Promoting academic innovation by valuing and enabling disruptive designAndrew MiddletonHead of Innovation & Professional Development

@andrewmid

Introductions Hello! Why are we interested in curriculum design?

Session outline Introductions Curriculum Design @ SHU background Defining priorities for collaborative design teams Principle-based design and other approaches Designing a design lens Scenario-based design Building scenarios Devising and sharing other collaborative design methods Conclusions

Background:The Design Studio

Our Challenge: how to engage multiple stakeholders effectively in curriculum designStudents and others not directly involved in teachingWhy:breadth of experienceknowledgeperspectivesaccommodate diverse stakeholder requirementsHow:Two day design team immersive think tankPrinciple-based facilitation

disruptive design

generates alternatives

manages risksaccommodates multiple stakeholder

perspectives

suspends reality

tests different ideas safely

supports collaboration

encourages dialogue

addresses intended outcomes

changes perceptions of design

develops stakeholder relationships

develops staff

Opportunity, space and structureOpen and supportiveSpace: time, people, placeContained activityCritical friendshipCo-operation and collaborationSafe risked-based thinkingCommunal validation

Background:Why Studio?

Defining priorities for collaborative design teams

Analysing needs and identifying priorities•Radar Discussion tool

Alumni goldfish bowl - observed structured group discussion

Student evaluations (surveys or video evaluations) NSS analysis What else?

Principle-based design and other approaches

Principle-based facilitation“Rhetorical resources” – Nicol (2012) High level educational aspiration Problem domain/area of concern Practice-orientated principles A compelling narrative Examples of application Research evidence

– to focus useful conversation– e.g. stakeholder participation– e.g. graduate attributes– often set out in ‘literature’– what do the principles mean– associated case studies– associated ‘toolkits’

Key Tools Screencasts Priority analysis tool Design lens based upon the

Viewpoints (University of Ulster) method

Set of cards, each addressing ideas supporting one principle

Online resource-base (Toolkit)

Assessment & feedback lens from University of Ulster

Designing the Design Lens

Explored principles and frameworks found in academic literature on learner engagement

Reflected on their experience and expectations and generated examples of engaging practice

Generate new ideas using creativity methods (i.e. word association, photo elicitation, scenario writing)

Example: Learner Engagement development workshops for staff and students

Assessment & Feedback lens from University of Ulster

Activity: Principles of Digital LiteracyIdentify between 5 and 7 key ideas that together encapsulate what digital literacy means.

1. Ability to find, select, retrieve and use digital information

2….3.4.5.6.7.

Scenario-Based Design

“a concrete description of activity that the user engages in when performing a specific task, description sufficiently detailed so that design implications can be inferred and reasoned about”

- Carroll (1995)

“a concrete description of activity that the user engages in when performing a specific task, description sufficiently detailed so that design implications can be inferred and reasoned about”

- Carroll (1995)

Descriptions of the past, present or future

Risk-free tools for imagining the future and for asking ‘what-if..?’

Colourful narratives or process statements

'Good enough' representations of possibilities...

...or highly detailed Scenarios set the scene for

discussion Scenarios can concretise ideas for

development

About scenarios

Why use scenarios for curriculum design?Scenarios,Use diverse kinds and amounts of detailingPresent alternative consequences of actionCan be abstracted and categorisedHelp designers to recognise, capture, modify and reuse generalisations or patternsSupport reasoning Make design tasks accessible to diverse expert stakeholder groups

Scenarios address 6 challenges1. Reflect on designs and processes

2. Co-ordinate collaborative design action and reflection

3. Manage risk by having something that appears concrete and remains flexible

4. Manage the fluidity of design situations

5. Consider multiple views of an interaction

6. (Capture outputs of idea generation)

Designers have to continually make commitments without making commitments!Designers say “What if…”

Designers have to continually make commitments without making commitments!Designers say “What if…”

4 ways to use scenarios to support curriculum design

Collaborative design teams can,

1.Construct scenarios to work out and communicate their thinking

2.Construct scenarios to capture and communicate their thinking

3.Review or compare representations of existing pedagogy

4.Review or compare representations of proposed pedagogy

Forming successful scenarios - characteristics Goals, sub-goals or outcomes Settings Agents or actors playing primary or supporting roles

(descriptions of who is involved, how and why) Plot - sequences of actions and events done by or to the

actors or changes to the setting. Changes to events show how scenarios can be used dynamically to assess different decisions and outcomes.

Presenting successful scenarios Scenarios use natural language query and are presented

as short narratives and can use various media, e.g. Text Visualisations, diagrams, pictures, etc. Comic strips and storyboards Videos Multimedia Post-it notes

Activity: Facilitating the design of pedagogy to promote learner

Generate ideas for a New Staff Induction Programme using the Learner Engagement and Authentic Learning design lenses (or our Digital Literacy lens!).

Focus on a small part of the Induction Course which will be run over 3 x 2 hour workshops and be supported by online resources.

Work towards constructing a scenario statement to support the communication and evaluation of you idea

Activity: Build your scenarios!To capture and communicate your idea

Agree media

Include: Goals, sub-goals or outcomes Settings Agents or actors playing primary or supporting roles

(descriptions of who is involved, how and why) Plot - sequences of actions and events done by or to the

actors or changes to the setting. Changes to events show how scenarios can be used dynamically to assess different decisions and outcomes.

Activity: other approachesDevise and share other collaborative design methods Analyse what is needed and identify priorities Design together Capture ideas and develop them further Evaluate approaches

Breakout and feedback

ConclusionsCurriculum design activities and a key opportunity for

promoting academic innovationInvolving ‘others’ early is useful, difficult – but possible!Innovation is risky – but risk can be managed through

collaborative engagement and validation

Bryson, C., & Hand, L. (2007). The role of engagement in inspiring teaching and learning.

Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 44(4), pp.349–362. Carroll, J.M. (2000). Five reasons for scenario-based design. Interacting with Computers 13,

pp.43 – 60. Fowler, C.J.H, van Helvert, J; Gardner, M.G, and Scott, J.R. (2007). The use of scenarios in designing

and delivering learning systems. In: H. Beetham & R. Sharpe, Rethinking Pedagogy in a Digital Age:

Designing and delivering e-learning. London: Routledge Herrington, J. (2006). Authentic e-learning in higher education: design principles for

authentic learning environments and tasks. Online at:

http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/5247 Nicol, D. (2012). Principles as discourse. JISC Webinar, 20th March 2012 Nicol, D., & Draper, S. (2009). A blueprint for transformational organisational change in higher education: REAP as a case study. In: Mayes, T., Morrison, D., Mellar, H., Bullen, P. &

Oliver, M., (eds) ‘Transforming higher education through technology-enhanced learning.’ York:

Higher Education Academy. O’Donnell, C., Masson, A., & Harrison, J. (2011). Encouraging creativity and reflection in

the curriculum. SEDA Spring Teaching Learning and Assessment Conference 2011,

"Academics for the 21st Century", 5th May 2011 - 06 May 2011, Holyrood Hotel, Edinburgh.

References