The BBC reported recently that the ‘Big Freeze’ of 2010 caused the economy to shrink by 0.5%. With learning providers shutting up shop during bad weather, what is the impact of losing days and weeks of teaching time?

The severe weather in the winters of 2009 and 2010 prompted South West College in Northern Ireland to explore the possibilities of taking learning online. They lost ten days of teaching time during the ‘Big Freeze’ of 2010, which inevitably adversely affected learning. A college report outlined how ‘the unnatural break in learning had an impact on retention and achievement.’

The result was the Virtualisation Project, headed up by Ciara Duffy, virtual services manager at the college. The plan was to build a virtual college for both service and content delivery, leading to Virtual Week where learning took place entirely online.
Planning for Virtual Week took six months, though ideas behind online learning were explored in Blended Learning Pilots in 2010 and 2011. Online tools had to be developed to ensure they were fit for purpose, remote access to all college services had to be enabled and staff training was provided so that the teaching was of equal quality to more traditional face-to-face learning. A test virtual day ensured that the systems could cope and provided tips for successful delivery, such as facilitators to assist tutors in providing technical support and encouraging participation from all learners.

The main learning channels used were the college Blackboard virtual learning environment (VLE), combined with Blackboard Collaborate, an online classroom space, to provide synchronous learning activities – ‘Team Teach’ activities. Tutors also took advantage of blogs and wikis to provide one-to-one support and feedback, whilst the college ran a competition through social media to encourage participation.

South West College Virtual Week

Over 5,000 students logged on off-campus for an entire week of lessons. The study week was part of the college’s strategy to develop and implement new learning opportunities into course development.

 

 

 

 

Did it work?

During Virtual Week, 5655 learners logged in to the college VLE, covering a range of learners both full-time and part-time, mainstream, higher education and training. Ciara witnessed an innovative ‘Team Teach’ activity for sports studies learners that utilised gameshow formats to encourage learning, commenting that it was “one of the best sessions I’ve seen. They learned in an enjoyable and interactive way, keeping learners of all levels engaged for 1.5 hours remotely, which isn’t easy to do. It amazed me, the amount of learning taking place. It was really exhausting but exciting.”

Ciara found that most learners logged on from home. Those without internet access at home could log on from college and about 60-70 (1%) of learners did this, with the rest finding connections from home, a friend or relative’s house or the library. This is testament to the success of the online project. “They didn’t want to be in college because no-one else was,” Ciara observes.

 

What were the benefits?

Increasing responsiveness

The college has systems ready to cope with bad weather that can be implemented immediately. Staff are trained to use these systems to a high standard and learners have experience of using the technology. A new support team called Virtual Services has been introduced, indicating the priority within the college.

Increasing learner engagement

Learners benefit from a lack of disruption to learning should bad weather occur again. The college has embraced flipped learning, where information is relayed using the online systems so that the ‘real’ learning can take place during class. “It’s part of a complete change in delivery to make the learning more engaging,” Ciara says. The high take-up rate amongst learners is highlighted in the way the college is receiving requests that systems be further developed to provide compatibility for mobile devices, leading to the college’s plans for the next phase.

Raising standards across all curriculum areas

This was a top-down policy, implemented by senior management, ensuring that the learning technology strategy was pushed out across the whole college. Staff development sessions ensured that quality online learning materials were developed in all areas and not confined to a few enthusiasts. Ciara explains: “We can’t keep up with requests for development. For me, the biggest thing is the staff have lost the ‘fear factor’ of using technology and now seek out opportunities to use technology to support their delivery.”

Flexible working/studying policy

The college is able to operate a flexible working policy, allowing staff to work off-site, thus increasing morale. Ciara cites an example of a member of staff who had to move temporarily to England to care for a family member but was still able to work, albeit with reduced hours, due to remote working capabilities. “Staff have said they couldn’t work without remote working now,” she says.

Equally, a study week in January has been built into the work plan for students to work from home if they want to.

Develop alternative means of delivery

The college is spread over five campuses and operates in an area with a dispersed rural population. By developing these alternative means of delivery, the college can support the complexity of learners’ lifestyles either locally or internationally. Indeed, Ciara is working with learning providers across the world from the USA to Zambia and Australia, developing college moves into the global market.

How can I do it?

For support on how to virtualise your learning provision, from technical know-how to implementing blended learning contact your local Jisc Regional Support Centre.