Theorising Personalised Education: Electronically Mediated Higher Education

166 Pages·2017·2.125 MB·English

by  Barbara Garrick, Donna Pendergast, David Geelan (auth.)

Barbara Garrick · Donna Pendergast
David Geelan
Theorising
Personalised
Education
Electronically Mediated Higher
Education
Theorising Personalised Education
Barbara Garrick Donna Pendergast
(cid:129)
David Geelan
Theorising Personalised
Education
Electronically Mediated Higher Education
123
Barbara Garrick (deceased) DavidGeelan
GriffithUniversity GriffithUniversity
GoldCoast, QLD GoldCoast, QLD
Australia Australia
Donna Pendergast
GriffithUniversity
GoldCoast, QLD
Australia
ISBN978-981-10-2698-0 ISBN978-981-10-2700-0 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-2700-0
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2016952888
©SpringerNatureSingaporePteLtd.2017
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This book is dedicated to Barbara Garrick,
our lead author and the visionary of this
project.
Preface
We three together set out to write this book.
We did so with great enthusiasm and vigour.
We are all academics in the higher education sector.
We have worked at a time when there has never been greater change.
We are all teacher educators.
We are each committed to effective teaching and learning and to the transfor-
mativepotentialeducationcanhaveinthelivesofindividualsandofcommunities.
We agree our journey has been fun, engaging, and importantly a reflective
process.
We have written together and apart, and we have broken bread over our words
many times.
We have each learned much from this experience.
We are keen to create, locate, and share evidence that personalised education
through e-mediation is achievable and that it has a positive impact on student
learning.
We are optimistic that we have the capacity to achieve personalised learning
using e-mediated tools, but believe more effort is required to develop the peda-
gogies and pedagogues for this to occur.
We three are individuals.
As we developed our understandings of personalised learning, we discovered
that this word lends itself to being reincarnated to capture many of the challenges
and achievements around personalised learning to date. Perhaps the first challenge
isthepersoninpersonalisation.Whoisthepersonreferredto?Wenotethatthekey
characteristics of learners, in the context of personalised education, are their dif-
ferences. This raises for us questions about de-personalised learning. When is
learning not personalised? And might it then be considered to be im-personal?
vii
viii Preface
Andifweengagewithotherscanwere-personalise?Perhapsthereisthepotential
tointer-personaliselearning?Thisisthethinkingthatledustoshapethewordsand
ideas that follow in this book.
Thisbook examines thetheoreticalunderpinning oftheconcept ofpersonalised
educationandexploresthequestion:Whatise-mediatedpersonalisededucationin
the contemporary higher education sector and how is it enacted?
Gold Coast, Australia Barbara Garrick
Gold Coast, Australia Donna Pendergast
Gold Coast, Australia David Geelan
Acknowledgements
We thank several people who made important contributions to this book. Joy
Reynolds provided research assistance, layout, and design. Bess Pendergast and
Carol Maxwell conducted literature reviews that were important to building our
understandings of the field. Thanks to Jayne Keogh for Barbara Garrick’s
biography.
ix
Contents
1 Introduction to the Philosophical Arguments Underpinning
Personalised Education.. ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 1
Philosophical Thinking ... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 1
The Theoretical Construct: Habermas. .... .... .... .... ..... .... 3
Definitions. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 8
Personalised Learning.. ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 8
Personalised Learning in Higher Education Through
E-mediated Instruction . ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 11
E-mediated Instruction . ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 12
E-mediated Instruction in Higher Education.. .... .... ..... .... 14
Provocations ... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 15
References. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 15
2 A Brief History of E-mediated Education .... .... .... ..... .... 17
A Brief History. .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 17
Programmed Learning.... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 18
Beyond Distance Education..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 19
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) .. .... .... .... ..... .... 21
Connectivism .. .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 21
Current Developments.... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 23
Conclusion .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 23
Provocations ... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 24
References. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 24
3 Personalised Learning, Pedagogy, and E-mediated Tools..... .... 27
Major Areas of Debate ... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 27
Digital Disruption to Teaching and Learning in Higher Education .... 28
Looking to the Past.... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 28
Looking at the Present . ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 29
Looking to the Future.. ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 31
xi
xii Contents
Personalised Learning in Higher Education—Developing
a Deep Understanding.... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 34
What Is Personalised Learning in Higher Education?... ..... .... 35
E-learning... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 36
Self-regulated Learning. ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 37
Adaptability and Accessibility of Personalised Learning. ..... .... 38
Catering for Different Learning Styles .. .... .... .... ..... .... 39
Catering for Diversity.. ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 40
Impact of Social Networking . .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 41
Personalisation in Assessment. .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 42
Professional Development.... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 43
Summary.. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 44
Provocation.... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 44
References. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 45
4 Through the Lens of Generational Theory ... .... .... ..... .... 47
Generational Theory . .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 47
Generations and Higher Education ... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 53
Students .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 53
Academic Staff... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 54
What Does This Mean for Higher Education?... .... .... ..... .... 55
Digital Fluency. .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 57
The Future for Higher Education .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 58
Provocations ... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 58
References. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 59
5 Personalised Education, Pedagogy, and Equity
in the Higher Education Sector .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 61
Pedagogic Promise .. .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 61
A Teaching Experience... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 62
Accessibility of Online Higher Education Course Material
and Issues of Equity . .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 63
Accessibility ... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 67
Policies and Procedures... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 68
Conclusion: Taking up What the Student Did not.... .... ..... .... 76
Provocations ... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 78
References. .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 78
6 Personalised or Programmed? Current Practices
of University Systems ... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 83
Personal Experiences. .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 83
Programmed Learning.... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 84
David’s Story .. .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 85
Donna’s Story.. .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 87
Productive Pedagogies.... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 88
Issues and Tensions.. .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 90