Pedagogical IT options: Why are they essential for the teacher designer?
- Enhance their teaching by utilizing IT solutions to enrich their traditional educational methods.
- Support students and their parents in online education and doing homework outside the classroom.
- Easily exchange learning materials with colleagues and the professional field.
- Re-use (and adapt) their learning materials.
- Students and their parents expect a modern institute to use IT.
Why is IT important for Students?
- Enhance students’ learning that would otherwise be impossible or difficult.
- Study in their own time, place, and group.
- Possibility to give feedback to the students.
- Motivate the students to study.
- Maximizing the benefits from the wealth of information accessible online.
- Provide students using ITedu tools with greater control (and responsibility) over their study activities.
- Prepare students to succeed in the 21st century.
Pedagogical IT options and evidence-based design principles in Higher Education for Blended Learning
The six design principles for blended learning are elaborated in:
- The systematic description of the separate Design Principles: Short characterisation combined with IT pedagogical options (see below).
- Overview IT Options versus ITedu Tools in Modern Higher Education (see below).
Overview IT Options versus ITedu Tools in Modern Higher Education
Elaboration of the Design Principles and pedagogical IT options for Blended Learning
Design Principle 1 ‘Options to apply IT in giving information and explanation’
Knowledge comprises facts from the discipline and procedural knowledge (analytical and systematic problem-solving strategies, etc.). Students obtain knowledge through active learning methods. Such methods include active lectures, self-study assignments, problem-based assignments, projects, internships, case studies, group discussions or the Internet.
Students must be familiar with the context of a lecture or assignment. They learn to relate their newly acquired theoretical insights to the theories from textbooks and professional literature. The teacher stimulates this deepening of knowledge in F2F lessons. By carefully selecting problems and cases, students can build a body of knowledge necessary in the (future) professional field and learn how to apply it in practical, relevant situations.
Some concepts in a domain are complex and require a more extended study period to be understood. These concepts are named threshold concepts.
See also Design Principle 1 ‘Focus explicitly on knowledge’. The IT and other pedagogical options are outlined here in greater detail.
Pedagogical IT options
- Present learning materials through VLE: video lectures, digital texts, syllabi, articles, digital explanations and other course materials. Copyright is often no problem in HE;
- Facilitate students using the internet, eBooks, virtual articles and extra background information;
- Make the presentations/lectures of the teachers or guest lecturers available on video. Students should be helped to find the relevant parts in the presentations easily;
- Use hyperlinks to additional resources on the internet;
- Connect with websites (professional) software and libraries;
- Offer additional explanations to explain complicated topics or present electives;
- Wrap your course around a course available on the internet (MOOCs and OERs);
- Use an online virtual classroom, like Zoom, Teams or the BigBlueButton (Moodle);
- Provide case studies, videos, simulations, animations and games with regular and additional information;
- Use pictures and schemes (for example, built up step by step);
- Provide a glossary with defined concepts;
- Explore information on the internet with various search options;
- Use 3D programmes with a virtual and augmented reality spectacle.
Design Principle 2 ‘Options for using IT to support self-study and classroom study‘.
Learning is an active process. Students study actively in the classroom, either in groups or by self-study, to master learning objectives instead of passively listening. This approach enables complex learning. The students learn to apply their knowledge in classroom assignments or through self-study.
The assignments focus on learning tasks relevant to the learning objectives. The students will obtain feedback after finishing the assignments. The complexity and size of the assignments will increase during the study years, motivating students to study these assignments. it options to support the self-study of students are shown in the textbox.
The teachers’ expectations concerning students’ learning are transparently described in the course program in the vle. A course’s learning objectives should be logically related to other courses and learning tracks in academic curricula.
Teachers, tutors, or both should support students’ self-study. Students should increase their capacity to study independently during their studies. Teachers’ design task is to find meaningful learning activities that stimulate students to study independently.
A suggestion in this respect is stimulating the students to study regularly instead of waiting until before the test. The simple principle behind this suggestion is that if students devote more time to studying, their results will improve. Often this is called the time-on-task principle. As a teacher, it is more stimulating if the students study the subject matter during the course. As a result, the substantive level of your lessons can often increase. A significant result can be that the test results improve, provided that the course program and the test questions are aimed at the formulated goals.
See also ‘Design Principle 1 Active Learning). The IT and other pedagogical options are outlined here in greater detail.
Pedagogical IT options
- Present the assignments through the vle. The teacher can easily include all relevant information for the case studies in the vle: pictures, Excel sheets, videos, written text and URLs. If there is no time for extra exercises in the classroom, the vle allows additional assignments with feedback that should be used in self-study. Sometimes small groups of students are organised to discuss their results;
- Increase the difficulty or complexity of your exercises or tests in the vle. The complexity and difficulty of learning activities should increase when using a sequence of assignments: the last assignment should be identical to the final test questions;
- Offer (additional) study questions, assignments, case studies, games, simulations and exercises. Provide feedback with the correct solutions and short explanations;
- Use online pedagogical tools (e.g. discussion forum, glossary, etc.) in your classroom and self-study;
- Deliver the assignment results through the vle to the teacher/students; Offer remedial teaching to help students acquire the entry-level of your course;
- Apply fixed deadlines for delivering an assignment to the teacher or fellow students;
- Discuss the results in the classroom. The teacher, tutor and fellow students can give feedback. Or provide standard answers through multiple choice questions or short answer questions;
- React to students’ results through the forum, a short video film or an online lesson. The teacher should bring the know-how of students to a higher theoretical level;
- Discuss the learning track with the students to develop their study skills. Supporting tools like checklists, formats, logbooks, timesheets and step plans are available for the students.
Design Principle 3′ Options to apply IT to strengthen preparation for the professional field’.
Correlate learning with the professional or academic field to make learning more relevant and engaging. Students can develop professional competencies, attitudes, and relevant knowledge that are necessary to succeed in their careers. The focus will be on complex learning.
Students learn to use the subject matter with real work scenarios (authentic learning). This will decrease the gap between theory and practice in the professional/academic field.
The transfer of knowledge is challenging and requires significant practice in different scenarios. Students prepare themselves for lifelong learning during their studies (see the article by Hattie in Chapter 13).
The university staff chooses competencies in cooperation with the professional and academic fields. Theory, skills, professional attitudes and 21st-century competencies are integrated into the learning activities.
Students are encouraged to build a repertoire of solved professional cases crucial to problem-based learning. Students should be involved in innovative projects and study relevant developments in the discipline. Nedermeijer & Pilot (2000) explain how to design and develop professional education focussed on professional competencies.
See also Design Principle 2 ‘Issues and problems from the professional field are central’. The IT and other pedagogical options are outlined here in greater detail.
Pedagogical IT options
- Introduce students to professional occupations through videos, professional websites, pictures, presentations by experts, case studies, projects and other assignments;
- Give assignments using authentic problems and issues from the professional field. Use real cases (from simple to complex, from easy to complicated theoretical content, from 0.5 hours to five weeks). Cases represent the typical activities, situations and problems from the professional field of the students;
- Give assignments to the students in which they have to give feedback to other students (peer feedback). Use rubrics as evaluation criteria. An important aspect is that you have to teach the students how to evaluate their colleagues. The teacher will organise some special assignments for this activity, providing test examples;
- Organise project work, other group work and internships to exercise relevant professional problems, issues and software. Provide support to the students with the available software;
- Follow the development of the competencies of the students during their educational careers with the help of a portfolio. These competencies and their assessment criteria must be compared with the professional field;
- Prepare the students at the university if they have to finish a test before entering an internship or other practical activities. Often, students are allowed to start an internship only if they have mastered the competencies of their field to a certain level. Offer additional modules and tests to support the students’ preparation.
Design Principle 4 ‘Incentivise the communication between students and between students and teacher(s)‘.
Social bonding is crucial to keeping students committed, active and on track. Students learn from each other by verbalising and exchanging their knowledge, insights and approaches. Peer learning is often applied in blended learning and moocs.
Collaborative learning effectively allows students to learn from their fellow students. Students must learn 21st-century competencies to collaborate with other professionals and clients. Tutors (e.g. teachers, volunteers and senior students) support and guide the self-study and group assignments. Ideally, tutors are available for support at specified hours.
See also: Design principle 5 Consider seriously collaborative learning and learning from fellow students. The IT and other pedagogical options are outlined here in greater detail.
Pedagogical IT options
- Provide information to students about your course through the vle or e-mail. Present the study guide, notifications and ad hoc changes in the programme and activities through a vle. Present short videos and virtual reality programmes where senior students show and explain how to study at their university/faculty. By doing this, new students will obtain a first idea of what they can expect from the course;
- Organise the teachers’ availability through e-mail, consulting hours and informal meetings before and after a lecture/workgroup. Use the possibility of a FAQ section. Often, standard answers are sufficient;
- Formulate clear procedures for e-mail handling. Set up rules for class e-mails: response time, use of decent language, standard layout, attachment format, indicating when the students can expect a reaction from the teacher, keeping a copy of the vital correspondence of separate courses under separate mail addresses;
- Support small or project groups (in your classroom) with the vle or other available software or plugins;
- Organise a buddy system, involve (student) moderators or stimulate cooperation between students living in their neighbourhood to motivate them to study regularly;
- Organise a discussion forum, a virtual classroom or E-coaching (video, chat or exchange of documents) to support the students during their studying periods outside the classroom or campus;Enable the submission of group work results or individual self-study for informal assessment by the teacher or through peer assessment;
- Stimulate F2F and online student contact before and after online sessions: e-mail, digital lessons, chat function and other software.
Design Principle 5 ‘Option to Apply IT and provide feedback’.
Through testing, the faculty can determine whether the students have the desired/expected level of competency. The study behaviour of students is strongly influenced by the content and format of the tests (constructive alignment) and the various feedback formats provided by their teachers.
Students will be more motivated if they are informed about their study progress and receive regular feedback, answering two questions: How did I do it? Am I doing it correctly and for the right purposes? Arrange for proper feedback on the performance of the students during the course.
Spreading exams over time is more effective because there is less ‘competition’ for the learning time of students when preparing for the different tests. The same applies to the test results when subsequent courses have already started.
Consider preparing a summative and diagnostic test to organise the various tests in the programme. It is good to schedule a test plan for your summative and formative tests that fits the learning objectives and methods. An extra element is to consider measuring the qualities of the summative tests, for example, by the VLE.
See also ‘Design Principle 6 ‘Testing and feedback are the motor of students’ learning’ The IT and other pedagogical options are outlined here in greater detail.
Pedagogical IT options
- Provide students with the option to do self-tests with the same difficulty and format as the final test. Performing a test is a better learning activity than reading a book twice or thrice. Students can do a progress test to evaluate whether they have already reached the expected level required by the teacher. Often, a standard checklist is available for use in the assessment.
- Provide appropriate F2F feedback through the vle (e.g. a forum, a short video film or an extra online lesson). It should be clear to the students whether their assignments and tests were correct or not and what the correct answers were;
- Discuss the results of the self-study and tests in the classroom. If necessary, provide additional explanations in the classroom and the vle. The tests might have the same level of difficulty and the same format as the final test;
- Use assignments in which the students must give feedback on the assignments of other students;
- Combine test results with the extra assignment(s) to incentivise additional study periods for students;
- Involve students in evaluating a paper or the products of other students. For example, all students must evaluate two papers with the help of a checklist (peer feedback).
- Ask students to develop test questions themselves to demonstrate their understanding. Some of these questions could be used for future test opportunities;
- Provide feedback based on the study result overview of students;
- Check for plagiarism with special software. A computer check for plagiarism is a possibility for evaluating papers and bachelor’s theses;
- Follow the progress of students with a (virtual) portfolio;
- Stimulate social (virtual) contacts before and after a lecture or workgroup.
Design Principle 6 ‘Options to Evaluate your course’
Information about students’ learning processes can be collected in the VLE and other education software. For example, Moodle and other VLEs use analytics models to collect and organize information about the progress of the study and the students’ study activities in the VLE.
Moodle also gives an overview of each student’s study results.
Another example is you can prepare, organise, and analyse a questionnaire in the VLE and other educational software.
Pedagogical IT options
- Evaluate your course with the help of the questionnaire function available in the vle;
- Analyse the results of students in the overview of the test results in the vle;
- Analyse the test results of the students. Did the students meet the learning objectives?
- Analyse the use of the course materials (and the students) with the learning analytics software in vle (surf, 2023a).
