Co-operative ICT-supported learning. A practical approach to design

Education is changing, following changes in society. The focus is shifting from teaching towards learning. And Informatics, more particularly Information and Communication Technology (ICT), is integral part of that learning. How to design effective learning situations? And how to design in such a way that the educational process of change is successful? Results are presented from an action research project in the Netherlands and a working party of the International Federation for Information Processing. 1 Changes in society and in education In the society of developed countries the demand for educated personnel is increasing because of a more knowledge intensive economy. In the Netherlands, for example, in 2003 a shortage of 200.000 higher educated workers is expected [SE99] developing into an expected shortage of 400.000 in 2007. These much needed “knowledge workers” are expected to be able to apply knowledge in real life working situations in which Information and Communication Technology (ICT) plays an important role. Their capabilities are not restricted to applying knowledge from a specific discipline that they have studied, but extend towards other “competences” such as working in a team and problem solving. Here the word `competence` is used with the broad interpretation that is common in the British tradition. In Europe over the last years the interest for “competences” has been steadily increasing [Re99], [Sc00]. Functions and jobs are not for life, but change. Also the shortage on the job market is such that students enter employment before they have graduated, while older employees re-enter the job market and need updating of qualifications. Life long learning therefore is becoming more and more important [LD96], [OE00a]. In fact, learning in many instances is combined with working [OE00b]. Businesses go international and education is following this trend [Ca00], [EU00]. In Europe internationalisation of education is stimulated by the Bologna declaration which initiates a new, Europe wide structure of Bachelor and Master Degrees [EU99]. Educational institutions are entering into international networks. Not only do international competitors appear on the educational market, also other suppliers than the traditional institutions are trying to get their share of this market [Ha00]. The growing competition and the changing demands from society put pressure on educational institutions to change their traditional way of working. Because of this pressure a shift can be observed from traditional teaching to more constructivist types of educational situations: the focus is shifting from teaching to learning. 2 Focus is shifting from teaching to learning Society demands new “competences” from its workers, whether these are designers, researchers, advisors, etc. There is pressure on education to allow students to develop these “competences” during their study, both in initial study and in life long learning. The traditional “know what” of graduates is not sufficient any more, it should be enhanced with “know how”, “know why” and “care why” [McD00]. Teaching of subject content only addresses the “know what”. To also develop other “competencies” students should work on typical professional tasks in a realistic setting. In this way students may learn the “know how”, the “know why” and learn to “care why”, all of them “competences” needed for functioning effectively in a fast changing professional environment [DLW93], [McC00]. It is clear that Informatics, or more particularly ICT, plays an important role in these realistic settings, not only as a tool empowering the individual, but also as a tool empowering working in teams. How to design effective learning situations? This question was central in the action research project ‘Task based team learning with ICT’ (1999 – 2001), jointly executed by the University of Utrecht (IVLOS) and the Professional University of Utrecht (Cetis), and sponsored by the Dutch national initiative SURF Educatie. In this project students in either full-time or part-time studies are seen as junior-professionals developing their career. This approach ties in with developments in life long learning where the students are professionals who want to extend their “competences”. A range of learning situations was identified building one upon the other that would allow students to develop all required competencies. Characteristic of the learning situations is that these are realistic mirrors of professional situations graduates will encounter when starting there working life. Teamwork is integral part of these learning situations. Typology of learning situations: Assignment based: the student/professional functions in a reproductive role in which standard problems are recognised and solved in a standard way; the student/professional assesses way of working and result against standards. Task based: the student/professional functions in an executive role in which typical, task related problems are solved using task oriented methods; the student/professional assesses method selection, way of working and result against standards. Problem based: the student/professional functions in a tactical role in which nonstandard problems are solved using adapted methods; specifications for the result have to be developed; the student/professional assesses specifications, method selection, application, way of working and result against standards. Situation based: the student/professional functions in a context determined, strategic role in which worth-while problems have to be identified, just as suitable methods for solving; the student/professional assesses selection of problem and methods, application, way of working and results against standards. In most learning situation team work is implemented to enhance learning. Characteristics of these typical learning situations are summed up in Table 1. Let us examine two of these typical learning situations in more detail: Task based learning and Situation based learning. Learning situation Student responsible for Available to student Way of working Student role McDuffy