Establishing engagement & deep learning through the use of Social ...

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Served as an effective tool for high student engagement ... Facebook, so it looked familiar. ... Social media use (Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, etc.) ...
Establishing engagement & deep learning through the use of Social Media Application designed for Education: Learnium Michalis Kourtidis, BA Hons, MA, Chartered MCIPD Coventry University College, Lecturer in Business, Tourism & Hospitality

Assignment 2 for the needs of MO3 PGCert in Academic Practice in Higher Education Project: “New-to-You”

A B ST R AC T The project outlined below showcases how the challenge of engagement and deep learning in higher education was handled through the use of a relatively new and innovative application called ‘Learnium’. It was applied in level-six students of Coventry University College for a period of four weeks. Students were able to interact effectively in teams of three; tutors could also monitor and coach their learning process on a daily basis. Acceptance of the application reached high levels. Sharing of information proved very helpful. Results of performance as demonstrated in the students’ assignment were significantly good and the overall feedback was positive by both students and tutors. There are promising signs for further application across the course for all students.

T H E R AT I O N A L E – L I T E R AT U R E •



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HEA (2014) stresses the need to approach flexible learning in higher education to accommodate emerging needs of industry, society, and academia. This is also supported by Higgins & Kram (2001) who make a strong link between fast changing organisational structures in contemporary business and social environment and fast paced learning through flexible means. Among the ways to enforce flexible learning is smart use of new technology, but this should be part of a wider learning strategy in order to give full benefits (HEA, 2014; Laurillard, 2008). Social media use (Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, etc.) has become the necessary accessory of communication, as it gives users the impression of being personal in most aspects of life. This need of being personal has permeated learning too. Tutors are required to provide personal feedback and connect with students more frequently, in more ways than the traditional ones, and more than what was happening in the past (Lorimer & Hilliard, 2008). The challenge of our era is “sharing” information, not keeping it for ourselves. Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) serves as an effective new strategy of learning in HE, which helps this target be met (Kirkwood & Price, 2014). Treating technology as a fad and not a strategic tool would keep learning in surface and not as a means to promote deep learning in HE (Fry et al. 2009). So, smart use of technology is required which serves the purpose of higher education while facilitating and encouraging engagement of both students and tutors (Gordon, 2014).

T H E D ES I G N •

• D ELIVERY – C HALLENGES ENCOUNTERED • A couple of technical difficulties in registering students in the system at the beginning. Initial frustration was alleviated by quick and effective support by Learnium’s tech support team • Training students on the functions and options of the application was easier than expected. They quickly identified themselves in the system; its interface reminded of Facebook, so it looked familiar. • Instead of “loosing time” in chatting on Facebook, WhatsApp, or twitter, they were continuously working on their laptop’s or iphone’s, chatting about their assignment’s challenges through Learnium. Therefore, their mind was always focused on the right purpose. • As they were constantly connected with the tool, they were taking on board any critical information or idea being said and discussed in class; they were concentrated in class. • However, students were very engaged in the application and as a consequence they avoided using moodle. Would that mean that Learnium runs the risk of replacing moodle if used for the needs of learning?











There had been primary experience of using ‘padlet’ application for promoting deep learning in a challenging final module of the BA in Strategic Management of Tourism & Hospitality in last academic year. That application had proved more reliant on the tutor’s contribution to searching and sharing information with students. Students were mainly dependent on their tutor’s initiative.  To change that: Introduced ‘Learnium’ in a class of the same academic level & course. It sounded a very promising new option to be tested. The hypothesis was that if users identify themselves in it, they would be more likely to delve into and use it to their benefit. 3rd year students had a challenging Collaborative Consultancy Project to complete within a 3-week period. Team members had to work together, fast, effectively, and daily. The final product had to include quality arguments underlined by high critical evaluation. Ever member of the class was registered and had access to the main page of the application. Tutors of the module were posting and sharing guidelines, critical information and academic articles useful for the understanding of the needs of the assignment. Class was divided in 4 teams of 3-4 students acting as strategy consultants. Each team was also registered in learnium separately and had their own online space in the system where they talked, uploaded material and sources discovered through their individual searches , checked and edited their drafts, asked questions, received answers by tutors, arranged next face to face meetings, agreed on the final draft to submit. Both tutors were monitoring the involvement and engagement of students and encouraged the ones who showed less confidence to use the tool at the beginning, hence not communicating effectively. The application was also used as evidence for teamwork, which was a small component of the final assessment of the assignment.

C O N C LU S I O N & F U T U R E W O R K E VA LUAT I O N – F E E D BAC K • • • • • •

Engagement reached highest levels; team members were posting and discussing even during the night or early morning hours Tutors were able to monitor students and give them personalised formative feedback Final performance was high (2:1 on average). Students loved it. Asked the PAL to extend its use to all modules of the course. It proved as a safe way to combine “pull” learning by using “push” training methods (Mayfield, 2015). Students search for and discuss their findings on their own initiative. However, wider use by all tutors remains a challenge. Smart use of technology has to be a reflection of tutors’ conceptions about their students, beliefs about teaching and learning (Bennett et al. 2015) and this takes takes time. Incorporating it into the learning strategies in HE would make this uniformed transition more efficient.



It offers controlled flexibility in the in-class and off-class learning activity in higher education. • Provides good grounds for deep learning. • Served as an effective tool for high student engagement • Encourages students to collaborate effectively • Brings teaching staff and students closer in a meaningful personal way • Combines fun and learning in a contemporary way BUT • Should teaching by using learnium be uniformed or contingent when module deems it necessary? Convincing other tutors to try and use it in their classes might be hard

R E F E R E N C ES & B I B L I O G R A P H Y Barnett, R. (2014). Conditions of Flexibility: Securing a more responsive higher education system. The Higher Education Academy. June  Gordon, N. (2014) Flexible Pedagogies: Technology Enhanced Learning. The Higher Education Academy. January  Higgins, M. & Kram, K. (2001). Reconceptualizing Mentoring at Work: A Developmental Network Perspective. The Academy of Management Review, Academy of Management. 26 (2). 264-288  Kirkwood, A. and Price, L. (2014). Technology-enhanced learning and teaching in higher education: what is ‘enhanced’ and how do we know? A critical literature review. Learning. Media and Technology. 39 (1). 6–36  Laurillard, D. (2008) Rethinking University Teaching: a conversational framework for the effective use of learning technologies. 2nd Eds. London: Routledge/ Falmer  Lorimer, J. and Hilliard, A. (2008). What is your response? It’s time to get personal. In: Proceedings of the 7th European Conference on E-Learning, 2. 128-134. [online]. Available from: https://uhra.herts.ac.uk/dspace/bitstream/2299/6111/1/ECEL_2008_Paper_Final_v1_B_W.pdf [Accessed 1st December, 2015]  Mayfield, P. (2015) Understanding the push of training and the pull of learning – How adults learn [online]. Available from: http://www.trainingzone.co.uk/deliver/training/understanding-the-push-of-training-and-the-pull-of-learning-how-adults-learn [Accessed 1st December, 2015]