IT in Teaching and Learning: A Staff Development Pack
		Betsy Anagnostelis

PUBLISHER University of Durham AUTHORS Vilas Edwards, David Adcock and Nicholas Bowskill CONTACT DETAILS: Ms. S Turpin TLTP Co-ordinator Northavon House Coldharbour Lane Bristol BS16 1QD Tel: 0117 931 7454 Fax: 0117 931 7173 SOFTWARE TYPE: A modular, mixed media training package SUBJECT AREA General IT COST: £100 excl. VAT

The IT in Teaching and Learning pack sets out to assist staff development advisers in raising awareness about how information technology can be used in support of teaching and learning in higher education . The materials are intended to be directed towards academic staff with little or no experience in the use of IT. Apart from designated staff development officers, librarians and information officers or individuals from academic departments with staff development responsibilities may all find the pack useful in introducing IT. IT is defined broadly here to include video. Six modules form the basic structure, accompanied by ample support material (printed, video and computer based). They cover the following subjects: Using IT to enhance personal and professional productivity Recognising IT components Using IT components in teaching, learning and assessment Applying instructional principles to the uses of IT in teaching and learning Using computer assisted learning materials in the curriculum Evaluating CAL materials The modules can be treated independently, or can be interwoven, and suggestions are offered as to how this can be achieved. Each module provides comprehensive material for one or more participative workshops for academic staff. A module overview sets the scene for each module as a whole, while workshop notes provide an outline for the individual workshops; the notes include h andy summary charts which suggest a sequence in which different elements can be used (hands-on exercises, video or computer based materials) as well as detailed instructions for installing and running the software provided. OHP masters are available, bot h printed and as wordprocessed files (Word for Windows version 2), and are supported by extensive workshop scripts. The pack is supplemented by an IT components glossary and a wide selection of case studies illustrating applications in UK higher educatio n institutions. The authors take care to advise that a considerable investment of time may be needed to install and evaluate computer based material. Extensive installation instructions are provided, both overall (in a pack overview) and with the documentation for each module, as appropriate. On the whole installation is smooth and trouble-free, although difficulties do arise with one or two applications. (Only the PC based software was used for the purpose of this review; Mac based software is also provided). The material supplied is so extensive (3 videos, 20 discs and 9 spiral-bound manuals) that the pack can be used almost off-the-shelf, with little or no modifications. The authors do encourage adapting the workshops to local circumstances, and there is perhaps greater scope in the two early m odules for doing just that; it is quite likely for example, that IT advisers will have developed homegrown courses to introduce computing fundamentals with a local flavour; or that library or computing advisers will be running (and continuously updating) training sessions on using networked information services and the Internet, focused on local access arrangements. It is in the remaining four modules that the pack excels in bringing together and illustrating a wide range of issues, supported very effectively by examples of current practice in the case studies and video and computer based materials. The Applying Ins tructional Principles... module offers a structured approach to help explore ways in which IT can address particular areas of concern in teaching and learning: improving the quality of learning, coping with increased student numbers, and coping with a mor e diverse student body; the implications of IT based solutions are also drawn out admirably. Drawing on a wide selection of sample material, the Using CAL....module introduces different types of CAL, such as drill and practice, tutorial, simulation, and highlights their features and relative strengths and weaknesses; the workshop manages to encap sulate important design principles in a little under 30 OHPs. Finally, the module on CAL evaluation offers just the sort of structured framework that can help inform the design of local guidelines, encompassing local priorities. The material remains cap tivating throughout - down to the last element in the pack, a 20 minute video on evaluating CAL. The pack offers no single, neat solution to the issues surrounding the use of IT in the curriculum; indeed, its modular and flexible approach ensures that adaptations can easily be accommodated. The emphasis of the pack is to support staff development ad visers in the independent design of workshops; for the motivated individual, it can also assist in self development. Licence Details The software provided may be installed on a number of machines for the purpose of running a workshop. Multiple copies of the computer based or video material cannot be made without prior permission from the providers of the material. This article has been reproduced with kind permission from the CTI Centre for Medicine First published in CTICM UPDATE, October 1995 VOLUME 6(2) Reviewed by: Ms. Betsy Anagnostelis Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine Rowland Hill Street London NW3 2PF.

[PREVIOUS] [NEXT] [CONTENTS] [CTI-HOME]