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Theeffectonstaffperceptionsofonlinelearningwhenusinganontraditional
approachtostaffdevelopment
VickiSimpson

UniversityofSurrey

v.simpson@surrey.ac.uk

ABSTRACT

Staffdevelopmentplaysacrucialroleintheadoptionofnewtechnology.However,theappropriate
requirementsforeffectivestaffdevelopmentintermsofemphasis,contentanddeliveryareoftennot
met.

Thispaperidentifiesthekeyfactorsidentifiedwithincurrentresearchandproposesacourse
methodologyanddesignthataddressestheseissues.Theevaluationfocusesonthesuccessofthe
methodologyandtheroleoftheindividualparticipantspedagogicalstylewithregardtotheadoptionof
newtechnology.Thepaperconcludesthatwhileatraditionaldidacticpedagogicalapproach(inboththe
individualparticipantandinthedesignofstaffdevelopmentcourses)maynotaffectuptake,itmay
resultininappropriateadoption.

Keywords

staffdevelopmentadoptionofnewtechnologystaffperceptionofonlinelearningonlinetutoring.

INTRODUCTION

Theadoptionofnewtechnologiestosupportteachingandlearningisahighpriorityformanyhigher
educationinstitutions,withtheDearingreportprovidinganationaldriverin1997.Theinclusionof
"exploitationofcommunicationsandinformationtechnologyintheserviceofmanagedimprovementsin
learningandteaching"(HEFCE,2000)asatargetwithininstitutionallearningandteachingstrategieshas
subsequentlyensuredthatthisissueiskeptontheinstitutionalagenda.

HEFCEhasrecognizedthatstaffdevelopmentisvitalinexploitingnewtechnologiesandmaintaining
goodadoptionrates.("Meetspecificstaffdevelopmentandtrainingobjectivesthatnotonlyequipstaff
tomeettheircurrentneedsbutalsopreparethemforfuturechanges,suchasusingnewtechnologies
forlearningandteaching."(HEFCE,2001)).Thechallengeistomakesurethatthestaffdevelopment
opportunitiesavailableaddressthecorrectneedsandaredeliveredinanappropriatewaytoensure
effectiveadoption.

Requirementsforstaffdevelopmentinnewtechnologies

Recentliteraturehashighlightedfourkeyfactorsthatarepertinenttotheissueofstaffdevelopment
regardingnewtechnologies:

Emphasisonpedagogy,nottechnology

Staffdevelopmentcoursesaboutnewtechnologiesoftenaddresstheacquisitionoftechnicalskills,
ratherthanthepedagogicalaspectsandimplicationsofusinglearningtechnology."Theemphasison
themasteryanduseofthetechnologyhasbeentheprimaryfocusofmanystaffdevelopment
activities"(delaHarpeetal,2002).

However,thepedagogicalconsiderationsareimportant,ashighlightedbytheTALiSMANreport
(Alexander,1999):"theintroductionoflearningtechnologycreatesnewopportunitiesandchallenges,
tutorialsupportandstudentadministration.arguablythisisasignificantpartofthepedagogic
implicationsofusinglearningtechnology,anditmaybenosurprisethatitisnotrepresentedinthis
survey,giventhesmallnumberofitemsthatdealwithanypedagogicimplicationsofusingLT".The
reportconcludes"thereisaneedforarangeofstaffdevelopmentactivitiesaddressingtheevaluation
oflearningtechnologyanditspedagogicdimension".

Therefore,toencouragenonsuperficialadoptionoflearningtechnology,thereisaneedforstafftobe
engagedatapedagogicallevelinthefirstinstance,withthetechnologicaltrainingprovidedoncethat
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hasbeenexplored.

Emphasisonindividualpedagogy

However,focusingonpedagogicalissuesisnotnecessarilystraightforwardwhosepedagogical
approachisused?("TheuseofICTinHEiscomplexandwidelydebated.Forexample,thereappear
tobenosimpleanswersabouthowbesttousetechnologywithincoursesAllthisposesparticular
problemsforthoseinvolvedinprofessionaldevelopmentinHE,sinceitmeansthattherecanbeno
definitivebodyofknowledgeforthosenewtothistopic."(SmithandOliver,2002).

Theimplicationisthatthereneedtobeopportunitiesfortheteachertoexploretheirindividualconcept
ofteachingandlearning:"Academicdevelopmentismostlikelytosucceedwhentheteachersown
beliefsaboutteachingandlearningprovidethestartingpoint"(Errington,2001).Theindividualismore
likelytousethetechnologyiftheycanseetheapplicabilitytotheirsituationandmethodology,and
adoptandadaptastheyfit.

However,Mayesarguesthattheemergingpedagogicalconsensusinadoptingnewtechnologyis
aroundconstructivismandthemosteffectiveeducationalwayofusingonlinetechnology,therefore,is
tofocusonsupportingthelearnersinvolvementincollaboration,authentictasks,reflectionand
dialogue"(Mayes,2001).Therefore,ateacherwithamoretraditionalconceptofteachingmayseeless
applicabilityandfeellesspositiveaboutusingnewtechnologythanateacherwithamorestudent
centredapproach.

Learnerexperiencecrucial

Indevelopingpersonalteachingmethodologiesandstyles,staffoftendrawupontheirexperiencesasa
learner,bothgoodandbad.However,veryfewacademicstaffembarkingupontheuseofnew
technologieshavebeeninthisposition.Theyareunabletodrawonthelearnerexperiencebut
approachnewtechnologiesasanovice.Animportantpartofstaffdevelopmentmustsurelygive
accesstothisexperience.AsGillySalmonfoundwithnewtutors,they"trulyneededtoexperience,
muchastheirownstudentswould,thepitfallsandpotentialofCMCiftheyweretoemoderate
effectively"(Salmon,2000).

Contextofprofessionaldevelopment

Indesigningstaffdevelopment,thespecialrequirementsofprofessionaldevelopmentalsoneedtobe
considered,asitdiffersfromtraditionallearning.Milligan(1999)liststhefollowing:

"Motivationisdifferent(everydaydemandsofworkarelikelytotakeprecedence)

Learnerswillbeparttimeandwillalmostcertainlyrequireaflexibletimetable

Examinationwillbeatypical(willrequireparticipanttodrawontheirownexperience)

Peerlearningandmentoringwilltakeasignificantrole."

Thispaperwilladdressthefollowing:

Isitpossibletodesignasuccessfulstaffdevelopmentcourse(i.e.onethatencourages
stafftoadoptnewtechnologies)thatalsoaddressestheabovefactorsandrequirements
(pedagogicalfocusindividualteachingbeliefsexperienceasonlinelearnerprofessional
context)?

Assumingthatteachersownbeliefsaboutteachingandlearningarethestartingpointfor
academicdevelopment,howwilldifferentteachingapproachesinfluencetheresponseto
andsuccessofthecoursefortheindividual?

DESIGNANDIMPLEMENTATION

Aimsandmethodology

WiththeincreasinguseandinterestinVirtualLearningEnvironments,itwasdecidedtofocusthestaff
developmentcoursearoundtheonlinelearningaspectofnewtechnologies.

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Themainaimsofthecoursewereforstafftodeveloparealisticperceptionofonlinelearning(to
addressthelackofonlinelearnerexperience)andtohaveanincreasedbeliefinthepotentialofonline
learningintheirownteachingpractice.Thepedagogicalapproachusedwouldbesocialconstructivist,
toprovideamodelofgoodpracticeinaccordancewiththeemergingpedagogicalconsensus
identifiedbyMayes.

Inordertoachievetheseaims,theobjectivewastoencouragestafftogothroughthefollowing
process:

Toexperienceonlinelearningasalearnerinanauthenticenvironment

Todiscussandreflectonthisonlinelearnerexperience

Totranslatethelearnerexperienceandtoformaconceptoftheroleoftheonline
teacher

Toplantoapplythisknowledgeasanonlineteacher.

Themodel(fig.1)isanadaptationofKolbs(Kolb,1984)learningcycle.Althoughentrytothecycle
canusuallybeatanypoint,inthiscaseitwasspecifiedastheexperiencingstage.Theexperience
andreflectionstagestakesplaceasalearner,withtheconceptualizationandapplicationstagestaking
placeasateacher.WherethismodeldoesnotreflectKolbscycleisthatacademicstaffmayoften
nothavetheopportunitytoexperienceonlinelearningasstudentmorethanonce,andsocannot
completethecycle.

Fig.1:AdaptationofKolbs
4stagemodelasusedin
thestaffdevelopment
course

Howeverthecyclecouldbe
completedandrepeatedif
anasouterloopis
introduced,withthestages
ofexperience,reflection,
conceptualizationand
applicationbeingrepeated
asateacherthroughoutall
the4stages(fig.2.).

Fig.2:Furtheradaptationof
Kolbsmodelwithouterloop
asusedinthestaff
developmentcourse

ThemethodologyalsodrawsonArgyris(Argyris,1999)doublelooptheory(whereamismatchin
actionandconsequencesisaddressedbyexaminingtheunderlyinggoverningvariablesbeforealtering
action).Creatinganauthenticonlinelearnerexperiencemayincludeexperiencingfailureasthelearner
struggleswiththenewenvironment.Althoughvaluable,itcouldpotentiallyreducethelikelihoodof
increasedbeliefinpotentialofonlinelearning.AsArgyrisobserves:"Becausemanyprofessionalsare
almostalwayssuccessfulatwhattheydo,theyrarelyexperiencefailure.Andbecausetheyhave
rarelyfailed,theyhaveneverlearnedhowtolearnfromfailuretheirabilitytolearnshutsdown
preciselyatthemomenttheyneeditmost").Infosteringarealisticperceptionofonlinelearning,the
aimwastoenablestafftoexamineandaltertheirmisperceptionofthegoverningvariablesofonline
learningandthusaltertheiractionsaccordinglytobecomemoreeffectiveonlinelearnersandteachers.

Designandimplementation

Withreferencetothespecificprofessionalneeds,thecoursemethodologywasimplementedasafully
onlinecourselasting8weeks,toprovideanauthenticonlinelearningexperienceandallowparttime
flexiblestudy.Individualandcollaborativeactivitieswereincluded,toprovideanauthenticandwide

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rangingexperience
andallowpeer
interactionand
feedback.Thecourse
materialwasabout
theroleoftheonline
tutor,therebyallowing
learningtotakeplace
throughcontentas
wellasprocess,and
providingcoherence
ofmediumand
message.

Thecoursewasnot
accredited,an
authenticdetailthat
onewouldexpectin
mostonlinelearning
courses.However,
thisdecisionthen
avoidedthenegative
"achievement"motivation,allowingthefocustobeonthelearning.ThisechoesBiggsviewthatif
"studentsbuildupagoodknowledgebase,achievesuccessinproblemsthataresignificant,andbuildupa
feelingof"ownership"overtheirlearning,motivationfollowsgoodlearningasnightfollowsday".

EVALUATION

Scopeofevaluation

Theevaluationaimedtoassesstheoverallsuccessofthecourseaimsandmethodologyby
addressingthequestions:

"Isthisnontraditionalapproachtostaffdevelopmentsuccessfulin:

engenderingarealisticperceptionofonlinelearningand

increasingbeliefinthepotentialofonlinelearning?"

Theevaluationwouldalsolookatindividualresponsesincomparisontotheirpersonalpedagogical
beliefsdoaddressthequestion:

"Doindividualpedagogicalbeliefsaffecttheoutcomeofparticipatinginthisnontraditionalcourse?

Methodology

Datawascollectedpre,duringandpostcourseusingarangeofmethodstoallowtriangulationofdata:
selfassessment,quizzesandtestslearningcontracts,writtenquestionnaires,focusgroupsand
graphicalrepresentation.Datawascollectedfromstafffromboththelearnerandteacherperspective,
whichwascrucialtoexploringallstagesoftheadaptedKolbsmodel.Qualitativedatawasparticularly
importantingatheringimpressions,perceptionsandopinions.

Graphicaldatacollection

Graphicalrepresentationwaschosenasbeingeffectiveingatheringimpressionisticdatawhichmaybe
hardertoarticulateverbally.Itwasalsoeasiertoseepatternsbetweenindividualstaffresponses.

Thisformofdatacollectionwasusedintwoinstances,thefirstbeingacontinuumofteachingstyles
rangingfromtraditionaldidacticteachingatoneendtostudentcentredparticipatoryattheother
(adaptedfromBrandesandGinnis,1986).Staffwereaskedtoplacethemselvesonthescale.

Thesecondinstanceofdatacollectionwastheuseofareactiongraph,whereareparticipantsasked
todrawagraphshowingnegativeandpositivefeelings(ontheverticalaxis)overthelengthofthe

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course(onthehorizontalaxis).Thegraphsillustratelearnerengagementandreactiontothecourse.
Thegraphsweredrawnbothelectronicallyusingadrawingpackage(whenusedduringthecourse)or
byhand(inthepostcoursediscussionsessions),andassuchcanbecrudeintheirrepresentation.

Dataselection

Thefollowingdatawasusedintheevaluation:

Evaluationquestion Subquestion Methodology/Dataused

Wastheexperiencerealistic? Reaction graphs illustrating learner

engagement. Informal comparison
with reaction graphs used in an
accreditedonlinecourse.

Commentsonlearnerexperience

Did perception of online learning Perception of online learner

changeonreflection? experiencepreandpostcourse

Could participants conceptualize Knowledgetestonroleofteacher

impactonteacher?

Did they plan to apply knowledge Opinion on potential of online

andadoptthisapproach? learning pre and post course and
plansforimplementation.

Do individual pedagogical beliefs N/a Responsestoabove

affect response and outcome of
thiscourse? Selfidentification on continuum
ofteachingstyles

FINDINGS

Participantprofile

Thecoursehasrunonthreeoccasionstodate.Theinstanceusedforthisevaluationtookplaceduring
SeptembertoNovember2001.

Therewere12participantsfromarangeofacademicschools,allofwhomselfselectedtoparticipate
inthecourse.3participantsdroppedoutalmostimmediately,another2aftercompletinghalfthe
course,withtheream7completingmostorallofthecourse.9setsofcompletedatawerecollected
andusedinthisevaluationofwhich1wasfromanearlyleaver,2werefromtheparticipantswho
completedhalfthecourse,andthereamining7fromthosewhocompletedmostorallofthecourse.

Theparticipantsratedthemselvesasfollows:

ITskills:3good,5average,1poor

5hadusedelectronicdiscussionboards

1hadtaughtonlinepreviously(butnotstudied)

1hadstudiedonline(butnottaught)

Wastheexperiencerealistic?

Fortheparticipantstohaveanauthenticlearningexperience,itwasimportantthattheyengagedwith
thecourseonmorethanjustasuperficiallevel.Sevenofthereactiongraphsandaccompanying
commentsindicatedahighlevelofengagementoverthelengthofthecourse,withtwoshowingalow
levelofengagement.Withintheseventhatshowedengagement,therewerethreepatterns:

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Apositivestartfollowedbyoneormorenegativedips,andapositivefinishasillustrated
infig.3.

Apositivestartfollowedbyaslowdeclinecommentsshowedthatinterestwas
maintainedthroughoutthecoursebutpressureofworkandinabilitytocontributeinduced
negativefeelings.

Anindifferentstartfollowedbyasteadyincreaseininterestandpositivefeelingstowards
thecourse.

Fig.3.Recordof
learnerexperience
usingareactiongraph
fromstaff
developmentcourse

Interestingly,an
informalrecordfrom
learnerexperiences
onanaccredited
onlinecourse
(Universityof
LancastersNetworked
LearningProgramme,
September

December 2000)

usingthesamereaction graphmethodproducedthefollowingcomparablerecord:

Fig.4:Recordoflearnerexperience
usingareactiongraphfromthe
NetworkedLearningProgramme,
UniversityofLancaster.

Didperceptionschangeon
reflection?

8participantsreportedthattheir
perceptionhadchangedhaving
beenonthecourse,withtheother
participantrespondingnochange
becausehealreadyhadarealistic
perceptionpriortothecourse.The
followingcommentssupportthat
therehasbeenshiftinperception:

"Learningwouldbeaneasy
experienceandmanagingtime
wouldntbedifficult"shiftedto
"Learningisdifficult(butenjoyable)andmanagingtimecanbehard."

"Vague,gimmicky,educationonthecheap"shiftedto"Theproblemsandsolutionsshowedthatitis
bynomeanscheapandpotentiallyveryprecise."

"Ithoughtitwasabitlikedistancelearningbutwithtechnology"shiftedto"itisauniquelearning
environment"

Couldparticipantsconceptualizetheimpactonteacherpractice?

Theparticipantswereaskedtolisttheimportantfactorstoconsiderwhendesigningandrunningan
onlinecourse.Mostwereabletoidentifyatleastonekeyfactorthatwouldcontributetothe
effectivenessofanonlinecoursesuchas:
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"provideflexibility,notjustintermsoftimeandspace,buttakeintoaccountlearningstyles"

"knowwhetherwhatyouwanttoteachissuitableforonline"

"knowwhentoapplydifferenttutoringstyles"

"engagementofstudentsiscrucial"

Wereparticipantsconvincedbythepotentialandkeentoadopt?

Whenaskedhowtheywoulduseandapplywhattheyhadlearntonthecourse,sixparticipantshad
definiteplans,twowerenotsureandonedidnotrespond.

Theparticipantswerethenaskediftheyweremoreorlessconvincedaboutthepotentialofonline
learning:sixweremoreconvinced,twofeltthesame,andonedidnotrespond.Ofthetwothatfeltthe
same,onefeltthatshehadnothadsufficienttimetoexplorethealltheissues,whiletheotherstillfelt
thatonlinelearningwasanalternativewherefacetofaceteachingisntpossibleIstillthinkitis
secondbest.Overall,theparticipantsappearedmorelikelytouseonlinelearningthanpriortothe
course.

Doindividualpedagogicalbeliefsaffectresponseandoutcomeofthecourse?

Sevenoftheparticipantsplacedthemselvesclosertothestudentcentredparticipatoryendofthe
teachingstylecontinuum,withsomevariationdependingonwhetherthestudentgroupwas
undergraduateorpostgraduate.Theothertwoplacedthemselvesclosertothetraditionaldidacticend.
Oneofthemfurtherarticulatedhisteachingapproachwithintheonlinediscussion:

"IndeedasadinosaurofimpeccablecredentialsI'vealwaysthoughtthat
theobviousways

areprobablythebest...ifyouwantsomeonetoknowsomethingtell
them...don'texpect

themtodiscoveritalloveragainbylongwindeddiscussions."

Ofthesevenstudentcentredteachers,5showedanincreaseintheirbeliefinonlinelearning.Ofthe
twotraditionalteachers,onedidnotrespondbuttheotheralsoshowedanincreaseinhisbeliefin
onlinelearning.Thismayindicatethatdifferentpedagogicalbeliefsdonotnecessarilyaffectthe
adoptionofonlinelearningoralienatethemoretraditionalteachers.However,althoughtheremaybean
"emergingpedagogicalconsensus"basedonconstructivism,itmaynotbeadoptedbyallandthe
teachercentredapproachmaymerelybereplicatedwithintheelectronicenvironment.

Conclusions

Thesampleusedwassmallandthereforeanyconclusionsaredrawnwithinthatcontext,withfurther
samplesneededtoconfirmtheseinitialfindings,

Formostparticipants,thecoursemethodologyandnontraditionalcoursedesignappearedtobe
successfulinachievingtheaimsofthecourse(namely,toencouragestafftoadoptnewtechnologies
andtoimplementitusinganappropriatepedagogicalapproach)whilestilladdressingspecific
professionaldevelopmentrequirements.However,thislevelofachievementwasassistedbytheprior
pedagogicalbeliefsoftheparticipantsinstudentcentredlearning.

Wheretheparticipantheldamoretraditionalviewofteaching,thesecondaimislesslikelytobe
achieved,leadingtothepossibilitythatalessappropriatepedagogicalstylemaybeappliedwhen
adoptingnewtechnology."Theconceptionsthatlecturersholdneedtobeaddressed,andifnecessary,
lecturershelpedtochangethesesotheyaremoreinlinewithalearnercentred,processorientated
constructivistapproachtoteachingandlearning."(delaHarpeetal,2002)Itisrecommendedthat
teachingandlearningbeliefsareaddressedpriortothecourseandindependentlyofnewtechnology.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

RhiannonWilliams,CentreforAppliedResearchinEducational
Technologies,UniversityofCambridgeforcodesignofthecourseandintroducingtheconceptof
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reactiongraphs.

MartinOliver,KimIsroff,HollySmith,EducationandProfessionalDevelopment,UniversityCollege
Londonforsupportinpublishingthisresearch.

AnnetteOdell,CentreforLearningDevelopments,UniversityofSurreyforadviceandencouragement.

EvanDickerson,CentreforLearningDevelopments,UniversityofSurreyforadditionaltutoringsupport.
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