PAT to PDP (the missing link)

October 30, 2009 at 12:16 am (1st Year Experience, PG-Cert, Student Support, learning)
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After considerable reflection on how to make stronger links between the Personal Academic Tutorial (PAT) system in the Academy and Personal Development Planning (PDP) framework (as identified in my Lighting a Fire post) I have suggested a solution to my colleagues. By extending our PAT student group support to include mentoring indivduals in reflection and evidence gathering (using Mahara) we add a further layer to thier learning experience.  PAT then becomes interwoven with PDP, using ePortfolio’s as the tool to accomplish this. An equal distribution of  1st year students amongst the lecturing staff from the outset would ensure that every student recieves learning support and each member of staff shares an equal workload.

We have decided to trial this method using a current assignment that I have set the first year cohort (see An Introduction to ePortfolio post). I have assigned a lecturer to a group of 5 or 6 individuals and have asked them to make comment on the views that the students have posted. It is hoped that, by the assignments submission deadline, every student will have a few lines of formative feedback to support them. This may only act as an encouragement to continue, but at this stage, may be enough. Providing this early scaffolding is essential in embedding reflective processes as well as orientating the students in using new tools, which they can use to manage and deepen their learning.

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RSAMD Mahara

June 28, 2009 at 9:08 am (1st Year Experience, 2nd Year Experience, Flexible Delivery, PG-Cert, Student Support, assessment, employability, learning)
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ePortfolio’s

“An unfolding narrative of a unique learning journey”

(JISC 2008)

How can ePortfolio solution’s such as Mahara provide and enhance employability skills through Personal Development Planning to Academy students?

Current research being carried out by organisations such as JISC and BECTA have identified that e-Portfolio’s can enhance Employability Skills, Lifelong Learning provision, Internationalisation, Retention, Widening Participation, Achievement and Attainment Levels along with offering a high level of Personalisation to the learner. (JISC 2008) With these high level agenda items in mind and a pressing need for an improved Personal Development Planning framework within the Academy, this investigation was both timely and required.

The Academy’s Learning and Teaching strategy clearly states that its mission which, in essence, is to nurture creativity through a focus on the individual through the promotion of innovative methodologies and the exploitation of new and emerging technologies.

The term portfolio has a range of meanings, depending on the context you are engaged with, with Higher Education it can be best described as a collection of artifacts (evidence) presented alongside associated reflections for learning. This archive is collated and drawn on by the learner as evidence of learning achievement. These achievements can then be used to plan targets and set goals. Therefore a portfolio can be associated with the gathering of records which can be used in the Personal Development Planning (PDP) process. The concept of Personal Development Records (PDRs) is closely related to the Higher Educa-tion Progress File, a recommendation found in the Report of the National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education (Dearing, 1997) and extends beyond that, to incorporate artifacts which may evidence claims made in PDRs. Many institutions are choosing to implement PDP (and to encourage learners to manage their PDRs) through electronic means, often linking this to the term e-portfolio (Ward & Richardson, 2005) .

In 2008 The Academy made the bold decision to implement Mahara as its institutional e-Portfolio solution. It was a bold move as the software was, as yet untested, having only been released two months prior to it’s installation. Two main reasons for it’s adoption was it’s integration with Moodle and that it was Open Source i.e. free. Further to this, the Academy also made the commitment to contract e-Learn Design as consult-ants and to maintain both Mahara and Moodle installations, for a period of 12 months. This move was seen as a positive step towards fulfilling it’s Learning Resources and Student Support Strategy which states, as an objective for December 2009 to “implement Mahara as an Academy-wide platform for Personal Development Planning” . Four Moodle site-wide Administrators were found, including myself and a single Administrator for Mahara (myself), appropriate training was provided for Moodle.

Lessons learned on the JISC funded ISLE (Individualised Support for Learning through ePortfolio’s) Project found that ePortfolio’s cannot be introduced during the academic year. Greater success was found when you introduce them at induction. (ISLE). This Pilot scheme initially focused on employability skills amongst learners at Dumfries and Galloway College. Themed templates were created to provide structure to this process of PDP with categories which included: about me, My CV, my learning style, my interests and hobbies etc… All of which exist as default fields in Mahara, thus reducing the workload of tutors.

Encouraging students to personalize their learning spaces by deciding on layout as well as content can enthuse them to become more creative with their learning. The celebration of achievements can hence be more rewarding, with positive feedback from both peers and tutors acting as motivational devices. Improved retention levels were also recorded during the ISLE Project ranging from 30% to 100% improvement in some cases (JISC, 2008).

Results of an online survey I conducted, where I canvassed the opinion of 79 students and 11 staff members on ePortfolio’s, returned some revealing results. Out of the total number surveyed only 17% currently used an ePortfolio solution and from those, most (13 individuals) used Mahara. When asked the question, “Would you considering using one?” 53% said yes, with a further 36% stating that they “didn’t know” (see Chart 1). This shows that there is an interest worth considering and more promotion of Mahara needed.

Chart 1
Chart 1

When asked what they considered to be the single most important benefit of keeping an ePortfolio, the results were revealing (see Chart 2).

Chart 2

Chart 2

The results in Chart 2 clearly show that Employability would be a major contributing factor towards a learner engaging with an ePortfolio, with the organistaion of work being a major secondary concern. These statistics appear to align with the theory that both professional and vocational focus relies heavily on the development of praxis rather than knowledge alone. In this light, the ePortfolio serves as a developmental log in which to track ‘fitness of practice’. (Beetham & Sharpe, 2007).

In Art, we find ourselves confronted with a series of stimuli, such as a performance, a design, literary text or a piece of music. These artifacts  of learning more than often require our learners to ‘respond’ rather than to unravel an answer. These responses are often aesthetic in nature and require a degree of reflection that involves more than finding a formula which leads to a solution. (Beetham & Sharpe, 2007). Having the ability to present these stimuli as media; .mp4, jpeg, .doc or mp3 etc. provides the learner with a platform to host their evidence alongside their interpretations of it. It is hoped that the outcome would be that the learner has a greater understanding of the artifact.

“focus on creative activity is typical of the arts and that the methodologies (i.e. discussion) used to study the artefactual focus of these disciplines are to some degree themselves inspired by the methodologies employed in the creation of those artifacts.” (Beetham & Sharpe, 2007).

This form of reflective discourse based on the study of existing artifacts lends itself perfectly to the learning artist. The creation of new work commonly inspired by existing work. e.g. a learner uploads an .mp3 to their Mahara view then invites collaborators to listen to it, a discussion builds around the work from within a Mahara group forum. Changes are made to the work based on peer evaluation and the view is opened to the tutor for feedback and perhaps assessment.

The collection of this evidence could be a key driver to PDP being a key element to the UK Governments e-strategy (DfES, 2005). The Center for International ePortfolio Development is based in the University of Nottingham and is proof of the United Kingdoms commitment to research and development of this important learning tool.

To promote employability skills is as much about good learning experiences as it is about work placements or careers advice. (Bloxham & Boyd, 2007). They go on to state that more traditional methods of enhancing employability (entrepreneurship, careers guidance and PDP) do not necessarily contribute to the overall learning environment that is designed to foster employability, as they are often stand alone modules or lie outside of programme altogether. In this respect, there seems to be the need for a tool which draws all of these elements together and is still designed for learning. As the electronic portfolio is essentially a student centered solution, in which the learner has control over who and when their evidence is to be subject to academic scrutiny, then it would be fair to conclude that they can also choose when their work is open for employers to gauge their suitability for employment. Mahara can be viewed externally, allowing the learner to produce a media rich CV, which can be viewed by anyone of their choosing. Access to a particular view can also be time-limited or suspended at any point, by the learner.

In the online survey I asked how often those who completed it reflected  on their learning and whether these reflections were self motivated (non-assessed) or part of their course (assessed).  Chart 3 shows the frequency of reflection:

Chart 3

Chart 3

Now that the statistics were in place (and I was surprised at the amount of reflective practice stated) the task was then to ascertain why the learners were reflecting i.e. was it because they had to or was it because they felt it was a viable learning process?

Chart 5

Is this reflection….?

Chart 4

The findings here are even more surprising, it shows that learners are prepared to take ownership of their own learning where reflective practice is concerned. Thus going some way to prove that reflection is seen by a cross section of students in the Academy as an effective way to learn. Couple these statistics with those who outlined an interested in finding out more information about Mahara (85% of those surveyed wished to learn more, while 10% did not) and there is a clear case for further investigation.

To find out which methods were used in reflection I asked ‘how’ these learners reflected, giving a choice of the most common tools available. The results were mixed (Chart 6) and dependent on the learners definition of nomenclature e.g. a log book could be considered a journal by some. What is interesting is that 89% of those surveyed considered themselves to be computer literate which aligns closely to those interested in pursuing an interest in ePortfolio’s, yet most reflections seem to be recorded using analogue (paper-based) tools. One could conclude that this was due to the learners preference. Though when asked if the Academy should be doing more to promote Mahara, the response was that 58% thought so, 6% thought the Academy shouldn’t be promoting it and 35% didn’t know we even had one!

Chart 6

Chart 6

Mahara also has social networking functionality which has great potential to create both formal and non-formal learning environments. The ability to build communities of practice within a rich learning environment has obvious collaborative and knowledge sharing potential. This approach could open the door to both self and peer assessment models. These assessment skills are seen as valuable in developing lifelong learning skills such as self-evaluation, giving feedback, justifying a point and negotiation skills (Boud, 2000). Furthermore Stefani reminds us that “If assessment processes are intended to enhance student learning then it follows that students must be able to reflect on their current attainment” (Stefani 1998: 346, cited in Bloxham & Boyd, 2007). The skills required to develop objectivity (needed for self assessment) by reflecting on their own work, carves a path for the learner to direct their own work and thus making steps towards becoming autonomous learners. (Bloxham & Boyd, 2007). Peer feedback is often more accessible to the learner, being that it is not ‘emotionally loaded’ (Black et al, 2003:77) being that the language of peers is much easier for the student to understand, digest and evaluate.

When asked the question, “How often are you required to collaborate with others on your course?” (Chart 7), the results were as expected on programmes that involved both group and individual tuition. Only a 3% minority perceived that they did not collaborate at all, it should be a serious consideration to offer a support platform for these students to enter the fold and be able to reflect and collaborate with other learners. There is scope here for further development in cross curricula design and implementation, there would seem to be strong evidence that student aspirations stretch to include both peer feedback and a more collaborative environment in which to learn.

Chart 7

Chart 7

The final chart (Chart 8 ) was based around formative feedback and it’s perceived quantity available on individual courses. This question was purely subjective i.e. “What are your feelings on formative feedback?”, this was done intentionally as I wished to gauge student perception rather than objective fact. Feedback, or the amount of, is an academic responsibility and the student perception of this is dependent on the individuals requirements. A student who is struggling will percieve that they require more formative feedback, delivered in a timely manner. Race recommends that; “ if assessment is the engine that drives learning (Cowan cited in Race, 2007) then feedback is the oil that lubricates the cogs of understanding” (Race, 2007). Boud goes on to add that, “Assessment methods and requirements probably have a greater influence on how and what students learn than any other single factor. This influence may well be of greater importance than the impact of teaching materials.” (Boud, 1988).

I order to ascertain student perception of formative feedback provision within the Academy I asked, “What are your feelings on formative feedback?” with options depicting quantity rather than quality:

Chart 8

Chart 8

These statistics seem to suggest that there is a balance needing addressed in this area of learning. It has often been alleged that the Academy is heavy on summative assessment and light on the side of formative assessment. With these statistics in place it would seem that this is indeed the case. ePortfolio provision can address this issue head on, with 24 hours access to student evidence and reflection, more importantly it is the learner who opens their portfolio’s for scrutiny by tutors. This places the procurement of feedback firmly in their own hands.

Recommendations

The following are recommendations for the implementation of ePortfolio-based practice within the Royal Academy of Music & Drama, in order to address the findings in this investigation:

1. Staff training on the use of ePortfolio’s with particular emphasis on Mahara as a tool to enhance learning and employabilty within the student body.

2. The implementation of a robust framework for PDP in which ePortfolio provision can exist.

3. The introduction of ePortfolio-based learning at induction at the very latest.

4. Further investigation into allowing new and incoming 1st Year students to access and build ePortfolio’s on Mahara.

5. The introduction of a pilot scheme to encourage FE feeder courses to implement ePortfolio provision within their institutions as a recruitment driver.

6. The introduction of a pilot scheme to encourage employers to access final year students work as a recruitment driver.

Bibliography

Dearing, R (1997) Report of the National Committee of Inquiry into Higher Education (The Dearing Report) http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/ncihe/

(accessed 18.06.09)

Developing a progress file for HE: Guidelines on HE progress files http://www.qaa.ac.uk/academicinfrastructure/progressfiles/guidelines/default.asp

(accessed 18.06.09)

Ward, R & Richardson, H (2005) Report to the JISC: Generic guidance for stakeholders implementing Personal Development Planning through e-portfolio systems http://www.erdee.org.uk/natsem/eport_seminar_report.pdf

(accessed 18.06.09)

ISLE: Individualised Support for Learning through ePortfolio’s, http://isle.paisely.ac.uk/default.aspx

(accessed 19.06.09)

Bloxman S & Boyd P, (2007) Developing Effective Assessment in Higher Education: A Practical Guide. Open University Press, Berkshire

Stefani, L.A.J. (1998) Assessment in partnership with learners, Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 23(4): 339-50.

Black, P., Harrison, C., Lee, C., Marshall, B. and William, D. (2003) Assessment for Learning: Putting It into Practice. Maidenhead, Open University Press.

Beetham, H & Sharpe, R et al (2007) Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age: Designing and delivering e-learning. Oxon, Routledge

Boud, D (1988) Implementing Student Self-Assessment, HERDSA Green Guides Vol.5, University of New South Wales, Australia

Race, P (2007) The Lecturers Toolkit: A practical guide to assessment, learning and teaching, Oxon, Routledge

Boys, J & Ford, P (2008) The e-Revolution and Post Compulsory Education: Using e-Business models to deliver quality education. In association with JISC. Oxon, Routledge

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Being Student

June 15, 2009 at 9:03 pm (PG-Cert, learning)
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I know that these posts should be purely academic in order to satisfy the learning outcomes of my PG-Cert Class and I promise to return to referencing and citations again shortly. I have wanted to write this for a while now and  though I will seek evidence from other sources to back up my opinions, I want to veer away from sterile academia, as it is not appropriate for this subject matter. In short, I want to write this as a student.

For the past several months I have been both student and teacher. I understand that we are all lifelong learners and there should be no defined split, however my job has a framework and so does the PG-Cert programme. Where you would expect to find the boundaries blurred between the two remits, it really doesn’t. When the course started it was assumed by many that it would be based in our learning workspaces, in and around our cohort of students, assessments would be designed around our practice and feedback given in the same way. This hasn’t been the case. The PG-Cert has been ‘bolted on’ to our practice and the only cross over has been what we have chosen to implement ourselves. To this end it has been successful for me, as I have added several important elements to my practice as we have went along to varying degrees of success. However, I digress…

There are a few big issues I have identified through my experience as being a student, all of which are products of designing for learning:

  • Timely feedback

Quite simply, this hasn’t happened. Our feedback has always come months after our submissions. Formative feedback has been scant, I have no way of knowing how well I am progressing or  where I need to place extra effort until we are well into the next module. I read as much as I am physically able to within the time I have at my disposal, I have written over 50 blogs, I feel my citations etc.. have become more accurate and abundant (reflecting the amount of reading I have been engaged with) and yet, I still have little idea of how my reflections are being received. Early on in the PG-Cert we were asked to provide a position statement, in which I outlined that my goal was to make reflective practice central to my learning and teaching. I feel that I am well under way with this, encouraging my students to reflect consistently and real progress is being made in area’s of quality and understanding. Surely, this is an assessable point? Where I am demonstrating a deeper pedagogical approach to my practice?

  • Assessment without any stated pre-requisites

At what point were we shown an example position statement? A self-assessment form? There seems to be an expectancy that we can bring a level of academia to the table without having been even shown examples or given an idea of how to approach these tasks. The first time I had seen a self assessment form was when I was filling one out. In my practice I wouldn’t ask my students to complete anything, where an assessment  hinged on it, without first introducing them to the concept. Whether this was delivered in the form of a tutorial or within classroom content. Pre-requisites have not been explicit on the PG-Cert course. We are pacified with the reasoning that it is a ‘masters level’ qualification and should be expected to have pre-requisite knowledge, sadly I seem to be lacking in this area.

  • Workload

This is the area that is seriously damaging my prospects of excelling on the course. Since I began several months ago, my workload has increased drastically, what with having to Production Manage four shows and (due to my new term time only contract), take annual leave and TOIL over the course of this term. This has concentrated more work into less available time. So, sadly, I aim to pass but little more.

  • Parity in Assessment

We have had two major assessments on the course so far, by two separate assessors. Both have completely different styles and seem to be bi-polar in their approach. Now, I do expect different people to have different opinions on the same subject, but there seems to be little collusion or moderation on the grades presented. As a result my overall average has suffered I feel. On the Production strand there are three of us involved in assessment over three specialisms and we all work within the same assessment framework. Perhaps we are simply ‘like minded’ in our expectations of student achievement, but there is also a flexible framework which we all adhere to and tend to come to more-or-less the same conclusions.

This may all sound like criticism, but I assure you it is not. I am thoroughly enjoying my course and the benefits that I have reaped from it far outweigh these concerns. This is simply an attempt to reflect on some of the negativity that is flying around inside my head at the moment, in the hope that I can rationalise (and record) it.

The PG-Cert course has firmly put me back into a students shoes, I now have a better understanding or what a learner is and how much pressure they are put under. It has made me re-think workload issues and how much time should be given to reflective practice, at the moment the only time my students get to reflect are during the wee small hours. Hardly conducive to deep learning through critical analysis.

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Assessment Matters

April 28, 2009 at 6:34 pm (PG-Cert, Student Support, assessment, learning)
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As a result of further reading on assessment I have an urge to reflect on the matter. This is undoubtedly a huge area of learning that it would be impossible to do the subject justice in one blog, so I have set myself a question; Why does assessment matter? This is especially pertinent as I have begun the tentative process of introducing Mahara to a cohort of students, this in itself will require a new series of assessment criteria in the near future. So, before introducing anything else new, I want to settle the debate which is raging in my mind regarding assessment, in it’s broadest sense.

My point of view on assessment has always been that it can come from various different sources and not just from the tutor or mentor. It can be offered by peers, family, friends, professional associates and, perhaps most importantly by the learner themselves. The fear and pressures that occur prior to an assessment deadline (usually presented in summative form) can be detrimental to learning, where more emphasis is placed on the outcome after this deadline rather than being focused on the learning itself. Race in his informative Lecturers Toolkit, states that assessment should be motivational as well as critically informative (Race, 2007), though the balance can often be difficult to gauge, especially where a student is falling short of achieving the learning outcomes.

This is a problem I have faced on a number of occasions, where a Stage Manager has been struggling, often due to the high pressurised working environment and processes that they are central to. In a lot of cases, these students have one eye on the assessment and one on the work at hand. This approach opens them to pressures that aren’t found in the profession that they are learning. This may dilute the learning process to an extent and shift focus. In this respect, harsh ‘cutting’ truths can only be used as an absolute last resort, otherwise confidences can be shattered and the motivation to continue severely damaged. This is the nature of assessing ‘live’ events, where other students can be adversely affected. It is at times like these when motivational and developmental formative feedback is required.

Courses which are modular in format usually have a strong emphasis on summative assessment, and this places an emphasis on one final focal point in the process of learning, often at the expense of understanding. (Bloxham & Boyd 2007)

Moving away from the assessment methods used to gauge learning progression on productions to using tools which motivate students. With the growing number of studies done on the benefits of e-Portfolio’s (a subject that has become close to my heart of late) it has become apparent to me that offering learners the capacity to present their own work towards assessment has, at last, empowered the learner directly to influence what, when and where formative assessment can take place. Surely, this approach can be considered to be ‘motivational’, where the design, content and analysis are all controlled, by the learner. In short, opportunity offers empowerment which, in turn, leads directly to motivation.

“Assessment should help them to structure their learning continuously during their studies, not just in a few critical weeks before particular assessment climaxes.” (Race, 2007)

Race, P. (2007) The Lecturers Toolkit: A practical guide to assessment, learning and teaching 3rd edn, London: Routledge.

Bloxham, S & Boyd, P (2007) Developing Effective Assessment in Higher Education: A Practical Guide, Maidenhead: Open University Press.

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PDP

April 3, 2009 at 8:59 am (1st Year Experience, 2nd Year Experience, PG-Cert, Student Support, employability, learning)
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In order to provide a more organised framework for my reflections on our current investigative assignment I have opted to look at the ‘bigger picture’ before focusing solely on Mahara and e-Portfolio’s in general. From my reading I have ascertained that Mahara is just one of many e-Portfolio systems currently in use in HEI’s nationwide, widening the scope of the investigation finds that e-Portfolio’s are primarily used as tools in which to implement vital area’s of personal development planning (PDP) systems. PDP itself, is central to the overarching employability theme and in many ways can be thought of as the catalyst that drives this governmental enhancement.

I feel that in order for me to grasp the concepts that underpin e-Portfolios, I should start by investigating the pedagogy behind PDP, touching on the Quality Assurance Agency’s (QAA) Employability Enhance Theme along the way.

The QAA Scotland/Universities Scotland Joint Working Group (JWG) was constituted in 2002 with the primary remit to implement PDP within the sector. In doing so, it firstly identified three core features that embody PDP:

a) the ability of the student to undergo a self-audit process that enabled the student to become more effective in their own learning.

b) a process embedded as far as possible within the existing curriculum and activities and

c) that the process should be holistic and take in as much of the students experiences in HE as possible.

(QAA Scotland, 2007)

From these three features a framework was drawn up from a series of focused prompts that helped students review their own progression within their HEI. These focused learner questions (FLQs) became the core drivers within a framework for effective learning known as ELF (Effective Learning Framework). If looked at in diagrammatic form, ELF has three main domains of learning progression depicted as Academic, Career and Personal (see Fig.1), where these area’s overlap a key FLQ can be found and where all three domains overlap with each other , a central process of self review resides.

Fig.1 ELF

Fig.1 ELF

Why was this required?

In 1997, Sir Ron Dearing published a series of reports, collectively known as the Dearing Report, which outline 93 recommendations for Higher Education in the UK. Recommendation 20 was as follows:

20. We recommend that institutions of higher education, over the medium term, develop a Progress File. The File should consist of two elements:

—a transcript recording student achievement which should follow a common format devised by institutions collectively through their representative bodies;

—a means by which students can monitor, build and reflect upon their personal development (Dearing, 1997)

There was/is an apparent need to develop and embed lifelong learning within HEIs, breaking down the idea that learning stops upon graduation, but instead should be a continual process which carry’s on into the careers of students. This was a shift away from the more traditional notion that students were only required to engage in purely tacit learning, instead learning itself would be considered a skill vital to employability. The process would begin at the application stage to the candidates chosen HEI with a series of FLQs, thereafter keypoints would be marked within the learners educational pathway with more questions at each point. The hope is to support learners in developing their self-analytical, exploratory, questioning and planning skills, empowering them to take control of their own learning by placing them firmly in the center of it. These skills are also much sought after by graduate recruiters.

‘a set of skills, knowledge and personal attributes that make an individual more likely to secure and to be successful in their own chosen occupation(s) to the benefits of themselves, the workforce, the community and the economy’ (York, 2004, cited in Higher Educational Academy, Ward 2006)

The Self

At the heart of PDP lies the ’self’. The notion of self-directed learning underpins the entire process, wherever you look within the PDP environment you will find ’self’ being the most coined word. From an employers point of view, self-management, self-promotion, self-evaluation, self-awareness, self-reflection and self-analysis are all key to successful employment. Couple these skills with a willingness to learn and the student is ready to present themselves to a waiting employment sector as well as to other programmes of study.

Evidencing your learning

It is likely that most institutions carry out PDP activities whether they know it or not. The important question of whether they evidence their learners progression or not is valid. Within the School of Drama in RSAMD, we use a number of PDP solutions the most obvious being reflective journals, work placements, personal academic tutorials and employability skills training. The PAT system has been overhauled in the last 12 months, with core changes to it’s structure and intent. Although it has been tentatively linked to an overall PDP framework (indeed, the entire framework in itself is a tentative and perhaps overly cautious attempt) there hasn’t been a drawing together of PDP resources as yet, the PAT system is due to be evaluated next term. It is hoped that stronger evidencing of this process as an element of PDP will be high on the agenda. The other ‘less developed’ PDP elements listed ‘float’ around the PDP environment with no concrete base. How we  process critical incident feedback will be central to the success of PDP within the Academy and the collation of such data, in terms of assessment, is still under-developed. Crucially, the lack of a robust framework for these activities has made the learning experience around PDP wholly unsatisfying to the student, as it is still unclear on how the different elements ‘join up’ to create a larger holistic picture of thier career pathways.

The JWG recommend several ways of implementing FLQs into the curriculum and suggest key progression stages at which learners and institutions can pose new questions. Suggested stages to begin to embed the process and examples of suitable FLQs follow:

  • Pre-entry into HE:

Which career path should I take?

Which institutions best suits my needs?

  • Starting in HE:

What strengths do I bring from my previous studies?

What can I do to prepare myself for my new experiences at university?

  • Settling in (personal):

What can I do to meet people and develop new friends?

What experiences do I have of personal, inter-personal and financial management?

  • Settling in (Academic):

Have I located all the resources? e.g. tutors, rooms, library etc…

Do I understand what is expected of me?

  • Considering permitted changes to the curriculum:

Did I choose any class as an experiment with the thought of quickly changing to another one?

Am I now considering this change and its implications?

  • Mid-term stocktaking:

How do my experiences on the programme so far match my expectations?

What seems to be valued by people who specialise in my main subject interest?

Do I still feel motivated?

(HEA, 2006)

It is vital that we (both tutors and students) develop these questions into praxis. How we collate, disseminate and reflect on our answers will determine what our course of action will be. On route, a range of skills will be developed based around the ’self’ with clear achievements, goals, barriers and actions that need addressed before progression can take place.

It is, as they say… in our own hands.

Dearing, R. “Welcome to this site.” BEI Search. 02 Apr. 2009 <https://bei.leeds.ac.uk/Partners/NCIHE/>. [Accessed 02.05.09]

Higher Education Academy, 2006. Personal Development Planning and Employability, Higher Education Academy, York.

QAA Scotland, 2007. Effective Learning Framework – Using focused learner questions in personal development planning to support effective learning, QAA 138 02/07, Mansfield.

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Mahara

March 22, 2009 at 11:24 am (Flexible Delivery, PG-Cert, Student Support, learning)
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logo_mahara

Another assignment, this time to investigate specific processes within the Academy and   to present our findings back to the group after Easter. I had intended to try and avoid a  technological topic this time around and to concentrate on more traditional teaching methodologies, however the inclusion of Mahara as an option was far too tempting to ignore. My rationale was simple: I wanted to. Since the new install of Moodle, Mahara has sat there on the front page like a green genie awaiting a master. Once again the PG-Cert has afforded me an excuse to step forward and motivate me into action.

Work has already progressed on general PDP within the School, though it has been slow and uncertain of itself. Introductions to PDP have been delivered to 1st Years, but little evidence of progress has been evident. Surely it must involve more than simply outlining the concept to them? The added value of PDP to learning appears to be obvious and the rationale is robust, I just haven’t come across any institutional evaluation of the concept. The whole concept, in my opinion, requires a firmer and much more directed approach, its success lies in the first year experience. I believe Mahara could be the vehicle to inspire and drive the process forward.

What is it?

An electronic portfolio or ePortfolio is a generic term encompassing as wide a range of types and products as there are reasons for using them. The simplest starting point is to consider an ePortfolio as an extension of the paper based-portfolio, bringing with it the obvious benefit of making a portfolio of evidence portable and shareable anywhere that you have Internet access – “the new generation of the three ring binder” JISC My World Project Final Report, Roberts. 2006

In fact, an ePortfolio has a much broader scope as an online collection of reflections and digital Artefacts (such as documents, images, blogs, resumés, multimedia, hyperlinks and contact information). Learners and staff can use an ePortfolio to demonstrate their learning, skills and development and record their achievements over time to a selected audience.

“ePortfolios … are personal on-line spaces for students to access services and store work. They will become ever more useful as learners grow up and start moving between different types of learning and different institutions” Secretary of State for Education and Skills, UK, January 2006.

They have the potential to provide a central, linking role between the more rigid, institution-led learning management system and the learners’ social on-line spaces.

There are sound applications for the learner, the teacher, the institution – and sometimes combinations of the three. A teacher and learner for example can be one and the same person, with differing requirements from the same ePortfolio. It can be used to create collections of artefact’s to share with fellow students, peers, family and friends, to present to potential employers and to complement applications for research funding. In short, it is an on-line space from which to manage your life, learning and goals. Mahara (2007)

Although Mahara is built on the same modular system as Moodle (it can be stand alone or integrated, to an extent, with the VLE) it would appear to be fundamentally different to implement. Moodle has a very structured framework in which to operate, it has clearly set out activities and resources, which could be considered to be user-friendly. It is after all a course management system, where all content is defined in neat blocks of information, moderated and presented by educational facilitators. Mahara however, is primarily student centred. It can only evolve with a high level of student engagement. The students build their ‘views’ themselves and grant permissions to other users to participate in their self generated content.

Groups and Fora are generated by learners who wish to expand their learning beyond the curricula (though Mahara can be used for assessment purposes if required). Artifacts (user generated objects such as mp3’s, jpegs or documents) are uploaded onto a ‘view’ page, then access is opened to anyone that the students require to view them. Fora can be used for social purposes or as a vehicle for learning communities to thrive. All of these facilities, empower the student to explore and centre their own learning under their own volition.

Learning – Reflective learning, personalised learning, lifelong learning

An ePortfolio is an ideal tool for meeting the needs of established and emerging pedagogy and approaches to learning.

Reflective learning is “..a form of mental processing that we use to fulfil a purpose or to achieve some anticipated outcome. It is applied to gain a better understanding of relatively complicated or unstructured ideas” HE Academy Guides for busy academics, no 4, Moon 2005

An ePorfolio allows for building in reflective activities for learners and staff, through blog functions and the creation of ‘Critical incident diaries’ in which users reflect on their learning and experiences over a given period or activity. For example, this could be reflections on how a student dealt with a problem, or processed some new information on a given topic. This can become a two way process with a tutor or peer providing feedback via the same diary.

It works as a user-centred, personalised learning space allowing the user to shape the way they present themselves to the world. Content and layout can be personalised to create multiple Views which meet the specific, differing or changing requirements of the user. This ties in with one of the key tenets of personalised learning, that students become key partners in the design of learning to suit their needs.

“Personalising learning involves thinking about knowledge as an active process. Students get to be informed, active participants in their own learning, they contribute to decisions about what learning can work best for them, and they have a much better understanding of how they are progressing.” Minister of Education, NZ, 2007 (Mahara 2007)

Mahara (2007) About E-Portfolios [online] Available at: http://mahara.org/view/view.php?id=3 [Accessed 23rd March 2009]

Mahara (2007) Learning – Reflective learning, personalised learning, lifelong learning [online] Available at: http://mahara.org/view/view.php?id=3 [Accessed 23rd March 2009]

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Micro Teaching Assignment – Links

March 7, 2009 at 12:09 pm (Flexible Delivery, PG-Cert, assessment, learning)
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The following are links to other pages in my WordPress account that specifically deal with the Micro Teaching Assignment in chronological order:

The Brief

Initial Concepts

Blocking Concept

Podcasting

Contexts

Simplify

Mentoring

Dry Run

The Lecture

Gathering Reflections

Evaluation

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Technical Collaborations

February 9, 2009 at 8:58 pm (2nd Year Experience, assessment, learning)
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Today was the culmination in last weeks classes, a simulated technical rehearsal in which every SM student got a chance to be a Stage Manager, Deputy Stage Manager and an Actor. We also continued our collaboration with the 2nd Year PLX students, in effect their classes and our classes combined at key points. Up until this week, mainly due to the lack of a PLX Lecturer, their experience had been almost wholly production based and had lacked any form of real creativity. The last few days allowed them to design and experiment with Sound and Light. Over the next few days I’ll try and formulate a process to evaluate their experience in it’s own right, rather than how it helped my department.

As for Stage Management and from my point of view, the day was a great success. I was able to assess the potential strengths and weaknesses of the Stage Mangers today from within a controlled environment. More importantly, the students themselves now have time to reflect and evaluate their own performances, something which has been lacking in the past. There was much to reflect on today, a few key questions I shall ask them to reflect on are:

  • How did you feel you coped with the pressure?
  • Which area’s of the remit are you uncertain of?
  • Were you prepared enough?
  • Which elements of the acting experience did you find most difficult?
  • How did you feel your peers performed?

We began the day with a thorough going over of their prompt copies, marking deficiencies and points for improvement. I chose to do this in the cafe bar over breakfast, which set the pace for the day. After this we set up the venue, preparing it for the lighting plot later on.

The lighting plot was an ideal session in which to test the blocking notation the students had taken down last week. It also finalised any cues that we were uncertain of. The most important factor was how the SMs collaborated with the PLX students and on the whole they were receptive and respective of each others work. I felt that thier was still a few area’s to be worked on in the near future, such as separating social relationships with professional relationships. There was a bit too much over-familiarity which lead to sometimes uncontrolled camaradare.

I invited two 3rd Year Students to the session to peer support the 2nd Years. Both had DSM’d and SM’d productions at the Academy and were well placed to develop their own learning and that of their 2nd Year peers. They attached themselves to both roles which were being tested today and were amazing in their mentoring. One thing that struck me about peer support was how pastoral it is, the students were at ease with their mentors. It felt much less like an assessment and more like a pleasant coaching session. The atmosphere was tangibly lighter and conducive to learning. It also gave me a chance to observe from a distance the students performance and how they positioned themselves within the whole event, rather than focusing on specific microcosm’s of the session. Small details were discussed and demonstrated by the mentors. After the session was over both Gillian and Susan (3rd Year) agreed that this type of learning was beneficial and should be done more. It affirmed their own learning and how far they had progressed themselves. The act of relating skills to others had given their own practice a firm grounding through self analysis. They had to draw on their own learning and communicate clearly in order for others to learn.

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Paperwork, Sound & Light

February 6, 2009 at 7:14 pm (2nd Year Experience, assessment, learning)
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As has been the case every morning this week, the students had score reading classes. Today was their last day and they all came back with the usual enthusiasm for the sessions. I must see if I can get the go-ahead to schedule more in. While they were attending the class I set up (on Moodle) a Critical Incident form and notified them that they should fill it in. The nice thing about doing one of these forms online is that Moodle collates al of the answers onto one sheet, making it easier to evaluate group responses. Hopefully I will get a better response than last years paper-based attempt.

I began the class (again in the Chandler) by introducing an old friend of mine from my theater days, Ruth Alexander. She is currently the Company Stage Manager at Pitlochry Festival Theater, the only repertoire venue in the UK. Pitlochry have always been good employers of RSAMD graduates and are a leading voice in FST. The combination of this and it being a repertoire system made getting Ruth involved with my students all the more interesting for them. The PLX students came along to sit in and contribute.

After the complaints of over work and long hours during the Opera from this same group of students, this actually turned our to be timely. Ruth’s talk made it clear that professional theater and the style in which Pitlochry works is not for the work shy or those adverse to working long hours. She brought around a raft of paperwork examples and had a series of supporting Powerpoint slides. This was much more than any other guest lecturer had ever turned up with to one of my classes. The students didn’t have to write anything down as notes were also provided. I was really pleased with the way the session went and on leaving I arranged a venue visit with Ruth for both myself and my students.

After lunch we sat around a table and discussed the paperwork they had produced so far. We discussed corporate layouts and I gave a series of tips and tricks to help them to produce professional looking documentation. We also touched on eDocuments and how we would be exploring this at a later date. This is an area that, if used appropriately could modernise Stage Management. I have never attempted to teach this area before and it is one I am looking forward to immensely.

Later on (after a few minor technical hic-cups) we were joined by the PLX students and ran a Sound Plot for both shows. We agreed on a cue order and added some new cues. We then briefed them on all the LX cues that were required, leaving them with a free reign to design any extra cues themselves.

In all it was a slow and relaxed day. I left the students to rig lighting and continue designing the sound, the SMs were briefed on getting thier Prompt Copies ready for Monday, when they were to cue thier shows, leaving an hour on Monday morning to go over thier weekend homework and make corrections. Another day full of simulations of actual production sessions, but slowed to a crawl.  I wish I could use an actual production in this way as a learning environment, but the pressures placed on TPA by other departments agenda’s always makes this next to impossible. My aim is to use 2nd Year productions, such as the A2 Shakespeares as on such purely ‘learning production’ where the schedule is drawn out to accomodate both learning and reflection. A production where sessions can be paused for educational purposes and less emphasis is placed on simpley ‘gettin the show on’. That would leave 3rd Year as a purely production based forum for practise and the honing of skills.

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P1/2 Drama and Opera Project Brief

February 4, 2009 at 4:59 pm (1st Year Experience, Flexible Delivery, learning)
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I have cut and pasted the 1st Year Production Student Project Brief that I wrote a few weeks ago. Along with Stage Management classes and 2 other projects running along side this, the students have quite a workload. Planning hasn’t been the best and it is something that requires revisiting before next year. The outcome is the students becoming disheartened as they have been forced to compromise on each project in order to fit them all into the schedule. This is not to mention the stress involved and this is only thier 2nd term here!

The project itself addresses a few key learning issues and this year we attempted to incorporate a more blended approach. We asked the students to reveal their managemnt and organisational processes through online forum collaboration. Along with Twitter (on which they created a dedicated feed which solely represented the project) thier work became transparent, allowing the tutors a rare glimpse into the cohorts participation and engagement. It also allowed us to scaffold whenever necessary. This daily process was further enhanced by the students individual blogs, these reflections served to summarise the days progress. They hinted at possible disruptive influences and uncertaities, as well as successes and affirmations.

PP1/2 Collaborative Project

Drama and Opera

Briefing Paper

Aim

The aim of this project is to identify the differences and/or similarities between a Drama Production and that of an Opera.

Process

Using your observations made on Mother Goose and ‘5’ last term and Love for 3 Oranges this term, compare and contrast the different processes involved in staging these productions. Identify key personnel and line management systems and how each department communicated whilst onstage e.g.

  • Who was in charge during which session?
  • How did departments communicate?
  • What was the line management structure?

Also identify key sessions and how they differ between the two genre’s e.g.

  • LX Sessions
  • TSM Sessions
  • SM Sessions
  • Time i.e. scheduling
  • Management (see above)

Opera Preparation

For Opera 1 (Love for 3 Oranges) you will be required to attend a minimum of one of each of the following scheduled sessions (see Opera schedule for dates and times):

  • Rehearsal (Wednesday 14th January either am or pm) in Groves Studio.
  • LX Rig
  • Set Fit Up
  • LX Focus
  • LX Plot
  • Stage & Piano
  • Stage & Orchestra
  • Dress Rehearsal

Please inform either John Wilkie of Stephen Macluskie which sessions you plan to attend. Observation of these sessions should be discrete, please find your way to the first dress circle and watch quietly from there. A speaker system for you to hear cans communications will be available.

Presentation

Working as a group you will be required to organise your time and tasks effectively in order to collate your data and present it to a select group of gusts (who may or may not know anything about theatre). An online Moodle forum on P1/2 has been set up for you to engage in debate or share information.

Access it here: http://moodle.rsamd.ac.uk/mod/forum/view.php?id=241

The presentation can be in any format you wish and must last a minimum of 15 minutes. Each group member must be active during the course of the presentation. The following key points will be considered and go towards your final assessment:

  • Individual contributions to both the process and final presentation.
  • The overall quality of the presentation.
  • Evidence that research has been carried out effectively.
  • Contributions to Moodle online forum.
  • Team Dynamic
  • Accuracy of presented data
  • Any conclusions that have been reached

Presentation Date

Week 6 – The Athenaeum Theatre

Friday 20th February 2009

Set up Time: 09:00 to 16:00

Presentation: 16:00

16:30 to 17:00 Group Discussion

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