Author: Stuart Hirst, s.hirst@leedsmet.ac.uk

JISC e-Learning Activity Area: Technology-enhanced Learning Environments

Higher Education Academy Subject Centre: Hospitality, Leisure, Sport and Tourism

This case study illustrates...an effect on learning, student satisfaction with e-learning, innovation in learning and teaching, staff personal development

Background & Context

The course/module delivered was called Hypermedia Authoring Systems. This elective module was studied at level 2, by students who wished to increase their skills in being able to develop multimedia websites which potentially included sound, video and animation (as appropriate). These students were, typically, studying for a degree in Business Information Management, Business Information Systems or Business Information Technology and had already completed modules which developed generic skills in website authoring and development.

Why did you use this e-learning approach?

In previous year deliveries, there had been 1 hour lecture and 1.5 hours lab time. I wanted to integrate the more formal theory with its practical application and so chose to lose the lecture time and be allocated 2 hours lab time per group within the module cohort. The labs were equipped with a networked PC for each student to use and 1 PC for use in teaching. This was both networked and had projection facilities for all students to view screen content. I wished to move to an approach more akin to 'coaching'.

The Learning Outcomes to be addressed were that 'on completion of the module each student should be able to':

1. critically evaluate, assess and recommend appropriate software and authoring tools in order to provide an appropriate multimedia development environment in a range of contexts;
2. understand the theoretical underpinning of digitisation of audio and video and timeline-based animation
3. demonstrate the ability to combine multimedia components to produce a coherent multimedia website
4. research content and subsequently design, develop and implement a multimedia website suitable for intranet and/or internet use in order to support and complement an organisation's requirements
5. manage the production lifecycle (specification, design, evaluation) in the context of a realistic environment

Students had found it difficult to demonstrate their application of theory and so the learning design was intended to integrate formalised lecture theory with its application and more clearly support students in formative feedback. The assessment was a practical project on a subject of the student's choice (but subject to academic approval).

The university currently has WebCT Campus Edition as its VLE (Virtual Learning Environment) but is in the early development stages of utilising it to complement face-to-face teaching in what many call Blended Learning. I wished to explore how face-to-face teaching could be effectively blended with online support from our VLE and begin to use complementary facilities and approaches in what might be termed more accurately an MLE (Managed Learning Environment). Given that all face-to-face contact with students was to be in labs equipped with networked PCs and these students were computer and web literate, the opportunity existed to explore this new environment to ascertain the benefits and difficulties.

The departmental requirement for minimum use, by staff, of the VLE was that they should provide module description and assessment requirements online. There was no policy, even institutionally, concerning how WebCT should complement the face-to-face teaching and learning. At best, it was a place where staff placed PowerPoint and Word files and there was no thought that use of e-learning might provide Learning and Teaching opportunities which had never existed before.

There was no strong pedagogical design implicit in the development of the delivery of this module. It was already the case that the assignment was intended to assess the learning outcomes. I had an awareness of Gilly Salmon's methodologies concerning online discussions and activities and this was to be a test of proof of concept. Given the students had weekly face-to-face contact, this always provided opportunity for problem resolution if it occurred.

The university had neither centralised nor localised support in the form of Learning Technologists or Instructional Designers.

There was no guidance available to staff concerning Website Design methodologies. If any staff member invested time in VLE development, it was essentially their own with no other benefits outside teaching their module.

What was the context in which you used this e-learning approach?

At the time of module delivery, Leeds Metropolitan University had approximately 38000 (16000 FT/22000 PT) students. There were 6 faculties on 4 campuses with 16 schools and 3100 staff. Essentially, this is a face-to-face, vocational, campus university. This module implementation took place within the School of Information Management which had 1100 FT/500 PT students. WebCT history was:

• January 2001 - administrator appointed
• May 2001 - version 3.1
• Sept 2001 - version 3.5 (trial courses online)
• September 2002 - 3.8 Campus edition
• September 2003 - 4.0 Campus edition

The course, Hypermedia Authoring Systems was in its third year of delivery and was now well established. Typically there were about 60 students in each annual cohort and all were computer literate. I had been module leader since course inception with either one or two colleagues supporting lab-based support. Recently, student motivation had been seen to be decreasing and attendance becoming a problem at lectures. The challenge of this e-learning approach was that there was little innovative activity elsewhere in the university with which to compare. Design, implementation and support would be totally my own!

What was the design?

The design was intended to emphasise the collaborative and communication tools whilst providing a repository of resources which would have, in the face-to-face situation, be delivered in lectures. Within the first week, students engaged in a formative assessment in the form of an electronic jigsaw. Once completed, there were hidden images of endangered animals. Each member of the group had to choose one, research it online and create a single webpage providing information about their chosen topic. The whole group had to submit an integrated website for all their chosen animals. This provided an excellent revision opportunity on their use of Dreamweaver and year 1 topics.

Ultimately, I was the only one creating my design but I used the students as a regular sounding board for reaction and direction.

I consciously attempted to draw from the Gilly Salmon model of e-moderating and support of discussion groups but had no previous experience of this. The learning activities were designed to provide students with opportunity to test their technical skills through formative feedback before implementation within their own individual project. All students, throughout their development phase, were viewable by their peers. This provided unexpected competitive impetus and seemed to encourage the students to be more innovative in their exploration of the technology.

How did you implement and embed this e-learning approach?

It was important to provide students with information at all stages of implementation. Before starting the online module they were told:

Important information

I am trying an alternative approach to teaching Hypermedia Authoring Systems during 2003.

I hope it is successful but if, at any time, you do not think it is working please let me know.

Stuart

Overview of WebCT for this module

This is a module with a practical emphasis. Lecture attendance in previous years has sometimes been problematic. This year, therefore, there is only one lecture session in week 1. During this first week you should ensure you have:

1. Collected all handouts from the lecture: module guide, Dreamweaver revision, Fireworks and Flash lab work, Fireworks and Flash reference manuals
2. Collected the supporting CD-ROM from Grange help desk (it includes all module content, useful software and examples of student work from previous module deliveries)
3. Familiarised yourself with this module in WebCT and ensured access from both on- and off-campus (if you are likely to use it like this)

An existing problem with WebCT is that only registered students of a module can see its contents. I have solved this problem by placing all HAS content (lecture and lab materials) at a URL on the LMU intranet (password protected), and made links to content and downloadable materials from within WebCT. You are therefore accessing 2 servers (WebCT & LMU intranet).

If you do this from off-campus, you will be prompted for a User ID & password again as soon as you access Module Content or Resources from the WebCT Course Menu.

As a general rule:

1. Access to content is from the Course Menu (which you will find on the left hand side of this WebCT module)
2. Access to interactive materials will be through the Titanic Deck "A" - Plan
   • Introductions
   • Discussions
   • NoticeBoard/Calendar
   • Milestone and Assignment submission
   • Module Review
3. I hope to generate a sense of student community in which the expectation is that the interactions will also be between students and not just from lecturer to student

Evaluation was continuous through weekly face-to-face conversations. However there was an end of module review and a simple analysis of the final result achieved in a student's marked assignment correlated with their level of engagement (measured by VLE tracking of discussion posts and reading of others).

Any anticipated problems or challenges in implementing this e-learning approach did not really materialise other than to remark on the massive amount of work that it took me to manage and implement this. I have never subsequently done this to this level of VLE engagement and would only consider this if the university were to provide adequate support in the form of instructional technologists and/or educational advisers. Even the management of directed discussions was time consuming but I've learned a lot about the need to integrate this effectively with the flow of other module activities.