Tessa Owens

Students' Approaches to Study, Conceptions of Learning and Judgements about the Value of Networked Technologies

This project examined the relationships between students’ approaches to study, conceptions of learning and judgements about the value of networked technologies. For the project 144 first-year students completed the 52-item Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST), and a series of focus group interviews was used to assess attitudes towards the use of networked technologies within a blended curriculum. Significant positive associations were found between both deep and strategic approaches to study and students’ perceptions of networked learning, and negative associations with a surface approach. Students were positive about the incorporation of technology but had some concerns about the time needed to become sufficiently competent. They demonstrated a reflective approach and exhibited a broad view of the ways in which knowledge might be interpreted. The online forum was viewed as a site where they could benefit from sharing of personal experiences. Recommendations are offered for designing a blended curriculum.

Hitting the nail on the head: the importance of specific staff development for effective blended learning

Developing effective teaching practices within the higher education sector is an area of growing concern. Universities within the UK are judged on their competence in this area by mechanisms such as the National Student Survey and universities are anxious to be perceived as offering good quality teaching and learning experiences. The use of technologies, such as online learning environments, has pervaded many university courses and the teaching ‘blend’ increasingly relies upon these technologies to contribute towards programme delivery. It is claimed that student learning is supported by these systems; however, many academics remain frustrated with these teaching mediums. This paper reports results from a survey of 529 UK university lecturers who answered questions on their pedagogical beliefs and online teaching practices. The survey found a considerable difference between university lecturers’ reported pedagogical beliefs and their actual practices when teaching online and concludes that online learning environments are rarely used effectively to promote student learning and any benefits attributed to their use can, therefore, be assumed to be largely rhetorical. Some student-centred practice was found, however. Those lecturers with teaching qualifications who had received specific training in the use of online learning environments were significantly more likely to use these environments in an effective way. Notably, more general forms of learning and teaching development appeared to contribute little to effective practice in this area. As UK universities face challenging financial constraints, the proportion of the online teaching ‘blend’ seems likely to increase in order to achieve more cost-effective programmes. The empirical research reported here suggests that in order to ensure that this blend is effective, and promotes student learning, specific pedagogical and technological staff development in this area is vital.

Feeding forward from summative assessment: the Essay Feedback Checklist as a learning tool

Owing to the increasing diversity of assessments in higher education, feedback should be provided to students in a format that can assist future and alternative work. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the Essay Feedback Checklist on future alternative assessments. Participants were assigned to one of two groups, one of which completed the checklist prior to assessment 1 (essay) and received feedback using this method. Attainment on assessment 1 and assessment 2 (examination) were taken as pre- and post-test scores. Results revealed increased assessment scores for the checklist group, compared to those who received conventional feedback. Focus group data indicated that students particularly liked elements of the checklist as a feedback method, but potential drawbacks were also highlighted. Implications and future use of the checklist is then discussed.

Analysing metalearning in first‐year undergraduates through their reflective discussions and writing

This study reports on an initiative using Meyer’s (2000a) Reflections on Learning Inventory (RoLI) to bring first‐year students’ understandings of themselves as learners together with the expectations of their academic subjects. Students on a generic skills‐based programme were asked to discussed their RoLI profiles with their academic tutor, and then write about what they had discovered about their beliefs and approaches to learning and how this fitted the demands of their academic subjects. The findings from this study suggest that one‐to‐one discussion of an individual learning profile is useful as a first step in raising levels of metalearning awareness in first‐year undergraduates. There is also some evidence to suggest that tutors might be able to make predictions about how a student will perform academically, based on a combined interpretation of the RoLI profile together with an analysis of their reflective writing about their learning approach.

Blended problem-based learning for widening participation: a case study

Abstract This paper discusses some issues involved in a model of delivery adopted for widening participation at outreach centres for Liverpool Hope University and explores the rationale for using blended Problem-based learning (PBL) as a means of addressing the issues and improving learning. A number of principles are proposed for the effective use of blended PBL and the paper analyses a case study, explaining the design and organisation of the module, together with the research methodology adopted. It provides some initial guidelines for other practitioners who wish to pursue similar activities.

Online Learning: Learner’s Liberation?

This research tracks the experiences of a group of third-year undergraduates in one of their final modules prior to graduation. The module, entitled “Work-Based Learning,” required students to conduct a project in a business organization, in which they were expected to apply academic theory to real problems encountered by their organizations. This module moved students away from the traditional university mode of learning and teaching characterized by theory-bound lectures and seminars. Students set their own questions, on which they would be assessed, in negotiation with the employer and academic tutor, and were expected to address these questions in methodical ways, applying the theory learned in previous modules to a real business problem. There was one other notable difference to the students’ typical experiences. They had, until this point, been traditionally taught in classrooms and lecture theatres. Due to the nature of this module, students were at their work placements on different days, and experience suggested