The use of technologies to support learning and teaching should be appropriate to the learning objectives of the module or activity. In the packages below we present typical scenarios where learning technology makes a positive contribution to the learning and teaching through a specific activity. Each contains:
- An example of where an approach has been used in practice.
- Advice for making the activity work, technical advice.
- Links to case studies presenting practice at York.
- A short walkthrough video which aims to familiarise you with the environment that supports the learning activity.
Examples of online interventions
Continuing the seminar discussion
When you only have a limited amount of face-to-face discussion time each week to engage students with complex topics, themes and ideas, it can be advantageous to facilitate students’ ongoing discussion and reflection on what you are covering out of formal contact hours in class.
Expanding the lecture with screencasts
Video clips can be used as learning resources to address skills or threshold concepts. They can used to introduce a concept before a lecture, as well as to reinforce understanding after a class-based discussion.
Reflective journals
Online tools can be used to provide students with a personal space for them to write and reflect, which is invisible to other students but visible to teaching staff.
Supporting Problem Based Learning
Implementing Problem Based Learning (PBL) can be a way of addressing known issues with the traditional lecture format such as students retaining little of the knowledge they are presented and not appropriately using the knowledge that they have learned.
Formative Online Feedback
Formative assessments are useful for checking student understanding and could be used to inform a student’s own further endeavour or how you might support student learning moving forward. On-line tools can be especially effective for both actively and/or passively providing formative feedback on a student’s self-study activities.
E-Portfolios
An e-portfolio is an on-line tool (or tools) to facilitate/capture on-going student reflection. E-portfolios are commonly used to support evidence collection that demonstrate a student’s learning and personal / professional development.
Online tests
Tests can provide a means for students to self-assess their own knowledge/progress as well as provide you with an indication, both individually and as a cohort, of how well students understand the key themes of your module.
Structured learning modules
Presenting students with sequentially-organised resources is easily achieved within Yorkshare and provides you with the ability to guide students through a topic in a controlled or predetermined way (e.g. scripted pathway).
Student Collaboration
Facilitating student collaboration can be of benefit to students’ learning in a number of ways, but particularly in relation to the development of deeper understanding and expertise as well as developing responsibility for their own and others’ learning.
Programme Design and Learning Technology Team 