Open Education Practices

Why all the fuss?

I tend not to write very long posts, but this one promises to be the shortest one of all.  Why all the fuss about open education practices?  It seems to be my professional destiny to develop new courses and then hand them over for someone else to teach.  It's part of the job.  Over the years I have been lucky enough to have had colleagues from other institutes informally share their excellent assessments and resources, regardless of their institutes intellectual property policies.  The only problem with sharing your work is that awful nagging fear that it isn't good enough.

Open Education Practices

The most useful thing that I have learn't through my studies is that 'Content is not king!'.  There are times when new content needs to be developed to contextualise a point that you are trying to make, but let's be honest, someone has probably already done it, and dare I say it, done it better.  Therefore, I find the differentiation between 'open education resources' OER and 'open education practices' OEP to be both useful and focusing.

Open Education Resources are educational content that can be used freely by anyone to gain knowledge or skills, and may be copied, edited and shared by anyone.

Open Education Practices are much broader.  They are analogous with a course or lesson plan used in a traditional teaching environment.  OEP are how the open resources are used to guide the student through the process of gathering knowledge, gaining comprehension, and eventually achieving synthesis.  All this within an open environment.  Not much to ask really.

I have a sneaking suspicion that this may in fact be an advantage.  OEP will forces us to consider course design more carefully, and ensure that the best pedagogical practices are utilised.  There will be nowhere to hide.

Possible Strategies

I am not actually sure what strategies to use, there seems to be a long road of researching different platforms, and investigating different media.  I can understand the general wariness of using social media sites like facebook.  It is difficult to disconnect from the endless facile blitherings (note the irony), and actually think of it in a professional context.  Sarah Stewart's professional use of the platform was inspiring, but others are less enthusiastic; Dr Thom Cochrane interestingly commented on facebooks lack of openness.  Wikieducator is probably a good starting point, and I am at least fairly familiar with the work of the Open Education Resource Foundation and the Commonwealth of Learning.  I also believe that the Otago Polytechnic is developing it's own on-line presence - this may also be a useful strategy.  Other ideas include:

• Short video clips posted to youtube
• Use of slideshare
• Use of existing creative commons content and images
• Use of appropriate accessible software
• Use of smartphones - more people have phones than computers
• Use of blogs and wikis

The most important strategy, is the connections, the story that you tell, the journey that you take the students on.  The practice of education.

Challenges

The main challenge to open education is of course going to be time.  There is never enough of it, and although this may turn out to be very efficient in the end, at the beginning of the journey it will suck every hour you throw at it.  The other massive challenge is getting the copyright and referencing right.  I am happy to say that for the last few year all my images have been from wikimedia commons, but I am less happy to admit that I haven't checked the exact licenses or got the correct attributions.  What an enormous task to go through them all.

As for the challenges created by other peoples perceptions, those people who want to will.

Why are open teaching/learning philosophies important?

I can't really offer a discussion as to why this is important.  Why not?  The whole world is moving around us, if we don't move with it, we will just get dizzy.

If you want a cogent professional argument - we are ultimately employed to serve the needs of the industries that we love, and our students, who deserve the best that we can do.  We cannot do this with a closed mind.

Notes:

1. Yes, it is me.  Just because I said pedagogy, it doesn't mean the aliens stole my body.  Honest.

Tertiary Education Strategy

Meeting the Needs - Tertiary Education Strategy 2010 - 15

Having just re-read the strategy, I am as depressed now as I was when I read it hot off the press.  There is a clear message to tertiary education providers - 'Please do more for less, and if you can't, we will hold you accountable for the failure of the primary and secondary education system over the last 13 years'.

It is a big ask.

The Government's Vision

According to the Tertiary Education Strategy, 'The Government's vision is for a world-leading education  system that equips all New Zealanders with the knowledge, skills and values to be successful citizens in the 21st century.'

Meeting the Needs

The Money

One of the first things that becomes obvious is that the Government is not planning on creating this 'world leading education system' by increasing the education budget.  The strategy is littered with comments about 'difficult choices' page 2, and 'significant fiscal constraint' page 3.   The Government's financial view is summed up on page 23.  'The economic recession is also raising demand for tertiary education...' 'These factors mean that the Government, our agencies and individual organisations, need to make clear choices about the priorities for investment and access, and the more efficient use of resources.'  In other words, do more for less or funding will be cut.

That there isn't enough money to go round is hardly surprising in a world were the headline news is the possible financial meltdown of Europe - a whole continent up against the wall financially.  Throwing money at education isn't necessarily the answer.  What is clear, is that students are coming to tertiary education less and less prepared to take on the responsibility of being adult learners.  The primary and secondary education systems have failed, and tertiary education is expected to save everyone (efficiently of course).  The ambulance is at the bottom of the cliff - of course the failure rate is high.

Priorities 
The Government has developed a set of priorities for budget spending.  To summarise, the people focused priorities are:

• Increase the number of students aged under 25 gaining qualifications at level four or above.
• Increase the number of Maori students succeeding at higher levels.
• Increase the number of Pasifika students succeeding at higher levels.
• Improve literacy, numeracy and language skills.

The provider focused priorities are:

• Qualification and course completion rates.
• Industry related outcomes - programmes that serve industry needs and lead to employment
• Qualifications that are level 4 and above, with an emphasis on degrees.
• Programmes that lead directly to higher study or literacy and numeracy gains.
• Research
• International linkages and collaboration.

Strategies
The Government has developed several strategies to achieve it's priorities.  These include:

• Reduction in funding for level 1-3 courses
• Reduction in the duplication and proliferation of qualification - TROQ (the Targeted Review of Qualifications is currently under-way)
• Further targeting of young people (under 25) for better returns
• Provider funding will be linked to student performance
• Provider performance to be published

Impact on Flexible Delivery

As always there are opportunities and challenges in any Government strategy.  The most obvious concern is that of qualification and course completions.  On the face of it, it is sensible to target funding at courses that have high completion rates, but the statistics can never take into account the learning and personal progress that students can make even when they do not pass.  The classic distance programme tends to have very low completion rates that would impact severely on provider funding and reputation.  The challenge is to design flexible courses that do not fall into the distance trap.

How To - In theory at least

In theory is should be business as usual, but we all know that there is always room for improvement.  To respond to the  Tertiary Education Strategy, flexible courses should be designed, so that they:

• Respond to an industry need
• Contribute to a level 4 or above qualification
• Staircase into higher qualifications
• Allow for equity and inclusiveness
• Are culturally safe and inclusive
• Cater for younger students (under 25)
• Embed literacy and numeracy skill development
• Are efficient
• Engage students in a way that encourages success
• Provide pastoral care
• Reach more people to build a knowledge rich society

Quite a demanding list, but one that most lecturers are try to achieve on a day to day basis.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it always feels like the Government is trying to undermine the staff at the education coalface.  However, flexible learning could well be the platform that will deliver everything the Government want.  Tertiary education is on the brink of changing forever.  How quick that change can happen, and what the future will look like, remains to be seen. 

Blended Learning Strategies

One of the problems is that I have so many ideas for flexible delivery buzzing away in my head that I would have to clone myself in order to achieve anything.

For 'Blended Learning Strategies' I have decided to focus on plant propagation, a practical class that I deliver in the polytechnic nursery.

The assessment for this course is currently naturally occurring evidence of plants propagated, and accurate records of plants propagated.

Strategies

1. Provide an opportunity for students to consolidate practical skills demonstrated in class.
2. To reinforce underlying knowledge.
3. Provide an opportunity for distance students to gain knowledge and demonstrate skills.

Content

• Teacher creates videos of demonstrations of practical skills.
• Teacher creates written supporting notes.
• Teacher provides reading list.

• Teacher provides in class verbal instructions.
• Teacher provides in class background knowledge
• Teacher provides in class visual aides - illustrations and examples of best practice
• Teacher provides in class mentoring

• Teacher provides content, prompts and guides on wikieducator or other open source format.

Activities

• Students view videos - and answer questions
• Students do guided readings of supporting notes - and do quiz or answer questions

• Students practice skills in class - or at distant location.

Communication

• In class students work in buddy/mentoring system with class partner and provide feedback on each others work.

• Students explain the propagation process providing numbered steps via a  group blog

or

• Do a oral version in class with their class partner.

• Teacher provides positive reinforcement
• Teacher provides feedback on progress

• Students share their experiences via a blog or diary - teacher provides feedback.

• Teacher is available after class, via phone and email.

Assessment  

• Naturally occurring evidence of plants propagated in class and application of propagation theory
• Propagation records correctly maintained.

or

• Students provide video of themselves demonstration skill
• Students provide video or photographic evidence of plants propagated
• Students provide evidence of propagation knowledge via blog.

Thought of the moment

There is nothing so soul destroying as having to wade through a 72 slide presentation.

Access and Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity

Many years ago I was required to play a lecturer in a teaching role play.  The scenario went like this:

A female student on an arboriculture course was terrified of chainsaws.  I as the lecturer, was supposed to take the chainsaw apart and hand the disassembled chainsaw to the student bit by bit whilst talking to her in a tone that would suggest I was trying to back her of a very high ledge.  My polite, but blunt suggestion, that any competent lecturer should be giving some serious career advice at this point, did not go down well.

Many years later, it would be nice to think that I have a more sophisticated view of diversity and inclusiveness, but I would still offer alternative career advice to any budding arborist who sobbed every time they saw a chainsaw.

My belief in the right to access education, may be burning bright, but so is my disgust at settings students up to fail.

Here is the challenge.

Universal Design and Inclusiveness in Learning

'Consider the needs of the broadest possible range of users from the beginning.' Ron Mace, Architect

When we look at a beautiful piece of architecture, it is the form that captures our eye and imagination,  but it is the function that captures our hearts.  Good design has an elegance of purpose.

Looking at 'Universal Design for Learning: A framework for access and equity' the message is elegantly simple:

' - Not one size fits all
  - Design from the beginning; not add on later
  - Increase access opportunities for everyone'

By using the framework we can design courses and programmes in a way that allows students 'Multiple means of representation', 'Multiple means of action and expression' and 'Multiple means of engagement'.  Put simply, students will have:

'More ways to access
More ways to participate
More ways to demonstrate learning'

Let's be honest, this isn't rocket science.  So why is is so difficult?

In vocational training, there is a conflict between education and industry.  In the example of the student who is afraid of chainsaws, it might be fair to advise a student that they may struggle to work in the industry, but it is it appropriate to deny a student education, unless there are serious safety implications?

The horticulture industries requires employees who:

• are physically fit
• have good practical skills and attention to detail
• are bright with good literacy and numeracy skills
• can self motivate

This is a big list, and not every students will be able to tick all the boxes.  What happens to those people who can't? do we deny them an education?

For me the answer lies in the possible difference between education and training.  Personally,  the word education implies a learner focus.  Focusing on the needs of the learner allows us to design for equitable access to knowledge, and we can be more inclusive of the diverse needs of our students.  We also create a knowledge rich society.  Conversely, the word training suggests a focus on producing graduates that match industry needs.  Trying to match both needs at the same time create its own problems.   How do you measure success against such a dichotomy of needs?  Educational institutes measure success by statistics - retention, success, graduation numbers, employment statistics.  For some, success can be as simple as a 'well done', an awakening sense of achievement, finally grasping a concept or growing a beautiful plant.

Examples of Inclusive Teaching

Like most students, horticulture students are very diverse.  Some students are strong kinaesthetic learners, who prefer to do practicals; some students particularly enjoy the classroom environment; other students combine, to a greater or lesser extent, these two learning preferences.

Historically, the horticulture certificates were proscribed programmes.  The only choice was between the Amenity Horticulture programme and the Landscape programme.  As a result of the lack of choice, students who might prefer to be outside working, may be in a classroom learning about soil or legislation.

The horticulture programmes have been changed to give students more options.  Students can now choose subject modules that best suit their needs.

• Plant production 1                            practical
• Plant production 2                            mostly practical
• Landscape Design 1 and 2               theory and drawing
• Landscape Construction 1 and 2      practical
• Sustainable growing                         practical and theory
• Plant knowledge                              theory

We can not always remove the barriers in some subject areas, but we can offer subjects that contain few barriers.

More direct examples of inclusive teaching and assessment regularly include:

• Information given in a variety of formats including written, oral, visual, demonstration, practical (practice), discussion, and student research - utilising traditionally teaching methods and using IT learning platforms
• Written assessments changed to formal oral assessment or more informal discussion 
• Individual assistance catering to student needs when required

Within the department, a great deal of time an effort goes into individually supporting students in their learning, and trying to find appropriate way for them to demonstrate their knowledge.

A classic example would be plant identification assessments.  Students are usually give unnamed plant samples and are required to write down the correct botanical name in a test.  Other assessment methods have included oral assessments (the student tells the lecturer the plant name), and word match (the student matches a card with the plant name to the correct plant), plant collections (the student finds an example of the plant, photographs or presses it, and writes a plant label).  All these examples demonstrate a student's ability to identify a plant. 

Issues of access and equity

There are two main issues of access and equity within the horticulture programmes, they are:

• Physical ability
• Unit standards

Physical ability
Physical ability can be an issue of teaching, but it is more commonly an issue for assessment.  For example, a student who has broken a leg can learn how to build a dry stone wall by: demonstration, video, diagrams, and reading instructions.  Unfortunately the same student would not be able to demonstrate their ability to build a stone wall.  There are times when the ability to draw or describe a task isn't enough.  You wouldn't want a surgeon to have only described an operation and not actually performed it. 

Equally, a student who is very afraid of heights is going to miss vital learning, and will be unable to demonstrate competence for many of the courses within an arboriculture programme.

For some courses students need  be able to physically take part in the 'active learning', and must be able to demonstrate practical competence. This is often not helped by some unit standards that do not provide for equity of assessment.

Unit standards
Unit standards are documents produced by the industry training organisation, and contain the assessment criteria for each course of study with the horticulture programmes.  Unit standards have many advantages, but they are not always equitable. Many unit standards within the horticulture field are very specific about what is acceptable evidence of competence for each course.  Practical units require a physical task to be completed, there are no alternative, and some theory units specifically require the evidence to be in writing.   For example, some of the plant identification units require a student to 'write the correct plant name using the correct botanical format'.  No oral testing or word matching is allowed, and even spelling mistakes or underlining the wrong part of the plant name, would be considered unacceptable.  This is a nightmare for any student with dyslexia, or who has difficulty decoding words.

Defining Access and Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity in Horticulture

I cannot easily provide a definition.  I will suggest some personal guidelines:

Everyone is entitled to the truth, but it is not a blunt instrument used to hurt and crush people.
It is important that students make informed decisions, if they are likely to find a course or programme challenging, then they should be told about the challenges.  They have the right to develop strategies to overcome any barriers.  Can we offer a better option, or different path?  Once the student is fully informed, it is their choice (safety issues excepted).

We are here to educate, not just train
Just because we may suspect that a student is not an ideal industry candidate, it does not prevent them from learning about horticulture.  We remove barriers from industry by first removing barriers to learning.

We facilitate learning
We try everything we can think of to help our students learn and if that doesn't work, we ask others for their ideas.

We do not tolerate discrimination, or allow disrespect

We support
We listen, we hand out tissues, we seek guidance from those who can help.

To summarise, my definition of Access and Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity in Horticulture is:

'The right of all students to make informed choices, and to access education in a safe and supportive environment.'

Flexible Learning Plan

There are many projects that I have planned for flexible learning, but the official one is to create a plant selection course delivered on-line.  The course is theory based and the unit standard is non-proscriptive on how evidence of competence is gathered.  This opens up the assessment to a combination of visual, written or oral evidence using either traditional (e.g. handwritten), or IT formats.

Ideally learners will need access to a computer with broadband internet, but references, reading lists and assessments could be posted out.  Students without internet access would need to be contacted by phone to provide learning assistance and social connection.  It would be possible to successfully complete the course without interaction, but it would be a sterile learning environment.

The only barriers to learning that I can envision, are significant reading difficulties, and visual impairment.  An assessment could be created using audio recordings, but I do not know what resource material would be available.

Example of Flexible Delivery

I am fortunate enough to have seen some excellent examples of flexible delivery throughout the polytechnic, but I openly admit that I sometimes struggle to envision how I can adapt these to horticulture.  Therefore I am going to take a different approach.  Instead of looking at the big picture and trying to focus it into my subject area, I am going to focus on my subject area and expand out.  The key is to keep expanding beyond my own limits.  Let's hope.

Case Study 

Diploma in Horticulture - delivered by the Central Otago Campus, Cromwell

The Diploma in Horticulture is delivered using a combination of on-line learning (using Moodle) and block courses.

Students

The programme was specifically developed to cater for students who:

• Already hold the National Certificate in Horticulture
• Are already working within the horticulture industry (mostly within fruit production/viticulture in Central Otago)
• Are studying to up-skill, or may need a diploma to gain a managerial position

Background Information

 The Diploma in Horticulture has been designed to study part time, often over two or three year.

• The programme is mainly theoretical, with one practical unit.
• The programme is largely prescribed, with one elective course. 
• Accreditation of prior learning or experience (apl) is possible for individual courses or the entire programme.

Moodle

The following resources are used within moodle:

·         Images

·         Text

·         Reading lists

·         PDF files

·         Word documents (usually for assessments)

·         ISpring (to convert PowerPoint files)

·         Excel spreadsheets

·         Moodle books

·         Audio files

·         Tests

·         Links to websites (list format)

·         Links to websites (embedded in text)

·         Links to specific documents on the internet

Student communication:

• News forum (not really used)
• Embedded email addresses
• Email contact via the profile page
• Phone
• Text
• Face to face

Student Experience


The Diploma in Horticulture is in it's second first phase of development - a complete programme, excellent content, well supported by staff, but without some of the technological innovations that some of the older flexible programmes have developed.

The student experience is one of consistent dependability and reliability.  This works well as most students are already working within the horticulture industries, and many will have already studied as distance students receiving traditional printed packs.

The programme is about to undergo a revamp, and will only get better and better.

Discussion

The Diploma in Horticulture will be analysed against an adapted version of the ‘Dimensions of Flexibility’ developed by Collis and Moonen (2004)

I have decided to attach a numerical value to the ‘Fixed – Flexible’ scale.  1 represents completely fixed, 7 represents completely flexible.

Dimensions of flexibility
Time	Fixed                         Flexible       1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Starting and finishing the course	5	Most courses within the programme can be started at any time and are only constrained by the polytechnic student management system (course occurrences).  Finish dates are calculated in accordance with government requirements for funding. The practical course has a specific requirement for time period and hours worked. Two courses within the programme are delivered via block course.
Submitting assignments and interacting within the course	4	Assignments will need to be submitted before or at the course finish date.
Tempo/pace of study	5	Work will have to be completed by the course finish date, but eh daily/weekly tempo is flexible.
Moments of assessment	5	Theory units require a written assignment to be submitted before or at the course finish date.
Content	Fixed                         Flexible       1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Topics of the course	2	Prescribed programme with one elective opportunity
Sequence of different parts of the course	4	Programme sequence is optional, but there is a recommended order – some courses build on previous courses. Parts of the programme are delivered by block course (2 courses).  The block courses are not delivered every year, attendance is recommended.
Orientation of the course (theoretical, practical)	1	Fixed
Key learning materials of the course.	6	Various - delivery via Moodle              There are two block courses – one topic could be completed via moodle alone. No video conferencing has been set up – to the best of my knowledge.
Assessment standards and completion requirements	1	Fixed
Entry requirements	Fixed                         Flexible       1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Conditions for participation	1	National Certificate in Horticulture (Level 4) or higher
Instructional approach and resources	Fixed                         Flexible       1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Social organisation or learning (face to face; group; individual)	4	Largely fixed. Mostly distance via moodle Students in Central Otago have individual face to face support from the programme co-ordinator Block courses offer group face to face learning Students can organise their own study groups – but they do not use the moodle forums
Language to be used during the course	2	Fairly formal
Learning resources: modality, origin (instructor, learner, library, WWW)	7	Varies from course to course, but a good range is offered including both instructor led and student led options.
Instructional organisation of learning (assignments, monitoring)	2	Fairly fixed The practical unit has a log book that contains a greater level of flexibility
Delivery and logistics	Fixed                         Flexible       1   2   3   4   5   6   7
Time and place where contact with instructor and other students occur.	4	Synchronous (phone) contact will be limited to certain office hours. Asynchronous contact can occur at any time.
Methods, technology for obtaining support and making contact.	3	Technology use is limited.  Moodle forums are available along with face to face contact (for local students), email and phone contact.
Types of help, communication available, technology required	3	Basic but effective
Location, technology for participating in various aspects of the course.	4	Other options are available, but realistically a student needs a computer with broadband access. Software requirements are Microsoft office. The limited use of technology is an advantage. Location is not important, but much of the programme content is Central Otago focused. To attend the block course, student are physically located in Cromwell Students need to do a practical with the horticulture industries.
Delivery channels for course information, content, communication.	3	Currently fixed with moodle being the only platform. Letter, email, text and phone are all option for communication

Conclusion

Total score 66 divided by 19 questions equals      3.5.

Time                                                                             4.8

Content                                                                        2.8

Entry requirements                                                     1

Instructional approach and resources                      3.8

Delivery and logistics                                                 3.4

Within the constraints of the polytechnic environment, the Diploma in Horticulture manages to be a fairly flexible programme that caters well for the needs of the learner. 

It is interesting to note that most flexible areas, e.g. resources and materials, are as a result of staff input, and many of the weaker or less flexible areas are as a result of academic  requirements.

There are always opportunities to make a programme more flexible in terms of technology use, and communication methods, but delivery logistics are often controlled by the educational institute and content dictated by industry needs.  Greater flexibility does not always guarantee a better outcome for the student, or guarantee quality.  Industry appropriateness and academic rigour still remains the driving forces behind most of what we are trying to achieve.

Appendix - Communication between myself and Raewyn Paviour, Cromwell Campus

Hi Lisa, I have written my answers in red alongside your questions.  I hope it works, so please let me know asap if you have received it as I have intended.

Hope it helps

 Hi Raewyn, I hope you are well.

I need to study examples of flexible learning within the polytech, and the Diploma in Horticulture is an obvious choice.  Could you possibly give me a quick rundown on how it runs. 

E.g.

• How long does it usually take  2-3 years as the students are working full time and studying part time.
• Are there assessment deadlines, sort of as the occurrences  are 9 months duration
• Does the student have to start at a particular time of the year – how do the occurrences run?  As the occurrences are 9 months, they often run into the next year
• Can a student do the programme without computer access – yes but not as efficiently

The questions and areas of discussion that I am looking at are:

Who are the students?  Mainly supervisors or property managers, mature and motivated

Then the five dimensions of flexibility, which are:

• Time
• Content and course
• Entry requirements NCH level 4 or equivalent
• Instructional approaches and resources
• Delivery and logistics – moodle, coordinator & block courses

Take care and best wishes

Lisa

Augmented Reality

I am positively bouncing with excitement about the possibility of using augmented reality as a tool for teaching plant identification.  I bet you didn't expect that!

A special thank you goes to Dr Thom Cochrane for inspiring me and Bronwyn Hegarty for making it happen.

http://thomcochrane.wikispaces.com

What is flexible learning?

The following are replies from my colleagues about what flexible learning means to them.

Reply One


What does the term Flexible Learning mean to you?

Flexible learning or flexible delivery?

Flexible delivery/ learning is a finance driven approach to delivering education more cheaply, by not having to supply venue, materials etc to offsite students. It enables a much larger staff/student ratio.  It has its place in making available resources  and online assessments but in my opinion, and that of students i have spoken to, who are doing “distance learning “ It is not as effective as the hyperbole suggests as a means of .

Why is it necessary to use a more flexible approach in your work?

Educationalists are under pressure are under pressure to deliver ( what appears to be) more for less, in order to maintain our jobs and positions and to keep our courses open , we must be seen to be doing what the academics who drive these trends would have us do.

The rise in the internet does make options for the presentation and sourcing of course materials more varied and hence, presentation of those materials can be more adaptable.

What do you need to explore to make this happen?

The internet, computers, various programmes and systems

What goals do you have for using Flexible Learning in your work?

Making more course material available through shared drives, develop some on line assessment.

Get through to the end of the year.




Reply Two


Another colleague replied via their blog. 

Life, the universe, everything and flexible learning

Thanks to Douglas Adams, we now know that the answer to 'Life the universe and everything' is of course 42.  The key is in understanding the question.

When I think about flexible learning and what it means, I realise that my thoughts seem to keep growing.  One answer leads to many more questions.  So let's start small and see where we go.

In summary:

What does flexible learning mean to me?

At this point, to me, flexible learning means the ability to study what you want, when you want.

Why is a more flexible approach necessary?

I mentioned some of the reasons to become more flexible in my post 'Getting on with it', but to summarise they can be listed as:

Outside the department

• Innovate or die - changing society expectations
• Otago Polytechnic the 'Brand' - institute pressures to keep up with the play

Inside the department

• Give all our students more options in study and qualification outcomes
• Increase out student base
• Facilitate learning for distance students and those who cannot study 9 - 5
• Help students to staircase into advanced or higher qualifications
• Reduce the teaching load created by teaching one to one and specialist tutorials
• Improve the experience of our in class traditional students - this is the hardest area for me to visualise at the moment and will be my biggest challenge.

What do I need to explore to make this happen?

The obvious answer to this question, is that I need to explore technology, social media, and education innovations.  There are two less obvious barriers that I need to consider, and they are nature and myself, or my nature!

Nature isn't that flexible.  In horticulture certain tasks have to be completed at specific times of the year, and only in the appropriate weather conditions.  We spend a great deal of time selecting the units that we teach and putting our timetables together.  Everything has to be carefully planned to enable us to prune roses at the right time of year, or have examples of leaf rollers (a plant pest) to show to the class.  Wet weather alternatives are all planned in because you can't dig the soil or prune plants when it is wet.  This automatically removes some of the flexibility.  Nature herself (itself?) controls timing, sequencing and environmental conditions.

Theory can be delivered with relative ease using any format you choose, but what about practical skills?  Most of our students choose horticulture because they are drawn to the practical component of the programme.  They are often kinaesthetic learners.   It is surprisingly difficult to learn a practical skill from reading instructions or even watching a video.  Not all the tasks can be practised at home in the average garden.

Another big question is always going to be over practical assessment.  Are photographs and video enough to demonstrate that a student is competent at a task?  Students can write about their experiences, but it would not be accepted by the industry.

There are answers to all these questions, and solutions to all these problems, but they will require a great deal of work and some very flexible thinking.

This leads me to an interesting barrier - my inflexibility.  I am open to new ideas, but I need a damn good shove to get me there.  It all takes a lot of work, and the process of changing my mindset can be painfully slow at times.  So the biggest challenge will be to explore and challenge my own boundaries and beliefs.

What goals do I have?

As I have already mentioned elsewhere, my short term goal is to set up a course on moodle or wikieducator, using dynamic content and best practice.  Long term goals include multiples courses/programmes.

My longer term goal is to look at how flexible learning can become part of the classroom experience.

Thought of the moment

Not feeling that social

The interesting thing about social media is that it is designed for the socially minded.  I am not that social.    I like to have my own thoughts wrapped around me, they swirl and change and make interesting patterns.  When I talk to people I can see their faces and the swirling patterns of their thoughts and ideas wrapped around them.

I am struggling with the idea of blogging, even on  a professional level.  The act of sharing my thoughts and writing into the black whole of the internet makes me feel exposed.  Reading the thoughts of others seems like some strange intrusion, like I have sneaked a peak at a diary.

This may not be rational or logical, but it is oddly real.

The Point?

Not everyone wants to share in a public forum.  Over the years we have had students become distressed because we have asked them to tell a little something about themselves and why they want to study horticulture.  For many the idea of using a blog would be helpful - it is remote and removes some aspects of social accountability.  For others, that very remoteness creates a disconnect.  Where is the information going? who can read it? what will people think of me? how will I know?  We work hard to create a safe learning environment in the classroom, and need to work just as hard to create a safe environment for flexible learning.

For some people however, the barriers will persist.

Getting on with it

Introduction

Me, myself and I

I should introduce myself.  My name is Lisa Short, and I am Mum to a beautiful little girl called Briar.  It seems odd to start with information about my personal life, but it is the essence of who I am as a person.  

I work in the School of Natural Resources, or Horticulture as we often call it.  Natural Resources is now officially part of ABE, although we have been based at L Block for a few years now.  I was originally employed to teach the Diploma in Horticulture, but after ten years, I have taught many different courses and programmes within the horticulture field.  There is probably a pun in there somewhere.


I am currently teaching on the National Certificate in Horticulture (Level 4), and my current focus is Plant Propagation and Landscape Design.  I also facilitate the Diploma in Horticulture, an on-line 'distance' programme developed by the Cromwell campus.  We will get to this later.

Horticulture

Horticulture can be a profession, a science or a trade, depending on how far, or where, you want to take it.  Many of our students are very practical, and prefer to be 'doing' rather than sitting in a classroom, others are very interested in the science and background information.  We try very hard to cater for the individual learning needs of our students.  Regardless of whether we are running a practical or teaching theory subjects, the reality is that horticulture deals with nature, and nature is a dynamic changing system.  The most effective way to teach horticulture is in the field.  The challenge, is to teach flexibly and still try to maintain that connection.

Flexible delivery

So Far

• As well as our on campus students, we have students based at the botanic garden.  These students work full time, and study towards the National Certificate in Horticulture (Advanced) (Level 4).  Learning material is delivered by weekly tutorials, printed learning packs, block courses, and on job training.

• The Diploma in Horticulture is traditionally considered a distance programme, that is delivered through industry experience, on-line via Moodle, and block courses.  The programme has been designed to be studied part time whilst being employed with the horticulture industry.  In Dunedin, the programme is usually studied full time, but there is only one weekly tutorial.  This gives the student the flexibility to study where or when they want, but the schedule of assessments is controlled.

• In addition to this, a couple of colleagues use either Moodle or Wiki educator as part of their teaching tool box.

• Personally, as well as using Moodle for the diploma programme, I use the I: drive, and Moodle to store resources, and copies of PowerPoints.  My Moodle site is best described as a library of information, which is why it is called The Study Room.

Oddly enough, for someone who has managed to become a technological dinosaur, I quite like technology.  (Even if I freely admit that it may take a while for me to fully embrace social media.)


We are a very small School, and somewhere in the back of my mind a little voice is saying 'innovate or die'.  From a more pragmatic view point, I use Moodle to reduce the amount of wasteful printing that I do, and at the same time make sure that resources are available to students at all times.

The Plan

• We teach a one year certificate, which staircases into a two year advanced certificate.  For students who wish to do the advanced certificate, we try to give the students as many options as possible, but it is impractical to teach (face to face) a course for one or two students.  Flexible delivery would allow us to increase the number of options that we can give to our students.

• There are students throughout the country who would like to staircase from their current certificate to the advanced certificate - flexible delivery would allow us to facilitate that.

• In addition, there are always students who wish to study part time, or cannot simply stop working to become a full time student.

• And finally, I have vague unformed ideas about using net-books in class, and students driving their own learning... but that may be part of another discussion later on.

The Goal

My overall goal is to set up a full course (Plant Selection) on moodle using dynamic content/best practice rather than simply sticking on a few pdf files and some hyperlinks.

Flexible Learning Thought of the Moment

Flexible Learning Thought of the Moment

Self discipline, planning and time management are vital skills for any student wishing to undertake flexible learning.

I am already weeks behind in my study. There is always something more important or urgent to do, and the time set aside for study vaporises under the pressures of professional and personal responsibility.

I am constantly astonished by how hard some of our students work to overcome their learning barriers and achieve amazing results.

Barriers to learning

I haven't even had time to reflect, and I have already encountered my first learning barrier, technology!

I can only see half of my editing tools, leaving me to guess what the icons might be trying to tell me.  I am already frustrated, and I feel slightly stupid.  In reality, I can almost certainly get this fixed, but if I was isolated from my lecturer and fellow students, I would just turn off.

Welcome

Rosa canina, briar, dog rose

Welcome to my professional development blog.  I would normally consider blogs to be for those people who should maybe get out more often, but I am exciting about how we can create professional blogs that can engage our students.

I am ready to be converted!