TEL us a story ... Hard, Soft and being Smart

Sorting papers I'd saved I came across -

David Mossley and Clare Saunders: A revolution in philosophy teaching? from the The Philosophy Magazine. 3rd quarter. 2013. pp. 40-45. 

Checking back, I see I posted and cited this item in 2013:

https://hodges-model.blogspot.com/2013/08/drupalcon-portland-education-session.html

In the decade-plus since, how things have changed in tech, education and philosophy!

The story is ... that around this time I needed a new website and in the past I practised computer aided learning. Or should I say mCAL, microcomputer aided learning on the ZX81 and BBC Micro (related citations below). In 2013-2014, I started a PhD (as noted elsewhere) thinking I could recover and update some IT skills. Could I recapture the CAL days, by picking up TEL - technology enhanced learning? I stepped outside healthcare, and nursing specifically. I see now this was an error, but of course I still venture off-piste. The latest detour is even more extreme? On a personal - psychological level I'm visiting a subject maths - formal methods that simultaneously fills me with wonder (recognising its power and utility) and yet terrifies me with its complexity, made me feel sick at school, as a pre-teen and after.

My 'research question' was poorly formulated - which I did recognise. Two years were not wasted, far from it. The journey then was also driven by personal circumstances, married with events in 2007, 2010 and then 2015. 

 

Sticking with the current conference theme, I noticed a call for the 7th International Soft Computing and Engineering Applications Conference. Selected themes from track #4 include:

Track 4: Soft Computing for Smart Sustainable World

Smart agriculture and aquaculture
Smart cities
Smart communication
Smart disaster monitoring and management
Smart earth system
Smart education
Smart elderly care
Smart environment and ecosystems
Smart governance
Smart healthcare
Smart homes and buildings
Smart learning
Smart living
Smart machines and robots
Smart materials and fabric
Smart medicine
Smart social services
Smart villages
Smart wearables and implants

Amid all the (understandable) emphasis on 'smart' we need to retain a place for the human. That's the challenge in simultaneously considering the hard and soft of today's and tomorrow's world.

Citations

1982 CAPA: COMPUTER AIDED PATIENT ASSESSMENT, Sinclair ZX81, advertised in Nursing Mirror (see below) provided on audio cassette tape.

1983 THE NURSING PROCESS – Computer Aided Learning program, BBC Micro, published by Open Software Limited (OSL)

1984 HAEM. Blood Groups Computer Aided Learning program, BBC Micro – (OSL).

1989 SHADES OF GREY, Computer Aided Learning program, BBC Micro. Simulation of nuclear weapons, Based on Fanchi, J. Local effects of nuclear weapons, BYTE, Volume 11. Issue 13. Dec., pp. 143–155. Computer Aided Learning program, BBC Micro, published by Open Software Limited..

Jones, P. (1986) Computing in Nursing NEWS. Computerised Patient Assessment. Nursing Times. 85: 5. Sep 3-9;82(36):63-5. PMID: 3532039 (Describes 'CAPA', a BBC microcomputer program for student nurses.)

Jones P. 1988 Thunderbirds are Go? (Impact of technology in society, disasters, macro-engineering). Popular Computing Weekly.

Jones, P. (1989) Computers in Nursing NEWS. Creating a Program. Nursing Times. Feb 1-7;85(5):66-8. PMID: 2648342 (Describes 'HAEM', a BBC microcomputer program for student nurses on blood and blood groups.)

Jones, P. (1989) Information Technology is Good For You! (Effects of information technology) IT in Nursing, BCS-Nurs. Specialist Group. 1,1

Jones, P. (1990) Creating a Community Mental Health IS (Creation of a community mental health resource centre - a multidisciplinary research project). IT in Nursing and Paper at BCS NSG Conference. 2,4.

Jones, P., & Beckingham, D. (1991) The Ins and Outs of a small mental health Information System. Healthcare Computing 91 Conference Paper.

Jones, P. (1992) Nursing: All in the mind and machine? (Models of nursing and computing). British Computer Society -Nursing Specialist Group Conference Paper

ii from Learning Health Systems journal - to case studies

Returning to this journal, reference #47 -

MacQuarrie C. Holistic designs. Encyclopedia of Case Study Research.Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE; 2010:442-443.

In -

From “Invented here” to “Use it everywhere!”: A Learning health system from bottom and/or top?

Christian Colldén, Andreas Hellström

- led me to (with my emphasis) 

Encyclopedia of case study research/edited by Albert J. Mills, Gabrielle Durepos, and Elden Wiebe. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. 2010.

"Case study methodology can be a rich source for understanding the multiple structures that support and sustain organizational life and business units. Its strengths are in its ability to gain an insider’s viewpoint during the research process, the more in-depth and nuanced findings based on that, and in its flexibility in using different methods. Its challenges are in the theoretical framework and in the development of concepts based on empirical findings. When these are taken into account, fruitful and nuanced research results are possible, and through the study it is possible to gain an overall and holistic picture of the research object." p.76.

"To reach the intended effect for the learners, these teaching cases must fulfill certain conditions and prerequisites. For this, Bernd Weitz proposes three essential criteria: exemplarity, clearness, and practical orientation.

Exemplarity means that the study must exemplify not just an arbitrary and subjective case, but also one that is objective, unique, or representative. Clearness requires that cases are not trivial; on the contrary, they have to make use of all possible and appropriate alternatives of illustration for a comprehensive understanding. This demands holism, traceability, visualization, and supplementation with additional information. The last point, practical orientation, aims for the highest integration of theory and practice for an integrated learning process." p.77.

    (And many other sources.)

Hodges' model provides a portal. As a frame, not just one type of portal but several including information (portal). A portal that can function as a learning health system. Could this in combination with health literacy* even be extended to represent a definition of self-care? Long identified as a research approach for Hodges' model, case studies are the logical fit. If they were not, then the whole clinical, nursing, healthcare rationale for the model would be lost. A clinical, medical, health care episode begins as a result of case-ness being achieved. In the case that follows in practice, we are looking to assure person-centered care in the midst of criteria, processes, (gate-keeping) thresholds that are inherently service-centred and possibly also influenced by targets and a series of constraints.

"Case studies of the elderly tend to embrace normativism. If health, as in naturalism, amounts to preserving the organic functional ability to make species-typical contributions to survival and reproduction, then health can be objectively and statistically determined—that is, subjects’ perceptions or awareness are not relevant. But if a normative evaluation of the person’s body and mind is a necessary element in the care of the elderly, then case studies are necessary." p.127.

Demographics, and intergenerational factors, plus the (probable) rise of appeals to transdisciplinarity^ means that for policy, governance and assurance case studies and mixed-methods will increase in research.

The orientation of Hodges' model is also inevitably practical and hence pragmatic.

I have only scratched the surface here, and probably not in the most itchy of spots (Encyclopedia and not the only one).

More to follow ... and if you have observations, advice I'd be pleased to hear from you.

*All the literacies and schools of informatics.
^Such are the problems we face.

See also: Contents: Learning Health Systems,6,3, July 2022

Contents: Learning Health Systems,6,3,July 2022

 

This issue includes:

What is unique about learning health systems? 

Charles P. Friedman

From “Invented here” to “Use it everywhere!”: A Learning health system from bottom and/or top?

Christian Colldén, Andreas Hellström


Toward an ontology of collaborative learning healthcare systems  

Alexandra H. Vinson, et al.

Email request by -
Kathleen Young, Editorial Assistant
kayoung AT umich.edu
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA

 

Dries! I promise ...

... if you get your blogging mojo back I will pick up Drupal and put this blog (and twitter) in much more than semi-stasis.

Clearly, my Drupal use may not be as profound, but after a decade I have quite a requirement (some might describe it as 'stonking'), but this merely demonstrates the seductive nature of 'ideas'. How easy it is to appear clever, to have thoughts - compared to action.

As I've been told and blogged before: I need to do something instead of blogging and twitter.

So yes, there's an irony here for me, but good luck and thanks for the (much-needed) prompt!

c/o Dries Buytaert:

Wanted: a new blogging routine

Digital Wellbeing Educators - Online Summit

Higher Education has been transformed in recent months in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, as face-to-face teaching has been abruptly transformed into emergency remote teaching in virtual learning environments. For many, this has been a first-time experience, accelerating adoption of online education, often in a very agile way without the time and resources to allow for a carefully planned approach. Throughout this process students have also been compelled to change the way that they learn, and many may lack the competences required to fully participate in online education. 

More details and booking ...

See also:
http://www.digital-wellbeing.eu/

My source:
Dr Julie-Ann Sime
Centre for Technology-Enhanced Learning
Educational Research Department | Lancaster University

Genomics 101 - in Hodges' model

individual

|

INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES

humanistic ----------------------------------------------- mechanistic

SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL

|

group - population

Health Professional's Knowledge and Understanding (Specialised clinical workforce and more generic workforce)	Genomics 101
Public understanding of Science	Managers, Policy Makers, Commissioners ...

My source: RCN Congress 2019 exhibition.

"Bounded epistemology, language and context of disciplinary thought ..."

"Effective learning does not happen in a content vacuum. John McPeck (2000) and other critical thinking theorists argue that teaching general thinking skills and techniques is useless outside of a particular knowledge domain in which they can be grounded. Similarly, Bransford et al. (1999) argue that effective learning is both defined and bounded by the epistemology, language, and context of disciplinary thought. Each discipline or field of study contains a world view that provides unique ways of understanding and talking about knowledge. Students need opportunities to experience this discourse and the knowledge structures that undergird discipline thinking. They also need opportunities to reflect upon their own thinking; automacy is a useful and necessary skill for expert thinking, but automacy without reflective capacity greatly limits learners’ capacity to transfer their knowledge to unfamiliar contexts or to develop new knowledge structures." pp.48-49.

Anderson, T. (2008) Towards a Theory of Online Learning, (Chapter 2). In, The Theory and Practice of Online Learning, second edition, Edited by Terry Anderson. AU Press, pp.45-74.

Learning often challenges the values we hold. When we experience new roles and must attain and maintain professional standards we may need to inculcate (tread upon) what we already know. A degree of unlearning may be needed, entailing a suspension of content as new understanding, insight and awareness is demonstrated. In the health and social care context, Anderson helps us appreciate the level of complexity in the number of disciplinary domains that must be negotiated and integrated conceptually and the requirements for person-centredness. It might be argued that this is a contributing factor for effective lifelong learning? That is, having the ability from early in our educational careers that we are capable and willing to 'refresh the conceptual slate'?

[Even as I cling on to the four-five care or knowledge domains.]

[Thank you: Centre for TEL]
https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/educational-research/research/centre-for-technology-enhanced-learning/

Journal: Learning Health Systems - April 2018

Learning Health Systems is an open access peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the science, engineering and design of continuous improvement of health and health care.

The new April 2018 issue is now available. Click here to read the latest articles. All articles are freely available to read, download and share.

My source:
Email: Kathleen Young

Editorial Assistant, Learning Health Systems

Room 210 Victor Vaughan

1111 East Catherine Street

Ann Arbor, MI 48109

734-763-1400

Borders & Boundaries 2018: Debating the limits and possibilities of Education

The Department of Educational Research invite international speakers every summer, and this year we are opening the event up to invite critical interdisciplinary scholars to engage in a range of events which bring together our three research centres: Higher Education Research and Evaluation; Technology Enhanced Learning; and Social Justice and Wellbeing in Education.

This year’s theme is Borders and Boundaries, which will be unpacked by our internationally renowned speakers and a programme of conference presentations on 3rd and 4th of July in the historic city of Lancaster.

Borders and Boundaries: Debating the limits and possibilities of Education

Borders and boundaries is an important theme in educational research and practice, having multiple meanings and interpretations. At one level, this notion reflects critical conceptualisations of place, territories and educational (im)mobilities which have come to the surface in recent years as a response to political and policy changes that seek to limit the movement of people and ideas. Alternatively, borders and boundaries may be taken to refer to theoretical demarcations and interactions, and the increasing emphasis on interdisciplinarity within research, and the associated instability of categories such as academic, practitioner, researcher and educator in the context of efficiency and structural changes within schools, universities and other institutions. This theme also has analytical value for framing debates about the perceived fluidity of formal and informal educational space in the digital age, simultaneously democratising knowledge and blurring the boundaries between professional and personal identities for many educators and academics. Finally, we envisage the theme of borders and boundaries as providing a way into discussions about social distinctions and emotional separations, which shape educational experiences, transitions, and outcomes in a broad range of ways.

Read more...

I have placed the conference themes within Hodges' model:

individual

|

INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES

humanistic ------------------ Borders & Boundaries ------------------ mechanistic

SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL

|

group

This theme also has analytical value for framing debates about the perceived fluidity of formal and informal educational space in the digital age, simultaneously democratising knowledge and blurring the boundaries between professional and personal identities for many educators and academics.	... critical conceptualisations of place,  territories ... ... borders and boundaries may be taken to refer to theoretical demarcations and interactions, and the increasing emphasis on interdisciplinarity within research, and -
Borders and boundaries is an important theme in educational research and practice, having multiple meanings and interpretations. Finally, we envisage the theme of borders and boundaries as providing a way into discussions about social distinctions and emotional separations, which shape educational experiences, transitions, and outcomes in a broad range of ways.	- the associated instability of categories such as academic, practitioner, researcher and educator in the context of efficiency and structural changes within schools, universities and other institutions.   factor immobility occupational immobility academic / educational (im)mobilities

My source: Jill Anderson, Lancaster University.

Gagné nine events in E-learning

In checking through more books, I revisited Khan and Ally's International Handbook of E-Learning. Chapter 10 by Florence Martin includes several models for instructional design. My in-situ pencil notes from 2015 reminded me of Figure 10.1 "Adaptation of Gagné's nine events" (Gagné and Driscoll, 1988).

I found a version on Pinterest:

Gagné's nine events

Martin and others refer to "Present Stimulus" as "Present the Content" and this is what stands out. If Hodges' model was realised within an online reflective workbench then the student would be engaged in creating the content. The student becomes the stimulus, generating the content.

Pinterest provides another version which sums up quite nicely the potential of Hodges' model. It was brainstorming and developments in mind-mapping that prompted my interest. Structure can gain attention. Structure might also invite interaction. Hodges' model presents a space in which the contents might be manipulated? The initial blank space might also indicate an objective. A series of care or knowledge domains may also invite reflection on a practical experience, a patient or carer encounter.

Gagné's nine events

What follows from Present the content in Gagné's nine events remains a challenge, but if you understand what Hodges' model is and its application then you may also see its potential.


Martin, F. (2015) E-learning Design-From Instructional Events to Elements, Chapter 10. In Badrul H. Khan, & Mohamed Ally (Eds) International Handbook of E-Learning. Volume 1, Oxford: Routledge. pp. 153-170.

With regards to putting a pile of books together for a trip to Hay-on-Wye these handbooks Vols 1 & 2 are keepers.

Learning Health Systems (LHS) Call and 1st Issue

Learning Health Systems

Learning Health Systems (LHS) is an international, open access, peer-reviewed journal published in collaboration with the University of Michigan. With a goal of advancing the interdisciplinary area of learning health systems, the journal promotes research, scholarship, and dialogue focused on theory, complex issues, conceptual syntheses, education models and more. LHS seeks to achieve continuous rapid improvement in health and healthcare and to transform organizational practice. The journal includes research reports, experience reports, briefs and commentaries.


Learning Health Systems is now accepting submissions for its first issue.

Reasons to publish:

• Topics of international importance 
• Immediately open access, freely available to read, download and share 
• Distinguished editorial board 
• High standard, rigorous peer review 
• Quality and reputation, supported by the University of Michigan and Wiley 
• Authors retain copyright 
• Compliance with institutional and funder mandates

Early view.

My source:
Kathleen Young via GANM:  http://knowledge-gateway.org/ganm/

"eLearning for undergraduate health professional education - a systematic review informing a radical transformation of health workforce development"

"Designing for learning is a complex task which requires a holistic approach. According to Mayes and de Freitas (24), the implementation of blended learning should consider learning at three different levels: as behaviour, as construction of knowledge, and as a social practice.

The behaviourist learning theory (25,26) suggests that we learn by receiving a stimulus that consequently produces a response. It therefore concentrates on low-level cognitive tasks or psychomotor skill learning (27). ... According to Horton (28), drill-and-practice activities are useful when learners need to learn automated procedures that must be performed and applied without much conscious thought as part of higher-level activities (28). 

In contrast to the behaviourists’ approach, the cognitivists focus their attention on how students gain and organize their knowledge (27). Piaget (29) and his constructionism theory of knowledge has been particularly influential with his assumption that conceptual understanding can be reached through intellectual activity rather than by merely absorbing information. The cognitive perspective emphasizes the process of reaching “understanding” through an active process of creating hypothesis, application of knowledge and reflection (30)." (p.97)

Imperial College London, World Health Organization (2015). eLearning for undergraduate health professional education - a systematic review informing a radical transformation of health workforce development. Al-Shorbaji, N., Atun, R., Car, J., Majeed, A., & Wheeler, E. (eds.).
https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/330089

Networked Learning Conference 2016 leads to Barcelona which means...?

After the ICIC 2016 in Barcelona this past week I'm still reflecting on Lancaster and the Network Learning Conference. It has been a busy month. I'll write about Barcelona (again) soon, but with the ICIC presentation done (thanks to all 30+ who attended the session and engaged afterwards) I can catch up a little. Despite the stress this implies this is all positive as the challenge lies in the opportunities and tensions between nursing-healthcare, education and technology.

In Lancaster, Fran Tracy (Liverpool John Moores University) and Jesper Jensen (University of Southern Denmark) held a symposium - Designs for learning with the Semantic Web. Three papers were presented followed by discussion on:

1) the emergent nature of semantic web technologies, 2) how participatory research practices like DBR are affected during the development of semantic web technologies and 3) how both of these concepts may find a new place as we move forward into increasingly complex and changeable educational environments.

By means of introduction there were several useful pointers and reminders, including Stahl with a definition of emergence and a definition of design based learning (and DB Research). It was the combination of semantic web, DBR and networked learning which made this an immediate must-go-to session for me. My research proposal is seeking to combine these aspects plus situated learning.

I probably won't be following DBR by-the-letter(s) as defined by some advocates. My application will to some extent be emergent. There will, as I envisage it, be several invitations for users to contribute to DBR but being asynchronous this needs to be factored in. All learners - users could contribute to successive iterations, but this is unlikely and once the numbers get beyond 10-15 it would become complex and difficult to make a sense of. Poll-based reconciliation might work? As per #2 above my plan would be that a number of subjects (web users) would provide views on their experience with the model and the future site. So it is DBR on a scale that befits a small-scale evaluation study. Tracey also mentioned Wang and Hannafin (2005) and their definition of DBR:

a systematic but flexible methodology aimed to improve educational practices through iterative analysis, design, development, and implementation, based on collaboration among researchers and practitioners in real-world settings, and leading to contextually-sensitive design principles and theories. (p. 7)

The context sensitive is were I see a role for situated learning. There are a couple of hierarchies that result. Situated learning brings in the community (- of practice), but Hodges' is firstly about the student, the care situation and their learning with the model, reflection and developing reflective practice. There are few examples of technology mediated group reflection, but the technical challenges of the group form make the individual starting point more realistic?

Simonson also cites the above and notes how DBR is pragmatic. My approach is pragmatic (that's why it's taking so long).

In Hodges' model I've written before how the interpersonal care domain, combines the INTRA (an individual's metacognition - their thinking about thinking) and the INTERpersonal (how they relate to the other). The NL conference and this past week at #ICIC2016 have helped me realise that this project may also possess this property*. As an intraproject and interproject (?) subjects (students) may engage at any of the following levels:

• Not engage in design questions at all / Read the intro materials on Hodges' model
• Read the intro materials / use the site for their case study purposes

Drupal can (I believe and have seen demonstrated) provide a great deal of web analytics from logs and reports. There is the prospect of taking this further using web analytics to inform the specific site locations subjects have visited. (For Hodges' model visual tracking would be an excellent measure but that is beyond me). There is a potential escalator of sorts here:

• Use the site for their case study purposes / comment on the usability of h2cm and the site
• Comment on the usability of h2cm and the site / See their web analytics data and my conclusions about this 
• See their web analytics data and my (other student's!) conclusions about this / Use their experience, knowledge and this feedback to respond to design questions

These design questions would then socio-technically span their nursing care learning and TEL. The project as a whole represents at its core the intra, its about the student's reflection and being reflexive. It could be that the project can progress to group and community. As posted previously I have highlighted the functionality of Drupal with respect to the semantic web. I mentioned Drupal in the discussion. The conceptual (and semantic) dimension that can be found within Hodges' model, the curriculum, the learner's vocabulary and development might facilitate that transition from individual to group? Since 2008 I've followed the development of RDF, semantic web in Drupal and the longevity of contributed modules and Drupal projects that have used them. Framing these observations with an emergent lens is fascinating in terms of the challenges, opportunities and tensions in nurse education, TEL and furthering Hodges' model.

I added the asterisk above as what follows from that point seems a long winded description of what is basically an experiment, with the attendant risks... I need to forget about the INTER and concentrate on the INTRA and yet both clamour for attention. Whatever follows must deliver something tangible for subjects^# to mitigate the risk and translate experiment into (some resemblance of) workflow? It can't be quod cum fit, however long 'after' may be...

(The terms intra-project and inter-project are not novel, see for example: http://eprints.qut.edu.au/31946/ )

The symposium paper

Simonson, M. (2006). DESIGN-BASED RESEARCH Applications for Distance Education. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 7(1), pp. vii–viii.

Wang, F. & Hannafin, M. (2005). Design-based research and technology-enhanced learning environments. Educational Technology Research and Development, 53(4), 5-23.

# students, subjects, users - all these terms may be applicable.

Book: LEARNING IN VIRTUAL WORLDS: RESEARCH AND APPLICATIONS

Announcing the release of:

LEARNING IN VIRTUAL WORLDS: RESEARCH AND APPLICATIONS

Edited by:
Sue Gregory, University of New England, Australia,
Mark J.W. Lee, Charles Sturt University, Australia,
Barney Dalgarno, Charles Sturt University, Australia, and
Belinda Tynan, The Open University, UK

With a Foreword by Chris Dede, Harvard University, USA

Part of the "Issues in Distance Education" series
(Series Editor: Terry Anderson, Athabasca University, Canada)

Published by Athabasca University Press as an open-access publication—
Free PDF download available at: http://www.aupress.ca/index.php/books/120254
Also available for purchase in Paperback and ePub formats

*** Description ***

Three-dimensional (3D) immersive virtual worlds have been touted as being capable of facilitating highly interactive, engaging, multimodal learning experiences. Much of the evidence gathered to support these claims has been anecdotal but the potential that these environments hold to solve traditional problems in online and technology-mediated education—primarily learner isolation and student disengagement—has resulted in considerable investments in virtual world platforms like Second Life, OpenSimulator, and Open Wonderland by both professors and institutions. To justify this ongoing and sustained investment, institutions and proponents of simulated learning environments must assemble a robust body of evidence that illustrates the most effective use of this powerful learning tool.

In this authoritative collection, a team of international experts outline the emerging trends and developments in the use of 3D virtual worlds for teaching and learning. They explore aspects of learner interaction with virtual worlds, such as user wayfinding in Second Life, communication modes and perceived presence, and accessibility issues for elderly or disabled learners. They also examine advanced technologies that hold potential for the enhancement of learner immersion and discuss best practices in the design and implementation of virtual world-based learning interventions and tasks. By evaluating and documenting different methods, approaches, and strategies, the contributors to Learning in Virtual Worlds offer important information and insight to both scholars and practitioners in the field.

*** For More Information ***

A flyer containing further details about the book, including a copy of the Table of Contents, is attached. The full text of the entire book and of individual chapters can be downloaded for free in PDF format at http://www.aupress.ca/index.php/books/120254 . The PDF and ePub versions can also be purchased from this site.
_______________________________________________
My source:

open-education mailing list [closed?]

Open Data as Open Educational Resources: 4th March 1400-1700 UCL

Next Thursday evening I'm heading to London for Drupalcamp Saturday and Sunday. On the Friday afternoon I'm attending:

Open Data can be understood as “universally participatory data”, which is openly shared by government agencies, NGOs, academic institutions or international organisations.

Open Data can be used in Higher Education using real life scenarios, bringing together students, academics and researchers working towards overcoming local and global real problems.

In this way students can develop transversal, research and citizenship skills, by working with the same raw materials researchers and policy makers use, contributing with the society in new and yet-unimagined ways.

 The event will be featuring

• Santiago Martín: University College London
• Mor Rubistein: Open Knowledge International
• Leo Havemann: Birkbeck, University of London
• Dr Carla Bonina: University of Surrey  
• William Hammonds: Universites UK
• Dr Fabrizio Scrollini: Latin American Open Data Initiative
• Dr Tim Coughlan: Open University  

WHEN

Friday, 4 March 2016 from 14:00 to 17:00 (GMT)

WHERE

Medawar G01 Lankester Lecture Theatre: UCL, Gower Street, London, United Kingdom -

Paper - The effectiveness of internet-based e-learning on clinician behavior and patient outcomes: a systematic review

As I work on my research proposal this paper (in press) is a very useful and timely reference...


Abstract - Background

The contemporary health workforce has a professional responsibility to maintain competency in practice. However, some difficulties exist with access to ongoing professional development opportunities, particularly for staff in rural and remote areas and those not enrolled in a formal program of study. E-learning is at the nexus of overcoming these challenges. The benefits of e-learning have been reported in terms of increased accessibility to education, improved self-efficacy, knowledge generation, cost effectiveness, learner flexibility and interactivity. What is less clear, is whether improved self-efficacy or knowledge gained through e-learning influences healthcare professional behaviour or skill development, whether these changes are sustained, and whether these changes improve patient outcomes.

Sinclair et al. refer to:

"One suitable framework that is congruent with e-learning research is Kirkpatrick’s four levels of evaluation." (p.53).

I have taken the rest of the paragraph and mapped the stated levels to Hodges' model:

individual
|
INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES
humanistic ---------------------------------------  mechanistic
SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL
|
group

Level two pertains to learning and the evaluation of knowledge.	Kirkpatrick’s model is hierarchically based with level one relating to student reaction and how well the learner is satisfied with the education program.
Level three expands on this and considers whether the education has influenced behavior. In the context of this review, behavior change is any practice that is intrinsically linked with the outcomes of the e-learning program undertaken.	Finally, level four evaluates the impact on outcomes such as cost benefit or quality improvements.

The author's continue: "The majority of e-learning research has focused on participant experience and knowledge acquisition, outcomes that correspond with the first two levels of Kirkpatrick’s model. To date, few studies have examined the effectiveness of internet-based e-learning programs on HCP [health care profession] behavior, which aligns with Level 3 of Kirkpatrick’s model (p.54)."

Peter M. Sinclair, Ashly Kable, Tracy Levett-Jones, Debbie Booth, The effectiveness of internet-based e-learning on clinician behavior and patient outcomes: a systematic review, International Journal of Nursing Studies, Available online 4 February 2016, ISSN 0020-7489, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2016.01.011
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0020748916000122) 

Keywords: e-learning; Systematic Review; Education; Information Communication Technology; Health Care Professional

Definition of a conceptual framework, Antonenko (2015)

"Definition of a conceptual framework  

Anecdotal evidence obtained from numerous discussions with students, colleagues, and the few research design books that address the issue of conceptual frameworks (e.g., Ravitch and Riggan 2012) indicates that the construct conceptual framework is viewed from at least three perspectives. The first, and most superficial, view defines conceptual framework as a visual representation of the structure of the study and its alignment with the relevant theoretical foundations. According to this view, conceptual framework is a figure, typically presented as a concept map, that summarizes all key information presented in the literature review of the study" (p.55).

At first it is confusing when within academic writing you have to present your theoretical - conceptual framework. In Hodges' model I already have one. Antonenko is very informative but I don't believe that this first definition is necessarily that superficial. It depends on the context and purpose. There is something in instrumental value that seems closely allied with the visual form and the paper provides an example.

If as Antonenko suggests there is a conceptual framework presented in the literature review, perhaps Hodges' model as a conceptual framework that can integrate discussion and the conclusion(s)? From the paper there are other points of note - even in the sub-headings alone, for example:

Conceptual framework is more than a literature review

The connective function of conceptual frameworks

Discipline is essential to prevent any risk of superficiality, or navel-gazing and Antonenko lists many strategies, including:

Avoiding getting stuck in a ‘‘no-risk’’ zone (Miles and Huberman 1994, p. 22), a situation where all concepts in the framework are abstract and interconnected. Informed commitments must be made regarding what the researcher finds as most relevant and important pieces of the conceptual framework. The entire point of building a conceptual framework is to be explicit and selective about the focus of the study (p.66).

Antonenko, P. D. (2015). The instrumental value of conceptual frameworks in educational technology research. Educational Technology Research and Development. 63(1), 53–71. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-014-9363-4

My source and with many thanks:

Technology Enhanced Learning studies, Module 6. Lancaster Univ.

Books: Context, Subjectivity, Individuals and Axes (of Learning?)

individual
|
INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES
humanistic --------------------------------------- mechanistic
SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL
|
group

The learner's intentionality is the axis from which the context can be interpreted as unified lived experience, making sense of the multiple interactions between people, and activities and resources. A context is always "local to a learner", since it consists of an individual's subjective experience of the world, that is always ...	spatially and...
historically situated (Lukin 2010, p.18). p.335.

References

Above from:
Esposito, A., Sangrà, A. and Maina, M. (2015) Emerging Learning Ecologies As A New Challenge and Essence For E-learning, Chap. 24 In Badrul H. Khan, Mohamed Ally (Eds) International Handbook of E-Learning. Volume 1, Oxford: Routledge. pp. 331-341. (p.335).

Lukin, R. (2010) Re-Designing Learning Contexts - Technology-Rich, Learner-Centred Ecologies, Oxford: Routledge.

Learning ecologies is an approach to educational theory, practice and technology enhanced learning that I can relate to through Hodges' model and a general interest that extends to green matters and blue...

This is a fascinating chapter by Esposito, et al. (2015) that includes keystone species who have the architectural function of a keystone (p.333) to: (my rendering follows)

provide critical resources	modify the environment
act as mutualists	control potential dominants

In the discussion the role of keystone species is attributed to librarians. To modify the learning environment and community the keystone species would need access to the necessary processes, procedures, time and place. So to the right of Hodges' model we find what is mechanistic: rules, authentication, privileges, sanctions, passwords, accounts...

On the above left as an example, communities of practice rely on mutualism for their sustained existence. It is the individual (student) as the (usual) unit of analysis who is making use of the resources.

New Media Consortium Horizon Report & Reflection in a Time of Connectivism (c/o Khan & Ally, 2015, Chaps 3, 4 and 21)

My reading of Khan and Ally's International Handbook of E-Learning could amount to a review by a thousand snippets at this rate.

As other priorities also demand attention I'm still on Volume 1 and avidly looking f/w to the 2nd with thanks to the publisher. I've references for my latest study to contribute to other reading. What is interesting is contrasting the place of reflection in nursing, nurse education, education generally and technology enhanced learning. Reflection and reflective practice is a personal activity that is also extensible, something that can and must educationally be shared with others. If there are already challenges in proving the value of Hodges' model within nursing (and global health!) there are other pressures from within education and technology enhanced learning specifically. As João Mattar notes:

Although Hirumi (2011) argues that his grounded approach neither subscribes to, nor advocates any particular epistemology, his decision of distinguishing internal interactions from all others as one of the three fundamental levels within his framework seems indeed to privilege a specific type of learning in an era where connectivism claims that learning should no longer be considered an internal and individualistic activity (Siemens, 2004; Anderson & Dron, 2010,2012). (p.301)

There are lessons in all these chapters for me. Pencilled observations and things to pospost (new word?) are scrawled throughout the 320 pages so far and here are a few more:

The NMC Horizon Report 2015 Higher Education Edition is a collaborative effort between the NMC and the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI). This 12th edition describes annual findings from the NMC Horizon Project, an ongoing research project designed to identify and describe emerging technologies likely to have an impact on learning, teaching, and creative inquiry in education. ...

In chapter 4 Stephen Downes writes:

My own theory of education is minimal (so minimal it hardly qualifies as a theory, and is almost certainly not my own): "to teach is to model and to demonstrate; to learn is to practice and reflect." Thus, minimally, we need an environment that supports all four of these on a massive scale. In practice, what this means is a system designed so that bottlenecks are not created in any of the four attributes: modeling, demonstration, practice, and reflection. p.66.

More to follow, read and write!

Mattar, J. (2015) Designing and Evaluating E-learning Interactions, Chap. 21 In Badrul H. Khan, Mohamed Ally (Eds) International Handbook of E-Learning. Volume 1, Oxford: Routledge. pp.295-307.

Corbeil, J.R. & Corbeil, M.E. (2015) E-Learning: Past Present and Future, Chap. 3 In Badrul H. Khan, Mohamed Ally (Eds) International Handbook of E-Learning. Volume 1, Oxford: Routledge. pp.51-64. (see p.59-).

Downes, S. (2015) The Quality of Massive Open Online Courses, Chap. 4 In Badrul H. Khan, Mohamed Ally (Eds) International Handbook of E-Learning. Volume 1, Oxford: Routledge. pp. 65-77.

Borges & Forés: The Role of the Online Learners and the Four Competentional Clusters (Khan & Ally, Eds. 2015)

individual

|

INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES

humanistic --------------------------------------- mechanistic

SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL
|

group

Metacognitive	Operational
Relational	Academic

Since receiving the e-learning handbooks edited by Khan and Ally (2015) in April there have been several challenges; studies, sickness in the family and full-time work. I'm up to chapter 13 of Volume 1 and I have learned a great deal thus far. The first volume is already serving as an excellent primer on e-learning for someone in full-time clinical work, studying by distance learning and with teaching and mentoring experience.

The above table is derived from chapter 13 by Federico Borges and Anna Forés.

I have superimposed Borges' four competentional clusters onto Hodges' model. There is also a figure (13.1) that seeks to show that:

• there is no hierarchy among the competences,
• competences are all interrelated,
• more than one competence can occur at the same time,
• competences are manifested when needed and as needed (p.199).

This can also be related to the 4P's

purpose	process
practise	policy

Borges, F. and Forés, A. (2015) The Role of the Online Learner, Chap. 13 In Badrul H. Khan, Mohamed Ally (Eds) International Handbook of E-Learning. Volume 1, Oxford: Routledge. pp. 197-206.