Case Study

Case study title	Blogs: promoting competence in undergraduate occupational therapy students
Institution name	Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Author of case study	Augustine De la Crouse
1.       Background	I am a qualified Dental Technician in the Department of Dental Sciences at CPUT. I started using the blog with the second, third and fourth year students and did have difficulty getting everyone to interact with the posts on the blog. I had the best interaction with the forth year students, while the second year students were sceptical of the benefit to them by using or posting on the blog. This Year: My class group range from 32 (largest) to 15 (smallest) students in a class. The larger of the class groups are out First year students. This is more difficult to create an exercise for them as they know nothing of the theory or practical. I find that they would not necessarily be able to engage or interact with the activities as I would hope necessarily hope for. A way to overcome this could be to create an activity that would only require them to identify and not explain as yet and try to develop the explaining (reflecting) exercise. For the present Second year group of 21 students, I have used my blog on which I initially posted questions and asked them to answer. This worked fine unless there was a student who happens to answer the entire question and defeats the entire purpose of the exercise, which is to allow other students to interact/engage with the question or comments. I have also found that students are more willing to interact if they are not the first person that has to post information. In order for them to overcome this fear, I post pictures of my own cases fabricated during class or that of previous students. I then ask them to identify errors or characteristics that they would change. I have found that this makes them feel a little better about themselves publicly through their work. We do have a diverse group of students in our classes and some struggle with the use of technology.
2.       Intended outcome(s)	I would like student reflection on their practical work to increase. To increase student engagement with their practical cases completed in class. Include feedback from the profession (practising dental technicians and laboratory owners) regarding the work the students are doing. I would want this to be a platform where they can express their views on cases posted on the blog as a means of peer review and formative assessment. This could also serve as a platform on which students can showcase their work to future employers. Use the blog as a tool for blended learning
3.       The challenge	I think my major challenge would be to get the students to interact via the Blog. The most difficult thing would be to get students to say how they feel about something in this public forum about how I do things, but I am confident that they will overcome this as we go along. There is also the issue about time spent in front of the computer/phone/tablet and the personal expense as this will be when I am at home with no WiFi. I am also stuck deciding whether to make this an open forum or to close it up to a selected group of people. There is also the issue of students that would completely answer a question and leave no room for other students to post their views.
4.       Established practice	I used to post questions on the blog that would be useful to students for compiling notes or supplement what was covered in class. I would also provide general feedback on practical cases done in class, e.g. common mistakes and things to take not of when completing a particular case. Refer to reference material that I found useful to compile or complete notes.
5.       Impact / affordances of emerging technologies	For me I feel that the blog affords the following affordances: ·         Media affordance - were students are able to find and read information as well as comment on the information provided ·         Space affordance - the blog offers adequate space for the planned exercises, posting of photos and videos ·         Accessibility affordance - students can access the blog from anywhere and from their mobile devices and smart phones ·         Navigation affordance - the blog is easy to navigate and it is easy to find information ·         Synthesis affordance - I am able to post videos from Youtube and some that students have made as well as photographs of their class work. ·         Usability - the blog is user friendly ·         Aesthetics - I am able to change the view of the blog at any point, to suit the needs of the student users ·         Access control - The blog offers me the choice to make it an open or closed media, I think that I would like to create an interest first from all the interested parties as well as create a following and then decide if I should close it off to a particular group or leave it open. ·         Collaboration - With the blog I am able to collaborate with a variety of groups, students, dental professionals and suppliers
6.       Description of intervention	I post pictures of cases completed in class on the blog in order for the students to give comments on corrections that could be made, as well as point out what they like about each of the cases posted. I have also asked students to produce their own demo videos of work we are busy with in the class, calling it 'a demo from a student's perspective'. I feel that this makes them feel part of the teaching and learning process. I also post one of my own 'non professional' demos, to show them it does not need much to produce; just a few strategically chosen photographs or a short video clip, to make their own demo using their own work, irrespective of what it looks like as an end product. This has worked well and have received positive feedback from students.
7.       Key points for effective practice	1.       I think it will be key for me to create an interest from the students to interact with the blog on a regular basis, also to allow senior students to assist with peer reviewing the students practical cases. 2.       I also need to find a cluster of dental technicians in my specific field of training who would be willing to interact and assist with reviewing students cases via the blog.
1.       Conclusion and recommendations	Conclusion: I think making the students feel that they are part of the training process and the amount of feedback that the blog affords them from so many people from the different levels, e.g. fellow students in the same level and from higher levels, also from the practising professionals. Recommendations: I will look into the matter of keeping the blog as an open forum or to close it up to students and certain practising professionals
1.       Additional information	I have been using the blog with a level of success and I have also found that there is a greater level of interest from students to use this media and to start their own blogs as a portfolio for when they have to find a job. As our students do not get to keep their practical cases the blog helps them document their work done and their progress over the 4 years that they are studying. They also document interesting cases they come into contact with in laboratories via the class blog and start discussions with regards to how to complete the case and what materials were used. I find the blog to be visually appealing as well as user friendly, as no additional or technical skills are required by the students or the dental professionals.

References:

Bower M, (2008). Affordance analysis - matching learning tasks with learning technologies. Educational Media International, 45, (1): 3 - 15

Dabbagh N, Bannan-Ritland B (2005). Instructional strategies that support constructivist-based pedagogical models. Adapted for ICT CHEC course, May 2005, pp. 206-227.

Deng L, Yuen A (2011). Towards a framework for educational affordances of blogs. Computers & Education, 56, 441-451.

Hollis V, Madill H (2006). Online learning: the potential for occupational therapy education. Occupational Therapy International, 13(2): 61-78.

Robertson J (2011). The educational affordances of blogs for self-directed learning. Computers & Education, 57: 1628-1644.

Reflection 4 - Description of intervention

As can be seen from my previous reflections I have reflected on how I am currently using a blog.

Feedback from students (positive):
1. Keeps a connection with the lecturer and the student when they are away from class
2. They can always go back to information to reference the feedback given when corrections needs to be made.
3. The peer review factor is invaluable, getting different peoples views on your work makes you see it in an entirely different view and your see a more holistic manner.
4. Having the pictures of your practical work makes it easier to have a different 'look' at it, it also seems that you can see more when viewing the pictures than when looking at the actual case.
5. 

Feedback from students (negative):
1. Students find that commenting on each post is time consuming and sometimes they forget to check the the blog and receive some of the information late.
2. Sometimes it is difficult to find information, so they would have liked it if the blog could have tabs, like Facebook, so that it is easier to find certain posts, pictures and videos.
3. Some students are not too keen on posting their views or comments on the blog as they are shy/affraid of what the other students will think (spelling, grammer).
4.

Feedback from practicing Dental technicians and Dental technologists:
1. They recommended that they only post one comment as an overview of a specific group of cases posted and not on each case as this would be very time consuming and they might not do it very effectively. They would then look at all the cases and post one general comment on all the work and not each individual case. General mistakes made by the entire group of students.
2. This is a good idea as this will give them easier access to the students work without having to sacrifice their time away from the laboratory.
3. They would make recommendations on what I can include in my teaching and especially provide feedback to the student on how they can improve.
4. They also recommended that I could get one or two dentists to comment on what they like in their work and also provide some feedback to the tudents

Reflection 3 - Established practice and Affordances

I have gone through literature which supports blended learning and which would most effective for my intended outcomes and I have decided that the use of a Blog would work best. I have been using a blog for almost 2 years now, initially just posting questions to the students via this media. Initially I wanted to just forward information and create interest in topics discussed in class for that day.

I would post topics to discuss for each student to discuss and provide feedback to each one and the other students could engage once i provided my initial feedback. In the beginning the students wanted to know if any of the topics discussed would be covered in the exams.

I started using the blog with the second, third and forth year students and did have difficulty getting everyone to interact with the posts on the blog. I had the best interaction with the forth year students, while the second year students were sceptical of the benefit to them by using or posting on the blog.

This Year:
My class group range from 32 (largest) to 15 (smallest) students in a class. The larger of the class groups are out First year students. This is more difficult to create an exercise for them as they know nothing of the theory or practical. I find that they would not necessarily be able to engage or interact with the activities as I would hope necessarily hope for. A way to overcome this could be to create an activity that would only require them to identify and not explain as yet and try to develop the explaining (reflecting) exercise.

For the present Second year group of 21 students, I have used my blog on which I initially posted questions and asked them to answer. This worked fine unless there was a student who happens to answer the entire question and defeats the entire purpose of the exercise, which is to allow other students to interact/engage with the question or comments. I have also found that students are more willing to interact if they are not the first person that has to post information. In order for them to overcome this fear, I post pictures of my own cases fabricated during class or that of previous students. I then ask them to identify errors or characteristics that they would change. I have found that this makes them feel a little better about themselves publicly through their work.

I have also asked students to produce their own demo videos of work we are busy with in the class, calling it 'a demo from a students perspective'. I feel that this makes them feel part of the teaching and learning process. I also post one of my own 'non professional' demos, to show them it does not need much to produce; just a few strategically chosen photographs or a short video clip, to make their own demo using their own work, irrespective of what it looks like as an end product. This has worked well and have received positive feedback from students.

For the third year students I will use similar exercises and ask them to engage with the material at a different level also try to integrate some material manipulation into discussion regarding the practical cases.

For the forth year students I am thinking of using/posting a problem situation on the blog (post pictures of models, models are a gypsum representation of the patients mouth). I will then ask each student to tell me what dental appliance they would design on their respective models as well as materials they think would be most effective and affordable, they would also need to motivate their decision with relevant literature.

I take this as a work in progress and develop new methods to encourage interaction. I find that the blog would work best for me as can have dental technicians from the profession interact and provide the students with feedback on their work as well as give the students advise on how to fabricate a denture using a different method but still following the principles as per department instructions or give them some short cuts (but this would mostly be for senior students).

I feel if I develop a few means of engaging the students I can get them to interact with the material and cases in a constructive manner.

Reflection 2 - Literature review

Looking back on reflection 1 and input from the facilitators, I have come to realize that I would like to bring to our students attention the fact that practical is not the subject they should enjoy the most because they can be creative at their desks/workbenches. It is something that they would be able to do with so much more enthusiasm and drive because if they interact with the theory while doing the practical, they would be able to think 'outside the box' better. It would allow them 3 dimensional thinking.

The focus of Dental Technology is the practical because a Dental Technician fabricates dental appliances. The one thing both qualified and training dental technicians tend to loose focus of is that the Theory and the knowledge of the dental materials make us better all round dental technicians. With technology I hope to enhance student learning. A difficulty would be to design appropriate learning activities for our students that would emphasis this need and assist with its development.

As stated by Veletsianos (2005) blended learning/education focuses on cognitive concerns, as how to best structure learning materials for effective and efficient retention, which we all want for our students. The activities should be student centered or it will be rendered pointless because students will refuse to interact with the technology. Activities done in class should not be duplicated using the technology but should be adapted in order for the student to be able to interact or engage with the material covered in class. The value for them to complete or participate should be clear, this view is confirmed/ acknowledged by Veletsianos, 2005.

The aim of such an endevour should always be to meet higher level objectives and outcomes. Rutherford 2010 calls the use of technology user driven social media platforms and say it can be on informal professional development. Couros (2010) also suggests that technology can be used to create a connection with the student and the current profession within your own discipline, in order to create online communities.
This would lend itself to creating an online area where past students can refer back to work that they have done or that current students are engaging with. It is important that students be introduced to the dental communities (Dental Laboratory owners and Dental Technicians), before entering the workplace. Possibly introduce the wider community to critique students (Btech, 4th year) engagement with regards to the process followed for the fabrication of a dental appliance. This could be an integral part of the students learning process, to see how other professions perceive their work and the level the quality is at. What is the value of a learning activity if it's not memorable.

Mason and Rennie (2006) also advocates putting the students needs first, possibly ahead of the context. When wanting to implement the use of technology within your teaching programme it is important to look at whether there will be adequate technical support and that the lecturer would be able to provide fast feedback to students (Tabor, 2007). By using technology as a tool to interact with students outside the classroom should also not be perceived by students as a reason to not attend class. It could serve as a tool to develop a more responsible student with better time management skills.

Glogoff (2005) recommends logging as an instructional tool which will and could promote interactivity and which is student centered. Blogging allows the participant to say what they think and to receive feedback quickly. It also promotes extended dialogue about topics dicussed in class or continues from blog posts. Blogging can be used to lead students through developmental concepts of the discipline's knowledge domain. Glogoff (2005) is also of the opinion that guest users can respond to students comments and cases presented on the blog and that this allows the student to analyse the deeper structures necessary to make sound decisions when evaluating information. It creates the concept of the community of inquiry and community practices. It can also emphasize the importance of social and peer interaction as a focus of the student group.  Blogging can be used to lead students through the foundations of that discipline in order to contextualise real experiences. The role a blog can play for me is; I am the instructor and I lead students toward identifying appropriate conceptual processes and solving real-life challenges.
It will also develop receptive learning by encouraging students to acquire information and report on what they have learned.

Conclusion:
I feel that blogging can be a valuable technological tool for the purpose I intend to use it for in which I use my expertise to guide and instruct students on information and cases they are presented with. It will allow students to partake in discussion and receive guided feedback which will aid in their progress and academic development to the appropriate level of thinking.

References:


Couros, A. (2010). Developing Personal Learning Networks for Open and Social Learning. In G.
Veletsianos (Ed.), Emerging Technologies in Distance Education (pp. 109-128).
Edmonton, AB: Athabasca University Press.


Dunlap, J. C., & Lowenthal, P. R. (in press). Learning, unlearning, and relearning: Using Web
2.0 technologies to support the development of lifelong learning skills. In G. D.
Magoulas (Ed.), E-infrastructures and technologies for lifelong learning: Next
generation environments. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.


Glogoff,S. 2005. Instructional blogging: Promoting interactivity, student-centered learning, and Peer Input. Innovate  1 (5).

Mason,R. & Rennie, F. (2006). Elearning: The key concepts. London: Routledge.


Rutherford, C. (2010). Facebook as a Source of Informal Teacher Professional Development. In
education, 16(1). Available at http://ineducation.ca/article/facebook-source-informalteacher-professional-development


Tabor,S. (2007). Narrowing the distance: Implementing a hybrid learning model for information security education. The Quarterly Review of Distance Education,8 (1), 47 - 57.

Vaughan,N. (2007). Perspectives on blended learning in higher education. International Journal on Elearning,6 (1), 81 - 94.

Veletsianos,G. (2011). Designing Opportunities for Transformation with Emerging Technologies. Educational Technology,51 (2), 41 - 46.

Reflection 1@ Emerging Technologies

The whole thing about emerging technologies was all so overwhelming on Wednesday when all these means of communicating with technology was initially introduced. My first thought was holy crap do they expect me to use all of these can I not just choose one I am comfortable with. Then to my relief we have to do a blog, as I am already using one with my students it was no longer as terrifying.

Context:
I am a Dental Technician, lecturing in the Department of Dental Sciences. I teach a particular section (aspect) of dental technology to students; namely Full Removable Prosthodontics (Dentures). I am also the Teaching and Learning Co-Ordinator for the dental technology section. My work in the Dental Sciences, Dental Technology department, would fit well with this means of communication. Our students do mostly practical and I think they can get a one on one session with me in this way when they are at home and think of something that was troubling them and couldn't or didn't say it in class.

Challenges:
I think my major challenge would be to get the students to interact via the Blog, I already have a student that is saying that he does not have internet at home and is not able to post comments. He does have a Blackberry but also made up some excuse why that is not working. The most difficult thing would be to get students to say how they feel about something in this public forum about how I do things, but I am confident that they will overcome this as we go along. There is also the issue about time spent in front of the computer/phone/tablet and the personal expense as this will be when I am at home with no WiFi. But I am willing to take the chance.

Intended outcome:
I would want this to be a platform where they can express their views on cases posted on the blog as a means of peer review and formative assessment. I would like Dental Laboratory owners to see what our students are capable of and to be able to comment on the students work and also see the student's progress from one case to the other. The lab owners are potential bosses out there, so students can showcase their work on the blog too.