Teachers’ ways of using ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in various disciplines is a recent issue in the higher educational research paradigm. In order to extend previous findings in relation to this issue, this research proposes an in-depth investigation focusing on vocational teachers’ qualitatively diverse ways of using ICT in different disciplines. A cohort of 11 teachers from three TAFE (Technical and Further Education) institutions of NSW, Australia, were purposively chosen aiming to ensure adequate variations in disciplines, gender, and experience of using ICT. The phenomenographic research approach was considered as the theoretical and methodological underpinning which guided the participant selection, data collection and data analysis. The findings revealed that disciplines have very limited influence on using ICT in TAFE teaching. It further discerned four categories of description: tool, content, subject, and student focused. The findings provide useful information towards improving vocational teaching practices in different disciplines and working as an input for improving teacher professional development program (TPD). In order to generalise these findings, an extended research with a wider sample is recommended.
The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly presented a multitude of challenges to the way education is delivered; its wide-reaching multidisciplinary impact has also presented a unique opportunity as a focus for real-world authentic learning. For some time now, technology has enabled interaction at a global scale, allowing students to connect with teachers and industry experts around the world. This paper reports on the innovative design of an intra-curricular program utilising COVID-19 as a focus for online, real-world connected learning, delivered to business students at a large Australian university during the pandemic lockdown. Implemented as an online intra-curricular initiative, ‘Leading in a Post-COVID World’ encouraged student engagement with the challenges of leadership to address issues on a personal, local, and global scale. Using a community of inquiry (CoI) lens we explore key features of the program and find that a CoI approach combined with principles of real-world learning and authentic experiences encourages student participation and engagement in this intra-curricular space.
Ghosting is a student behaviour characterised by enrolling in a subject but never participating. Hence, a ghost student who remains enrolled receives a zero-fail grade. From 2022, the Job ready Graduates Package will require that only genuine students have access to Commonwealth assistance at Australian Universities and an institution may need to refund the fees of what are referred to as non-genuine students. In 2019 and 2020, 382 first-year subjects were monitored to identify disengaged students in weeks 3 and 4 of the session using learning analytics and nonsubmission of an early assessment item. Disengaged students were contacted via phone and 2-way SMS and offered timely and targeted support pre census. The total number of domestic undergraduate students receiving a zero fail has decreased during this time. To further reduce the number of ghost students, once identified as disengaged, an engagement should be mandatory to remain in the subject.
La Trobe University is implementing a new Social Work course. Several evidence-based curriculum design and teaching innovations have been identified as having the potential to support both new explicit and implicit curriculum. This paper reports on the introduction of an innovative learning technology solution to promote a student centred learning approach. The use of the technology is novel to social work coursework education so evaluating the impact on supporting learning outcomes addresses a current gap in the research literature. Supporting a student centred approach, the innovation amalgamates ePortfolios with Moodle LMS to capture learning activities and assessments in their own digital space. The project has been a collaboration between the Social Work discipline and Technology Enhanced Learning Services. Findings from our evaluation show that the use of ePortfolios is consistent with transformational learning principles whereby the software application enables critical reflection, a sense of ownership over learning and the opportunity for students to be creative. The innovation also empowers students to develop a portfolio of curated reference material along with indivdiualised evidence of knowledge that can be utilised beyond graduation for potential employers or opportunities for further study.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought unexpected disruptions to educational practices, forcing universities to deliver lectures, tutorials, exams, and other assessments online. Academics and program managers reacted swiftly to adapt their education programs, managing a crisis that could have harmed Australia’s education system. Academic staff rapidly addressed the immediate requirements of delivering classes online, upskilling their digital competencies to continue with minimal disadvantage to students. A perceived problem arising from the need to move to online assessment is an increase in violations of academic integrity. Due to the speed with which the changes took place, there have not necessarily been corresponding changes in the policies and procedures that govern and guide teaching and assessment practices, related to academic integrity. A crisis can open an opportunity for innovation, and this study is a work in progress to investigate how things were done differently to uphold academic integrity in computing courses at Australian universities.
