Institutional engagement with digital literacies at the University of Brighton has been promoted through the creation of a Digital Literacies Framework (DLF) aimed at academic staff. The DLF consists of 38 literacies divided into four categories that align to the following key areas of academic work: Learning and teaching Research Communication and collaboration AdministrationFor each literacy, there is an explanation of what the literacy is, why it is important and how to gain it, with links to resources and training opportunities. After an initial pilot, the DLF website was launched in the summer of 2014. This paper discusses the strategic context and policy development of the DLF, its initial conception and subsequent development based on a pilot phase, feedback and evaluation. It critically analyses two of the ways that engagement with the DLF have been promoted: (1) formal professional development schemes and (2) the use of a 'School-based' approach. It examines the successes and challenges of the University of Brighton's scheme and makes some suggestions for subsequent steps including taking a course-level approach.
Academic teaching can change with the use of Web 2.0 technologies, such as blogs and wikis, as these enable a different pedagogical approach through collaborative learning and the social construction of knowledge. Student expectations of their university learning experience have changed as they expect e-learning to be part of the learning experience. The Innovative eLearning with eResources (eRes) project aimed to provide a sustainable, scalable approach to changing academic practice. The approach built on academic's experience of using quality e-resources in research and for their reading lists in teaching. The eRes project was successful as student learning was enhanced through collaborative learning using quality e-resources with Web 2.0 technologies. However, two keys issues were identified. The first issue is the lack of scalability of the approach due to the high level of support required from a team of pedagogical and technical specialists brokered through an individual. The second issue is academic professional development. Academics recognised their professional development requirements in relation to technology but they did not identify the need to change their pedagogical approach for collaborative learning with Web 2.0.
The influx of Digital Natives into higher education, combined with the introduction of virtual learning environments as the primary means of interaction between students and universities, will have a transformational effect on learning and on library services. This article examines the e-book marketplace and the main UK responses to it (the Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium's tender and the JISC e-books observatory project). Within this context, the innovative measures already taken by Bournemouth University are discussed, as are plans to develop innovative pedagogic frameworks and an e-reading strategy through a Higher Education Academy-funded pathfinder project: Innovative E-Learning with E-Resources (eRes).
Students who have grown up in the digital age have certain expectations for learning in Higher Education (HE). “Using a complex mix of virtual and face-to-face environments, personal and institutional technologies, learners of all ages are developing new working practices around the technologies available to them. Increasingly, they look for flexibility and openness in the institutional policies and provision that support their learning.” (JISC, 2007). The divide between the institutional eLearning provision and the expectations of students who have grown up in a digital world was highlighted through the UK eLearning benchmarking exercise. Institutional eLearning provision and processes within the HE sector were investigated and analysed through this exercise, which was led by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) in collaboration with the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC). This paper presents the experience of two UK Universities, Bournemouth and Reading, whose participation in the benchmarking exercise provides examples of institutional provision. Subsequent Pathfinder funding enabled them to build on their strengths with projects aimed at narrowing the divide between student expectations of eLearning and institutional provision. The eRes: Innovative eLearning with e-Resources project (Bournemouth) encourages students to use quality e-resources in their learning. The “Driving Institutional Reform: Exploring Change with Technology” (DIRECT) project (Reading) has developed a framework to transform its internal quality management processes.
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