Digital technologies and their role in achieving our educational ambitions Professorial lecture Diana Laurillard

2 Outline The challenges in our educational policy ambitions Education from the learner’s point of view Contributions from digital technologies What it takes to learn: how theory challenges technology An e-learning strategy: how policy challenges technology Supporting teachers as agents of technology innovation Getting from ‘here’ to a desirable ‘there’

3 Challenges from educational policy

4 Educational policy ambitions Better teaching and more personalised support for every child, whatever their needs An interesting, broad and rich curriculum with more choice and a wider set of out-of-hours opportunities Every young person able to develop the skills they need for employment and for life The flexibility to combine school, college and work-based training More school sixth form, sixth form college and vocational provision, to give more choice to students Every adult to be able to get and build on the skills they need for employment Lifelong learning for all – for work or for pleasure – with the widest possible array of good quality courses High quality university courses with excellent teaching Access to university for those who have the potential to benefit More and better flexible opportunities to study “To protect against entry to negative pathways and reverse those that have already begun, continued investment in educational interventions is needed across all of middle childhood. The results reported here may therefore be seen as making an important contribution to the evidence on which the case for more and continued intervention depends.” (Feinstein and Bynner, 2004) “ Our results suggest... maximizing individualization and differentiation by teaching to small groups.” (Blatchford et al., 2007) “ The question of the nature and scope of the transformation which must take place in mainstream schools if they are to become inclusive schools... has been largely ignored.... inclusion is not merely about placement into an unchanged system of provision and practice. It is about changes to the curriculum, teaching styles, organisation and support systems within schools.” (Barton and Armstrong, 2003)

5 More and better… “all young people in full or part-time education to age 18” Leitch Report, 2007 Level 1 Level 2 Level 4 Enhancing excellence in learning and teaching Widening participation Enhancing the contribution of HE to economy and society HEFCE strategy, 2006 “all schools should reflect a commitment to personalised learning in their learning and teaching policies and plans” Gilbert 2020 vision “High quality teaching” “More personalisation of learning” DfES 5-year strategy, 2005

6 How is this learning to be supported? 100k new L1 learners per year, for 6 1:20 ratio = 500 new teachers for literacy, 1000 for numeracy 10 minutes additional personal teaching per child, per week = 3000 new primary teachers. (cf +1000, pro rata in 10 years) “I worry about making sure I speak to each child individually each day – I want them to know that I care about them, not just their group or their class” (Y5, 32 pupils). “It is very difficult to get around and see, on a one-to-one basis, each child when you have a class above 25. Children with learning difficulties and slow learners do not get a fair deal, especially if they receive little or no additional support” (Y4). (Blatchford et al, 2007) Modelling quantity - Leitch: Modelling personalisation: How is it possible to meet these demands without changing our conventional models of teaching and learning?

Why should I learn? What can I learn? How could I study? How will I learn? How do I know I’ve learned? Where will it take me? Motivation to learn - through engaging and creative activities, e.g. Making GamesMaking Games Negotiating the curriculum - through open access to learning materials, e.g. OpenLearn Flexibility - bridging the gap between work and study, e.g. The Homework project Constructionist pedagogies - tools for building knowledge, e.g. the TechnoMathematics project Assessment for learning - formative feedback, e.g. Adaptive Feedback Framework Adaptive Feedback Framework Opportunities - linking education to job opportunities, e.g. the L4All projectthe L4All project Learner needs: personalisation, flexibility and inclusionWhat can technology do to support the learner’s journey?

8 Making games Buckingham, D and Burn, A (2007) 'Game-Literacy in Theory and Practice', Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 16.3, October 2007 Virtual environment Layout design area Rule editor If Player enters Cylinder Trigger 11 Female Stormtrooper seeks and destroys Player Rule Editor Activator Trigger: Type 1 Spatial Action Children design their own role- playing and action adventure games, engaging them in both critical analysis and creative production of game designs Creative thinking - combining imaginative acts with conceptual design - building and testing their own rules to fit the narrative structure

9 An online learning website that is open to anyone, anywhere in the world, using materials taken from Open University courses. It is completely free. OpenLearn (openlearn.open.ac.uk) Learners tell us they use OpenLearn to: ･ enrich their current studies ･ research into future course options ･ build up a learning portfolio for CPD ･ find quality learning materials quickly ･ keep up with their subject or interest ･ try out new subjects

10 The Homework Project Teachers can build individualised lessons for school and related activities for home Closed the gap between parents, teachers and learners; pre- and post-study maths tests suggest home use of the tablet is linked to learning.

11 From the shop-floor control chart TechnoMaths in the Workplace Co-developed learning opportunities to allow employees to represent and manipulate mathematical models of processes To company training: play shove ha’penny enter data by hand calculate formulae by substituting values co-designed control chart: technology-enhanced shove ha’penny Employees come to see statistical calculations as being based on relatively simple calculation steps which, far from being ‘magic’, are actually understandable.

12 Adaptive Feedback Framework A personalisation engine can support adaptive feedback, e.g. guiding reflection on a ‘trail’ of learning activities Supports learners in reflecting on their personal ‘trails’; identifies where the learner has gone wrong; categorises the answer; adaptively provides different types of feedback – informative, tutoring or reflective.

13 Lifelong Learning London for All The portal allows learners to access selected information and resources, and plan their own timeline for learning - career pathways Supports collaborative learning to help learners formulate future learning goals and aspirations. Tutors publish recommended pathways through courses and modules, thereby facilitating progression into HE and career

14 Theories of learning and teaching How do they relate to educational technologies?

15 What it takes to learn John Dewey Jean Piaget Lev Vygotsky Jerome Bruner Paulo Freire Gordon Pask Terry Winograd Seymour Papert Lauren Resnick John Seely Brown Ference Marton Roger Säljö John Biggs Jean Lave Inquiry-based education Constructivism Mediated learning Discovery learning Learning as problematization Learning as conversation Problem-based learning Reflective practice Meta-cognition Experiential learning Learner-oriented approach Social constructivism Situated learning share a common conception of the learning process There is a common thread in our understanding of learning - the learner is an active agent in the learning process 1 2

16 What it takes to learn does not change Inquiry-based learning Constructivism Mediated learning Discovery learning Learning as conversation Problem-based learning Reflective practice Meta-cognition Experiential learning Learner-oriented approach Social constructivism Situated learning Books, Blackboards, Slides Broadcasts, Overhead projectors Tape-slides Interactive whiteboards, Powerpoint Web-pages, Podcasts Modelling tools Simulations Chat-rooms Online conferences Multiplayer games Wikis Blogs Learning through attention

17 What does it take to learn? ‘Instructionist’ - Teacher-focused Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Concepts Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Reflect Task goal Answers

18 What does it take to learn? ‘Constructionist’ - Practice-focused Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Concepts Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Reflect Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Practice environment Answers

19 What does it take to learn? ‘Constructionist’ - Practice-focused Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Practice environment “Adopting mastery approaches to learning, where learners aim to improve on their previous performance and continue to develop their knowledge and skills without reference to the progress of other learners, enhances motivation.” (Hallam, 2005)

20 What does it take to learn? ‘Social learning’ - Learner-focused Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Practice environment Other learner(s) Ideas

21 What does it take to learn? ‘Collaborative learning’ Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Practice environment Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs

22 - A Conversational Framework What does it take to learn? Instructivism + Constructionism + Social learning + Collaborative Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Practice environment Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs

23 The Conversational Framework An attempt to draw on the learning theories developed over the last century, and encapsulate them in a form that enables educators to test the technology against them.

24 Testing conventional learning technologies against the Conversational Framework

Lecture, Presentation, Book, Educational television, Audio… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through attention…

Tutorials, Libraries, Catalogues, Journals, Resource banks… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Reflect Questions Learning through inquiry…

Tutorial, Seminar, Class discussion, Small group discussion… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through discussion…

Problem sheet, practice exercises, project work… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through practice… Outputs Concepts Answers

Laboratory, Small group work, Fieldwork, Workshop… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through collaboration…

Essay, program, solution, design, product, performance… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Reflect Outputs Learning through production…

31 Testing digital learning technologies against the Conversational Framework

Lecture, Presentation, Book, Educational television, Audio…Powerpoint, Digital video, Animation, Podcast… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through attention… “ most educational materials on the web and on CD-ROM are distinctly limited... visually impoverished, lacking in interactivity, and thin on engaging content.... Our research on educational games has found that the learning content in such games is detached from the game-play... merely a kind of reward for getting the questions right. (Buckingham, 2005)

Libraries, Catalogues, Journals, Resource banks…Online resource, Digital library, Website, Search engine… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Reflect Questions Learning through inquiry…

Tutorial, Seminar, Class discussion, Small group discussion…Online conferencing, Forum, Chat room, Wiki… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through discussion…

Problem sheet, practice exercises, project work…Interactive simulation, Spreadsheet, Data analysis tool, Game… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through practice… Answers Outputs Feedback Answers Outputs Reflect

Laboratory, Small group work, Fieldwork, Workshop… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs Learning through collaboration… Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, Multiplayer games… Reflect

Essay, program, solution, design, product, performance… Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Reflect Outputs Learning through production… Powerpoint, Program, Model, Website, Design, Digital video…

38 Why is there so little technology-based innovation?

39 New media and delivery technologies for knowledge development – Recent history Interactive computers Local drives & discs WIMP interfaces Internet Multimedia Worldwide Web Laptops Search engines Broadband 3G mobiles Blogs 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s - new medium for articulating ideas - local storage with the user - devices for ease of access to content - mass production / distribution of content - elaborated forms of content - wide access to extensive content - personal portable access to the medium - mass delivery of messages - easier access to extensive content - rich content / immediate communication - low-cost access to elaborate content - personal mass publishing

40 Writing Paper Indexes, paragraphs Printing Photos, sound, film Libraries Published books Postal services Bibliographies Television, phones Paperbacks Pamphlets s 1600s 1400s 1800s 1900s 1500s 1800s 1900s 1940s 1950s 1700s - new medium for articulating ideas - local storage with the user - devices for ease of access to content - mass production / distribution of content - elaborated forms of content - wide access to extensive content - personal portable access to the medium - mass delivery of messages - easier access to extensive content - rich content / immediate communication - low-cost access to elaborate content - personal mass publishing Old media and delivery technologies for knowledge development – Not so recent history

41 Writing Paper Indexes, paragraphs Printing Photos, sound, film Libraries Published books Postal services Bibliographies Television, phones Paperbacks Pamphlets s 1600s 1400s 1800s 1900s 1500s 1800s 1900s 1940s 1950s 1700s Interactive computers Local drives & discs WIMP interfaces Internet Multimedia Worldwide Web Laptops Search engines Broadband 3G mobiles Blogs 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s Old media and delivery technologies against the new

42 Writing Paper Printing Published books Indexes, paragraphs Pamphlets Photos, sound, film Postal services Libraries Bibliographies Television, phones Paperbacks s 1500s 1600s 1700s 1800s 1900s 1940s 1950s Interactive computers Local drives & discs WIMP interfaces Internet Multimedia Worldwide Web Laptops Search engines Broadband 3G mobiles Blogs 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 30 years Interactive computersLocal drives & discsWIMP interfaces Old media and delivery technologies against the new

43 Education is a complex system of powerful, stable drivers, which do not embrace technology Education leaders are not comfortable with technology as a component of strategy Education is national, political - not so subject to market forces Teaching practitioners have neither the power nor the means to innovate Other reasons for lack of technology innovation Education is a complex system of powerful, stable drivers, which do not embrace technology Education leaders are not comfortable with technology as a component of strategy Education is national, political - not so subject to market forces Teaching practitioners have neither the power nor the means to innovate

44 A policy-driven strategy for technology? Education policy initiatives do not necessarily work, e.g. policy for the Skills sector is not yet delivering (Frank Coffield, Inaugural 2007): “Towards a learning system” - for education, not just Skills Focus on professional learning within a community context (Kathryn Riley and Louise Stoll, Inaugural, 2005) So we need a system that “shows itself capable of learning”, and “an explicit model of learning and change” (Coffield 2007). “It is a culture that sees the ideal practitioner as a technician who is regularly upgraded in order to implement without question the latest government initiative – ‘We will ensure that the workforce can implement what they are asked to do’ (DfES, 2005a: 25). The teaching profession is being re-formed, as Geoff Whitty argued, with teachers being restricted to ‘craft skills rather than professional understanding’ (Whitty, 1997)..” “In all the pelting torrent of official documents which have flooded the sector since 1997, there is, however, one significant silence: there is no discussion of, and not even a definition of, the central concept of learning”. (Coffield, 2007). “And all of this depends... on a radically reshaped system... and in particular a reshaped role for Local Government and for my Department, moving away from direction towards an enabling and empowering role. It depends on freedom for those at the front line to personalise services and to improve them”. (DfES 2005) Really changing practice is extremely difficult.... insufficient time is made available [for] observing peers, engaging in action research, trying out and practising new strategies, reflecting seriously on how they work with different pupils, learning from these reflections, and adapting and refining them as necessary. (Riley and Stoll, 2005)

45 - A Conversational Framework What does it take to learn? Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Practice environment Learner’s practice Actions Adapt actions Adapt Task practice environment Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Practice environment Other learner(s) Ideas Reflect Other learner(s) Adapt actions Draft outputs Concepts Answers Reflect Questions Outputs

46 Successful policy intervention: A government that shows itself capable of learning An explicit model of learning and of change (Coffield, 2007)

47 The role of the teaching profession Responding to: Curriculum requirements Quality assurance / inspection Assessment requirements Funding pressures Resources available + learners’ needs E-Learning Strategy: Engage key agencies to support teachers as innovators - TTA (TDA) LLUK HEA ‘become effective ICT users and innovators’ ‘build a professional workforce which can both collaborate and innovate’ (DfES 2005)

48 Practice environment Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Teacher’s ideas Learners learning Learner’s practice Other learner(s) Teacher’s practice Other teacher(s) What does it take to learn: for teachers learning? Actions Adapt actions Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Ideas Reflect Adapt actions Draft outputs Learner’s goal Teaching Revised teaching Learner actions Plans, learning designs Learner needs Concepts Answers Questions Outputs Adapt actions Reflect Adapt practice tasks Requirements Responses Curriculum and assessment policy

49 Practice environment Teacher’s ideas Learner’s ideas Teacher’s ideas Learners learning Learner’s practice Other learner(s) Teacher’s practice Other teacher(s) What does it take to learn: for teachers learning? Actions Adapt actions Task goal Reflect Revisions Feedback Ideas Reflect Adapt actions Draft outputs Learner’s goal Teaching Revised teaching Learner actions Plans, learning designs Learner needs Concepts Answers Questions Outputs Adapt actions Reflect Adapt practice tasks Requirements Responses Curriculum and assessment policy

50 A system capable of learning? Dialogic Iterative Adaptive Collaborative Constructive - populate our education system with the missing links in the Conversational Framework

51 A system capable of learning? 1 Give policy-makers direct access to the practice of T&L 2 Create a dialogue between policy-makers and teachers that allows questions / responses, not just requirements / records 3 Enable teachers to build their own ideas into practice, and develop them through reflection on practice 4 Enable teachers to collaborate, exchange ideas, share plans

52 Teachers learning how to learn We need to understand how to foster collaborative learning Teaching as a design science? But teachers lack the tools to design, experiment, share and collaborate Computer-supported collaborative learning for teachers? “This phenomenon is relatively uncharted territory in educational research. Whilst much is unknown about the institutional conditions that help teachers to learn new classroom practices, there is even less understanding about how knowledge is created and shared across schools.” (James, Black, McCormick, Pedder, Wiliam, 2006)

53 Design tools for teaching professionals User requirements: Multi-level planning i.e. course, module, session, activity, learning object Flexible editing, adaptable to users’ needs Ease of use and simple manipulable learning design components A way of capturing the context of learning design that can be easily understood, interpreted, evaluated and shared An instantiation of learning designs as a sequence of learning activities Support for teacher collaboration Alternative forms of representations - structured text, diagrams, concept-mapping representations... A way of ensuring coherence between each of the components of a learning design, such as topics, outcomes, methods, tools, staff resource, and student workload.

54 Learning design tools The lecturer assigns the basic Module or Session information, such as contact time, private study time, aims, topics, outcomes, according to institutional requirements Teacher can model different selections of teaching methods and check effect on learning experience and staff time “It encourages thinking outside current teaching box and therefore use of other methods” “This is more useful than I expected it to be” “…very good for integrating learning technologies and the learning design process”

55 Learning design tools Create TopicCreate Learning Outcome Supports process of aligning aims - topics - methods - outcomes - assessment “The mapping principle is sound, and multiple mappings are important – really nice and visual” “… it does make you think” “This is good reflective/thinking tool – I particularly like its visual aspects of seeing the modules and learning outcomes as a whole”

56 “I like this very much, because it’s mapped in my topics for me and it’s showing me them in weeks and it’s showing where they can overlap.” Learning design tools Supports scheduling and analysis of of what is needed for each Period of learning Exports design to HTML file according to local format, to share with staff and students

57 Understanding processes within a system through a role-play activity to explain it Role-play group activity Link to website explaining the system through a simulation Chat room to compare explanations Vote on the best explanation Learning design tools The sequence of learning activities embodies a pedagogic idea - captured for others to adopt, adapt, re- use, and share. Voting

58 Education as a learning system Teachers can experiment with resource modelling Digital environments record learner and teacher activity Design tools could support alternative, blended models Learning design tools could turn teaching into a reflective, adaptive and collaborative design process How does changing the mix of resources affect students’ learning outcomes? (Levačić, 2005)

59 To summarise… Give pedagogy back to the teachers. Embrace technology as part of the solution. Begin with ambition and use technology to achieve it.