1 e-Learning in Traditional Universities: “the Invasion of the Body Snatchers” or Organic Evolution? Mario Barajas University de Barcelona
Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
1
e-Learning in Traditional Universities: “the Invasion of the Body Snatchers” or Organic Evolution?
Mario Barajas
University de Barcelona
2
“Invasion of the Body Snatchers”Plot outline
In a small town, Dr. Bennell learns that the population of his community is being replaced by alien duplicates. DNA absorbing extraterrestrials assume the appearance and identity of ordinary citizens in their plot to take over the planet. This movie is set a small town that has been invaded by alien seed pods from outer space. These pods have the ability to create copies of human beings, copies that look exactly like the originals, but which in fact, have turned people into mindless and emotionless shells and part of an insidious plot to destroy mankind…
“Invasion of the body snatchers” (1956). Movie, directed by Don Siegel
3
Overview
Tradition and change in universities Organic evolution? Understanding organic evolution: a case research
approach The voice of stakeholders The history of ICT-based innovation, and of support
units and policies A key element: supporting teachers Conclusions and recommendations to universities Final comments and a final question
4
Tradition and change in universities What is happening in traditional face-to-face
universities when e-learning methods and tools are being used?
Institutional planning approaches
Evolution of the institution as an organic body that has a history, wishes and ideas
The essence of universities is lecturing face-to-face
5
Tradition and change in universities The old university versus the new perfect world
Natural step-by-step adoption of basic e-learning
We need to make the university a model of modernity
Fear of being left out of the happy world where problems won’t exist.
6
Organic evolution?
People take advantage of freedoms the University offers for experimentation as well as research, and introduce e-learning innovations on their own
Is it possible to allow people to grow at its own pace,
making decisions about using e-learning?
Organic evolution, a process oriented towards a goal, but with enough freedom to choose and decide
7
Understanding organic evolution: a case research approach Project MASSIVE (Modelling Advise and Support
Services to Integrate the Virtual Component in Higher Education). Funded by the European Commission, e-Learning Action
Aim: to study of the adoption of e-Learning strategies by “traditional” Universities, and to design a model of the necessary support services for European traditional Universities to successfully implement e-learning in teaching
8
Understanding organic evolution: a case research approachSix service areas were proposed as particularly
critical and needed in the higher education institutions:
University strategies towards the integration of virtual components in teaching
Evolution of University Libraries, Management of IPR, Training and teachers’ support, Students’ support, and Virtualisation of contents
9
Understanding organic evolution: a case research approach Case studies: Identification of indicators and possible
development paradigms in the six areas Seminars with experts and stakeholders:
identification of areas of potential support services External peer review sessions: underline different
approaches to support services Instruments: Positioning interviews, Focus groups,
Documents and Archives
A case study: University of Barcelona
10
The voice of stakeholders
University management: the Vice-Rector of Academic Policy, and the technical delegate for innovation and evaluation
Teaching staff involved in course delivery: several teachers from different subject areas
Staff responsible for course design; platform design and maintenance personnel;
Online course administrators Librarians: several librarians involved in supporting activities in the LMS
of the University of Barcelona Staff Training: Specialists in designing the training of the university IPR staff: A specialist in intellectual property rights at the University of
Barcelona No students were involved
11
There is a history of ICT-based innovationIn general, the research reported a perception that
there were three common threads in all areas of e-learning implementation at UB:
there is a considerable history of innovation, changes are occurring; and, more needs to be done.
12
There is a history of ICT-based innovation Bottom-up ICT-based innovation projects: starting at the beginning of the 90’...till
now
TEAM: Technologies for multimedia teaching and learning (1996-2001), with 42 UB-funded projects, 32 of each producing multimedia/online resources; a pioneering experience in Spanish Universities
UB VIRTUAL: Born in 1998, using a commercial platform (WebCT), for professional training
ONLINE DOSSIERS: starting in 1998, and based on the Library, a web-based system for supporting teaching (software ERES)
Commercial LCMS (WebCT): starting in 2001, for supporting learning experiments in regular teaching
Open Source LMS (Moodle): starting in 2006, for all the University Campuses
13
There is a structure of support units and policies
A specific Staff Training Plan
The Resource Centre for Learning and Research, with three levels of advise
A Programme for Innovation in Teaching
14
There is a structure of support units and policies
The structures, however, are not enough:
Lack of coordination among the different services
Lack of information and awareness raising: people are not aware of the services
Changing policies during the last years
15
A key element: supporting teachers An important issue is the learning needs and desires
of the teachers—some learn quickly, some resist learning, some have not enough information.
There is a perception that there is a minimum that all teachers should know about e-learning, but, presently, not many teachers know the basics.
There need to be efficient mechanisms for identifying ICT teacher skill gap
16
A key element: supporting teachers To focus not only on the teachers who are involved
in training activities, but also on those who are not involved.
The variety of disciplines call for attending different
pedagogical needs
A new bimodal/blended learning approach for all is an ideal that is decided upon, but very difficult to adopt
17
A key element: supporting teachers The support services develop templates for online courses
based on new methodological approaches
In the course design, the plan is to highlight the tasks of the students and decrease the emphasis on teacher exposition. There is no ICT competency certification program for teachers
There are few e-learning design resources, such as curriculum guides. The diversity of the University makes it very difficult to create a homogeneous teaching culture.
18
A key element: supporting teachers There are perceived organizational problems in the
technologies area (ICT support services). Technical services personnel tend to perform their duties based on their technical knowledge, not in pedagogical needs
There is a tendency to think in terms of big standard products, excluding concrete customized services teachers
There is a strong interest in the promotion and use of free copyright policies with a special interest in Creative Commons. However, there is currently no formal IPR strategy or policy and very few know anything about or express interest in IPR
19
Conclusions and recommendations to universities
University strategies
The management of knowledge within a large traditional institution needs its own model that fosters communication and disseminates information throughout its complex and heterogeneous structure, rather than a business model that may have a hierarchical structure
without many mechanisms for communication.
20
Conclusions and recommendations to universities
E-Learning course design
There needs to be a bottom-up approach for course design in which the users also play a role. Here is an example of a problem area that could be informed by a project of expert consultation and other forms of university
exchange and sharing.
21
Conclusions and recommendations to universities
Evolution of Libraries
Major changes are expected in the future and these will inevitably be related to the integration of virtual learning in higher education. Therefore, the evolution of libraries is deeply connected with the other areas involved in elearning, as they all share some of their main concerns
and challenges.
22
Conclusions and recommendations to universities
Intellectual Property Rights
There is an interest in dealing with IPR issues in relation to research and development of “products” that can be patented and exploited commercially There must be a balance between the interests of the institution in which this knowledge was created and the individual author in
order to avoid problems.
23
Conclusions and recommendations to universities
Teacher support
Introducing teachers to the use of technology is not enough. There must be activities aimed at introducing teachers to the different possible elearning models that
can be implemented. it is becoming increasingly clear that there are many
reservations, worries, objections and questions about e-learning from the pedagogical, professional, and sociological points of view which must be taken seriously.
24
Conclusions and recommendations to universities
Student support
E-Learning student support is a problem in some way or another, with much less effort devoted to it compared to teacher support. This is a sign of the traditional dynamic between the roles of teachers and students, still emphasising the traditionally passive role of students.
25
Final comments
ICT/elearning implementation is much more complex and difficult than anyone knew to integrate it into the traditional European university. And a much greater commitment of resources, talent, time, and energy is necessary than anyone knew. Problems have surfaced that may not have been expected, such as significant resistance to changing traditional models and the necessity for ongoing deep strategic needs analysis
eLearning co-exists with traditional teaching and learning, and so support services often make little distinction between support for one and for the other, handling all support requests through the same channels. The old support services need to be rethought in the global context of the new emerging institutional structure
26
Final comments
There seems to be a growing vision in the universities of the European community of a collective in which the knowledge, offerings, and successes of one become available to all. No one will need to reinvent the wheel. However, innovations, as e.g. e-Learning, needs to carefully consider the context of each institution
There is the issue of the technologies themselves. Most of us in the developed world now live a significant part of our lives in cyberspace, a social realm that intersects with and profoundly affects society in general. It is a necessary part of our transformation of the university to analyse this phenomenon and its effects.
27
And a final question
How would you respond the question initially posed?
e-Learning in Traditional Universities: “the Invasion of the Body Snatchers” or Organic Evolution?
There is no invasion possible, nor miracles. The real university world prefers natural, organic evolution.
Related Documents
