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ED403: Innovations in Learning Technologies & Professional Practice

ED403: Innovations in Learning Technologies & Professional Practice

If we have to compare learning and teaching today with education 20 to 30 years ago a lot has changed, from what is taught, how it is taught and to the contexts within which learning and teaching take place.    We used to have class share drive with limited capabilities. Our computer lab had few computers with a long que of students waiting for a chance to use the computer. Now with Moodle, students have easy access to lecture notes, YouTube videos, online tutorials, online quizzes, participate in discussion forums, interact with other students at their own time, and also upload and share important and relevant information, articles with their peers. Although we are still trying to catch up with the rapid development in technology, the universities have recognized the need to change and adopt.

This course has introduced us with certain tools which I have found interesting, as part of learning i.e. Twitter and blogging in addition to the other tools that have been introduced in the last two courses such as BBB and Go-To-Meeting, etc. With the other students sharing about different technologies, I have learnt some very new technologies which I can use in my teaching and learning activities. Now I can use various tools to create my lectures more interesting and convenient to on-line learning and now I know that online learning can have the same effects as class room based learning if you are able to adopt and use the technologies available.

The application of information technology in e-learning such as Learning Analytics, BYOD and m-Learning, VR, AR and Makerspaces influence the future of higher education and can disseminate knowledge to learners from diverse contexts such as PICs.  For my practical classes, I believe VR and AR will be a game changer and will bring a version of reality into the classroom. I can use VR and AR in my teaching in the future by incorporating practical learning activities which are lab based and also some activities which have to be perform on patients. This technology can be used give the students real experience of typical practical scenario and the learners can gain experience and which will lead to knowledge. The students can have virtual experience of real emergency cases and for visual learners, this kind of educational experience can bring a whole new dimension to learning.

Micro teaching is a technique aiming to prepare teacher candidates to the real classroom setting. I believe this definition is very relevant and it very much relates to me. First with Micro LED, we had to make a 5-minute video explaining how we are going to plan out our microteaching. We were provided a rubric which really helped me to focus and keep my discussion in the right tract. The six steps generally involved in micro-teaching cycle are Plan, Teach, Feedback, Re-plan, Re-teach, Re-feedback.

For me, my first exercise of micro-teaching in ED401 was an eye opener. After receiving the feedback, I was able to incorporate some recommendations in my teaching and learning activities. Currently, our department has peer review of teaching and according to my peers, I have improved in my teaching practice, but I believe that I can further improve. Micro-teaching has enabled me to gain self-confidence and also gave me direction on how to plan and deliver my lectures.

E-facilitation refers to the ways in which different types of online dialogue are facilitated and managed. My e-facilitation week was interesting and also challenging. Challenging because we have to create, design and develop a Moodle shell for the week. We had to do research and read various resources online and put the best contents in our Moodle shell. We gave links, videos and set up discussion forums so that the learners are engaged throughout the week. It was interesting because during the e-facilitation week we took charge as a group and facilitated learning for the whole cohort. This unit gave us the chance to feel how the instructors work, operate and manage so that all the learners are given the necessary resources.

To conclude, I would say that the journey through ED403 was full of new experiences, interesting, challenging, exciting, stimulating and inspiring. I would just say “WOW”, what a journey it has been in PGCTT. With lot of new friends and COP, it is definitely been a journey worth travelling.

 Ashneel

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Online Learning in Higher Education in the Pacific Island Countries

USP is the major regional university that provides online learning in the PICs. FNU is also offering online learning to students of PICs, particularly the Public Health. E-learning gives the opportunity for students to further their knowledge and qualification while still having the pleasure to continue with their normal life activities. With all the new technologies being developed, it is very important to choose the right tool that enhances learning to our students.

Technological tools should be implemented in classroom that are relevant to the learning outcomes of the courses and some benefits of technology are: readily available resources for students, medium for communication and personal connection between instructors and students, online lectures can be provided and recorded, real time data on student participation rates and performance and flexibility to learn anywhere and anytime.

The LMS that I am currently using is Moodle, which is an open source and free software. Some of the tools or technologies that are used in higher education are E-Portfolio, similar to the one used in ED 401 and also in ED403, mobile technology where Moodle resources can be accessed through a mobile phone, tablets or laptops, social networking tools like twitter and twitter analytics, where student’s interactions can be assessed, presentation tools which enables online presentations like BBB and Google docs and PowerPoint, and video conferencing tools which enable live interaction between learners and the educators.

It can be said that different technologies offer specific benefits and with their own constrains and challenges and while implementing them, it must be balanced against the preferred pedagogic approaches and the learning outcomes.

Ashneel Chand

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Micro LED, Micro teaching and E-facilitation experiences

Micro teaching is a technique aiming to prepare teacher candidates to the real classroom setting. I believe this definition is very relevant and it very much relates to me. First with Micro LED, we had to make a 5-minute video explaining how we are going to plan out our microteaching. We were provided a rubric which really helped me to focus and keep my discussion in the right tract.

It took me quite some time to use the technology to create a Micro LED video, but once I got to familiarize with the technology, it was convenient and easy to create the Micro LED.  I had to do my video several times because after I did my videos, I saw there were rooms for improvement. After several attempts, I thought that this video is acceptable enough and I chose that particular video.

After I created my video, then I had to post in YouTube. First I had to know how this can be done and after some time I knew how to put videos on YouTube.  I put the video and gave the links to my group through my discussion forum. Constructive feedback was provided which enable me to do modifications and start with my Micro teaching.

The exercise of Micro teaching was very interesting. I was really nervous about the whole process, what I am going to do and what is expected of me. We had to prepare a 15 minutes’ lecture and present it on the BBB platform. The preparation also took some time and I had to think how many slides I needed and how I am going to present it. With the help of the group, I was ready for this exercise and I believe that I did this activity quite well.  

This exercise was very beneficial to me as it showed some of the flows that I had and how to improve on so that I can be better prepared to deliver my lectures to my students.

E-facilitation refers to the ways in which different types of online dialogue are facilitated and managed. My e-facilitation week was interesting and also challenging. Challenging because we have to create, design and develop a Moodle shell for the week. We had to  do research and read various resources online and put the best contents in our Moodle shell. We gave links, videos and set up discussion forums so that the learners are engaged throughout the week.

It was interesting because during the e-facilitation week we took charge as a group and facilitated learning for the whole cohort. This unit gave us the chance to feel how the instructors work, operate and manage so that all the learners are given the necessary resources.

Although I use Moodle platform to teach using blended mode, this exercise was an eye opener. Now I know how to prepare the materials, which materials are relevant to the learning outcomes and how the learning outcomes can be achieved at the end of the week.

Ashneel

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Session 4

Micro-teaching is defined as a system of controlled practice that makes it possible to concentrate on specified teaching behavior and to practices teaching under controlled conditions. Microteaching provides teachers an opportunity to perk up their teaching skills by improving the various simple tasks called teaching skills. The impact of this technique has been widely seen in various forms of education such as health sciences, life sciences, and other areas. The six steps generally involved in micro-teaching cycle are Plan, Teach, Feedback, Re-plan, Re-teach, Re-feedback.

For me, my first exercise of micro-teaching in ED401 was an eye opener. After receiving the feedback, I was able to incorporate some recommendations in my teaching and learning activities. Currently, our department has peer review of teaching and according to my peers, I have improved in my teaching practice, but I believe that I can further improve. Micro-teaching has enabled me to gain self-confidence and also gave me direction on how to plan and deliver my lectures.

M-learning has become an important educational technology component in higher education. M-learning makes it possible for students to learn, collaborate, and share ideas among each other with the aid of internet and technology development. M-learning is here and affecting our teaching and learning activities because most of the students have a smart phone with them or they have a laptop or some other electronics gadgets.

Whenever we have to give any important information, we use Viber or WhatsApp to give the information to the students, for example on the change of venue, reminder of assessments due date, clinical attachment and changes with attachment sites, urgent meeting, and reminder of exam times and venue. Moreover, our students also have downloaded Moodle in their mobile and so anything we upload on the Moodle the students have access to it at the same time. They do not have to wait or look for a computer in the Computer lab.

In ED403, I am also using a lot of mobile to tweet and I also use Moodle which is downloaded in my mobile. For me, it makes my life much easier because I have all the information with me everywhere I go and I believe that with this device, I am just a click away from my teaching and learning duties. In USP more students now have tablets and Smart Phones thus making 'Bring Your Own Device' (BYOD) idea a reality. This concept of BOYD is quite interesting because it provides flexibility to students to access all their information with their own personal devices which they are used to and this make their learning more personal.

Ashneel

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eLearning trends in Higher Education and eAssessment - week 5 and 6

The application of information technology in e-learning such as Learning Analytics, BYOD and mLearning, VR, AR and Makerspaces influence the future of higher education and can disseminate knowledge to learners from diverse contexts such as PICs. With the advances in technologies, some current eLearning trends are VR and AR, Gamification and Interactive Video based learning.

For my practical classes, I believe VR and AR will be a game changer and will bring a version of reality into the classroom. I can use VR and AR in my teaching in the future by incorporating practical learning activities which are lab based and also some activities which have to be perform on patients. Traditionally VR and AR were used more for gaming and movie experiences, but with its development in technology, the students can have the same or similar experience when attending to real patients. This technology can be used give the students real experience of typical practical scenario and the learners can gain experience and which will lead to knowledge. The students can have virtual experience of real emergency cases and for visual learners, this kind of educational experience can bring a whole new dimension to learning.

In our current teaching methods, we have practical demonstrations in which the lecturer/tutor demonstrates how to perform certain procedures. The students are given opportunity to practice, but it is limited because of the number of students and time constraints. However, with VR, the students can have real experience at their comfort and there will be no barriers stopping students from learning. Governments in developed countries are taking initiatives to encourage advancements of AR/VR so that they can be in-cooperated in educational system. With prices of wearable glasses and headsets reducing, VR and AR will become more affordable for universities in PICs and it can be in-cooperated in their teaching and learning in future.

In addition to eLearning, eAssessments and feedback using rubrics play a major role in enhancing student learning in HE. With more courses being offered online, HE institutions are now making good use of ICT in assessing students. With eLearning, there are more opportunities to assess students online and also learning for students because there are many tools easily available under Open Creative Commons. Multiple choice can be easily used as eAssessment because it takes short time to complete thus enabling teacher to ask more questions and test a variety of knowledge. It can be automatically marked and feedback can be given promptly and if you have a quiz bank with many questions, then cheating can also be minimized. Even the simplest of multiple-choice quizzes can enable students to check their understanding of a wide range of topics, whenever and wherever they choose to do so.

Short answer questions can also be a good eAssessment method and it also can be automatically marked or can be marked by the assessor. It is relatively easy to set up and can test students on a variety of topics. With short answer questions, there is no guessing on answers, the students know the answer or do not know them. With the advancing technologies in HE, there will be more ways in which students progress can be measured which will give a better overall picture of the students’ progress and mastery.

https://www.blog.epravesh.com/top-7-trends-of-education-technology-for-2019/

https://www.tesseractlearning.com/blog/elearning-trends-for-2018.html

https://www.augment.com/blog/govt-investing-arvr-education/