The conference was very much focussed on computer-delivered assessments which can be marked electronically.  In other words,  tests and exams that are predominantly based on Multiple-Choice questions (MCQs).  There was a little debate, floating just under the surface, on the extent to which exams based on MCQs are desirable, and on the skill it takes to write ‘good’ questions.  However, since this was a UCISA event, the primary focus was on the various technical solutions, and it presented an opportunity to learn something from exceptionally talented ‘systems people’ who know a great deal about hardware, software, network infrastructure, and of course, how you might best implement solutions in a complicated HE institution.

I guess at Queen Mary, our policy on e-assessment is in its infancy – we’re using the VLE and a homegrown restricted browser we call ‘Kiosk Mode’, andwe have a few successes each year.  In this context then, the two keynotes were particularly interesting and gave lots of food for thought:

First, David Walker from the University of Dundee, presented their approach to developing an institutional policy on e-assessment.  It was interesting to see how comprehensive Dundee have been in considering the guidelines needed for students, academics, registry, e-learning and so on… and how a policy of e-assessment is rightly in continuous flux.

Then, John Dermo from the University of Bradford gave us a tour of their new dedicated e-assessment lab.  It looks very neat – it’s a flexible space that works as an open-access lab outside of exam time, but is designed so that cheating is minimised.  Read more about it here.

The most notable parallel session I attended was run by Fiona Strawbridge from UCL, who facilitated a discussion on the role of the VLE in delivering e-assessment.  The main debate was whether anyone should really be using a live VLE for high-stakes assessment, or whether we should be using a dedicated e-assessment system.  The one favoured by everyone at the conference is QuestionMark Perception, which apparently is good, but has a steep learning curve.

As a learning technologist, I thought the big thing missing from the day was any discussion on the broader range of what I would still call e-assessment… assessing online communications, technology for revision, formative quizzes, peer-assessment etc.

The registration process for the JISC Innovating e-Learning online conference has just been opened. As its title suggests, this is a fully online experience and therefore the cost for registration is a mere £50. Unfortunately, although the themes for the conference have been announced there is currently no further detail about the sessions or presentations that will be in the conference. However, the general themes (“Finding the Way” and “Meeting the Challenge”) do look interesting and there’s some well known names listed as presenters.

The conference website provides further details of how the conference works and what is required to “attend” however it is a blend of asynchronous communications, live sessions and electronic materials with the real emphasis being on the asynchronous communications. Delegates are given access to conference materials a week before the conference begins so that they can look at the presentations and prepare themselves. During the conference proper there will be two days for each theme when discussion forums will be open. The conference organisers recommend setting aside a minimum of 2-3 hours per day to “attend” the conference.

Personally, I think I’m going to give it a go…not just because I’m interested in the content but because I’ve never taken part in an online conference and I really want to see how it works. I think it’ll be a bit of a challenge as it will require a little more personal commitment than a standard conference where it’s actually quite easy to be a passive observer. To get the most out of this will require really engaging with the material up front and then actively participating in the various forums available. I’ll also have to be disciplined about setting aside time to do all this. It’s relatively easy to book a couple of days and disappear from the office. It may require more discipline to hang a note on the office door and say “I’m attending a conference” for a couple of hours each day. Although a standard conference might cost more money, it could be argued it’s potentially an easier ride for the delegate. Actually, on the cost theme, I’m not convinced that this type of online conference will cost me less in time, it may end up costing more but if I end up getting more out of it then that’s definitely time well spent. As someone who’s never really been able to fully exploit the networking potential of the average conference I wonder if the virtual conference might suit me better. It seems like it has the potential to be much more of an “active” learning experience, isn’t that exactly what I advocate in my every day working life?

I notice there are going to be some sessions in Second Life. I’m afraid I may have to draw the line at attending those as my only Second Life experience to date has been largely made up of walking into walls and being unable to figure out how to sit on a seat. Maybe next year?

Links

JISC Innovating e-Learning online conference website

Photo Credit

krossbow: http://www.flickr.com/photos/krossbow/3217814356/

It was an opportune moment then, for me to attend the Blackboard European user conference earlier this month, which is a mixture of both corporate and client-led sessions. I avoided the corporate presentations as these are essentially advertising, and tended towards the client-led presentations which were more valuable for me to uncover good and interesting ideas for using a VLE, and lessons learned at similar institutions to QM.

Opening Keynote

The opening keynote speaker was Dirk Van Damme from the OECD’s centre for Educational Research and Innovation (www.oecd.org/edu). He delivered a message highlighting the importance of innovation in Higher Education during an economic downturn. Not surprising really, the ‘big picture’ suggested that those institutions that survive a recession and maintain a competitive position in the scramble for international students, will be those most able to respond to the changing HE student and take full advantage of the impact of new technologies. Essentially, technological innovation isn’t yet a driver for educational change, but he suggests that perhaps it should be…

Very inspiring stuff – especially to an audience of learning technologists. However, I was looking for tips and considerations at a different level. How might we use a VLE to best support teaching and learning at a module or programme level? Along these lines, particularly good presentations for me were:

Walking the Talk – Showcasing Best Practice Using Blackboard Community Engagement Tools
(University of York)

Richard Walker and Wayne Britcliffe of the University of York’s E-Learning Team gave a very good presentation on their online area to support academic staff in using the VLE (http://vlesupport.york.ac.uk). They have made heavy use of Blackboard’s ‘Community Engagement’ tools which we don’t have here at Queen Mary, but the concepts may be useful for us regardless.

York’s main driver in developing the online area is to provide adequate support for staff who cannot attend face-to-face workshops. In using Blackboard tools, they are also able to show, by example, how one might use the tools in the VLE. They have merged support guides, case-studies, FAQs and the VLE staff login into one site to improve engagement with their academic community. Indeed, hits to the site had increased, but they couldn’t say whether this was mostly to access the VLE login page.

Particularly impressive were their ‘Showcase’ course areas to provide inspiration for VLE users. These highlight exemplary course areas, with contextual information and an interview with the module leader. The community engagement tools allow users to explore these courses via an automatic guest login. An audience member noted that Leeds Metropolitan University are also about to develop ‘walk-throughs’ with a module leader using Camtasia to achieve the same objective. The idea being that the convenor can best explain what works well with their course, how they use it and provide valuable tips for people interested in using similar techniques.

Engaging the Google Generation: From Podcasting to Peer-Review
(University of Sheffield)

Christopher Stokes from the School of Dentistry at Sheffield has been using student-developed podcasts as an alternative to powerpoint presentations on a course that develops two things: students’ ability to critique peer-reviewed literature as well as their presentation skills.

Following the success of this, his recent work modifies the assessment on this course and now requires that students submit an electronic presentation in any format at all.

From the podcasting assignment, the students found that they worked better as a group than they did when preparing a powerpoint presentation, noting that they were less able to divide up work arbitrarily. When given a choice however, no-one opted for a simple sound file. They would always have sound over video or a slideshow, perhaps a result of the popularity of YouTube.

Planning for Tomorrow – Blackboard Learning System – Vista Enterprise License and Beyond
(City University London, Universities of Sheffield, Birmingham and Surrey)

The four institutions that presented together are all in a similar position to Queen Mary as initial WebCT customers as distinct from users of Blackboard proper. For us, the migration to Blackboard Learn 9 is a complicated process. The decision to migrate therefore, cannot be taken lightly and the presentation provided an opportunity to see how others are tackling the decision-making process.

Everyone, both on the stage and in the audience, had reached the conclusion (as we had also) that conducting a VLE evaluation is imperative before any decision is made. Faced with a difficult migration, it is time for everyone to ask themselves whether they need a VLE at all, and if so, what do they need from one.

The various approaches involved: inviting a shortlist of potential providers to interviews with members of the institution at various levels; establishing exactly how to evaluate future needs as well as current ones; setting up pilot studies of more than one product. From Birmingham, the interesting standpoint was articulated that innovation happens because we create an environment within which one has the flexibility to innovate, so their driver is to provide academics with the broadest range of e-learning tools to stimulate creativity in this area. At QM, we’ve found that in some areas we are reaching the limitation of what we can do with our current VLE and the way people are using it, so a broad range of tools is important for us too.

Enhancing Programme Delivery and Improving the Student Learning Experience with Blackboard Learn
(University of Reading)

Similar to the presentation from the University of York, Guy Pursey of the University of Reading also presented on their approach to staff development. They have an e-learning team at Reading that is the same size as ours and are at the stage of trying to move people on from using their VLE areas simply as a file repository.

Their attempts to weave into their technical support, some guidance on best practice, teaching and learning and using the VLE for effective blended learning, has resulted in the usual collection of resources (an A-Z of e-learning, technical guides, a t&l FAQ), along with case-studies that identify interesting ways of using specific tools.

A particularly interesting addition though, is their ‘Pathfinder Initiative’ which is linked to departments’ periodic reviews of their programmes. If they are considering ways to embed e-learning into modules, an e-learning member will go into the department, look at their VLE course areas and talk to instructors and students to get an idea of how they’ve used their areas, what has been successful and what may work for their department in general. On the basis of this, the team then plans the necessary bespoke courses for a department.

An extra three hour workshop is probably also going to be included on the Wednesday evening focussing on different types of e-portfolios in terms of both applicaiton and technologies.

What I’m really looking forward to is the keynote address onE-learning 2.0… which is a rather glib word du jour to describe the changes in learning and teaching brought about by the current growth in social software and communication technologies online. I think this is an interesting and important topic and I’m looking forward to hearing some thoughts about it.

In any case the link to the event is here: http://www.ilta.net/

-Eoin