What do lecturers say affects their use of VLEs?

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What do lecturers say affects their use of VLEs?

• Sue Morón-García
• s.d.moron-garcia_at_open.ac.uk
• Institute of Educational Technology
• Open University, UK
• http//iet.open.ac.uk/pp/s.d.moron-garcia/webpages
  /Firstpage.html

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Research context

• Exploring use of VLEs to support face-to-face
  teaching - how are lecturers coping?
• does the way a lecturer teaches affect the use of
  the technology?
• does technology use affect a lecturers teaching?
• what are (de)motivating factors for lecturer use
  of the technology?
• Success or failure of a tool depends on the user

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Reasons for VLE use
UCISA survey Jenkins et al 2001

• Q1 - senior managers
• 43 enhancing teaching and learning
• 31 efficiency / management
• 25 distance learning
• 15 flexibility

• Q2 - users / those supporting users
• 49 flexibility
• 37 efficiency / management
• 14 enhancing teaching and learning
• 12 distance learning

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Research process

• Interview study
• Exploratory ? focused
• reasons, actual use needs and concerns
• Pilot study
• interview guide - open ended questions
• Trial main study Main study
• revised / refocused interview guide investigating
  areas identified by pilot
• Approaches to Teaching Inventory
• (Prosser Trigwell, 1999)

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Pilot study
English History International Studies Law
Politics Psychology Womens Studies
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Pilot study
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Pilot study

• Question areas
• A lecturers background
• How a lecturer teaches
• How a lecturer uses Web and Internet-based
  technology sort of technology /changes in
  practice
• Concerns about the use of technology
• Advice to a new member of staff

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Trial main study

• 3 lecturers (sociology, english, religious
  studies)
• 1 HEI (post-1992), Learnwise
• Question areas
• Background i.e. VLE used, for how long how much
• Motivation / reasons for use
• Support / training available
• Tools / elements of VLE used why
• Benefits of VLE use
• Drawbacks
• The effect of student opinion
• Future plans

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Main study interviews

• Question areas
• background info (VLE used, length of time, amount
  of use, reason for use, policy)
• ICT experience (WP, Ppt, HTML, discussion lists
  forums)
• training support available
• availability of pedagogic advice

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Main study interviews

• exploring one context of VLE use
• the students ,type of course, why, tools used,
  relationship to assessment, student feedback on
  use, any change in f2f
• use of other ICT, what would help make better use
  of the VLE, what is good about VLE for the
  subject
• any other comments.

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Main study
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Main study
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Lecturers needs concerns

• Institutional issues
• Technical issues
• Pedagogic issues
• Student issues

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Institutional issues

• Managerial support
• Positive attitude to ICT i.e. support for change
  money and resources
• Policy or encouragement - job security
• Culture and ethos
• Colleague ICT skills and use
• Community of use

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Technical issues

• Technophobia the comfort factor
• ICT experience
• Usability
• clunkiness, linear, menus, the look naming
• Network / system stability ( registration)
• Technical support
• Staff levels expertise
• Time to become familiar with the technology
• Training and support

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Pedagogic issues

• Identifying purposeful use
• no chat for f2f
• New way of working
• Visibility, preparation, revision and updating of
  materials
• Changing how you teach
• Support for teaching innovation
• Validation procedures
• Focus of support staff

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Student issues

• ICT skills attitude
• Training support - use of contact time
• Minimalists, motivation, assessment
• Attendance - lecture notes / handouts
• Accessibility
• Physical - disability, number of computers
• Expense - printing, PCs ISP