campuses, this can mean that physical distance becomes less
relevant in their group work.

Safe space for collaboration: Create a safe and respectful group dynamic; normalise students’
vulnerability in sharing and unpacking their challenging experiences with class colleagues and
facilitator.
Motivation for engagement: Motivate buy-in by explaining that students’ voices and experiences
are valued and contributing to changing practices.
Flexibility: Offer alternative avenues for sharing such as emails and tools on the Faculty LMS.
Openness and support: Assist students to openly share by supportive encouragement through
online engagement or face-to-face contact.
Peer support: Suggesting critical friends with clinical partners is a valuable option for some
students.

‘ y posting their reflective commentaries into a collaborative space and
B
commenting on their colleagues’ experiences, students shift from the role
of consumers of the curriculum to become producers of knowledge and
insights – an evolving role.’

Website ‘Probing Professionalism towards Positive Practice’: http://opencontent.uct.ac.za/Health-Sciences/
Probing-Professionalism-Towards-Positive-Practice
Presentation: Creating a Collaborative Space for Criticality (describing the process on the LMS before
moving onto Google Drive): http://www.slideshare.net/VeronicaMitchell/authentic-learning-colloquium-uwc2013-veronica-mitchell-pdf


29

Eportfolios for learning
design thinking
ANDREW DEACON AND
CHERYL HODGKINSON-WILLIAMS, UCT

CASE STUDY

8

Background
UCT offers a Masters level ‘ICTs in Education’ degree programme, which draws students from across a
range of sectors. The programme is offered in a blended format, with each component course having
a week-long residential session followed by online engagement. This case study focuses specifically on
the ‘Online Learning Design’ course module within this programme.

Challenges
•

Wide range of students;

•

Wide range of backgrounds and a range of prior knowledge about educational curriculum
development, pedagogical and assessment strategies and skills in using technologies;

•

Need for the design of learning activities that engage those who are ‘learning design savvy’ and
‘technologically literate’ and everyone in between.

The innovation
The course endeavours to support students in developing learning design thinking by requiring them
to create a small-scale, context-specific, online learning task and then to document each step of the
design and redesign process in an eportfolio.
Students choose both the topic of the online learning task and the technologies most suitable for
their environment, ranging from tools within institutional LMSs, through to cloud-based platforms
and mobile apps. Students are required to trial their online learning task with at least one colleague
and one potential learner in their context, and to explain what they would do differently as a result
of the feedback.
Students are also required to formally reflect, individually and in groups, upon the value of one day of
the face-to-face session; upon the lessons learned in the process of developing the eportfolio; what
they felt were the most well-developed sections of their eportfolios; and which they feel warrant
further development. The students are encouraged to review at least one of their peers’ eportfolios.
The lecturers provide formative feedback on both the online learning task and the eportfolio before
providing summative feedback for the course. The students then refine the eportfolio for external
examination.

30


•

Using e-learning to teach e-learning seems to be a
good modelling strategy;

•

Existing e-learning examples are analysed to assist
students to identify the key design features that either helped or hindered students’ learning;

•

A number of the pre-course and in-class tasks involve small group tasks which require students
to engage with each other online using a range of collaborative tools, such as a wiki within the
institutional LMS and a variety of cloud-based platforms;

•

As the students’ portfolios are available online, both lecturers and students are able to provide
feedback in the form of comments which the students can see in real time and respond to
immediately;

•

The development of the eportfolio encourages students to make their teaching and learning
assumptions explicit, thereby enabling them to reflect more clearly on the synergies between
their design intentions and the perceptions provided by one colleague in their work environment
and one learner from the intended target.

•

Authentic task: Have students focus on an authentic learning need on which to base their
online learning task.

•

Authentic tool: Allow students to choose their own development tools suitable to their
context.

•

Scaffolding and support: Provide coaching and iterations of formative assessment of the
online learning task from the lecturers, colleagues and potential learners.

•

Iterative support: Provide iterations of formative assessment of the eportfolio from the
lecturers and peers, acknowledging that developing an eportfolio is a new writing genre for
students.

•

Reflection: Prompt reflective practice throughout the course and encourage deeper and
deeper reflection on assumptions as the course progresses.

‘ he expansive transformation that seems apparent in this analysis is our
T
learning as lecturers about the efficacy of adopting various pedagogical
strategies to assist students to develop learning design thinking. Neither the
outcomes nor the pathways were known to us prior to developing the course;
these had to be designed, discovered, and negotiated collaboratively among
ourselves and the students.
Deacon, A. Hodgkinson-Williams, C.A. (2013). Cultivating learning design thinking with ePortfolios in a Masters course. ICEL 2013,
Cape Town. Retrieved from: http://www.slideshare.net/adeacon/icel2013-cultivating-learning-design-thinking [31 July 2013].
Hodgkinson-Williams, C.A. Deacon, A. (2013).Pedagogic Strategies to Support Learning Design Thinking in a Masters Course.
Educational Research for Social Change, 2(1), 82-97.
Link to EDN5101s Wikispaces:
https://www.google.co.za/search?q=wikispaces+edn5101s


31

Digital academic
identity makeover
NOELLE COWLING, SU

CASE STUDY

9

Background
By improving digital literacy among staff members through a project which yields tangible, personal
benefits for them, it was hoped that they will experience the possibilities which technology offers
to create more interactive academic spaces between themselves and their students and between
themselves and other academics.

Challenges
•

The Faculty of Military Science is geographically and to some extent intellectually isolated;

•

Although confident with basic computer technologies, such as MS Word, many academics lack
the confidence to use other technologies to further enhance teaching and learning such as blogs,
wikis, podcasting or any of the plethora of social media tools.

The innovation
The short course developed in this case study focused on enhancing staff digital literacy, particularly
within the current social media space.This specific intervention assisted staff in improving their digital
online presence by working on their professional profiles as well as creating a platform for sharing the
results of their teaching and research. This course was designed to run over six months. Outcomes
were listed as:
•

Improved digital literacy;

•

A free online image makeover;

•

Improved digital curatorship of both research as well as choice presentations;

•

Future expansion of academic research networks;

•

Ability to assess how often their online presence/work are being viewed or utilised; and

•

Participation in the growing open access environment.

Various social media tools were used to create and promote the scholars’ online presence, such as
Twitter, Academic.edu, Google sites, Slideshare and LinkedIn. Tools were introduced on a monthly
basis, for participants to have ample time to engage with the selected tools. Monthly meetings were
used to reflect on lecturers’ experiences with previously introduced technology and to demonstrate
the new tool.

32


•

Enhanced reach of academic output/activities;

•

Online collaboration and networking;

•

Improved digital literacy skills;

•

Learning in a ‘safe space’;

•

Creation of a community of practice.

•

Motivation: Ensure continued buy-in of participants by, for example, highlighting the benefits
of such an online makeover for participants and showcasing concrete examples of how such
engagement can promote academics’ visibility, ideally from participants’ own contexts.

•

Support: Keep momentum through monthly meetings and individual support.

•

Personal relationships: Maintain personal communication with each participant and make
informal follow-ups to provide support when and where necessary.

•

Training and just-in-time resources: Provide regular training and just-in-time resources
which participants can use when and where necessary.

•

Time awareness: Find a balance between keeping momentum and overwhelming
participants, who are already time-strapped.

‘It is crucial not to lose sight of the fact that that the primary aim of developing
digital literacies remains the end goal of this venture, with the development of
the online identities being a secondary goal. At the end of the day I am trying
to engage staff members and develop enthusiasm for Web 2.0 tools within socalled ‘safe spaces’, which they will hopefully carry over into their teaching and
research. In essence then the goal is to encourage the notion of digital literacies
with the added advantage of creating the online digital identity.’
For more in depth detail on this intervention please visit: http://noellecowling.blogspot.com/
For an example of an interlinked online profile visit: https://twitter.com/noelle_cowling
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/noelle-van-der-waag-cowling/a/3a8/a20
https://plus.google.com/107462660341931715951
http://sun.academia.edu/NoelleVanderWaagCowling
http://www.slideshare.net/noellecowling
A full literature study for this project is available at:
http://noellecowling.blogspot.com/2013/05/normal-0-false-false-false-en-za-x-none.html


33

Wikis and blogs: New
tools for new learners
SIMONE TITUS, UWC

10

CASE STUDY

Background
The Department of Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science at UWC offers an undergraduate programme
that uses a blended learning approach for course delivery. This case study reports on a collaborative,
authentic designed wiki-based task that was designed to enhance student engagement and support
learning. A blog was used as a discussion forum and a space for reflection on learning.

Challenges
•

Lack of student engagement with content, the lecturer and peers;

•

Need to revisit the pedagogical approach to administering a module in order to provide students
with a space to move from being passive recipients of content to active participants in their own
learning.

The innovation
In this case study a wiki task was introduced to students. This was the first time any of them had
been exposed to a wiki environment of this nature. Students had to develop a psychological profile
of student athletes on campus in a similar way to how they would in the real world. Students had to:
•

Interview fellow student athletes in order to develop a psychological profile,

•

Draw on relevant literature to contextualise the student athlete’s profile,

•

P
rovide recommendations to the athlete regarding relevant sport psychology tools they could
use to enhance athletic performance,

•

C
ritically evaluate and give constructive comment/feedback on at least three classmates’
wikis,

•

Anonymously evaluate one classmate’s wiki page by means of a peer evaluation process.

Alongside the wiki, students were provided with an opportunity to reflect on their learning on the
class blog. This allowed students to engage with the content and their classmates as well as the
lecturer.

34


•

Allowed peer and lecturer feedback regarding content;

•

A safe, open, flexible space for students to co-construct knowledge through content;

•

Development of a variety of digital literacy skills;

•

Easy access and opportunity to share information;

•

Opportunity for peer assessment;

•

A space to mediate the elements of authentic learning.

•

Use of simple tools: The fact that both tools were freely accessible on their mobile devices
made completion of the task easier for students.

•

Time awareness: Students had nine weeks to complete the task. This allowed for prolonged
engagement with the task and gave them enough time to become accustomed with the
technology tools used in the class. It also allowed the lecturer time to provide much needed
technical and academic support for students.

•

Blurring of formal / informal learning: The tools allowed for a blended learning
environment where topics discussed in class could easily be taken up in the blog or on the
wiki page.

•

Ongoing communication: Ensure that there is constant communication with students who
are using these new tools in order to motivate and encourage active participation and also to
provide needed support.

‘ he use of technologies in Sport Science education is not well documented. In
T
analysing the reflective blog posts, we found evidence to suggest that emerging
technology tools mediate engagement and transform students’ learning in
many ways. There has been a shift from being passive recipients of content
from a very didactic mode of delivery, to more active participants in learning.’

Class blog: http://uwcspsych238.blogspot.com/
Examples of student wiki: http://sportpsych.wikispaces.com/GSCHWENDER%2C+P


35

Citizen journalism
using mobile phones
ALETTE SCHOON, RU

1
1

CASE STUDY

Background
The citizen journalism project was developed in a third-year Journalism course at RU. It tasked students
with working with citizen journalists to produce news videos using only mobile phones and freely
available postproduction software. This course not only taught technical skills and conventions, but
also interrogated basic journalistic principles.

Challenges
•

Convincing students of the merits of citizen journalism and its ability to boost democracy by
allowing people to voice their own concerns;

•

Transfer of theoretical knowledge of citizen journalism into practice;

•

Coaching students in people skills and the process of collaborative content production;

•

Finding tools to deal with importing many different formats of cell phone video.

The innovation
Students worked with unemployed members of the community and high school students, who
wouldn’t normally buy a newspaper, to develop grassroots news stories about authentic social issues
as experienced by citizen journalists (CJs), using mobile technology. Students were expected to
question conventions such as accepted news values, the role of the journalist in news gathering, and
the idea of objectivity.
A key principle was to refute the argument that good video can only be produced on the most
advanced equipment.Students were first introduced to the idea of using mobile phones to make video
by practising this on their own, and making their own ‘How to’ videos. Students were then teamed
up with community volunteers, who had already been trained in the basics of citizen journalism by
the local newspaper Grocott’s Mail. The CJs then filmed their stories the next week and delivered
their shots to the students, who captured and converted these into AVI files. The students and CJs
then worked together to edit the story on Windows Movie Maker and scripted voice-over, which was
recorded with free audio software Audacity. The video stories were uploaded to the website Zoopy.
com and also packaged into a talkshow where the CJs and other community members participated
in the discussion of these problems. These talkshows were packaged on DVD and given to the CJs to
distribute, and some students also bluetoothed the news videos back to their CJs.

36


•

A way to get CJs involved in making video without having to provide any devices - they already
had them;

•

Revision of what students had learnt in the first term by teaching it to others;

•

An awareness that video production quality is not determined by the technical complexity of
the device, but rather aesthetic principles like framing;

•

First-hand encounters with some of the problems of being poor in South Africa, by working
closely with unemployed CJs;

•

Real-life opportunity for students to get alternative perspectives on how others understand
journalism and news;

•

Helping students make connections between news stories and real-life issues;

•

Provision of a distribution platform, as people were able to share DVDs and bluetooth stories
to each other.

•

Scaffolding: Students need to learn the process themselves before then can teach someone
else.

•

Skills: Specific skills are needed to transfer technical knowledge to other people.

•

Partnerships: Consider media partners for dissemination of stories.

•

Sustainability: It is important to reflect on the sustainability of such projects.

•

Simple, accessible tools: Focus on the use of grassroots technology for grassroots journalism.

•

Time for reflection: Allow time for debriefing and reflection on the project and consolidate
knowledge, both on the part of the students and the facilitators / organisers.

‘ his citizen journalism project seemed an ideal way to allow people from the
T
community gather and frame news - challenging traditional news making
conventions. It also served as an ideal opportunity to revise some of the skills
students had just been introduced to, by getting them to teach these to others,
and expand their technical knowledge of video formats.’

Part of a larger project funded by the Knight Foundation.
Background to the larger project:
http://www.grocotts.co.za/content/grocotts-mail-citizen-journalism-newsroom
Examples of videos made in the project: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA0788E0FA81FE9A2
Student blogs about the project: http://rutv3.ru.ac.za/?tag=citizen-journalism.


37

Emerging technologies
for authentic learning in HE
The focus of this guide is on the pedagogical practice rather than the tool which each educator chose
for his or her case study. When analysing the case studies portrayed in this guide we realised that one
thing that stood out was that for many of these HE practitioners, emerging technologies seemed to
have provided a means to allow a more authentic learning experience for their students, engaging ‘the
learner in a realistic and meaningful task that is relevant to the learner’s interests and goals’ (Dabbagh
Bannan-Ritland, 2005, p. 33).
This led us to engage with the pedagogical framework of authentic learning (see, for example, Herrington,
Reeves, Oliver, 2010). Guided by a socio-constructivist philosophy and drawing from cognitive
apprenticeship theory and situated learning (Dennen Burner, 2008), authentic learning is defined

as learning where students are situated in authentic learning contexts
and where they are exposed to learning activities that are as close as
possible to problems they will encounter in their real-world professional
context (Herrington, Mantei, Herrington, Olney, Ferry, 2008).
Learning that is ‘centred on rich, real-world, immersive and engaging tasks’ (Herrington Herrington,
2006, p. x). One of the main critiques of current teaching and learning practice in HE is the prevalence of
academic, decontextualised exercises that make it difficult for students to transfer the knowledge from
formal education into their future workplace (Herrington Herrington, 2006), and thus fail to prepare
students for the modern workplace.
Authentic learning allows students to become immersed in problem-solving within realistic situations
resembling the contexts where the knowledge they are learning can be realistically applied, and can
thus bridge the boundaries of formal education and the professional workplace and between theory and
practice (Herrington Reeves, 2003).
The principles of authentic learning (Herrington et al., 2010), as listed below, are informing many of the
case studies reported on in this guide21:
1.

Creation of an authentic context, reflecting the way the knowledge will be used in real life;

2.
Design of an authentic task, mirroring activities that are relevant to the kinds of problems to
which knowledge is applied in the real world;

For more information on authentic learning see
http://authenticlearning.info/AuthenticLearning/Home.html

21

38


3.
Access to expert thinking and modelling of processes, in which narratives from the field are
shared;
4.
Provision of multiple roles and perspectives, exposing students to playing different roles and
adopting varied perspectives to enhance their ability to transfer cognitive ability and expertise
to different settings;
5.
Support of collaborative construction of knowledge, to allow the social construction of
knowledge mirroring the collaborative problem-solving required in employment settings;
6.
Promotion of reflection to enable abstractions to be formed and being able to match one’s
expertise against that of experts and peers;
7.
Promotion of articulation and making tacit knowledge explicit, offering students real-world
opportunities to defend arguments and engage with the communities of professional practice
- their authentic audience;
8.
Provision of scaffolding and coaching by more knowledgeable others, both by facilitators/
lecturers and peers; and
9.

Ensuring authentic assessment, which reflects professional practice.

Table 1 which follows gives an overview of the individual case studies, by listing the context
of the case study, the tool or technology used in the case study, the pedagogical practice/
rationale underlying the intervention, and the elements of authentic learning it addressed.


39

CASE STUDY

CASE 1:
Digital storytelling in
diverse classrooms
CASE 2:
ICT-enabled peer
assessment and
collaboration
CASE 3:
Google Drive and
case-based learning
CASE 4:
Role-play in an online
discussion forum

CASE 5:
Blogs to enhance
reflective practice

CASE 6:
Google Groups to
enhance engagement

40

CONTEXT

Pre-service teacher
education, CPUT

TOOL

Use of digital technologies to allow sharing
Digital storytelling

technologies (wiki
and CPR system)

Physiotherapy,
UWC

Social work, Wits

Nursing
education, UWC

and reflecting on each other’s diverse
backgrounds and teacher identities

Web 2.0
Various, UWC

PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE

Use of Web 2.0 technologies to allow peer
assessment and collaboration

Use of online collaboration tools to enhance
Google drive

students’ critical thinking, reflection and
collaboration

Discussion forums/
blended learning

Use of online forums to create a safe space
to collaboratively practice professional
counselling skills

Development of group blogs to
Blogging

enhance critical reasoning, decision-making
skills and collaboration

Use of online discussion to enhance
Public Health, UWC


Google groups

interaction and collaboration among
distance learners

AUTHENTIC ASSESSMENT

ARTICULATION

MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES

EXPERT PERFORMANCE

SCAFFOLDING

COLLABORATION

REFLECTION

AUTHENTIC CONTEXT

AUTHENTIC TASK

AUTHENTIC LEARNING ELEMENTS


41

CASE STUDY

CASE 7:
Towards sharing
and reflection in
Obstetrics
CASE 8:
Eportfolios
for learning design
thinking
CASE 9:
Digital academic
identity
makeover
CASE 10:
Wikis and blogs: New
tools for new learners

CASE 11:
Citizen journalism
using mobile phones

42

CONTEXT

Medical education,
UCT

ICTs in Education,
UCT

Various, SU

Sport Sciences,
UWC

Media studies, RU


TOOL

Web 2.0

Eportfolios

Digital scholarship
tools

PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE

Use of Web 2.0 tools allow sharing and
critical reflection on sensitive topics

Use of eportfolios to critically reflect on the
design of authentic learning tasks

Use of social media to develop digital
literacy while enhancing one’s online
academic presence

Using wikis and blogs to allow peer
Wikis and blogs

learning, peer assessment, collaboration,
reflection and improve student engagement

Mobile digital
storytelling

Using mobile grassroots video technology to
transfer skills from students to community,
linking theory and practice

AUTHENTIC ASSESSMENT

ARTICULATION

MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES

EXPERT PERFORMANCE

SCAFFOLDING

COLLABORATION

REFLECTION

AUTHENTIC CONTEXT

AUTHENTIC TASK

AUTHENTIC LEARNING ELEMENTS


43

General guidelines for
effective practice when using
emerging technologies in HE

task and enough time to become accustomed with

This guide set out to provide insights into
effective practices of HE practitioners when using
emerging technologies to improve teaching and
learning. As part of a larger project funded by
the NRF this guide drew on the experiences of 16
passionate individuals who appropriated various
tools and technologies to provide meaningful
learning experiences for their students.

the technology tools used in the class. Find a balance

These case studies are drawn from seven South African

between keeping momentum and overwhelming

HEIs, both resource-rich and resource-poor, from diverse

students and lecturers, who are already time-strapped.

disciplines, such as Teacher Education, Nursing and Media

IT TAKES TIME!
Complex projects involving large classes and various
tools and technologies need to be planned well
ahead. Getting used to new technologies in teaching
and learning needs time, both for students and
lecturers. Allow for prolonged engagement with the

Studies, covering a variety of tools and technologies, such
USE TOOLS THAT ARE SIMPLE AND EASILY

as traditional LMSs, but also a wide range of social media

ACCESSIBLE

applications, such as discussion forums, Facebook groups,

Due to students’ highly diverse access to technology,
some infrastructural access should be provided by

Google Drive and blogs. Lecturers appropriated emerging
technologies to address a variety of educational challenges,
such as managing large classes, enhancing interaction and

the institution, e.g. scheduled time in computer labs;

collaboration among geographically dispersed students,

use of software that is freely available on the web, to

facilitating critical reflection, developing digital literacy skills

allow for ease of transfer of the project into students’

or creating safe online spaces to practise professional skills.

own teaching practice; use of tools that are simple,

Emerging technologies for authentic learning

robust and require very little initial technological
support; use of tools that are freely accessible on
students’ mobile devices; offer alternative avenues

As can be seen in Table 1, the 11 case studies presented
in this guide contained elements of authentic learning. This
is interesting in itself, as this wasn’t something we were

for communicating and collaborating, such as e-mail,

explicitly looking for, rather it emerged during analysis of

Instant Messaging, Facebook and tools on the LMS, to

these case studies as something all the innovations had in

allow all students to participate.

common.

DESIGN FOR AUTHENTIC LEARNING

While emerging technologies may facilitate authentic
learning opportunities, it is also evident that innovative

Link in-class with out-of-class work, blurring the

teachers first and foremost see the importance of creating

boundaries of learning, by using tools that allow for a

real-life learning among their students, whether with or

blended learning environment where topics discussed

without technologies. The most important authentic element

in class could easily be taken up in the blog or on

in these case studies is reflection, which is emphasised in

44


each innovation. Clearly emerging technologies facilitated this

the wiki. Create authentic tasks that students find

opportunity beyond the classroom, by (for example) allowing

meaningful for their own professional practice.

students to share their reflections through blogging with
the community. However, the key for these educators was

ENGAGEMENT WITH DIGITAL LITERACY SKILLS

to design opportunities for reflection into the teaching and

Make students aware of the ethics of online

learning process. Sometimes this refection was part of the

communication and social networking, provide

learning activity; for example, in the digital storytelling project

regular training and just-in-time resources

it was an integral part of the process of developing the student
narrative and also a result of integrating peer feedback back
into assessment. In other cases it was a culmination of the
learning activity, as shown in the eportfolio case study.
The use of emerging technologies to scaffold learning and
allowing multiple perspectives into the classroom was
evident in 10 of the 11 case studies and was most often linked

participants can use when and where necessary.
PROVISION OF SCAFFOLDING AND GUIDANCE
The use of emerging technologies needs step-bystep guidance for students provided by facilitators
and peers; when using applications that are not part

to students engaging with people in their real work context

of institutionally supported infrastructure, such as

and practices by, for example, interviewing community

Web 2.0 technologies, consider institutional support

members or sportspeople, inviting experts to present to the

mechanisms, in particular when thinking of rolling

class, or engaging in a case-based learning approach. Less

out such practices on a large scale.

frequent was making assessment authentic, although in two
cases the innovation did not involve an assessable component.

ENSURE MOTIVATION THROUGH ONGOING

In these innovations emerging technologies featured strongly

COMMUNICATION

as the medium through which the assessment was presented
or articulated, for example in the form of a polished product

Motivate buy-in by explaining that students’ voices

such as the digital story, an eportfolio, video broadcasts or

and experiences are valued and contribute to

reusable case studies.

changing practices; ensure that there is constant

In terms of authentic course design, two of the cases

communication with students who are using these

highlighted the importance of creating environments where

new tools in order to motivate and encourage active

linkages can be made between in-class and out-of-class work,

participation and also to provide needed support.

or blurring the boundaries between formal and informal
learning. Here emerging technologies such as blogs and

CREATE A SAFE SPACE FOR DISCUSSION,

wikis facilitated discussion and legitimised experiences gained

COLLABORATION AND COMMUNITY BUILDING

outside of the formal curriculum. In total eight cases specifically
mentioned the need to design authentic tasks and recreate
contexts that are as authentic as possible to allow meaningful
student learning based on students’ individual learning needs
and future professional practice.
A position of openness from the educators encouraged
students to find answers to questions themselves, and here

Allow students to create a social presence, e.g.
by adding a joke, complaints about funding and
support for each other; using emerging technologies
is as much about engaging with content as it is
about community building and creating a social
presence. For students to engage in this new space,

the role of the teacher transformed into one of facilitator

they need to feel safe and respected; normalise the

and guide. Emerging technologies enabled students’

students’ vulnerability in sharing and unpacking their

personal learning to be transparent and open to discussion

challenging experiences with class colleagues and

and feedback, so that the risk of “getting it wrong” was

facilitators.


45

Emerging technologies in Higher Education - A guide for South African Higher Education practitioners (pdf download)

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