{"title":"Creating presence, currency and connection in digital learning with video blogs","authors":"Joanneke Elliott, C. Adachi","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0121","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0121","url":null,"abstract":"There is a substantial body of work arguing that sense of belonging, connection and interaction is a critical element for students to persist and succeed in learning online. However online students frequently report feeling isolated and disconnected from teachers, peers, and the institution. This paper explores the use of regular, informal video messages to facilitate these connections in a fully online course We argue that such videos can build teacher presence, provide opportunities for sharing feedback, guidance, emerging developments and professional insights, and contribute to a dynamic and engaging learning environment. We share preliminary feedback and reflections on the use of such videos and discuss the next steps in measuring the impact of these videos on student learning and satisfaction.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"102 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"115568524","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Ghostbusters: Using Learning Analytics and Early Assessment Design to identify and support ghost students","authors":"K. Linden, Neil van der Ploeg, B. Hicks","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0108","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0108","url":null,"abstract":"Ghosting is a student behaviour characterised by enrolling in a subject but never participating. Hence, a ghost student who remains enrolled receives a zero-fail grade. From 2022, the Job ready Graduates Package will require that only genuine students have access to Commonwealth assistance at Australian Universities and an institution may need to refund the fees of what are referred to as non-genuine students. In 2019 and 2020, 382 first-year subjects were monitored to identify disengaged students in weeks 3 and 4 of the session using learning analytics and nonsubmission of an early assessment item. Disengaged students were contacted via phone and 2-way SMS and offered timely and targeted support pre census. The total number of domestic undergraduate students receiving a zero fail has decreased during this time. To further reduce the number of ghost students, once identified as disengaged, an engagement should be mandatory to remain in the subject.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"7 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"114797654","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Virtual reality in Education. Broken promises or new hope?","authors":"B. McGee, Lisa Jacka","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0111","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0111","url":null,"abstract":"Virtual reality in one form or another has been around for over 50 years, most notably in entertainment and business environments. Technology-focused teachers have been leading the way with attempts at utilising and integrating virtual reality into K-12 and Higher Education. However, as quickly as technology changes so does the enthusiasm for the use in educational contexts. Much of this is due to the high-level cost (time and money) with no evidence-based educational return. In 2020 the global pandemic forced the education sector to innovate to provide authentic learning environments for students. The time is right for virtual reality to take centre stage. Over 171 million people worldwide currently use virtual reality, and the market in education is expected to grow by 42% over the next five years. This paper focuses on a range of virtual reality literature encompassing work across the spectrum of software and hardware, identifying where more educational implementation and research needs to be done and providing a perspective on future possibilities focusing on current affordances.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"768 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116139200","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Exploring the social aspects of student collaboration in online learning","authors":"Shahed Kamal, M. Bearman, J. Tai, Brandi Fox","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0110","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0110","url":null,"abstract":"Social interaction is seen as a key tenet of constructivist approaches to learning. There is a significant body of literature looking into online collaboration for learning, however less is known about how students experience collaboration more broadly. Understanding student experience may help to understand ways of ensuring online collaboration is successful. This student-led study aimed to explore what can be learnt from student perspectives of online collaboration. This study is embedded in a larger research program surrounding a 2019 course renewal project. Ten undergraduate law students were interviewed as part of the overall study but with additional semi-structured questions regarding collaboration. Participants were enrolled in a mix of online and blended units. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. Four themes were interpreted: 1) pre-existing social relationships facilitate online collaboration; 2) social media platforms enable interpersonal interaction and, as a result, online collaboration; 3) university-provided platforms lacked social elements of collaboration; and 4) face-to-face collaboration appears frictionless compared to online only collaboration. This study indicates the value of exploring collaboration as a broad social phenomenon rather than one purely focussed on educational designs that promote collaboration. Results suggest a considerable interaction between the interpersonal (friend focus) and study (learning focus). In the online space, collaboration was mediated by pre-existing embodied relationships and social media forums. There was a sense that social media activity would be difficult to mandate. This raises challenges, including how to manage equity issues around access to informal platforms; and how to incorporate into learning environments technologies that are experienced as ‘frictionless’ (i.e., easy and achievable without thought) and which appear to promote collaboration.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"77 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124967707","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A proposal to measure the impact of automated response systems on meeting student learning outcomes","authors":"Josiah Koh, Michael A. Cowling, Meena Jha, K. Sim","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0120","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0120","url":null,"abstract":"With the advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI), much has been made of the use of AI in education. Central to that is the idea of an Automated Response System (ARS). Current adoption of ARS’s in education has been mainly in the realm of administrative tasks but is likely to move into the support of teaching. ARS can be used as a supplement for teaching as it provides instant feedback, and 24/7 support. Having a highly accessible, 24/7 ARS can help relieve some of the burdens placed on teachers, especially in a post COVID-19 environment, where teachers expect work to intensify, rather than simplify. In this paper we present a work-in-progress that proposes what features an ARS for education should have, how these would be useful and how these features help teachers assist students meet their learning outcomes in a holistic manner.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"129009682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Priming Numbas for formative assessment in a first-year mathematics unit","authors":"V. Challis, R. Cook, Pranit Anand","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0145","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0145","url":null,"abstract":"This paper outlines an initiative that involved implementing ‘Numbas’ as a computer-based tool to support mathematics learning. ‘Numbas’ was implemented within the existing learning management system at Queensland University of Technology, where students engaged in formative assessment activities independently and were provided with automated feedback along the way. An initial evaluation was undertaken by learning designers using the ‘Assessment Design Decisions Framework’, and although more rigorous evaluation is underway, results indicate positive outcomes, and appropriate adjustment is likely to be made before rolling it out to other units within the School of Mathematical Sciences. This paper will be of interest to other educators looking for ways to embed independent computer-aided learning of mathematics.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"37 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125604190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The silver lining of COVID-19 – improving operational processes","authors":"S. Cerimagic, D. Wardak","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0134","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0134","url":null,"abstract":"The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for improvement in our operational processes. In our Business Co-Design (BCD) team we have successfully utilised a design-based research (DBR) approach for the past two years - and it has worked well. However, we have noticed that from an operational perspective, the DBR approach methodology we have been using can struggle to scale up, as designing is bespoke and offers tailor made solutions for our individual projects. We will pilot incorporating elements of a soft systems thinking approach together with actornetwork theory (ANT) to enable us in applying a more holistic approach to the design and development of units of study which will provide opportunities for input from the larger team, instead of working in silos. Additionally, we are hopeful that this new approach will also assist us in making our design and projects scalable and sustainable – and to support us in increasing efficiency.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"128438423","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"New way of investigating ICT- enhanced teaching in TAFE Australia: Disciplinary focused","authors":"Md. Shahadat Hossain Khan, Sue Gregory","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0132","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0132","url":null,"abstract":"Teachers’ ways of using ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in various disciplines is a recent issue in the higher educational research paradigm. In order to extend previous findings in relation to this issue, this research proposes an in-depth investigation focusing on vocational teachers’ qualitatively diverse ways of using ICT in different disciplines. A cohort of 11 teachers from three TAFE (Technical and Further Education) institutions of NSW, Australia, were purposively chosen aiming to ensure adequate variations in disciplines, gender, and experience of using ICT. The phenomenographic research approach was considered as the theoretical and methodological underpinning which guided the participant selection, data collection and data analysis. The findings revealed that disciplines have very limited influence on using ICT in TAFE teaching. It further discerned four categories of description: tool, content, subject, and student focused. The findings provide useful information towards improving vocational teaching practices in different disciplines and working as an input for improving teacher professional development program (TPD). In order to generalise these findings, an extended research with a wider sample is recommended.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"28 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126924967","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Vickel Narayan, T. Cochrane, S. Aiello, James R. Birt, Mehrasa Alizadeh, N. Cowie, Paul Goldacre, D. Sinfield, T. Stretton, Tom Worthington, C. Deneen, Michael A. Cowling
{"title":"Mobile learning and socially constructed blended learning through the lens of Activity Theory","authors":"Vickel Narayan, T. Cochrane, S. Aiello, James R. Birt, Mehrasa Alizadeh, N. Cowie, Paul Goldacre, D. Sinfield, T. Stretton, Tom Worthington, C. Deneen, Michael A. Cowling","doi":"10.14742/ascilite2021.0123","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.14742/ascilite2021.0123","url":null,"abstract":"The pandemic has drastically changed the education landscape. The pedagogical practices, policies and procedures ingrained and refined over many years were suddenly rendered less effective. Overnight, new practices, policies and procedures had to be drafted to support teaching and learning. More than a year on, educators have found a new home, new pedagogies and practices have been refined and continue to be, policies and procedures are agile to support a volatile environment academia dwells in during the pandemic era. Building upon the work the Mobile Learning Special Interest Group (MLSIG) presented last year at the conference, we investigate the role mobile learning is and could play in emerging pandemic pedagogies. Eight vignettes are presented from universities around the world that are analysed using Activity Theory to understand the role of mobile devices and social tools for developing blended synchronous learning (BSL) and HyFlex learning.","PeriodicalId":173934,"journal":{"name":"ASCILITE 2021: Back to the Future – ASCILITE ‘21 Proceedings ASCILITE 2021 in Armidale","volume":"39 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-11-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123151613","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}