Innovations in Teaching and Learning

UKMJune 20, 2013

Definition of Pedagogy• the method and practice of teaching,

especially as an academic subject or theoretical concept

• relating to, or befitting a teacher or education• the strategies of instruction• the art or profession of teaching• the function or work of a teacher

Education today is “teacher-centric”

Thinking process for face to face delivery

• Teacher learns the materials• Teacher develops own knowledge base depending on

existing schema• Teacher becomes an expert in the field• During teaching, teacher retrieves information form

memory to transmit to students• Learners interprets the teacher information based on

their existing schema which may be different from the teacher schema

• Learners stores the information in knowledge base which may be different from what the teacher is expecting

Thinking Process in E-Learning

• Learners access the information using technology

• Learners interpret the information using existing schema to build knowledge base

• Learners access tutors for help during the learning process

Problems with the current education system

• Teacher centered rather than learner centered• High drop-out rate• Not enough qualified teachers in some areas• Course materials not appropriate for different cultures• Learning materials not developed for different

learning styles• Not all learners have access to education• Large percent of funding spent on infrastructure

rather than learning

Australian Study of Student EngagementFinancial Review , Education, Feb 14, 2011

• Researchers surveyed 150 students who dropped out from 4 Australian Universities.

• Reasons for dropping out include:– Teaching methods–Course content– Life issues–Paid work commitments

University students who are thinking of dropping out

• Business – 37%• IT – 37%• Nursing – 35%• Humanities – 34%• Law – 30%• Education – 29%• Sciences – 28%• Accounting – 24%• Engineering – 24%

How students prefer to learn?• In groups with peers (55%)• Doing practical things (39%)• With friends (35%)• By using computers (31%)• Alone (21%)• From teachers (19%)

Becta, 2008

Need learner-centric education

Effective learning

Why Learning Technology in Education

• Students can learn when they are alert• Students can learn from anywhere and at anytime• Encourage lifelong learning• Reach learners in remote locations• Learning is learner-centered• Cater for different learning preferences• Students learn in context• Educate the special needs• Remove barriers to learning• Because of less travel and less use of paper, e-learning and

mobile learning are seen as “green learning”

Innovative Learning Strategies

AU’s TEKRI (Technology Enhanced Knowledge Research Institute) - Conduct pedagogical research

Technology Enhanced Knowledge Research Institute (TEKRI) – Athabasca University

• Rory McGreal - Open Education• Terry Anderson - Social Interaction• Mohamed Ally - Mobile and Ubiquitous Learning• George Siemens - Learning Analytics & Knowledge• Kinshuk - Adaptivity and Personalization• Jon Dron – Social Computing• Dragan Gasevic - Semantic Technologies

Innovations in Learning• Home laboratory kits (geology, ecology,

chemistry, physiology, biology, physics)• Online lab demonstrations (chemistry)• Virtual tutorial using avatars (physics):

Development of an online tutorial using an avatar that interacts with students learning physics concepts.

• Remote access to instrumentations• E-experiment: Students can do a

simulation online and then complete the actual experiment in a physical lab

• Remote operation of space telescope• Use of pdf Annotator on desktop

virtualization system to mark math questions

• Recognition of prior learning• E-assessment: Students completing their

exams from different locations using computers and mobile devices

• E-portfolios: Students create an electronic portfolio that proves that they have achieved the competencies in a program

• Electronic Marking of Assignments: Instructors mark the assignments electronically providing feedback in text and audio formats

Connectivism• Learning in a networked world• What is learned is determined by others• One has to learn and unlearn because of

information explosion

Constructivist learning

• According to M. Sharples “learning is a constructive process, involving the active construction of knowledge”

• Mobile apps can provide simulations for learners to construct new knowledge

Problem-based learning

• Learners are provided with real life problems so that they can conduct research, obtain coaching from a facilitator, develop solutions to solve the problems, and implement the solutions.

Contextual learning

• Mobile technology allows learners to learn in their own context or in the real context for immediate application.

Collaborative learning

• Use social software to learn from each other and to solve problems.

Peer-to-peer tutoring

Learning Taxonomy

Need to reverse Bloom’s Taxonomy

Student interaction

• Student-teacher interaction• Student-student interaction• Student-expert interaction• Student-content interaction

Trends

• Virtual devices• Immediate assembly of learning materials• Intelligent agents to adapt the interface for the

learner• Intelligent learning materials (e.g. learning objects)

to cater for individual learner needs• Open Education Resources (OER)• Less use of textual materials – more multimedia

Open Education Resources

• Universities making learning materials available as open education resources

• Athabasca University Press• Khan Academy• World digital library• Open content alliance

The Ultimate School in the 21st Century (Verizon Foundation, U.S.A.)

• Use of digital media• Games as a learning strategy• Mobile devices in learning• Online courses

Emerging Technologies

• “In the pocket banking”

• “A library in everyone’s pocket”

• “A doctor in everyone’s pocket”

• Are we ready for “Learning in the pocket”

Globalization – Shift to Mobility

– E-Commerce to M-commerce– E-government to M-government– E-collaboration to M-collaboration– E-library to M-library– E-health to M-health– E-games to M-games– E-learning to M-learning

Looking into the Future• Content will be available as Open Access• Develop citizens to function in the 21st century

workforce• Invest less in buildings and more in E-learning

infrastructure• Need a new pedagogy for flexible learning in the 21st

century to cater for the current and new generations of learners

• Current classroom based pedagogy is not effective resulting in high cost for education

• There has to be a sense of urgency to change the education system

Changes in other sectors because of emerging technologies and the new generations

• Obsolete video stores• Decreasing number of bookstores• Tellerless banking• Journalistless journalism

What will education look like in the near future?

Need to shift from teacher model to learner model in education (from “pedagogy” to

“learngogy”)

Research Needed• Most effective interfaces for learning technologies• Learning style of different cultures and use of learning

technologies• What are the characteristics of learning technology for different

cultures?• Making learning interactive to promote high level learning• How to design and deliver multimedia materials on emerging

technologies?• How to deliver learning materials to meet the needs of the

nomadic learner who is always on the move?• How to deliver vocational training using learning technologies?• How to design content for the different age groups?• What are the characteristics of the next generation of learning

technology?

Recommendation

• Establish the “Innovative Learning Technologies Research Institute (ILTRI) ” at UKM

• This will stimulate research in innovative learning technologies

• It will help to attract more research grants

Research AgendaFaculty of Education, UKM

• Mobile learning• 21 st Century skills• Blended learning• Learner diversity• Personalized learning• Meaning learning for ICT• Emerging technologies• Second language teaching • Learning design• Remote labs and experiments• Social networking

Thank you