Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 38(3): May 2012 The importance of managing student expectations became ap- parent as the challenge of completing a higher education course in tandem with full-time employment and family life was sig- nificant. Advice at the recruitment stage was reviewed and re- fined in response to this feedback. Emphasis was given to the level of commitment required for the course at point of enquiry. The appeal of the course to practitioners wishing to de- velop and enhance their knowledge frequently led to chal- lenges associated with technology literacy, as students moved, not simply from the workplace to the learning environment, but also to a format of learning that was not immediately in- tuitive to them. In particular, asynchronous interaction with tutors and student colleagues was in contrast to the experi- ence of a face-to-face learning environment and resulted in some students feeling academically isolated. In other cases, a lack of confidence in the use of information technology and electronic resources further exacerbated retention issues. The industry consultation exercises gave staff confidence that the curriculum was well-designed and met the needs of the arboricultural industry. However, the diversity of course delivery achieved in face-to-face teaching proved difficult to emulate in a computer-mediated environment. For example, group interaction and discussion, practical exercises, and for- mative assessment all represent challenges in an online envi- ronment. Therefore, while the increased accessibility of e- learning may enhance provision, the difference in pedagogical and andragogical approaches may limit some individuals with specific learning styles. In the early stage of course develop- ment, the principle mechanism for delivering subject mate- rial was through session booklets (.pdf documents detailing a module-specific topic). These were supported by various in- teractive activities that supported and assessed learning, such as drag-and-drop exercises, online microscopes (a zoom fa- cility for viewing digital micrographs), and self-assessment tests. Reflective and theorist learners (Honey and Mumford 1992) were favored by this strategy, so mechanisms to sup- port a broader range of learning styles needed to be explored. INTERVENTIONS – IMPROVING SUCCESS Three key areas were identified in order to enhance retention statistics and elevate the e-learning experience. These areas in- cluded: learner engagement, learning resources, and learner support (Figure 2). An action research framework (Cohen and Table 1. Key completion data from e-learning courses. Completion year Foundation degree in arboriculture (FdSc) BSc (Hons) in arboriculture (direct entry) Recruitmentz Retentiony Achievementx Successw Recruitment Retention Achievement Success z Number of students enrolling on the course. y Percentage of students that completed the course. x Percentage of students who pass the qualification. w Percentage of students who enrolled and went on to gain the qualification. 2005–06 49 37% 89% 33% 0 N/A N/A N/A 2006–07 25 40% 90% 36% 0 N/A N/A N/A 2007–08 33 64% 90% 58% 4 100% 100% 100% 2008–09 37 68% 92% 62% 8 100% 100% 100% 2009–10 32 72% 96% 69% 14 100% 100% 100% 2010–11 24 75% 90% 67% 10 100% 100% 100% 107 Manion 1994) was adopted where possible to give academic staff and curriculum managers robust information to assess new approaches. In these cases, interventions were planned to enhance the learning experience and evaluate, using electronic surveys, evidence from online discussion forums, e-mail cor- respondence, and oral feedback. This provided qualitative and quantitative data from a number of sources, which was then used to inform course evaluation and externally adminis- trated reviews such as the Integrated Quality and Enhancement Review (a UK Higher Education quality assurance system). Emerging technologies, including online conferencing soft- ware such as Macromedia Breeze™ (now called Adobe® nect™), were tried with great success as a mechanism to provide Con- remote learners with synchronous and engaging learning events (Hirons 2007); this built on previous work in the field by Harker et al. (2005) and Khiewnavawongasa et al. (2006). In recognition of this, the use of screen-casts to deliver core materials and as aids to understanding important software packages used during the course was expanded. Slater (2008) found that the use of audio engaged a wider range of learning styles, supported students with learning difficulties and disabilities (e.g., dyslexia) and assisted with the pronunciation of technical terms. This was particularly valuable for students who spoke English as a second language. Other approaches to increase learner engagement included the use of short video clips, further development of existing interactive self-assessment tasks, and an increased emphasis on the use of discussion forums embedded within the virtual learning environ- ment. All of these interventions required the close collaboration of academic staff, the technical expertise of the Learning Devel- opment Unit, and focused continuous professional development. A program of peer-review and online lesson observations was instigated by the quality assurance team at Myerscough Col- lege. The impact of this was to start a formal cycle of sharing best practices and further enhance collegiate support. Where modules, for example, are shown to appeal to a narrow range of learning styles or have limited learner engagement, an ac- tion plan was created to help progress the module and bring it up to a higher standard. Greater personal learner support was fa- cilitated by the increased provision of time to the staff that had direct responsibility for the management of the online courses. The combined impact of these interventions was that stu- dents were retained and success rates were greatly enhanced. The FdSc acts as a significant feeder course to the online BSc (Hons) course, and as a result the majority of students are ©2012 International Society of Arboriculture
May 2012
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