E-learn Weblog of Willem van Valkenburg

In January 2020 we are organising the second Erasmus Exchange Week from January 28 to 31 in the TU Delft Teaching Lab:

The Delft Teaching Academy invites both academic and administrative staff members from Higher Education Institutions to our Teaching Lab, the home of our teachers; a place where we bring educational activities together under one roof, accelerate initiatives and strengthen collaborations with peers. At TU Delft, we approach education like we approach research: experiment, learn and share findings. 

Programme

In a four-day programme we’ll dive into a wide range of topics. From online and open education to teacher training and the best way to support our TU Delft teaching community. During our Erasmus+ Exchange Week, we aim to exchange ideas, evidence and expertise. We’ll share our vision on education and focus on the variety of available services and programmes to help teachers improve their education. We’ll give demonstrations of our spaces for experimentation, collaboration and exposure. And we are very much interested in your own institutes’ vision and practices!

Experiences of the first week

In 2019 we organised this week for the first time to streamline all the visit requests we receive. 12 people participated and all were enthousiast about what they learned in the week:

“The TU Delft Exchange Week offered me a unique chance to share best practices and processes with colleagues from TU Delft and around the world. It was truly inspiring!”

“The best thing about visiting at TU Delft was to gain insight into their explicit strategies and approaches for online and blended learning. Highly recommended”

For more information and registration, please check out this page.

Our university is facing growing number of students and are hiring more teachers. This also has a influence on the support staff, so I have been hiring quiet some new people and currently have two positions open:

Last Monday we presented the final version of the Euopean Maturity Model for Blended Education during a pre-conference workshop of the annual ALT conference in Edinburgh.

This model is a framework which can be used to tackle any conceptual or implementation issues regarding blended learning, teaching and education. It indicates which dimensions are relevant for lecturers and educators, but also institutions, policymakers and educational centres. It aims to help, inspire and guide anyone who wants to implement or improve blended learning in their institution. This model consists of three levels:course level, programme level, and institution level. Each level has multiple dimensions, which together should give a comprehensive overview of the field of blended learning and education. The dimensions include indicators which describe the level of maturity. The dimensions and indicators can help to determine your own level of maturity.

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On 2 September EMBED project will launch the European Maturity Model for Blended Education in Edinburgh.

The maturity model’s aim is to map blended learning practices, conditions, strategies and policies in a systematic manner and, ultimately, to identify tracks for optimization or change. The EMBED partner experts from Delft University of Technology, KU Leuven, University of Edinburgh, Dublin City University, Aarhus University and TAMK will share with you the development and use of the maturity model for blended education. This model embraces all levels of an institution: the design of blended courses, organisational aspects such as staff support, training and institutional leadership, next to policy development and strategies which enable an institution to innovate continuously its blended education, teaching and learning.

The event is free to attend, but you have to register via this website.

Delphi Research Study

The model has been validated with an international group of blended learning experts. In multiple rounds the experts had to reach agreement on a specific dimensions and indicators. For this study, we have defined consensus as follows: at least 75% of experts agree or strongly agree about the importance and validity of the proposed dimension and its indicator(s). In particular, such agreement equals to a score of 5, 6 or 7 on a scale of 0 to 7. Subsequently, the level of agreement is calculated as a number between 0 and 1, as recommended in the literature [1].

Assumptions

For the model we have used these assumptions:

BLENDED LEARNING, TEACHING & EDUCATION
For this framework we use the following definitions:

• Blended Learning = learning as a result of a deliberate, integrated combination of online and face-to-face learningactivities.
• Blended Teaching = designing and facilitating blended learning activities.
• Blended Education = the formal context of blended learning that is determined by policies and conditions with regard to the organization and support of blended learning.

MATURITY
The concept of ‘maturity’ relates to the degree of formality and optimization of the design, evidence-based decision making, documentation and continuous quality improvement which characterize the uptake of blended Learning practices, or the implementation of blended learning conditions and strategies.

QUALITY ≠MATURITY
Quality approaches can be in place within each of the maturity levels. However, maturity does not equal quality. Moreover, it has been observed that repeated blended learning practice at a particular maturity level does not result in an actual increase in maturity.

ALIGNMENT
We assume that instructors or instructional designers are knowledgeable about how to align course objectives/expected outcomes, learning activities, and assessment (both formative and summative). We also assume that they are knowledgeable about the alignment between the course objectives and the target student group.

VALUE OF (INFORMED) DESIGN
We explicitly adhere to a design-focused approach of courses and programmes. Consequently, we see growth in maturity as a result of the ability of (teams of) instructors, instructional designers and others involved to make informed decisions about blended learning courses and programmes. This includes using design principles and/or instructional theories, from blended learning activity design right up to whole programme design (i.e. the organization, planning and documentation of a structured series of courses or units).

VALUE OF EVIDENCE, EXPERIENCE AND CONTINUOUS QUALITY IMPROVEMENT (CQI)
When backed up by research and/or practical evidence a course or programme design is reinforced. The extent to which continuous quality improvement processes and products are embedded in a course or programme determines the maturity level of a blended learning practice. These allow course instructors/designers to continuously improve blended learning courses in an iterative manner.  

ACTION LEVELS AND KEY ACTORS
Three action levels are included in the model: the micro, meso, and macro level. We deem the main actor at the micro level to be the instructor or the instructional designer of a course. At the meso-level different key actors, teams, or bodies for decision making play a role in the decision-making process. Programme coordinators, department heads, deans, and heads of teaching and learning centres are involved, among others.

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[1] See: Jünger, S., Payne, S., Brine, J., Radbruch, L., & Brearley, S. (2017). Guidance on Conducting and REporting DElphi Studies (CREDES) in palliative care: Recommendations based on a methodological systematic review. Palliative Medicine, 31. DOI: 026921631769068. 10.1177/0269216317690685.

Part of our participation in the EMBED project (European Maturity Model for Blended Education) is the organisation of a couple of training events to share our knowledge and to give you the opportunity to learning about state of the art research and innovation in blended and online teaching and learning.

The next training event will be a EMBED training seminar at DCU in Dublin, 4-7 June 2019. This 3-days intensive training session is organized by the project team of EMBED. The “European Maturity Model for Blended Education in Europe” (EMBED) is developed by a consortium of frontrunner universities in blended and online education: KU Leuven, TU-Delft, the University of Edinburgh, the University of Aarhus, Dublin City University and Tampere University of Applied Sciences. It is coordinated by EADTU and funded by the European Commission. For full details on the project we kindly refer to the EMBED website.

The training seminar will be an opportunity to learn about state of the art of blended teaching and education and to apply new concepts on the current context of your university. Participants will further generate feedback on the multidimension maturity model for course design as developed by the consortium (micro) and on the institutional strategies needed in order to implement it (meso). You will also learn about the monitor to assess the maturity of blended and online educational practices at universities. The monitor is conceived as a multi-layered instrument with dimensions and indicators that were newly developed or adapted from previously validated instruments. Its goal is to grasp in detail practices and conditions for blended learning. All instruments are piloted across different institutions, programmes and courses

Foreseen participants are coming from:

• Teaching staff designing or redesigning a course, using new modes of teaching and learning. Teaching staff looking for a stable framework for innovating or assessing courses, in search of a balance between increasing student numbers, enhancing the quality of the teaching and learning experience and cost-effectiveness. Furthermore, teaching staff, developing online learning activities for short postgraduate degrees and continuous education.
  
  
• Teaching and learning departments developing blended and online teaching and learning models; supporting staff in course design teams; identifying patterns of good practice in their institution or in a network; collaborating with learning technology services and organising continuous professional development for teaching staff and program directors, or organising institutional evaluation and research on blended and online education. Learning technology departments providing learning-oriented technology infrastructure, tools and resources and supporting teaching staff. Internationalisation departments, responding to the needs for international blended or online courses and programs, online program collaboration and mobility schemes.
  
  
• University leaders, developing and implementing policies, strategies, frameworks and guidelines making their university continuously innovative; developing drivers and enablers for innovation; organising support services and continuous professional development for staff and program directors; stimulating and activating communities of practice and sharing educational resources; providing learning technology environments and tools; funding grassroot initiatives, program-based projects, institutional evaluation and research

Although the training seminar, including coffee breaks, is free of charge, there are participants costs for lunches and dinners.

The full programme of the training seminar will follow soon. Please register as participant under the EMBED event website here.

We get many requests for visits from academic and staff from other universities to visit our Teaching Lab and hear about what and especially how we have organised our open, online and blended education activities. To make this a bit more efficient for us and more accessible for everyone we are organising a Erasmus+ Staff Week from 11 to 14 June 2019 in the Teaching Lab.

In a four-day programme we’ll dive into a wide range of topics. From online and open education to teacher training and the best way to support our TU Delft teaching community. During our Erasmus+ Staff Week, we aim to exchange ideas, evidence and expertise. We’ll share our vision on education and focus on the variety of available services and programmes to help teachers improve their education. We’ll give demonstrations of our spaces for experimentation, collaboration and exposure. And we are very much interested in your own institutes’ vision and practices!

If you are interested to participate, please register via this website before May 22nd.

For the EMBED project we like to validate a framework for blended education and learning. Therefor we want to ask the opinion of experts in the field of blended education and learning. This blogpost describes the research design and explains how you can participate in this research.

Introduction: The EMBED project

The European Maturity model for Blended EDucation (EMBED) is a strategic partnership between seven1 institutes of higher education in Europe. EMBED will create a reference model for developing and implementing blended learning, embracing all levels of an institution: the design of the blended course (micro level), organisational aspects such as staff support and training (meso level), and institutional leadership, developing policies and strategies making the institution continuously innovative (macro level). The maturity model is a model with criteria and instruments to assess the degree of maturity of blended learning and innovation.

This research

The aim of this research is to validate the maturity framework for blended education. We developed a draft maturity framework, based on an extensive literature research and dozens of interviews. The draft maturity framework consists of two levels; the micro-level (course and curriculum level) and the meso level (institution level). For each level we have identified dimensions to describe the level and indicators to measure the maturity. The next step is to validate the draft maturity framework with experts in blended learning (that would be you).
This validation will be done using a Delphi research. In a Delphi research we ask experts in the field of blended education their opinion about the draft framework. This will be done in two rounds. We will use the input from round 1 to adjust the framework for round 2.

Round 1 (will take place between 21 November 2018 and 12 December 2018)
In the first round you will validate the dimensions of the draft framework. We defined 7 dimensions on micro-level and 9 dimensions on meso-level. We’re asking if you agree with the dimensions and also to give reasoning why you agree, or not. This will be done using an online questionnaire, which will take about 30 till 60 minutes to complete. The questionnaire will be available from 21 November till 12 December.
After Round 1 we will refine the framework based on the input of the participants.

Round 2 (Will take place between 16 January 2019 and 6 February 2019)
In the second round we will present the revised list of dimensions. First we will ask you to rank the dimensions in order of importance. After the ranking we will present the indicators for maturity per dimension. We will ask you to what extent you agree with the indicators and why. In this round we will also use an online questionnaire and it will take about 60 minutes. The questionnaire will be available from 16 January 2019 till 6 Februari 2019.

What do we ask of you?

We ask the following of the participants in this research:

• You have any experience in the field of blended education, learning or teaching. This can be in a role as director, manager, teacher, educational advisor or something else.
• You can spend 60 minutes per round, to fill in the online questionnaire. Round 1 will be from 21 November 2018 till 12 December 2018. Round 2 will be from 16 January 2019 till 6 February 2019.

How can you participate?

If you like to participate with the research for the EMBED project, please enrol using this link:
https://delftxtudelft.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3fPI86ZZiG2D5kx

At the annual EADTU conference Open, Online and Flexible Higher Education Conference at Aarhus University (Denmark) I was also invited to present about the European project we are currently participating in. The Erasmus+-funded project focuses on developing a European Maturity Model for Blended Education (EMBED).

 My keynote focused on the three levels of blended education that our framework will connecting.

Defining the blend

In the project we focus on the blend between online and face-to-face activities. We use these definitions:

• Blended Learning
  learning as a result of a deliberate, integrated combination of online and face-to-face learning activities.
  
  
• Blended Teaching
  designing and facilitating blended learning activities.
  
  
• Blended Education
  the formal context of BL that is determined by policies and conditions with regard to the organization and support of blended learning.

Three levels

Within the project we identified three levels:

• Micro
  blended learning and teaching of a course or programme. Primary actors are the students and teachers.
• Meso
  This is the context of the institute for blended education. Is there a policy for blended learning? Is there support available for teachers? Are classrooms setup suitable for blended learning?
  The primary actors are the leadership of the institute and support staff to make blended teaching and learning possible
• Macro
  the macro level is outside the institute, such as governmental policies, accreditation organisations. Interesting societal discussion on more classtime for students can influence the maturity of blended learning on the micro level.

In the feedback I received, it is especially the MESO level that is a eye-opener for many people. It is important that all three levels align to reach a level of maturity in blended education.

 Below the slides of my keynote, the session was not recorded.

Two weeks ago I attended the annual EADTU conference Open, Online and Flexible Higher Education Conference at Aarhus University (Denmark). One of the interesting presentations was of Diana Laurillard. She is working at the Knowledge Lab of University College London (UCL). The title of her presentation was Blended and Online Learning: Teachers changing the pedagogical landscape. Central in here presentation were two questions:

• Does pedagogy need to change for a digital world?
• How do we change the landscape of pedagogy?

She answered these questions with the help of the Conversational Framework she developed.

This framework is

• a series of iterative exchanges
• between learner and a ’teacher’ and
• between a learner and their peers
• at two levels of concepts and practices.

Her conclusion was that the fundamentals of learning have not changed, but the range of means by which we support learning differs. There are many more activities you can do online to learn a concept and to practice. Teachers need support to show them the options and learn them when to use specific means. Below her slides:

Last Thursday was the official opening of the new education building Pulse at TU Delft. This building is a state-of-the-art teaching building to facilitate the growing number of students on campus.

Blended and active learning

There are no traditional lecture rooms in this building. All rooms are setup for interactive teaching and learning. The students are grouped around a table (or can be easily turned around) to work together on assignments. Almost all walls double up as whiteboards and there are numerous LCD screens to enable groups to share information.

For the design of the building we used different inputs:

• According to the TU Delft Vision on Education we use "diverse teaching methods to stimulate active learning and use digital technologies to enhance  teaching & learning" (page 12). 
• Since a couple of years we have a team from different departments that created together the cookbook Education Spaces. The cookbook describes requirements for lecture halls, classrooms and study workplaces at TU Delft and contains four generic chapters: A) Pedagogic Classification, B) Education Space Typologies, C) Education Space Requirements, and D) Study Workplaces. It has been drawn up in close co-operation with teaching staff, students and supporting staff.
• Analysis of our current educational spaces and the expected demand in the coming years. This analysis showed that we especially needed rooms for 60-120 students.
• Pulse’s design came about in close cooperation with students and lecturers who discussed the preferred lay-out for the instruction rooms and the experience of the study landscape in the building. Their input has, for instance, resulted in the building having a lot of writable walls in the lecture rooms, extra lockers and longer opening hours. Students will be able to take classes by day, have a nice meal outdoors on the patio and then continue to study until late in the evening.

The building

The result is a building of 4,700 m2 with a total of  1,020 education spaces:

• 2 terraced rooms with a capacity of 125 people
• 8 rooms with capacities of 60 to 100 people
• Three special rooms for non-standard educational settings
• Approx. 160 self-study spaces

Energy-neutral building

Pulse is the first energy-neutral building of the university and scored the highest BREEAM score. The building is equipped with approximately 750 m2 PV panels combined with underground thermal storage and a triple-glazed façade. An intelligent building management system ventilates, lights, cools and heats the various spaces at Pulse in accordance with their usage. 

Training for lecturers

My team is offering a short training session of 1,5 hours. The training will focus on the delivery of lectures from an active learning perspective, whilst trying to fully benefit from the didactic advantages of the 4Q system and digital writing system. It would be disappointing if these beautiful rooms would be used for classical lectures.

Tomorrow the first official lectures will start in Pulse. Then we will know how students and lecturers will experience the new building. The proof of the pudding is in the eating!

Photos

Below some photos to give you an impression of the building or take a look at the virtual tour of the building. Photos are provided by the education spaces team and are copyrighted TU Delft.