Author: Cristina Leston-Bandeira (c.c.leston-bandeira@hull.ac.uk)
JISC e-Learning Activity Area: technology-enhanced learning environments
Higher Education Academy Subject Centre: sociology anthropology and politics
Case study tags: online learning, an effect on learning, an effect on student personal development, student satisfaction with e-learning, innovation in learning and teaching, staff satisfaction with e-learning,a positive effect on recruitment, an influence on policy, use of resources,tangible benefits of e-learning, university of hull, technology-enhanced learning environments, sociology anthropology and politics
Background & Context
Why did you use this e-learning approach?
e-Learning was used to enhance the link between the department and students away from the University on internships with MPs at Westminster. This was achieved by using Merlin, the University of Hull's award winning virtual learning environment. Although the students are on placement they are still registered with the University and have to participate in assessed modules, which is credited as part of their degree. Merlin therefore had to be able to provide students with the same level of support and information as on-campus students at the University. It also had to be simple and straightforward to use as well as capable of information exchange and anonymous assessment submission.
The use of Merlin for WHIP was part of the department's strategy of fostering e-learning for both students on placements and to role out other online courses at Master's level.
What was the context in which you used this e-learning approach?
The Politics and International Studies department at the University of Hull provides a variety of courses aimed at students interested in the study and practice of politics. The BA (Hons) in British Politics and Legislative Studies (BPLS) is a four-year degree programme that includes a one-year placement in the House of Commons. The degree provides a strong theoretical and practical grounding in parliamentary procedures and behaviour. At Westminster students take two practitioner-led seminar courses and undertake original research on which to base their dissertation. Above all, however, they are assigned to an individual MP. In addition to this scheme, students on other single honours politics degree programmes have the opportunity of applying for a one-semester internship at Westminster or Brussels, also working with an MP/MEP. This internship is taken in the first semester of their final, third, year. The internship is fully integrated in our credits and assessment structure.
The internship group consists of approximately twenty BPLS students with ten one-semester students, the latter drawn from up to six undergraduate degrees. 2-3 members of the departmental staff are directly affected.
Teaching was carried out purely on a face-to-face basis with paper copies of departmental/university regulations and information either provided by hand in advance of the internship by post or not at all. Some additional support and information would involve the use of telephone communication, which would need to be repeated individually to students at a cost to the department.
The University's student registration procedure was not set up with off-campus students in mind and administrative staff involved therefore had a significant challenge in overcoming problems arising from this. Administrative staff also had to ensure that the information provided was both up-to-date and relevant.
Prior to this e-learning approach, the single-semester internships would have been difficult to administer, as there were no secure means to submit assessed work.
What was the design?
The learning approach that was used had to accommodate several criteria in addition to being a useful source of information for students. The main tools of the VLE were already set up as default, but there had to be a large amount of migrating information in an online format. As WHIP involved students being in London and Brussels (having previously been in Hull) a substantial amount of support material and resources had to be available to the interns. In addition, the distance learning aspect of the course had to support six separate modules being taught to two separate sets of students (the BPLS and one semester interns). Important also was the communication aspect. The VLE had to support an internal email that encouraged students to log on to answer and compose replies, both to tutors and fellow interns. The overall system of learning and support was designed around encouraging an internship community. The staff involved in developing this process were the BPLS course coordinator, Professor the Lord Norton of Louth as well as Dr Cristina Leston-Bandeira and Mr Matthew Kavanagh.
How did you implement and embed this e-learning approach?
In practice, as Merlin was a university wide supported VLE, it meant that in 'rolling out' the internship information was relatively straightforward. The Merlin support and other departments explained how Merlin operated in practice. This was simple and not that difficult to understand. The pedagogical elements required departmental and university approval after which it was easy to migrate the module information into Merlin. The other information and resources had to be added gradually and to a certain degree from experience which has developed over time.
This approach was monitored in the same way the department monitors all modules, using student feedback and assessing where improvements, if any, are required. Merlin is used by most students in the department in another (on-campus) core teaching module and therefore the training of students in Merlin's capabilities was not required. Students using Merlin for the internship programme are given access in the semester before their internship actually commences giving them plenty of time to digest the information and get a feel for the way learning takes place. Some of the problems that came up included insuring that students understood that the departmental/university rules still applied to them and that included assessed work deadlines; in addition, that the use of Merlin was compulsory and that important messages from tutors and administrators were posted there. As ever, some students were more attentive to these rules than others. In preparing students for their internship they are all made aware whilst still in Hull how the system of teaching works and what it expected of them. They are also aware of the support, both academic and administrative, that is available.
Technology Used
What technologies and/or e-tools were available to you?
Merlin, the University of Hull's in-house virtual learning environment (VLE) was used, as it satisfied both institutional and departmental considerations. Blackboard is also available, but lacks the simple and user friendly approach that Merlin has. Besides this, Merlin is a highly effective tool for communication purposes, as it is very personalized and interactive, something that Blackboard did not offer. Communication was to be one of the key uses of the VLE. These considerations were important when thinking of the ease of use that was required from a teaching point of view, an administrative view and a student view. It also had to be capable of integrating the University's other resources, and where applicable making clear what was and was not available to them. An example of this was the Library services for distance students. The costs of using the technologies available outside the University's existing VLE resources would have been too high for the department to sustain.
Tangible Benefits
What tangible benefits did this e-learning approach produce?
As a significant part of WHIP is information for students, before during and after their internship it is difficult to quantify the effect of e-learning in isolation. However, students that have participated in WHIP, whether for BPLS or the one semester scheme return to Hull more focused, confident and return improved academic results in their final year. This perception was confirmed in a C-SAP funded project (2005-06) in which students completed a questionnaire on their internship experiences.
The feedback for Merlin and WHIP is excellent. Merlin significantly improved the facilitation of teaching for distance students and is a significant factor in the success of WHIP generally. The department had an excellent retention rate in any case, so that improvements in this regard are difficult to quantify. The academic staff involved in WHIP are more satisfied with the organisation and performance of the scheme since Merlin's arrival, which has encouraged the use of the VLE for future online teaching within the department. This form of e-learning has also made it easier for administrative staff involved in WHIP to communicate with distant students. It has led to a more personalised approach to dealing with student problems, which the students themselves have appreciated in their feedback. Again, the use of Merlin in this situation has made it potentially easier for staff to deliver future e-learning courses or modules. The success of this approach is such that it is being rolled out this year for placements in Brussels.
This e-learning approach has also ensured that the students' own experiences whilst on placement are carried through when they come back to the campus. The use of Merlin ensures that the students' own experience is more formally recorded and evidenced. Students remain on Merlin when they come back (and indeed when they graduate), which allows students to refer back to their experience whilst they were on placement.
The e-learning approach has also allowed a better preparation of the students' placements, as prior to go on placement all students are included in Merlin and have access, therefore, to a wealth of information from accommodation to financial matters, to student advice about working in Westminster and living in London. Thanks to the e-learning approach, students are now much better prepared to go on placement than they used to be when this preparation was dependent on face-to-face meetings.
The department has done very well in recruiting good students from a wide variety of backgrounds and locations. The attendance at our open days in Westminster has been higher, indicating the high regard the BPLS course in particular is looked upon. The one-semester internship scheme has also added to the recruitment of the other single honours courses that the department has on offer. e-Learning has had a significant impact on the continued reputation of the department as well as our ability to attract and maintain ever increasing student numbers. e-Learning has significantly reduced the requirement of ad hoc face-to-face contact, although this still takes place on a regular basis.
In terms of the savings of time, contact can be established at the convenience of both sides, reducing the use of the telephone in particular. As a significant number of resources have been added to Merlin the cost and time of printing these documents has been saved and students can make their own decision about the relevance of particular documents to their individual needs and requirements.
Did implementation of this e-learning approach have any disadvantages or drawbacks?
As the teaching of seminars continued (in Westminster) on the usual weekly basis, these were not directly affected. However, students did not have the same access to the University's library. This was more than mitigated by the use interns had of the House of Commons library. Tutors received more messages within Merlin that had to be dealt with on an individual basis. The course coordinator spends part of each week in Westminster. Administratively e-learning requires constant updating as new information arises - students pass on information etc, which can be time consuming on occasion. Many standard university or departmental forms had to be adapted to create an online version. Also although email is an excellent form of communication, it can take some time to explain something complex that might only take a few minutes over the telephone.
Although there have not been any significant technical problems, if there were it could potentially cause significant problems to WHIP. If the University decided to change or alter its VLE arrangements, this could potentially cause a significant amount of additional administration in terms of migrating information as well as the problems associated with students and staff used to the previous set-ups. Some of the information on Merlin is a duplication of what students will have already seen in the department in paper form and although this is not a disadvantage it may cause some students to think that there is nothing new about e-learning. Another thing affecting the stability of WHIP could be changes in staff personnel. New staff may approach e-learning in an entirely different way to outgoing members, which may in turn give confused signals to students.
How did this e-learning approach accord with or differ from any relevant departmental and/or institutional strategies?
As Merlin is a university supported VLE it accorded well with the University's strategies. WHIP provides a unique opportunity for politics students and this is recognised by the University. The e-learning approach carried out for WHIP has been carried forward by other e-learning groups within the department. Most other placements offered by other departments at the University require a more independent student approach, as this is more likely to be in the private sector and linked less to their academic studies.
Whether or not e-learning becomes embedded in the department is largely dependent on whether particular members of the academic staff (mainly module leaders) decide to undertake the e-learning option for modules or postgraduate degree courses. Generally speaking e-learning is still the exception rather than the rule and it may take some time to develop e-learning on particular courses within the department. Given that current e-learning covers only a few modules that are compulsory, it would be more problematic from an administrative and academic view to create e-learn for courses where there are a number of optional modules in addition to the core modules.
Lessons Learned
Summary and Reflection
The e-learning approach operated for WHIP has worked well, with students obtaining above average results. Distance taught students are generally more independently minded and therefore require less supervision. Those students requiring more support receive it although it is not uncommon to have an exchange of several emails for problems to be resolved. Given that learning outcomes are broadly achieved we must summarise that e-learning succeeded in its aims.
The use of e-learning for WHIP has led to broader departmental discussions about its use for other projects, modules and courses. We have learned many of the shortcomings that may occur and how to avoid them in future projects. For future planning we must train staff and provide best practice for creating e-learning modules, courses and projects to encourage the development of this mode of learning. A very important part of the Merlin experience of e-learning has been how students have used it to support each other. We recently set up a 'Tea Room' within the exchange area of Merlin to encourage further discussions whether course related or otherwise. This has helped create a sense of the e-learning community. In furtherance to this community, it has also been useful to keep former interns involved within the group. This allows first-hand information exchange between the outgoing and the incoming intern groups on such issues as accommodation and Westminster passes. This bond between interns is often extended to Hull graduates, many of whom have permanent jobs within Westminster as a direct result of WHIP and continue their involvement in the department's activities many years after leaving Hull.
Further Evidence
Some comments from the course tutor:
'The academic staff involved in WHIP are more satisfied with the organisation and performance of the scheme since Merlin's arrival, which has encouraged the use of the VLE for future online teaching within the department.'
'e-Learning has had a significant impact on the continued reputation of the department as well as our ability to attract and maintain ever increasing student numbers.'
