The University of Wolverhampton has introduced e-portfolios for their non-traditional undergraduate students in nursing and midwifery. The average age of these students is 30, and they tend to enter without traditional qualifications. An important rationale for the introduction of this technology was the desire to overcome the 'minority complex' such students often feel by creating a supportive community of practice. The other consideration was fulfilling the requirement, set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, to provide evidence of Managed Off-Site Study Time. PebblePad was once again used.
This project met with some difficulties in terms of student access to IT facilities, but student enthusiasm compensated in part. There was also some resistance on the part of faculty; some faculty did not wish to provide detailed written feedback.
Friday, February 19, 2010
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5 comments:
Hi Sonja,
I’m intrigued with the resistance experienced from faculty staff, is there any justification for this resistance or do you think this is just the result of a resistance to change?
Regards
Nickie
Sorry I've just realised that I've selected anonymous!
URL now attached.
Hi Nickie,
According to the author, the reason was that "they prefer not to engage in frequent written contact with students and instead use a model of occasional face-to-face tutorials." Well, no doubt there is some degree of diplomacy lurking in this statement. There could be many reasons for this resistance. Ongoing written feedback is labour-intensive, I can state that from my own experiences, so you have to be prepared to spend a lot of time on your computer, and this doesn't appeal to everyone. I enjoy it greatly and I live on my computer anyway, and furthermore I love communicating through writing, but again this is related to my teaching style, which is ultimately related to my learning style. On the other hand, and less generously, some teachers are just not willing to put in the work required to support their students fully. I have also witnessed this, and it's a shame. I cannot see how an "occasional" tutorial could equate to regular written feedback...
Hi Sonia,
isn't it a contradiction that this technology was introduces as 'a supportive community of practice' but then staff was not eager to communicate?
Was this 'innovative' introduction of eportfolios embedded in any way to the institution's strategy?
Keith
Hi Keith,
Yes, that's a definite irony...I think it shows that innovators sometimes cannot rely on their natural allies and really have to swim against the stream.
Actually at the time of this project, e-portfolios were just about to be introduced across the university as a whole.
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