- The role of the change manager within institutions http://www.jisc.ac.uk/events/2010/07/jif10/virtualgoodybag/roleofchangemanager.aspx, following a case study by the University of Derby, which looked at student transitions, resulting in a blueprint for service design. We are currently considering how we could use Derby’s methodology to develop our communication strategy with first year UG students more effectively.
- The accessibility of online content, looking in particular at the use of Xerte, http://www.techdis.ac.uk/getxerte, a tool to develop learning objects relatively easily and speedily, which we aim to use to develop interactive material for our Get Ahead: Stay Ahead website on My Birkbeck. Xerte is one learning technology tool available through JISC TechDis, http://www.techdis.ac.uk, which offers many more interesting apps that we can possibly utilise for our project. There is also a wealth of advice available ensuring that learning technology is accessible.
- Responsibility for sustainability and impact http://www.jisc.ac.uk/events/2010/07/jif10/virtualgoodybag/sustainabilityandimpact.aspx which made me consider what we will need to do to ensure that our project is sustainable beyond its completion date as well as having a measurable impact. Sustainability will be an issue for us as we will have a product (Get Ahead: Stay Ahead web pages) that will need to be regularly reviewed and updated in order to still have currency and be relevant to students’ learning. We will be particularly interested, of course, in impact, needing to know whether interventions of this kind will result in higher retention rates.
- Weathering the storm – finding solutions, http://www.jisc.ac.uk/events/2010/07/jif10/virtualgoodybag/weatheringthestorm.aspx was an energetic session that highlighted possible solutions to the current ‘thunderbolt’ issues previously identified in a session that most effect institutions at the moment. We had some interesting discussions in my group as to what the learning experience may look like in a few years time, in particular in view to using online resources.
Lawrie Phibbs, Programme Manager at JISC and responsible for the Building Capacity projects that ours is one of , introduced Angela to Jeremy Benson, Cumbria University where a project team is currently working on a Building Capacity project http://83.137.214.22/whatwedo/programmes/bcap/cumbria.aspx that is looking at support for students at the beginning of their journey from the point of being offered a place.
As part of the project the team looked at ways of engaging applicants by allowing them to communicate with each other through social networking such as Ning, which was successfully used at the University of Bradford. Cumbria attempted to use Ning as an aid to start conversations amongst unconditional firm applicants thereby helping students to build social networks prior to study.
Our focus groups last year showed that Birkbeck students weren’t very keen on engaging in social network sites – the argument being that our students have too little time for an activity they deem to be superfluous to their study – but we will be following Cumbria’s use of Ning with applicants with interest to see whether can pilot this next year with a small group of applicants.
(virtual good bag available here http://www.jisc.ac.uk/events/2010/07/jif10/virtualgoodybag.aspx)
