Joint Information Systems Committee

Key messages

10/04/23 | slide 1

Joint Information Systems Committee 10/04/23 | slide 2

Flexibility, reliability, convenience

Learners are living complex lives.

Learners are positive about VLEs where they provide easy access to everything they need

High expectations for robust, visible, ubiquitous services.

Time is a constraint, and a persistent worry for disabled learners

My favourite piece of technology is “my phone, because I record lectures ... I am more likely to watch what I have recorded than to log on the [VLE] and to go through the long procedure of finding something…” (E4L)

Joint Information Systems Committee 10/04/23 | slide 3

Personal technology

There is high ownership and access to personal technology, but note institutional differences

Where access or ownership is lacking, students feel disadvantaged

Most students are not sure how to use personal technology to aid study,

“If we are required to be networked for a computer workshop, for example, there generally aren’t places you can plug in a laptop with assistive technology in. So, then you are reliant on whatever assistive technologies are available on the network.” (LexDis)

Joint Information Systems Committee 10/04/23 | slide 4

Study habits and strategies

New learners are conservative in their study habits and approaches

Influenced initially by prior educational experience, and later by their tutors

Disabled learners are agile technology users who understand the affordances of technology

Learn skills from each other

“Well firstly if I want to look anything up… I will usually Google it... Then I would fire up MSN… Finally [the VLE] and all the resources the University makes available online.” (STROLL)

Joint Information Systems Committee 10/04/23 | slide 5

Working with others

Extensive use of social networking sites – for recreational use

Extensive use of peers for support, especially technical support

Technologies used to support the process of groupwork

Social networking used where they have a cohort identity

“University e-mail I don’t really use for people at University, I usually use texting, Facebook or MSN. If they’re on-line, on MSN, I know hopefully they’ll respond straightaway. You can get an immediate response with phones and Messenger.” (E4L)

Joint Information Systems Committee 10/04/23 | slide 6

Enabling innovation

Learners’ expectations of innovative use are limited by lack of academic experience.

Tutors need to be proactive in helping students adopt new ways of learning.

Learners who had used technology to overcome barriers, were often the most agile and innovative.

“I’m not afraid to poke all the buttons and click all the settings and see what things do. I know I’m not going to break it” (LexDis)

Joint Information Systems Committee 10/04/23 | slide 7

Advice for lecturers

What advice would you give about how to respond to:

1. Student expectations for easy access to flexible study

2. The preference (requirement for some) for learners to use personal technology alongside institutional services

3. The need to support learners to develop effective study habits and digital literacies,

4. The need to support learners when making innovative, creative use of emerging technologies