Flexible Learning Futures

1
Flexible Learning Futures
Professor J C Taylor Deputy Vice Chancellor
(Global Learning Services) and Chief Information
Officer University of Southern Queensland
Australia
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Access and Participation Demographic Factors
In most of the developed world, especially in
Europe, populations will decline rapidly, whereas
in developing countries, especially Asia and
Africa, the number of people and associated
demand for higher education will continue to grow.

• Source Klemencic M, Fried J, 2007

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China From Elite to Mass
In 1998 6.4 million enrolments. In 2005 23
million enrolments. In 2007 The largest higher
education system in the world, awarding
more university degrees than the USA and
India combined.
Source BBC News Website, 2007
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Australia From Elite to Mass

• In 1946 8 universities with 26,000 enrolments
• In 2008 38 universities with more than
  1,000,000 enrolments

Source DEEWR, July 2008
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Australian Dual-mode Institutions of Distance
Education Students

• University of Southern Queensland 75
• University of New England 63
• Charles Sturt University 50
• Southern Cross University 27
• Deakin University 21
• Central Queensland University 19

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Student Target Audience

• The time-poor working adult

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Demographic Trends Australia

• Between 2001 and 2006 Mature age enrolments
  continued to rise by nearly 30, while enrolments
  of young people rose by just 1
• Over the next decade the school leaver population
  in Australia will decline by 5

Sources G. Maslen, The Australian (16 May, 2008)
and W.S. Swail, Educational Policy Institute, 3
October, 2008, respectively.
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International Students (2007)

• Australia attracted 450,000 full-fee paying
  international students
• (170,000 in higher education - almost 20 of
  total enrolments)
• Making education (12.5 billion) Australias 3rd
  largest export industry, trailing behind only
  coal (20.8 billion) and iron ore (16 billion).

Source The Australian February, 2008
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Source OECD, 2003
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The Digital Education Revolution
In both developed and developing countries, the
Internet will provide the only viable
cost-effective means to provide access to
education and training opportunities
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Economic Driver for Change

• 'The death of distance as a determinant of the
  cost of communications will probably be the
  single most important economic force shaping
  society in the first half of the 21st century'.

Source Cairncorss (1997)
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Leadership Challenge
Technology is the key variable making possible,
and imperative, the reinvention of the
corporation
Source Stace Dunphy (2001)
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Leadership Challenge
The leaders of education and training
institutions are badly equipped and supported to
implement changes needed for successful
introduction and mainstreaming of meaningful
e-learning and the use of ICT
Policy Paper of the European ODL Liaison
Committee, November 2004.
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USQ 2020 Vision

• To be recognised as a world leader in open and
  flexible higher education

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The Institutional Context
In many universities the development of web-based
initiatives is not systemic, but is often the
result of random acts of innovation initiated by
risk-taking individual academics.
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The USQ Institutional Context
The implementation of educational technologies
including web-based applications at USQ is
strategically planned, systematically integrated
and institutionally comprehensive.
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Enrolled Students USQ 2007

• All students 25,002
• On-campus 6,352
• Off-campus (Australia) 12,060
• Off-campus (Overseas) 6,590
• Note Students studying solely online 822

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USQs International Students 2007

• China 1,765
• Malaysia 1,022
• India 778
• Singapore 565
• Nepal 529
• Fiji 255
• Taiwan 239
• South Africa 237
• United Arab Emirates 182
• Canada 171
• Indonesia 160
• Bangladesh 110
• Total, incl. students from 93 other countries
  7,655

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USQ Student Enrolments 2007
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The USQ Competitive Business Advantage

• Providing the highest quality educational
  experiences to students
• irrespective of their location or lifestyle

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2000 2001 Australias Good Universities Guides
Award for Developing the e-University
2004 Commonwealth of Learning Award of
Excellence for Institutional Achievementin
Distance Education
1999 ICDE Institutional Prize of Excellence for
Dual Mode Operations
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Need for Continuing Research, Development
Innovation
The single greatest challenge facing managers in
the developed countries of the world is to
increase the productivity of knowledge and
service workers
Source Peter Drucker (1991)
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Five Generations of Distance Education Technology

• The Correspondence Model
• The Multimedia Model
• The Telelearning Model
• The Flexible Learning Model
• The Intelligent Flexible Learning Model

Link to Paper Fifth Generation Distance
Education
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Fifth Generation (Asynchronous)
MODELS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION AND
ASSOCIATED DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES
CHARACTERISTICS OF DELIVERY TECHNOLOGIES
INSTITUTIONAL VARIABLE COSTS APPROACHING ZERO
HIGHLY REFINED MATERIALS
ADVANCED INTERACTIVE DELIVERY
FLEXIBILITY
Time
Place
Pace
THE INTELLIGENT FLEXIBLE LEARNING MODEL
Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Yes Yes Yes

• Interactive multimedia
• Internet-based access toWWW resources
• CMC, using automated response systems
• Campus portal access to institutional processes
  resources
• Webcasting and the Live Online Classroom

Yes Yes Yes Yes No/ Yes
Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Yes Yes Yes No/ No/ No/ Yes Yes Yes Yes
Yes
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Managing the Variable Costs of Student
Administrative Support
Ask a question/send an email
NO
Incoming new admin question from student
USQAssist Web Self-Service Knowledge Base
Search / Match
Previous Questions
Previous Answers
USQ staff member New Answer
Immediate admin feedback to student
YES
Trigger
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Web Self-Service Knowledge Base The Consumer
Context

• 2002 48,983 student visits
• 2004 299,900 student visits
• 2007 378,066 student visits

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Managing the Variable Costs of Customer Contacts

• Face-to-face contact US 8.00
• Phone contact (average) US 4.00 - 6.00
• Email US 0.50 - 2.50
• Web Self-Service US 0.24

Source Gartner Group Inc.
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USQAssist
During 2007, USQAssist processed 378,066 student
visits at an approx. cost of

• Self Service (208,651) 50,076
• Email (51,572) 103,144
• Phone (117,843) 589,215
• Total 742,435

compared to an estimated equivalent phone enquiry
cost of approx. 1.89 million
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USQ Institutional Context 2008
Australian Digital Futures Institute
Software Research Development Lab
Technology Enhanced Learning Laboratory
http//www.usq.edu.au/lfii/
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Technology Enhanced Learning Laboratory
Link to TELL video
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Managing the Variable Costs of Academic Support
NO
Metadata Schema Model
Duty Tutor
Reusable Learning Objects Academic Content
Repository
Incoming new academic question from student
Search / Match
Previous Questionsltmeta tagsgt
Previous Answersltmeta tagsgt
New Answer
Immediate academic feedback to student
YES
Trigger
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Managing the fixed costs of courseware design and
development
ICE (Integrated Content Environment)

RENDITIONS
Print
Web
CD
DVD

OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE
XML based content management

Users working copy
CONTENT REPOSITORY
Version Controlled Central Repository

Word processsor (Microsoft Word or
OpenOffice.org)
INPUT
USQs Open Source e-Publishing System
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Roles for Virtual Worlds
Context Lifelike and virtually
real Community Relationships with teachers,
students, alumni, colleagues, experts,
practitioners, researchers, business, employers,
the public Material Manipulate and create
digital materials for creative expression,
machinima (film making) visualization Combinati
ons Mix and match these roles to create authentic
tasks, improve presence for distance learners,
improve communication or connect to a wider
audience

• Source Adapted from Lindy McKeown, PhD
  candidate, USQ, 2008

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The Consumer Context Web 1.0.. Web 2.0 ..Web
3.0

• Source Adapted from Jafari et al., 2006, S. 62

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The Technology-Pedagogy Interface
USQ Fleximode
Source Adapted from Seufert, 2007
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A Strategic Approach is Critical
Flexible Learning Futures
Organisation Flexible and
efficient structures and processes
TechnologyStability, adequatefunctionality
PedagogyEffectiveLearning Environments
Economics
CultureReadiness forchange and innovation
Efficient utilisationof resources
Source Adapted from Seufert/Euler, 2003