Tuesday 29 October 2013

Activity Three

Activity Three
 
Investigate and describe two examples of flexible teaching and learning

To Investigate and compare two examples of flexible teaching and learning I am going to compare Otago Polytechnic School of Veterinary Nursing with an on-line course on Pet Bereavement Counselling that I am currently enrolled in with The Blackford Institute UK.


Who are the Students?



The majority of veterinary nursing students are female with a small number of male students brave enough to attend a class where they are in the minority. The students come from all walks of life; ages from school leavers through to a spritely retirement age.

The majority of males that have been involved in the full time course in recent years have been using the CVN as a GAP year. Having completed a degree usually with a science background, they want to carry on with study but want a more hands on approach to enhance their degrees, or use it as a stepping- stone for their chosen career path.

The Blackford Centre is advertised as offering Distance Learning Courses. There are a variety of subjects offered. The Pet Bereavement Counselling Course is a self study course and is open to anyone who is prepared to pay the course fees and has an interest in that particular subject. As one of the classes I teach is about Euthanasia and helping clients through the grief process, this subject has particular relevance for me.

How are the five dimensions of flexibility integrated?

This discussion is founded on the Collis and Moonen ‘Dimensions of Flexibility’, cited in Casey, J. and Wilson, P. (2005).

Time

 
School of Veterinary Nursing:
Small degree of flexibility here. Course start and finish dates are set but late enrolments are accepted in special cases. At the end of the year data must be processed in a timely fashion to get all students finished by a certain date. The success of each course is measured by the number of graduates. Assessments have a due date that the students work towards, but extensions are given when requested. The re-sit dates are also flexible so that students are not put under too much pressure. This can be very frustrating at times as some students take advantage of this flexibility.

Pet Bereavement Course:
High degree of flexibility here. You can enrol and start this course at anytime throughout the year. Once enrolled, Modules are emailed to you every week for 12 weeks and it is up to the learner to complete. If you are unable to finish one module before the next module arrives, the only pressure comes from yourself to get things done.



Content

School of Veterinary Nursing:
We as facilitators have limited flexibility here. Content is delivered to the Unit Standard Outcomes (Elements) and Evidence requirements (Performance criteria) for each module. Topics to be covered are already decided and specific material must be covered with the students. The sequence of these topics is designed to follow in a logical order, to enhance learning. The course notes are available on-line and various text books are suggested but not compulsory. If we as facilitators wish to expand the content, we are able to do so.

Pet Bereavement Self Study Course:
The content of the course is sent to you each week. There is information about the current module, exercises to complete and assignments to write. The modules are very informative and helpful; however no extra readings are suggested so if you wish to research a topic further then it is up to the learner to do so.

Entry Requirement

School of Veterinary Nursing:
Open entry is offered for the Animal Care courses. This enables anyone to enrol and once completed, they may choose to carry on their study towards the Certificate in Veterinary Nursing via distance learning. The fulltime Veterinary Nurse course is less flexible with the minimum entry requirement being Level Two NCEA or equivalent. There is no stipulation for a science background. If a student is struggling with the workload they are given the opportunity to withdraw from some units but carry on with others.

Pet Bereavement Self Study Course:
Complete open entry. Just pay the fees and the twelve weekly modules will be sent to you. Course completion is up to the learner.

Instruction approach and resources

School of Veterinary Nursing:
Our role as facilitators is to encourage and guide our students to want to find out more…..This is where flexibility can begin. The School of Veterinary Nursing encourages flexibility by ensuring their facilitators teach subjects they are passionate about. Everyone is different in the way they approach and teach their subject. Teaching to Unit Standards can be inflexible; however, delivering the content with enthusiasm can ignite subject interest in others.

Pet Bereavement Course:
The only instructions come via the weekly Modules. The resources are online modules. There is no lecturer to contact if you need guidance in any particular area.

Delivery and logistics

 
School of Veterinary Nursing:
Flexible learning is here to stay with delivery and logistics. Although there is a requirement for distance students to attend Block Courses and for full time students to attend lectures, they are given choices in the way they want to learn. Course notes are available on-line via Moodle; these can be accessed anytime. Adobe sessions are timed to get as many students as possible to attend and are always recorded for the ones that can’t. With Moodle forums and social media, students can chat to their peers and lecturers whenever they are available. The only downside to all of this technology and consequent flexibility is the expectation that all students understand how to use it.

Pet Bereavement Course:
The delivery is completely online. Modules are sent via email. This way they are available to be completed whenever suits the learner.
Summarise your findings

This has been an interesting exercise breaking down the five dimensions of flexibility for both The School of Veterinary Nursing and the online Pet Bereavement Counselling Course. The School of Veterinary Nursing is progressing in the right direction using technology and heading towards more flexible opportunities for student learning. However we are still bound to compulsory Block courses and face to face lectures at prearranged times. Unit Standards dictate the content that must be delivered, but if time allows there is always the opportunity to expand on this. While stating the minimum entry requirement for the full time program is Level Two NCEA, there is no stipulation as to what these subjects are. A more flexible approach begins to be implemented when discussing Instruction Approach and Resources and Delivery and Logistics. This is when we as facilitators can ignite students with the passion to learn more and investigate particular subjects further.

The Pet Bereavement Course would appear to be extremely flexible in every way. Once enrolled a learner can choose to study as soon as a module arrives, or put it to one side and pick it up later when time allows. There are no formal expectations or commitment to complete the course except the personal desire to increase your knowledge.

Reflection

Otago Polytechnic School of Veterinary Nursing is moving forward with flexible learning. Reflecting on the way the courses are progressing and acknowledging technology as the way of the future ensures our students are offered many opportunities to complete their studies. Despite this, some students can still find study challenging and a few will not complete their studies as originally intended. Our role as facilitators is to find a way to keep these students motivated towards their goals. If we need to show more flexibility with start and finish dates lets investigate this further. However, with flexible start and finish dates how is success measured? How will this impact on funding from the Government? Should we measure success by individual units rather than full course completion? This may be the way forward but it may mean a complete rethink by tertiary institutions and government alike.

Studying a course that is completely online, with no deadlines to meet is a refreshing way of learning. There would appear to be no measurement of success for The Blackford Institute other than the money coming in that pays for the course to begin. Success is on a personal level. There are no teachers to guide you or peers to talk to. The only motivation comes from within and the completion of the course remains solely a personal achievement.

References



Casey, J. & Wilson, P. (2005). A practical guide to providing flexible learning in further and higher education.

The Blackford Centre

Tuesday 15 October 2013

Activity Two




What does the term Flexible learning mean to you?

The term flexible learning to me is about choice. Choosing where you want to study, when you want to study and how your personal learning will occur. Working within the School of Veterinary Nursing the majority of students are distance learners. A large number of the students hold down full time jobs and have family commitments that all impact on their time. Flexible learning allows them to choose the time and place to study that best suits them.

Reading Collis and Moonen (2001) I find there is a lot more to it. Flexible learning benefits both distance and fulltime students, who attend classes, by making education far more flexible. Instead of walking to the library in the pouring rain to research articles and reference books, now with the availability of Internet search engines we can all search in the comfort of our own home…..what did we ever do without Dr Google or wiki??

 
Why is it necessary to use a more flexible approach in your work? Hint: Think about what may help the learners and your teaching.


Both programs lean towards the blended learning approach, offering both on-line delivery and also classroom interaction. Block courses for the distance students provide the opportunity for face to face interaction. Adobe sessions give the students the opportunity to chat to their peers and attend learning tutorials with lecturers. There are also forums set up via Moodle that enable students to chat to one another, plus social media sites solely for our veterinary nursing students. Full time have the same forums available to them and all students are required to get experience in veterinary clinics to enhance their learning so that when they complete their certificate they are ready to begin work.

Looking at the Five Dimensions of Flexibility Time, Content, Delivery and Logistics, Entry requirements, and Instructional approaches and resources (Rennie 2007) makes me realize how important flexibility is for all our students. The ability to choose the path of study that best suits individuals can only enhance the learning experience.


What do you need to explore to help this happen?

Because we are encouraging our learners to be flexible we as facilitators need to be flexible as well. We tend to be available 24/7 to answer queries, reply to emails or even texts from our students. This can have an impact on family life. Our role is to encourage our learners to try and search for answers themselves. We must give them the tools that will not only motivate them to lifelong learning but help guide them in the direction they need to go. However all this assumes that the learner is motivated to learn. Being flexible does put a lot more responsibility on the shoulders of the learner. We have to be careful to ensure there is not so much choice that we lose the personal touch that face to face contact can provide.

To use flexible learning successfully, I feel that we must get to know what our students needs are, so that we can encourage and support them on their learning journey. Keeping up regular contact with the students via adobe connect, or even the new Otago Polytechnic Lync phone system, email and feedback on their assessments is important. Flexible learning is an exciting option for higher education but is it for everyone? Will all students remain motivated to succeed working towards their personal goals?


What goals do you have for using Flexible Learning in your work?

My goal for flexible learning is to find ways to keep our students motivated to complete their study in their chosen field. I would like to see them passionate about continuing their education and wanting to carry on a lifelong learning journey. On line courses will allow them the flexibility to do this. The challenge will be keep them motivated even when things get tough. The content of our courses must remain of a high standard and need to be challenging and exciting so that learners want to succeed and be proud of their achievments.
 
References :
 
Collis,B Moonan,J (2001) Flexible Learnining in a digital world. Open and Distance Learning Series. London: Kogan Page Ltd
 
Wikieducator :  Blended Learning (Staker/Horn May 2012)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flexible_learning