On 6th July, the University of Glasgow hosted the inaugural meeting of ELESIG Scotland. ELESIG was established in 2008 by Professor Rhona Sharpe and colleagues as a special interest group for the evaluation of e-learner experiences “to build capacity for undertaking evaluations and investigations of learners’ experiences of using technology in education”.
The Scottish launch event was introduced by Professor Peter Hartley, joint lead for ELESIG Scotland with me. The event sought to bring together e-learning experts from further and higher education across Scotland, and was designed around the current Enhancement Theme of ‘transitions’.
Kerr Gardiner, Head of Learning Technology and Media Production at the University’s Learning and Teaching Centre, gave a brief presentation on online learning at the University of Glasgow, highlighting strategic institutional investment such as the Blended and Online Learning Development (BOLD) project and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), as well as Glasgow’s Enhancement Themes project, focusing on transitions to blended learning within a changing digital landscape.
Dr Jo-Anne Murray, Associate Dean for Digital Education at the College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, talked about a range of tools that can be used to promote an active learning experience online, one of the forthcoming highlights being a virtual campus (Glasgow’s Global Campus) in Second Life for online learners as a space for socialisation and peer learning.
Deputy Chair of the current Enhancement Theme, Dr Lorraine Anderson from the University of Dundee, gave the keynote address – an overview of the Transitions theme and its outcomes to date – in which she encouraged delegates to think about student transitions in relation to online distance and blended learner experiences.
The afternoon sessions showcased recent digital developments from three other Scottish institutions, as well as an update from Jisc Scotland. Celeste McLaughlin presented the new Jisc Scotland structure and outlined key Jisc projects, such as building digital capability, the digital student and electronic management of assessment.
Professor Linda Creanor, Head of Blended Learning at Glasgow Caledonian University, presented GCU’s strategy for blended learning, which includes a commitment to social innovation for the common good, an Open Educational Resources (OER) policy and research into staff and student experiences.
Dr Amy Woodgate, Project Manager for the University of Edinburgh’s Distance Education Initiative and MOOCs, explored the concept of learner success in relation to MOOCs. In trying to understand what makes for a successful learner experience, Amy encouraged delegates to look beyond satisfaction scores and stressed the need to understand the diverse motivations of MOOC learners.
Cathy MacNab, Director of Quality, Learning and Teaching at West College Scotland, outlined the outcomes from an evaluation of e-learner experiences using an adapted version of Morville’s User Experience Honeycomb and focus groups. Students were very positive about their e-learning experiences though challenges include ongoing developments in staff digital literacies and technical infrastructure.
What emerged very clearly from the day was the fact that Scottish tertiary education institutions are grappling with similar issues around the design and implementation of blended and online distance learning and that there is a commitment to share good practice to ensure high quality learner experiences.
A link to the presentations and video recordings from the day will be made available on the ELESIG site in the near future, and the tweets have been collated in Storify.