Report on National Work-Based Learning Conference (held at Goodenough College, London in July 2009)
To view or download the presentations shown on the day, please click here.
The occasion was the first National Work-Based Learning (WBL) Conference; the venue was the splendid Goodenough College in the heart of Bloomsbury, London; the audience comprised 65 delegates from WBL providers and FE colleges representing a broad spectrum of vocational areas including Health and Social Care, Engineering, IT, Hairdressing, and Veterinary Nursing; and the result was a resounding success!
Delegates arrive in the splendid Goodenough College
Organised jointly by three JISC Regional Support Centres (RSCs) - London, Eastern and South East - the conference delivered a packed schedule of topical presentations covering a wide variety of technology-assisted learning themes that are assuming ever increasing importance within the WBL sector. From the word go delegates were encouraged to interact with some of the technology on show by uploading comments and views throughout the day from their mobile phones to a ‘text wall’.
Strategic Overview
Victor Farlie, Chair of the London Work-Based Learning Alliance (LWBLA) kicked off the proceedings with a stimulating strategic overview of the sector from a senior management perspective. This opening session gave the audience an overview of the long-term trends in WBL provision covering key issues such as business trends, strategic drivers and the consequences of agency restructuring. Farlie rounded things off with an examination of the relationship between employment and skills provision and the uncertainty of employer demand. Summing up, he emphasised that IT investment should be all about reducing business cost, improving the learner experience and raising productivity - not about under-used pet projects and expensive toys.
Opening speaker Victor Farlie
Mobile Technologies
Following the opening presentation, Ron Mitchell and Danny Atwere from the Learning and Skills Network (LSN) provided an illuminating insight into the world of mobile technology and the innovations currently available to both learners and assessors. Their presentation focused on the many free applications that can be downloaded from the web to the plethora of small communication and evidence-gathering devices already owned by so many learners (ie mobile phones, games consoles and MP3 players). Atwere also highlighted the advantages of working in partnership with FE colleges and applying for a MoLeNET grant.
Danny Atwere from the Learning & Skills Network
Social Media Tools
Social Media and Learning Consultant Jane Hart presented some very interesting views on current models of technology-based teaching and learning. She postulated how the majority of e-learning simply replicates the traditional ‘sage on the stage’ model of teaching and learning and how technology must harness the ever increasing amount of informal learning taking place through the organised use of social media tools. She highlighted how these tools need to be employed to help students collaborate, co-create and work and learn together and discussed the way such tools are beginning to enter and transform the traditional formal learning environment. Hart identified many of the drawbacks to these social media tools (security, data privacy and the overwhelming choice) and suggested practical solutions in the form of several emerging social learning platforms.
Social Media & Learning Consultant Jane Hart
Moodle for WBL
The day’s events continued with an introduction to Moodle by Richard Goddard from Learning Objectivity. The presentation gave a brief but comprehensive overview of Moodle and how it can be used to support teaching and learning in a WBL context. In particular, Goddard emphasised the flexibility of Moodle, illustrating how this learning platform can be used for administration, communication, documentation, personalisation, assessment, revision, reinforcement, active learning and collaboration.
Richard Goddard from Learning Objectivity
Delegates had ample opportunity to network during lunch in the College’s spectacular baronial hall, after which the afternoon sessions continued with two presentations on e-portfolios.
e-Portfolios
First off the mark were Tori Pickup and Katrina Steadman from Introtrain, an Oxfordshire-based provider that has adopted Skillswise to support its NVQ assessment process in hairdressing. Despite the difficulties in encouraging vocational providers to adopt e-portfolios, Introtrain has successfully embraced this technology and has now established its use amongst learners at all levels.
Katrina Steadman from Introtrain
Pickup explained how they use their e-portfolio alongside some of the more conventional methods of evidence gathering to assist those learners that have restricted access to computers and technology.
Tori Pickup from Introtrain
The second e-portfolio presentation was from Mel Jones of NVQUK who spoke about an alternative system called e-Track and how it works with provider MIS systems. She focused on many benefits including: electronic evidence collection, transparency, effective planning, tracking progression, any time anywhere viewing access, assessment team management and field support. Jones provides support to field-based assessors by means of a remote screen-sharing application which allows her to train and support assessors throughout the UK from her base in the South East.
Mel Jones from NVQUK
Inclusion and Accessibility
Dr Simon Ball from JISC TechDis gave a very informative and enthusiastic presentation on inclusion and accessibility. Dr Ball immediately drew his audience in with an entertaining exercise to demonstrate the breadth of accessibility issues. He asked all the delegates to take a piece of paper and fold and tear it according to his verbal instructions. The variety of paper patterns held up in the air provided ample proof that accessibility is not simply limited to those with learning difficulties. Dr Ball emphasised that being accessible was all about being aware, agile, canny and giving choices. He supported this with some quick ‘easy as 1-2-3′ demonstrations of instant collaboration (EtherPad), instant video (Camstudio), instant audio (Audacity) and instant feedback (xlearn text wall). The presentation went on to give the audience a host of ideas and techniques on how to make the learners more inclusive in a lesson.
Dr Simon Ball from JISC TechDis
Electronic Voting Systems
The final speaker delivered a hands-on session using audience-response technology, otherwise known as electronic voting systems. Rob Anderson from Qwizdom gave a highly interactive presentation with the audience using small wireless consoles to respond to a series of simple questions. The answers and feedback were presented instantly on screen in various formats with Anderson illustrating how easy it is to group captured data by individual, gender or any other pre-programmed criteria.
Rob Anderson from Quizdom
The day was rounded off with traditional questions and answers plus a discussion based on some of the important issues uploaded by delegates onto the ‘text wall’. Feedback on the day was very positive and in answer to the question: "Would you attend a similar event next year?"…the response was an enthusiastic and unanimous "Yes"!
To view or download the presentations shown on the day, please click here.
For further information please contact:
Kaye Bachelard
e-Learning Adviser (Work-Based learning)
JISC RSC South East
Mobile: 07809 595207
k.bachelard@kent.ac.uk