Why learning and teaching at the University of Northampton is different

Dr Rachel Maxwell Head of Learning &Teaching Development

Tuesday 28th February 2017

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Strategic Challenges

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A course follows an ABL methodology if it:• Is taught through student-centred activities to

develop knowledge and understanding, independent learning & digital fluency.

• Has a core, collaborative face-to-face component, explicitly linked to learning activity outside the classroom, typically online.

• Helps to develop autonomy, Changemaker attributes and employability skills.

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Active Blended Learning: The New Normal

Preparatory work

Preparatory sense-making

activities

F2F sessionConsolidation & follow-

up

Online & F2F

Face-to-Face

Online & F2F

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOwbqaoJUoc

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A course is not taught in ABL if:• It makes regular use of non-interactive lectures, or

• NILE is primarily a content repository, or

• Online activity is merely an add-on to the face-to-face sessions, or

• There is no evidence of systematic enhancement.

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Benefits of ABL:

Staff• Do more of what you love• Ownership• Lightbulb moments• Sharing resources• Move content transmission

online• Time to trial

Students• Personalised & tailored• Flexible – where, when and how• Revision and consolidation of

learning• Application of content to practice• Better prepared• Increased ownership of learning

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Challenges of ABL:

Staff• Time!• Increasingly student-led• Heavy workload upfront• Learning how to design and

deliver online• Non-engagement /

preparation

Students• Independent learning and

autonomy• Time management• Distractions• O/L not timetabled

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What is ‘quality contact’?

• Tutor-mediated• Teaching, guidance and feedback to students• F2F and online• Onsite and off-site• Synchronous and asynchronous• Personalised tutor presence and input within a specified time-

frame• Structured• Focused• Purposeful• Interactive

} = high quality

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Non-literacy

Digital literacy

Digital competence

Digital fluency

Images by Juan P. Armellini, used by permission

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Evidence from students (1)

“Students consistently commented that they felt that they wanted more interactive classes. This was not just so that they could practically learn about their subject area, but also to develop peer relationships with their classmates, which they also linked to good future employability skills”.

Source: NUS Student Experience Research 2012 p.5, emphasis added

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Evidence from students (2)

“When asked what would most improve their academic experience, 50.2% of students said that more interactive/group teaching sessions would improve their experience”.

Source: NUS Student Experience Research 2012 p.5, emphasis added

“I prefer the seminar because I have more chance to talk to lecturers or tutors. In some lectures the tutors just talk and it’s not very efficient”.

Source: NUS Student Experience Research 2012 p.19, emphasis added

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Evidence from students (4)

“[…] the traditional model that continues to dominate in UK higher education: teaching through lectures, excessive summative assessment, slow feedback, and students working almost entirely individually. Many student complaints about the quality of their courses can be tracked back to [these]”.

Source: Comprehensive Guide to Learning & Teaching (NUS, 2015: 7), emphasis added

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Evidence from the literature

Explaining ABL to students