The document evaluates the use of Blackboard Collaborate, a virtual classroom technology, for delivering educational instruction to distance nursing students at La Trobe University. The evaluation reveals high ease of use, positive real-time engagement, and significant student perceptions of improved research skills and connection, particularly from isolated locations. Overall, it concludes that the technology effectively supports complex learning activities and fosters student interaction and confidence.

1. Evaluation of virtual
Title of presentation classroom technology:
Name of presenter student engagement and
implications for
Title of presenter
satisfaction./ Division
School / Faculty
xx Month 201x
Liz Pascoe - Stream Coordinator, Masters in Cancer Nursing
Austin Clinical School
Sharon Karasmanis, Faculty Librarian (Health Sciences)
6 December 2013
latrobe.edu.au
CRICOS Provider 00115M

2. The Students:
• Masters of Nursing (Breast Care) and
Masters of Nursing (Cancer/Palliative Care)
• Postgraduate return-to-study mature age
students
• Distance education!
La Trobe University
2

3. The Challenge!
• To deliver educational instruction in real time
• To help students to transfer existing skill base
to the academic research environment
• To teach students how to conduct systematic
searches of the health databases to locate high
quality evidence!
La Trobe University
3

4. The Tool - Blackboard Collaborate!
• Virtual classroom
• Educational learning technology
• Educational instruction in real time
• Excellent for remote/distance students
• Session recordings available
• Easy to connect!
• Example on next slide
La Trobe University
4

5. La Trobe University
5

6. The Evaluation
• Evaluate the efficacy of BC as learning medium
• Online survey contained Likert style responses,
quantitative and qualitative feedback
• Three sections:
• Student experience in using Collaborate
• Student perception of impact on learning
• Student attitude towards research
La Trobe University
6

7. What did we learn?
• Quantitative:
• BC: ease of use 94% rated OK to very easy
• Ratings from Important to Most Important
• Real-time engagement - 78%
• Session content - 83%
• Social interaction – 61%
La Trobe University
7

8. What did we learn?
• Qualitative comments:
• ‘Keep in touch with what other students were
doing’. ‘Evaluate how others were travelling’
• ‘Recordings helped to alleviate feelings of isolation
… distance education learner’
• ‘It gets so lonely being out here in the desert
[Broken Hill] … so isolated’. ‘Being able to connect’
• ‘Used the session recordings as a sound base for
assignments – would have struggled without
them’. ‘Helped me refocus …if I was bogged down’
La Trobe University
8

9. Student attitudes towards research
• Confidence in library research skills:
• Conducting database searches for health
literature: 94%
• Knowing how to reference a source: 88%
• Revising the search strategy: Somewhat
Difficult to Somewhat Easy
• Finding full text articles: 100%
La Trobe University
9

10. In Conclusion …
• BC enabled delivery of complex educational
activities in real time
• Recordings scaffold the session content
• Facilitates the key androgogical principle of
being self-directed
• Enables students to
connect!
La Trobe University
10

11. Thank you
• Connect
• Confidence
• Learn
latrobe.edu.au
CRICOS Provider 00115M