Specification for a learning design activities toolkit

Conole, Grainne and Fill, Karen (2004) Specification for a learning design activities toolkit. Computers and Education. (Submitted)

Abstract

Despite the plethora of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) tools and resources available, practitioners are still not making effective use of e-learning to enrich the student experience. This article describes a learning design toolkit which guides practitioners through the process of creating pedagogically informed learning activities which make effective use of appropriate tools and resources. This work is part of a digital libraries project in which teaching staff at two universities in the UK and two in the USA are collaborating to share e-learning resources in the subject domains of Physical, Environmental and Human Geography. As e-learning becomes a standard element in the higher education ‘mix’, teachers are increasingly expected to be able to create or adapt online learning activities. Digital resources are available from a range of in-house and external sources and can be used to enrich learning environments and student experiences. However, finding, or creating, suitable resources and embedding them in well designed learning activities can be both challenging and time consuming. Sharing and adapting effective designs and solutions is both a stimulant and a time saver. This article describes the background to the specification of a learning activities design toolkit to support teachers as they create or adapt e-learning activities. This uses a model of pedagogical approaches as a basis for developing effective learning design plans, and illustrates its use. Quality and best practice are key considerations. The current debates about learning objects, interoperability, and metadata have informed the design. The authors share their definition of a learning activity and taxonomies for the constituent elements. Real examples are discussed to illustrate their approach. Progress to date on the toolkit is described and future steps outlined.

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