Collections in this community

Recent Submissions

  • Exploring dissonance in the use of (lecture) capture technologies: institutional approaches and the realities of student engagement

    Witton, Gemma (Routledge, 2021-04-02)
    The published literature on lecture capture technologies is often conflicting and sometimes controversial. A common thread among many studies is the impact of recorded lectures on student satisfaction, attendance and performance; however, many of these studies fail to acknowledge the wider context and the many and varied ways in which capture technologies are being used by educators. This research applies a naturalistic case study methodology, combining a quantitative analysis of capture technologies system analytics for content recorded during 2017/2018 with an investigative enquiry to identify factors which may contribute to higher ratios of recording:viewing. The findings show a correlation between average session length and recording:viewing ratios, indicating that students are more likely to engage with shorter recordings. The data also demonstrate lower levels of engagement with traditional lecture capture content and greater engagement with content that is directly linked to other learning tasks such as skills development and assessment.
  • The Big Read Collaboration between Kingston University, the University of Wolverhampton, Edge Hill University, and the University of the West of Scotland, 2018-2019

    Baverstock, Alison; Steinitz, Jackie; Shelar, Tanuja; Squires, Kelly; Karodia, Nazira; Butler, Rebecca; Smith, Sara; Sopromadze, Natia; Crowley, Sara; Clark, Alison; et al. (Brill, 2020-11-19)
    This paper outlines the experience of four universities that collaborated on a pre-arrival shared reading project, the Big Read, in 2018/2019. They did so primarily to promote student engagement and retention and also to ease the transition into higher education, particularly for first-generation students, to promote staff connectedness, and to provide a USP (unique selling point) for their institution. The paper covers all the associated processes, from isolating the respective aims of the collaborators to the choosing and sharing of a single agreed title. In analysing the outcomes, recommendations are made for future cross-institutional projects of this kind.
  • Ingredients for change

    Towers, Paul (Association for Learning Technology, 2018-05-01)
    A video post from Paul Towers, Educational Developer, College of Learning and Teaching, University of Wolverhampton. In the video post below, Paul shares how focusing on people and culture has been the key criteria to successfully transitioning from a deeply integrated Virtual Learning Environment to a new platform across the institution.
  • Normal wasn’t working for us: changing staff perceptions of what a VLE is, whilst changing the VLE itself

    Towers, Paul (Association for Learning Technology, 2017-09-07)
    The University of Wolverhampton’s current VLE, WOLF has been created, built, developed and embedded in-house since 1999. Although WOLF has been used primarily for learning and teaching, over the years it became standard practice to use it as digital repository, or ‘dumping ground’ (Love & Fry, 2006), for material and content relating to many aspects of the University’s processes and procedures. In essence, WOLF became the University’s intranet, and as the years passed the purpose for the use of WOLF became blurred. WOLF’s development froze and many academics were held back in what they wanted to do and explore. The VLE became ‘stuck’ and academics would ‘stick’ to what they know (Massy & Zemsky, 2004.) The University has implemented an institution-wide transformational programme to modernise and enhance the students’ teaching and learning experiences through the use of technology. The Digital Campus Transformational Programme (DCTP) was created to act as a catalyst for deep change within the institution’s learning systems landscape. The DCTP consists of five foundation projects: Applications Anywhere; Business Intelligence; Student Portal; Digital Platforms; and a new Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). The replacement of the VLE is one of the most important technological transitions the University has ever faced. The University procured a new VLE in May 2016. Early adopter courses started using the system in September 2016 with full roll-out across the University from August 2017. During this process, one of the key questions that had to be tackled by the DCTP was: how do you change a VLE while changing staff attitudes, cultures and perceptions at the same time, so that the benefits of the new VLE are realised and that practices from an old system are not replicated in a shiny new environment? To engage all members of staff, and to get them to reflect on their use of a VLE, the DCTP has embarked on a ‘pedagogy first’, using discipline-based discussions as the approach to facilitate initial familiarisation with the new VLE. The presentation will discuss the pros and cons of this approach, and will highlight some of these challenges faced whilst implementing the new VLE. The presentation will identify some of the key activities and processes that were deployed during the tender, evaluation, the early adopter phase and the delivery of the new VLE to ensure engagement from relevant stakeholders.
  • Capturing imaginations: Alternative uses of (lecture) capture technologies for increased student engagement

    Witton, Gemma; Marston, Elora (Association for Learning Technology, 2018-02-28)
    This session will encourage practitioners to think creatively about alternative uses of capture technologies within their own context. Innovative use cases and data from the University of Wolverhampton Capture Technologies project will be used to support workshop activities and discussion. Participants will also be encouraged to share their own experiences and to consider strategies for incorporating content recorded using capture technologies into their overall educational approach. The ideas and best practices discussed may have implications for leaders and managers to inform institutional policy and have an impact on metrics related to TEF and NSS. Participants will engage in an action learning activity ‘Capture Technology Bingo’ where they will be presented with a series of alternative use cases for capture technology and use it to reveal insights into their own practice/institutional practice. Participants will be encouraged to share examples from their own experience and consider strategies for successfully incorporating captured content into their overall educational approach. The activity will also touch on issues of institutional policy (such as opt-in/opt-out policies for lecture recording) and the impact they have on attitudes and engagement from both student and staff perspectives. Discussion on best practices and how alternative use of capture technologies might impact positively on metrics related to TEF and NSS will be threaded throughout.
  • Capturing imaginations: Why it’s important to consider alternative uses of (lecture) capture technologies

    Witton, Gemma; Towers, Paul (Association for Learning Technology, 2018-09-13)
    This session will encourage practitioners to think creatively about alternative uses of capture technologies, critically evaluating them in relation to their own practice and institutional perspectives. Innovative use cases and data from the University of Wolverhampton Capture Technologies project will be used to support workshop activities and discussion. Participants will also be encouraged to share their own experiences and to consider strategies for incorporating content recorded using capture technologies into their overall educational approach. The ideas and best practices discussed may have implications for leaders and managers to inform institutional policy and have an impact on metrics related to NSS and TEF. The Capture Technologies Project at the University of Wolverhampton promotes a shift in focus away from conventional use of capture technology for recording lectures. It advocates purposeful use of capture technologies to create content that is integrated into an overall educational approach and encourages student engagement. Studies at the University of Wolverhampton have shown that using capture technologies to produce other types of content (such as unpacking assessment briefs, flipped classroom materials and student generated content) adds value to the student experience and can increase engagement with the curriculum, which may ultimately lead to a positive impact on student outcomes.
  • Capturing science: doing lecture capture differently

    Witton, Gemma; Green, Mathew (Panopto, 2015-10-25)
  • A pedagogy-led holistic approach to learning and teaching with video

    Witton, Gemma; Towers, Paul (Panopto, 2018-11-14)
  • Exploring dissonance in the use of (lecture) capture technologies: Institutional approaches and the realities of student engagement

    Witton, Gemma (University of Wolverhampton, 2019-09-13)
    The published literature on (lecture) capture technologies is often conflicting and sometimes controversial. A common thread among many studies is the impact of recorded lectures on student satisfaction, attendance and performance. Whether your personal opinion is in favour, against or indifferent to this practice, you will undoubtedly be able to find a publication which supports your point of view. However, many of these studies fail to take into account the many and varied ways in which capture technologies are being used by educators in Higher Education to support teaching and learning, beyond the recorded lecture. This presentation builds on findings of a pilot study at the University of Wolverhampton (Witton, 2016) which recommended a shift in focus away from traditional lecture capture, advocating for more purposeful use of capture technologies to support learning in discipline-specific contexts. It will include a brief overview of the findings to date of a quantitative analysis of capture technology analytics data. This goes beyond the volume of student viewing, taking into consideration the wider context in which capture technologies are used to create different types of content. It will also explore recording:viewing ratios as a measure of student engagement and share the outcomes of an investigation, identifying factors which may contribute to higher levels of student engagement with recorded content. Interim findings suggest that students are more likely to engage with shorter pieces of content, and with content that is directly linked to other learning tasks such as skills development and assessment.
  • Supporting professional development through creativity, reflection and immersion

    Towers, Paul; Witton, Gemma (Instructure, 2019-10-08)
    The University of Wolverhampton offer a wealth of staff development opportunities, and this presentation explores their pedagogy-led holistic approaches to rich mixed-media learning design. Hear how they encourage academics to experience Canvas and integratable technologies and ‘become a student’ to deliver authentic, experiential, deep learning. Understand how they develop staff’s knowledge not just on the “how” but as importantly on the “why” to engage with and adopt approaches and technologies that support best in-class learning and teaching.
  • Developing a sustainable strategy for the continuation and extension of capture technologies at the University of Wolverhampton: capture technologies pilot 2014/15: close of pilot report

    Witton, Gemma (University of Wolverhampton, 2015)
    Over the past few years, small clusters of expertise in the use of capture technologies have arisen through experimental use with enthusiasts and early adopters. This has now been followed by a closed pilot project led by the Directorate of Academic Support (DAS) using Panopto. Student feedback on the use of capture technologies is overwhelmingly positive and the academic, technical and support staff engaged in the pilot are convinced of its potential. The capture system has successfully enabled the innovative teaching philosophy for the Rosalind Franklin Science Centre and is essential to the continuation of this approach to learning and teaching. This report provides a summary of the use of capture technologies at the University of Wolverhampton in recent years, with an overview of the 2014/15 pilot project. The project included 6 workstreams, which were completed in collaboration with academic support teams, academic practitioners and faculty technicians who each had a strong role in the successful implementation of the pilot. The project workstreams have identified a set of 30 recommendations which are presented herewith for endorsement. These recommendations are made to support a proposal for the continued and extended use of capture technologies at the University of Wolverhampton. They will assist stakeholders across the institution in developing appropriate policies, procedures, infrastructure and support models, which are essential to successfully implement this proposal. Ultimately, the aim is to establish a sustainable strategy for the implementation and pedagogically sound application of capture technologies.
  • Editorial

    Witton, Gemma (Keele University, 2018-01-31)
    What should our measures of success for (lecture) capture technologies really look like? A reflective commentary on the University of Wolverhampton Panopto Pilot, one year on.
  • Adaptation for adoption - Changing modes of staff development in higher education

    Andrews, Ben; Challen, Rachel; Purnell, Emma; Rhodes, Jonathan; Towers, Paul (Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association (Ucisa), 2011)
    This paper explores the reasons and rationale behind adapting the modes of delivery of the Blended Learning Unit’s staff development programme at the University of Wolverhampton. Responding to institutional and political change the unit demonstrated a reflexive and reactive attitude towards delivering an inclusive and engaging programme of blended learning sessions. Whilst this paper reflects on the past five years and modes of delivery that have been implemented, it also looks towards the future and ways in which the unit can continue to best serve the institution.
  • ‘E-help!’ - learner support in higher education

    Rhodes, Jonathan; Dhaliwal, Onkar (Forum for Access and Continuing Education, 2010)
    The drive towards widening participation in higher education is reflected by the variety of students that represent the student body in 21st century education. The diversity of students’ educational, vocational and experiential backgrounds and the requirement by institutions and educators to recognise these differences is paramount. It is beholden of institutions to provide help and assistance to these learners during their course of study, providing access to individual guidance and support if and when they need it. This provision, whilst benefitting students, will also impact positively on university retention and progression figures, of vital importance in the current economic/educational climate. ‘The appropriate use of technology is leading to significant improvements in learning and teaching across the sector and...this is translating into improved satisfaction, retention and achievement’ (Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), 2009: 6).
  • Flippin staff development!

    Lawton, Megan (The Centre for Recording Achievement (CRA), 2016)
    Education systems which aspire to respect and address equally and inclusively the developmental, educational and social ambitions of all learners require strengthened understanding of the notion of ‘pedagogy’. This chapter explores this concept: What does pedagogy mean? What does it entail? In particular in relation to the focus of this book: What is the relevance of pedagogy to potentially disadvantaged groups within values, policy and practice for all learners? Issues considered are whether there can be ‘pedagogy for inclusion’ and, if so, what kind of conflicts and questions this needs to address. In examining these issues, the chapter invites readers’ engagement in pedagogical discourse, a process which has the potential to inform educators’ thinking and activity and thereby strengthen learning for all learners.
  • HEA Patchwork assessment case study

    Lawton, Megan (Higher Education Academy, 2016)

View more