CDE-funded Teaching and Research Award project "Wake-up Calls for Learning: an Inclusive Approach to Supporting Students in Distance Education", as displayed at RIDE 2010 conference. Lead researcher Adam Unwin (Adam Unwin a.unwin@ioe.ac.uk, Institute of Education

1. Course team approaches to task design
This project investigates
the design of online tasks,
where tasks are what
learners are required to do
in online environments.
It uses students and staff
experiences to try to:
• understand the pedagogic
rationale of staff behind
the design of tasks.
• find out what aspects of
design participants felt
work well, or not and why.
• identify enablers and
barriers to design within
course teams.
2 Factors influencing design capability of course teams
Team includes
ICT ‘enthusiasts’
Multi-faceted team
(academic,
technical, admin,
student) working
collaboratively
Utilisation of
student voice
Course evaluations
and course centred
research activity
Existing course
specific modules/
exemplars
available
A sense of shared
pedagogic values
and course
ownership
Good
communications,
regular meetings
Team/course
development
opportunities
Staff time crucial. Lack
of time is the biggest
feature hindering team
approaches to course
development
What helps
course
teams with
design?
Method
The research methods included: semi-structured
interviews and the use of a qualitative commentary
tool with staff, a focus group, qualitative
questionnaires and a meta-learning evaluation activity
with students.
Results
The two diagrams below illustrate the main findings of
the project.
Discussion
The research involved different courses from three
Universities where online components were central to
the courses.
What is clear from the work is that the student’s
own professional educational context needs to be
central to the design of tasks. These contexts can be
shared by participants to encourage interaction and
collaboration. This combination allows benefits of
both situated and socially constructed learning (see
Box 1).
Course team’s experiences of designing online
components were clearly influenced very strongly by
time as a resource.
Successful teamwork requires collaboration;
meaningful collaboration of all stakeholders requires
time. Design was more successful where existing
models of tasks were available, where there was a
shared course ethos and there was active course
centred research within the team
(see Box 2).
Other elements that seem missing might also be considered important and
raised in the context of specific tasks/modules/courses. The overall activity
encourages staff to think critically about the pedagogies involved in their
courses.
New staff/new modules
Staff that are new to HE and/or new to working with courses with integral
e-learning might benefit from using Box 1 when initially designing tasks/
modules. They could consider how the elements are achieved, whether this
is in the e-learning, face to face session or both. Another way of supporting
this process would be to also provide these staff with summary overviews/
exemplars of how existing successful modules work. This would help them
see how subject knowledge is developed within the e-learning components.
Course managers
Box 2 highlights key components that are required to help facilitate e-learning
task and course design. Course and academic management can use this to
fund, facilitate and prioritise developments within the context of their own
courses and course teams. For example:
• for with a course team that is developing an online course they might
identify a lack of ICT‘enthusiasts’and thus add to/adjust the course team
appropriately or provide suitable training.
• with an established course they might fund course centred research that
required voice of the e-learner.
Exemplar usage
Evaluation activity for students
Course teams deciding to enhance their utilisation of student voice
might use Box 1 as part of an evaluation activity with students (this
could be student representatives or a larger number). Students could be
asked to comment on the overview diagram, suggest how it applies to
their course experiences, and suggest other elements and so on. Also as
part of this activity they might benefit from being exposed to rationales
of the course team that they might have otherwise been less aware of,
such as the desire for student reflection and criticality.
Induction activity for students
Box 1 could be used in a similar way (as above) to introduce and
overview the purposes and processes that underpin the online elements
of the module/course. This would help students understand both course
team rationales (and expectations) and ways they can contribute to way
e-learning activities work.
Course developments
Box 2 could be a catalyst for identifying how to approach course
development. It is clear that time for collaborative activities are required.
Such team events could be planned and possibly use Box 1 for staff to
review how their current online tasks address these elements. Staff with
different module/course responsibilities could share approaches.
Teaching and Research Awards
University of London International Programmes Centre for Distance Education www.cde.london.ac.uk and cde@london.ac.uk
Researchers
Adam Unwin
a.unwin@ioe.ac.uk
Institute of Education
Box 2Box 1
Course team design rationale
The online components aim to provide/encourage/achieve:
Student views
They value design which facilitates:
Student reflection
and criticality
Socially constructed
professional/
academic knowledge
Student
interaction
Student
collaboration
Clear structures,
timelines but
flexibility
A sense of
belonging and
participation
Relevance within
student’s professional
practice
Theory-practice
connections
1 What course teams aim for and what students value