scholarly journals An examination of the views of key stakeholders on the development of learning spaces at a regional university

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barrie James Todhunter
Keyword(s):  
Blended Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Design Guidelines ◽  
Learning Spaces ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Personalised Learning ◽  
Regional University ◽  
Key Stakeholders ◽  
The University

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the degree of alignment between the views of key stakeholders on the development of learning spaces in a new teaching and learning building at a satellite campus of a regional university. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with six stakeholders including senior executives, technical staff, academic staff and students. The interviews were transcribed and the data analysed to identify common and differing themes on the part of the respective interviewees in relation to learning spaces in general, and in relation to the new teaching and learning building in particular. Findings – A comprehensive framework should be articulated by the university for its theme of personalised learning so that decisions can be made at lower levels of the university to operationalise the theme across academic and administrative functions. A clear definition of the blended learning pedagogy, which is proposed to be implemented as part of the personalised learning theme, should be articulated. The implications of the blended learning pedagogy for the design of learning spaces should be identified and clear design guidelines for learning spaces should be articulated. Learning spaces in the new building should be reviewed to achieve alignment with the personalised learning framework and the guidelines for learning spaces. Research limitations/implications – As this is a preliminary study with a small number of participants, a qualitative approach was taken to identify the indicative views of representatives of key stakeholders. The findings relate specifically to the context of this study at a regional Australian university. Originality/value – This paper provides valuable insights into how a university’s philosophy on learning spaces manifests itself through creation and implementation of high-level policy and how that is interpreted and actioned by a range of stakeholders across campuses, including staff and students.

Professional community and student engagement in higher education: rethinking the contributions of professional staff

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaw Owusu-Agyeman ◽  
Enna Moroeroe
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Student Engagement ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Professional Community ◽  
Professional Staff ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Culture ◽  
The University

PurposeScholarly studies on student engagement are mostly focused on the perceptions of students and academic staff of higher education institutions (HEIs) with a few studies concentrating on the perspectives of professional staff. To address this knowledge gap, this paper aims to examine how professional staff who are members of a professional community perceive their contributions to enhancing student engagement in a university.Design/methodology/approachData for the current study were gathered using semi-structured face-to-face interviews among 41 professional staff who were purposively sampled from a public university in South Africa. The data gathered were analysed using thematic analysis that involved a process of identifying, analysing, organising, describing and reporting the themes that emerged from the data set.FindingsAn analysis of the narrative data revealed that when professional staff provide students with prompt feedback, support the development of their social and cultural capital and provide professional services in the area of teaching and learning, they foster student engagement in the university. However, the results showed that poor communication flow and delays in addressing students’ concerns could lead to student disengagement. The study further argues that through continuous interaction and shared norms and values among members of a professional community, a service culture can be developed to address possible professional knowledge and skills gaps that constrain quality service delivery.Originality/valueThe current paper contributes to the scholarly discourse on student engagement and professional community by showing that a service culture of engagement is developed among professional staff when they share ideas, collaborate and build competencies to enhance student engagement. Furthermore, the collaboration between professional staff and academics is important to addressing the academic issues that confront students in the university.

scholarly journals Embedding social innovation and social impact across the disciplines

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 242-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany Alden Rivers ◽  
Alejandro Armellini ◽  
Ming Nie
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Social Innovation ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Pedagogical Tools ◽  
Innovative Teaching ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The University

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose an attributes framework for embedding “Changemaker” – a university initiative for promoting social innovation and social impact – across the disciplines at the University of Northampton. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on the authors’ (2015) phenomenographic study that proposed five different conceptions of Changemaker held by academic staff: (1) Changemaker as institutional strategy; (2) Changemaker as critical thinking, perspective shifting and problem solving; (3) Changemaker as employability; (4) Changemaker as social betterment; and (5) Changemaker as personal transformation. The present study explores pedagogic literature to identify skills, behaviours and attributes associated with each of these five categories. Findings – Findings from this literature review inform a set of Changemaker attributes, which offers a framework to consider skills and behaviours associated with the five conceptions of Changemaker. Research limitations/implications – The conceptions of Changemaker, that form the basis of the Changemaker attributes, represent the beliefs of teaching staff at the University of Northampton. Despite inherent limitations, the approach of using practice-based empirical findings to develop pedagogical tools may be of direct benefit to other education providers as they develop their own models for teaching and learning. Practical implications – The Changemaker attributes will be used by the University of Northampton during the design, approval and review of courses to ensure that social innovation and social impact is embedded across the disciplines. Academic staff can refer these attributes when designing assessments and for inspiration towards innovative teaching practice. Originality/value – The findings of this study will provide a point of reference for other higher education institutions as they look for guidance on embedding social innovation and social impact into their curriculum.

New norms and opportunities from the COVID-19 pandemic crisis in a higher education setting: perspectives from Universiti Brunei Darussalam

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Masitah Shahrill ◽  
Mohamad Iskandar Petra ◽  
Lin Naing ◽  
Joanna Yacob ◽  
Jose H. Santos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Blended Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brunei Darussalam ◽  
Short Period ◽  
The University

PurposeThis paper aims to share how it was possible to change the way business was conducted in a short period in order to continue the academic semester and seek alternatives to manage the day-to-day university affairs in the midst of a pandemic crisis at a higher education setting. As a result, the authors’ experiences have created new norms and opportunities for the university.Design/methodology/approachThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in Brunei Darussalam is an evolving situation with extraordinary challenges for staff and students of the university. Although the campus remains open and essential services were continuously provided, the university had to implement and adapt to new norms instinctively to minimise the potential pathways for community spread of the coronavirus and at the same time minimise interruption in teaching and learning.FindingsFirstly, structured blended learning will be the basis of teaching and learning, alongside ensuring the highest quality of online education and successful achievement of the intended learning objectives. Secondly, blended learning will open more opportunities to offer programmes in a more flexible, personalised, student-centric and lifelong learning manner, with the option of taking a study hiatus at students' convenience. Thirdly, there will be more global classrooms and the exchange of online modules with international partner universities. Fourthly, short programmes such as the Global Discovery Programmes will be modified and improvised to become an online learning experience. And finally, there will also be the opportunity to understand and consider the physical and mental well-being and durability of the university community in overcoming a national crisis situation.Originality/valueThis paper is intended to be a conceptual paper where the authors describe novel experiences during the pandemic. The authors’ views, interventions and experiences may result into a new model for higher education that will reposition students to the new global markets and economy.

"You Can Take Out of it What You Want"

2010 ◽  
pp. 285-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debbie Holley ◽  
Lyn Greaves ◽  
Claire Bradley ◽  
John Cook
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Blended Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Learning Objects ◽  
Learning Design ◽  
Global Learning ◽  
Higher Education Funding ◽  
Personalised Learning ◽  
Digital World ◽  
The University

This chapter shows how a suite of learning objects were developed by the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning for Reusable Learning Objects (www.RLO-CETL.ac.uk), one of 74 CETLs being funded by the UK’s Higher Education Funding Council for England. The learning objects were used to support students within a blended learning context. It shows student personalised learning: learning that can be any time (in the 24 hour digital world), any place (the university experienced in the home or workplace), any where (limited only by the students choice and internet access – trains, boats, planes, global learning). It focuses on two case studies at UK Higher Education institutions that demonstrate any time, any place learning. London Metropolitan University (London Met) and Thames Valley University (TVU), have both used and reused learning objects in different contexts. In each case study the background and the resulting blended learning design is outlined, followed by evaluation data illustrating the student experience and how the learning design and the learning objects have encouraged personalised learning. The chapter concludes with the start of the third iteration of use – to facilitate informal learning ‘any where’, through the incorporation of learning objects that can be used on mobile phones.

iMindMap as an innovative tool in teaching and learning accounting: an exploratory study

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wan Noor Hazlina Wan Jusoh ◽  
Suraya Ahmad
Keyword(s):  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Teaching Methods ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Accounting Students ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Course Content ◽  
University Of Technology ◽  
Conventional Teaching ◽  
Innovative Tool ◽  
The University

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the use of iMindMap software as an interactive tool in the teaching and learning method and also to be able to consider iMindMap as an alternative instrument in achieving the ultimate learning outcome. Design/methodology/approach Out of 268 students of the management accounting at the University of Technology MARA (Terengganu), 97 students have participated in this survey to evaluate the effectiveness of iMindMap in teaching and learning. Findings Results indicate that the majority of the students acknowledged that iMindMap is more attractive than conventional teaching methods and found that iMindMap shows clearly how the points are all associated and linked together. Students could find that learning is an exciting experience and were able to visualize the whole course content remarkably via iMindMap. Originality/value This study presents an alternative instrument, which is innovative and interactive in teaching and learning, especially for accounting students where the students’ technology acceptance could also be viewed.

Creative collaboration: student creative works in the institutional repository

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-31
Author(s):  
Rose Sliger Krause ◽  
Andrea Langhurst Eickholt ◽  
Justin L. Otto
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Music Performance ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Institutional Repository ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Student Work ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Music Department ◽  
Eastern Washington ◽  
The University

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe the music performance collection preserved in Eastern Washington University’s institutional repository (IR). This collection of recordings of student music performances is the result of an ongoing collaboration between the university?s library and music department, which serves to provide discoverability, preservation and access to a collection of student creative works, which had heretofore been a hidden collection. Design/methodology/approach This collection of student creative work was identified as a suitable project for the Eastern Washington University’s IR while it was still in the planning stages because it was identified as an existing need that the new IR could address. Much of the groundwork for the collaboration between the library and music department was completed prior to IR implementation. Thus, the library was ready to begin work on this collection once the IR was operational. Findings The student music performance collection has been a successful project for the IR, which benefits the music department by making student performances discoverable and accessible, and benefits the library by providing the opportunity to demonstrate that the then-new IR could support the university’s student-centered focus on teaching and learning. Originality/value While there is a growing body of literature on IRs emphasizing student work, there is little literature on music or other creative works’ collections in IRs, much less on creative works by students. This paper adds to the limited body of literature on student creative works in the IR by describing the development, implementation and lessons learned from the successful music performances collection.

A blended learning strategy: reimagining the post-Covid-19 architectural education

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Naglaa Megahed ◽  
Asmaa Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Blended Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Learning Strategy ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Delivery Mode ◽  
Instructional Models ◽  
Architecture Education ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teaching Learning

PurposeThe present work reviews the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on architecture education (AE), with the aim of discussing the interaction and integration of technology-based models.Design/methodology/approachDifferent research methods were used to achieve the research purposes including an online survey, semistructured interviews, observations and reviewing recent literature. The study proposes a theoretical framework to investigate blended learning (BL) approaches in AE, based on the blended teaching–learning continuum, the growth of online delivery mode and technology integration and the gradual responsibility adopted for the current Covid-19 pandemic.FindingsThe study proposes a vision to reimagine post-Covid-19 education and the required BL strategy to provide a theoretical framework that integrates the instructional models required to be investigated by instructors.Research limitations/implicationsThe research findings are based on a theoretical approach not tested practically. A further detailed investigation is required. Thus, the road to reimagining the post-Covid-19 AE is still evolving.Social implicationsAs faculty members, one should take steps toward preparing BL strategies. These strategies present other alternatives to continue teaching and learning while keeping safe in any other emergency in education. In this work, an overview of BL approaches, continuum and related technological and instructional models has been shaped to propose a new vision to post-Covid-19 AE.Originality/valueThis paper responds directly to the initiated call on the pandemic's effect on traditional education by taking a pedagogical perspective. The study presents a holistic BL strategy and proposes a new theoretical and instructional model to design a suitable and balanced BL environment in AE.

scholarly journals Valoración del uso de la plataforma virtual Moodle como recurso pedagógico en la enseñanza universitaria de la informática

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Manuel Claro-Vásquez
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Collaborative Work ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
University Teaching ◽  
Subjective Experiences ◽  
Learning Spaces ◽  
Virtual Platform ◽  
The University ◽  
Trabajo Colaborativo ◽  
Estudiantes Universitarios

ResumenEl presente artículo describio las valoraciones que hacen los docentes sobre los usos de la plataforma virtual como un recurso de enseñanza y aprendizaje en los cursos de informática de la Universidad de Santander, sede Cúcuta.  Para la recolección de la información necesaria para la investigación se empleó una encuesta aplicada a ocho profesores pertenecientes al Departamento de Sistemas de la Universidad. Esta encuesta se complementó con una entrevista semiestructurada centrada en las experiencias subjetivas de tres docentes. Entre los resultados más relevantes aparece que los profesores que participaron en el estudio utilizan frecuentemente la plataforma virtual como complemento para el desarrollo de sus cursos. El manejo apropiado de la plataforma se lleva a cabo como un proceso dinámico e interactivo de tal manera que el profesor constituye la base fundamental de la construcción de ideas en su entorno y muestra que el uso de la plataforma virtual en la formación de los estudiantes universitarios ha logrado que se reflexione sobre las técnicas elementales de la educación y puedan ser aplicadas en los procesos de enseñanza basados en la formación virtual.Palabras clave: recursos pedagógicos, espacios virtuales de aprendizaje, plataforma virtual Moodle, trabajo colaborativo Assessment of the use of the Moodle virtual platform as a pedagogical resource in the university teaching of computer scienceAbstractThis article describes teachers’ assessments regarding the uses of the virtual platform as a teaching and learning resource in informatics courses of the University of Santander, Cúcuta. As a means of collecting the information necessary for the investigation, a survey of eight professors belonging to the Systems Department of the university was carried out. This survey was complemented by a semi-structured interview centered on the subjective experiences of three teachers. Among the most relevant results, it appears that the professors who participated in the study frequently use the virtual platform as a complement for the development of their courses. The appropriate management of the platform is executed as a dynamic and interactive process, in such a way that the teacher functions as the fundamental basis for the construction of ideas in its environment. Furthermore, it demonstrates that the use of the virtual platform in the training of university students has managed to reflect on the elementary techniques of education and can be applied in teaching processes based on virtual training.Keywords: pedagogical resources, virtual learning spaces, Moodle virtual platform, collaborative work, Valoração do uso da plataforma virtual Moodle como recurso pedagógico no ensino universitário da informática.Avaliação do uso da plataforma virtual Moodle como recurso pedagógico no ensino Universitário de informáticaResumoResumo: Este artigo descreve as avaliações feitas pelos professores sobre os usos da plataforma virtual como recurso de ensino e aprendizagem nos cursos de informática da Universidade de Santander, Cúcuta. Para a recolha das informações necessárias para a investigação, foi utilizada uma pesquisa aplicada a oito professores pertencentes ao Departamento de Sistemas da Universidade. Esta pesquisa foi complementada por uma entrevista semi-estruturada centrada nas experiências subjetivasde três professores. Entre os resultados mais relevantes, parece que os professores que participaram no estudo freqüentemente usam a plataforma virtual como complemento para o desenvolvimento de seuscursos. O gerenciamento apropriado da plataforma é realizado como um processo dinâmico e interativo, de tal forma que o professor é a base fundamental da construção de idéias em seu ambiente e mostra que o uso da plataforma virtual na formação de estudantes universitários conseguiu refletir sobre as técnicas elementares de educação e pode ser aplicado em processos de ensino baseados em treinamento virtual.Palavras-chave: recursos pedagógicos, espaços virtuais de aprendizagem, plataforma virtual Moodle, trabalho colaborativo 

Blended Learning Support for Undergraduate Students’ Research and Writing Skills Development

2014 ◽  
pp. 341-368
Author(s):  
Asako Yoshida
Keyword(s):  
Blended Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Learning Support ◽  
Learning Practices ◽  
University Of Manitoba ◽  
Main Barrier ◽  
The University

In this exploratory study, a subject librarian and a writing instructor investigated the potential of designing blended learning around research paper assignments in the context of two foundational courses in the Faculty of Human Ecology at the University of Manitoba, Canada. The objective was to explore alternative, more embedded learning support for undergraduate students. The significance of blended learning support was situated in the broader literature of the teaching and learning practices in higher education. In this case study, descriptions of blended learning support for facilitating student learning, and of the main barrier to its implementation are provided. Based on what was learned in the exploratory study, the chapter provides working guidelines for designing and developing blended learning support, mainly drawing from Butler and Cartier’s (2004) research on academic engagement.

Moving from Co-Location to Cooperation to Collaboration

2018 ◽  
pp. 1250-1275
Author(s):  
Rosemary Bodolay ◽  
Steve Frye ◽  
Carrie Kruse ◽  
Dave Luke
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Academic Institution ◽  
Learning Spaces ◽  
Program Staff ◽  
University Of Wisconsin ◽  
The University ◽  
Learning With Technology ◽  
Library Technology

Through collaboration with faculty and other campus partners, libraries have become centers of innovation in teaching and learning with technology. The authors, representing library, technology, and program staff from partnerships at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will present a framework based on Joan Lippincott's definitions of co-location, cooperation and collaboration. Learn how to assess and develop your partnerships and how the diversity and adjacency of learning spaces, resources, services, and staff are redefining the library and the library's role within an academic institution.

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