help i need somebody! a study into the effectiveness of instant messaging for tutorial and pastoral...
TRANSCRIPT
Help I Need Somebody!A study into the effectiveness of Instant Messaging for tutorial and pastoral support
By Dominic Gore and Matthew Northall University College Birmingham
Tuesday 9th April 2013
C_M_U_E_ _E_I_T_D C_M_U_I_A_I_N
1 2 3 4
0% 0%0%0%
1. I X V I D M U X X O A P M X
2.E M G X V I T T R A I U L C
3.E O X B C M A B Q Z A P O C
4.R M C T A N O T O P M O E D
A little fun before we begin... Can you guess the word?
3
Presentation Contents• Project Timeline – Pre and Post 2011• Why CMC? – A Conceptual Framework and the
Technology• How it was implemented – Theoretical
Underpinning• Methodology and Evidence – How the data was
gathered and Analysed• Impact on Learning – Student Feedback and
Engagement• Future Development and Next Steps
Project Timeline -Pre and Post 2011
5
• UCB invested in what was the Wimba Suite of tools in December 2009.
• The Blackboard Collaborate Instant Messenger Research project was initialised following the identification of a need to adapt to changing avenues to communication within Higher Education.
• The initial pilot commenced in February 2010, however further iterations and developments have paved the way for more in-depth usage of the tool focussing primarily on this research to date
• The tool was initially rolled out to students and staff in the School of Education and Community
• It was intended to be used as a pastoral teaching and learning tool.
Pre - 2011
6
• HE and FE students undertaking courses often come with a wide variety of backgrounds, often have diverse professional and personal experiences, and regularly arrive with an array of additional commitments outside of the educational process.
• It was agreed that the use of Computer Mediated Communication and more specifically Instant Messaging could be the most convenient method of addressing this array of communication requirements
• Allows opportunities to communicate in non-conventional modes and also present methods to overcome the limitations presented by time constraints, distance and/or geographical barriers.
7
• BA (Hons) Education and ICT group
• 22 students progressing from the FdA Education and ICT Programme
• BA ‘top-up’ being completed in 3 semesters instead of 4 so need to provide a module taught solely online
• Original Teaching and Learning Online module has been reconceptualised from a blended learning to a ‘learn anytime’ online module
• Blackboard Collaborate Instant Messenger was used predominately as time constraints and other factors forced the 22 students to receive both academic and pastoral support online.
Post - 2011
Why CMC? -A Conceptual Framework and the Technology
9
Existing Conventional
Communication pathways
Existing Un-conventional
Communication pathways
Tutorial Support
Student Academic and Pastoral tutorial
requirements
Social Influence on
Communication
Computer/Unconventional Communication
Anxiety
Expectations Emergent from
CommunicationsIntention to Participate
Conceptual Model
10
Blackboard Collaborate Instant Messenger – The Technology• Provided a medium to experiment/research the effectiveness
of CMC for tutorial support
• UCB has already invested in Blackboard Collaborate, so the tool was already available for deployment
• Provided a medium to ensure educational directives were met
• Integrated into existing systems i.e. UCB Online (Blackboard Learn)
• Staff and student development was in place to ensure effective usage and monitoring
• Group, individual and Office Hours used to conduct academic and pastoral support
• No need to utilise 3rd party applications such as Microsoft Lync, Facebook Messenger etc.
How it was Implemented – A Theoretical Underpinning
12
Hybrid Theoretical Framework
1
2
3
4 5
Methodology and Evidence – How the data was gathered and analysed
14
• Methodological design underpinned by critical analysis of frameworks, readings and researcher’s positionality. Sultana (2007)
• Triangulation in the form of structure interviews and structured questionnaires
• Corbetta (2003) suggests “structured interviews are interviews in which each respondent is asked the same questions, using the same structure and the same wording”
• Parity between the 2 sets of data collection methods Schaffer and Kipp (2009)
• Tools pre-coded. Pre-coding has been described as a method ‘…of conceptualizing research data and classifying them into relevant and purposeful categories for the purpose of data analysis and interpretation’ (Singh, 2007).
• First and second level data analysis undertaken.
15
Preliminary Empirical Evidence
• 91% of the group (20) described themselves as ‘highly efficient’ in the use of ICT
• 81% (16) were of the belief that the BBIM tool had multiple-benefits
• Over 60% of students organised or contributed towards online ‘self-help’ sessions and reported positively upon these experiences
• About 86% (19) of the students identified social influence as a key factor in their behavioural usage intention
• Over 95% (21) highlighted that the academic centric nature of the tool made it easy to use
16
• Up to 50% of the students (from a cohort of mature P/T learners) identified that they would prefer traditional tutorial methods than electronic ones
• About 72% of students reported what might be described as a contradiction between ‘Rules’ and ‘Division of Labour.’
• A contradiction could be found between the ‘Object’ and ‘Tools’ element of the system
However and somewhat contradictory…
Can you suggest any reasons as to why students have mixed attitude towards CMC?
1 2 3 4
25% 25%25%25%1. Prefer the
interaction of speaking f2f
2. Apprehensive with the technology
3. Prefer a multi-model approach
4. Other – (If selected please
document via post-it notes)
18
Analysis, Revisions to Tool, Deployment and Implications for Practice • It is somewhat surprising that such a significant number of the respondents saw
the tool favourably?
• The structure of IM conversations (in terms of Conversation Analysis) is borrowed from face-to-face conversations with adjacent pairs like questions and answers.
• Reviewed in accordance with E-Learning to focus on group work
• Development by the students forming ‘Communities of Inquiry’
• Use of a wider set of embedded tools including the ‘Collaborate Suite’ which allowed learners to communicate synchronously and interact with learning objects in real time
• Training event for staff organised in September 2011; intention to become ‘rolling program’
19
• Research findings included contradictions in the activity system between ‘Rules’ and ‘Division of Labour.’
• Anytime screencast tutorials will be made available to learners to help overcome contradictions and barriers
• Aid in troubleshooting and reducing of initial anxiety and allow for revision and consolidation of existing knowledge
20
• A further contradiction within the activity system was between the ‘Object’ and ‘Tools’ elements
• Students were concerned that they were unable to retain what was said during online tutorials
• It is of vital importance that we as practitioners avoid assuming that learners will have knowledge of the use of all aspects of the tool
Impact on Learning – Student Feedback and Engagement
22
• Demonstration of the Blackboard Collaborate IM tool for personal tutorials.
• Student studying on the BA (Hons) Education and ICT programme
The Student Voice
Future Developments – Next Steps
24
• Further use of the tool is planned with current cohort of students and also new program areas
• Future deployment will include a series of screencasts and/or face-to-face tutorials showing how to correctly utilise all aspects of the Bb IM tool
• Plans to push the software out to a wider variety of learners across the other 4 school discipline areas
• There are plans to use Blackboard Collaborate Instant Messenger along side Collaborate Web Conferencing to support overseas dissertation students – A pilot of this is currently underway this semester
• Introduction of Blackboard Mobile Learn in December 2012, has given rise to students engaging in course content via smart devices
• Aim to revise/refocus the use of the Collaborate tools within a mobile context
