Network for Continuous professional develoment
of University teachers
Roza Dumbraveanu, doctor, associate professor, UPSC
r.dumbraveanu@gmail.com
Challenges
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Globalization
Knowledge society
Labour market needs
Higher Education Area
Bologna objectives
Needs analysis
• Professional development of the academic
staff has an important contribution to make
in the realisation of the Bologna objectives
• Entire curricula are reconsidered
• Increasing demands made on academic staff
• The focus on restructuring of teaching and
learning
• From teacher training approach to student
centered learning
Needs analysis
• The new teaching methods implies substantial
reform of the initial and inservice training of
teachers to prepare them for their new
responsibilities, in particular by highlighting
the unique contribution to learning of
teachers as such.
• To date, however, the provision of formal
retraining for teachers from Higher Education
Institutions from eastern countries is seldom
and uncoordinated.
HE eastern teachers' problems
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Very few opportunities for professional retraining
Insufficient Knowledge in HE didactics
Insufficient pedagogical level of newcomers
Insufficient teachers’ experience
Lack of HE standards
Cohorts of students
Lack of students’ motivation for studies
Low entry level of students’ knowledge
Extra number of teachers’ activities/responsibilities
Number of teaching hours
Low salary level
ENQA requirements
• From European standards and guidelines for
internal quality assurance HEI - quality
assurance of teaching staff:
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institutions should have ways of
satisfying themselves that staff
involved with the teaching of
students are qualified and
competent to do so.
ENQA requirements
• From European standards and guidelines for
internal quality assurance HEI - learning
resources and student support :
• institutions should ensure that the resources
available for the support of student learning
are adequate and appropriate for each
programme offered.
ENQA requirements
• From European standards and guidelines for
internal quality assurance HEI - information
systems :
• institutions should ensure that they collect,
analyse and use relevant information for the
effective management of their programmes
of study and other activities .
Reality
• The response and information provided to the
mentioned ENQA requirements by HE
institutions of partner counties is far not
enough.
• Misunderstandings occur also due to lack of
appropriate training and information
accessible to teachers and students.
ENQA requirements
• From European standards and guidelines for
internal quality assurance HEI - public
information :
• institutions should regularly publish up to
date, impartial and objective information,
both quantitative and qualitative, about the
programmes and awards they are offering .
Network objectives
• To develop an online community to exchange
ideas, content, educational resources;
• To identify the existing material and produce
courses for training the HE staff
• To train academic staff from eastern HEI in
using new methodologies;
To promote and disseminate the network
findings.
Course
“Curriculum design in Higher Education”
Responsible partners: UPSC, UA
Delivery mode:
• In accordance with target groups needs and
peculiarities.
• Blended learning agreed during internal project
partners’ discussions.
Target groups
• General: Teaching staff from HEIs
• Within project: Partner institutions teaching staff
& master degree students (partly involved in HEI
teaching)
• Mainly: teaching staff from education science
faculties, foreign language department,
psychology department, ITII, master students
ITII.
Selection of trainees
Selection of trainees:
Distribution of information about courses
1. Web site announcement
2. Discussions at departments
3. University senate announcement
4. Description of the course available on the web
site
5. Other events (seminars, meetings)
6. Direct discussions with potential trainees
Course enrolment
Enrolment
1. Via email
2. Selection lists from departments
3. Direct enrolment via LMS facilities
(needs confirmation)
4. Distribution in groups
Target groups
Target groups enrolled:
UPSC:
Teaching staff from departments: pedagogy, ITII, continuing
education, psychology, foreign languages, others.
Master degree students from faculty Informatics and
Information technologies in education
USB: teaching staff from different faculties (mainly heads of
departments, deans)
UST: project team members, heads of departments
Quality of teaching
To improve the quality of teaching and learning
in HEI:
• What does this mean?
• How these courses will improve the quality of
teaching and learning in HEI?
• Bologna demands: redesign of curricula; from
teacher centered to student centered, focus
on Learning outcomes
Curriculum design in HE
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the course, the participant
should be able to:
• 1. Apply curriculum design theory to the
design of a specific course
• 2. Engage in effective teaching and
designing learning activities
Course learning outcomes
• Apply curriculum design theory to the design of a
specific course
– Develop a course systematically based on design
principles.
– Demonstrate the use of curriculum mapping.
– Define relevant learning outcomes.
• Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of various teaching
strategies in relation to defined learning outcomes.
• Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of various
assessment methods in relation to declared learning
outcomes.
• Develop a complete course plan and course outline.
Course learning outcomes
• Engage in effective teaching and
designing learning activities
– Demonstrate skills in presenting teaching content
and choosing appropriate teaching strategies.
– Demonstrate skills in organizing learning activities.
– Implement alignment approach in the design of
the selected course.
Course structure
6 units
• Unit 1: Curriculum design principles
• Unit 2: Curriculum map
• Unit 3: Learning outcomes (LOs)
• Unit 4: Effective teaching and learning
• Unit 5: Student Assessment
• Unit 6: Alignment approach
LOs/Teaching&learning/Assessment~
LOLA or TLA
Course delivery
Approach:
• Face to face meetings
• Virtual environment (MOODLE LMS)
Prerequisites:
• Basic Computer skills
• Participation in courses 4 and 5
(required/optional)
Course delivery
Required Competences from other courses
• How to work in a LMS
• Use of collaborative tools
• ICT tools and their effective use in the
curriculum design
• Effective web search and criteria for
evaluation of resources
Course materials
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Teaching aids in printed format
Course in a LMS/MOODLE
Links to web resources
Articles, documents in digital format
Teaching techniques used
Teaching techniques differ: slightly different for different
target groups.
The main focus: Blended learning and constructivist
approach in different proportion
Course delivery
I. Pilot phase, two courses in parallel:
(objectives: to enhance ICT competences of trainees;
to embed ICT competences with curriculum design
course learning outcomes)
II. ITII master degree students (to discover in a
constructivist manner the LMS, to build a course in
LMS)
III. Next groups ( to fulfil the learning outcomes of the
course Curriculum design in HE)
Teaching techniques: 21st Century Learning
Requirements
Teacher-directed
Direct Instruction
Knowledge
Content
Basic Skills
Theory
Curriculum
Individual
Classroom
Summative Assessments
Learning for School
A Better
Learner-centered
Collaborative Instruction
Skills
Process
Higher-order Thinking
Practice
Life Skills
Group
Community
Formative Evaluations
Learning for Life
Balance
Teaching techniques: NETTLE summary on
teachers’ competences
Competences in 5 areas:
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Specify, explain and sometimes negotiate (a) the
intentions of learning on a course or programme and
(b) the learning and teaching methods to be used
Teach and support learning
Mark and give feedback on student work
Review and understand the effectiveness of their
teaching
Continue to improve the effectiveness of their teaching.
Teaching techniques used
• Home readings
• Designed tasks related to the course design matters
and teaching practice
• Collaborative learning (via LMS and in classrooms)
• Based on designed learning activities: LOLALA
(Learning outcomes/learning activities/learning
assessment)
• Workshops and f2f sessions
• Feedback on tasks from trainees
Tips on teaching practice
• LOs: explanations (difficulties to distinguish from objectives
and outcomes)
• Examples from other universities (difficult to find, not in
accordance with LO theory: Tuning new guide)
• Guidance on the tasks (the task done do not fit the task
requirements)
• Assessment tasks in electronic format (teachers do not have
the needed skills)
• Discussions of the assessment results: continuous Feedback
• Focus on results not on grades
• Evaluation based on contribution, oral presentations
Conclusions & suggestions & problems
Sources for course improvements:
• Team opinions
• Trainees’ opinions
• Partners’ opinions
Collected via face to face discussions and
feedback, as well as from anonymous
questionnaires
Conclusions & suggestions & problems
Feedback from trainees on:
• Course content (clear Los, structure, access to
materials)
• Learning resources (usefulness, relevancy)
• Learning environment and teaching methods
• Quality of delivery (pace of delivery, motivation to
reflections, etc.)
• Assessment (methods and feedback)
• Learners’ contribution (participation, time devoted,
progress)
Conclusions
• The course is actual, needed and useful for the
improvement of teachers’ own courses.
• The participants involvement in the course was
different: some participated actively with oral and
written contributions and made real progress; some
were neutral (passive learners).
• Time intended initially for the course was extended,
according to participants’ needs.
• Learning resources were appreciated at very high
level.
Conclusions & problems
• The participants enjoyed the learning environment, the
TLA used motivated participation.
• LMS is flexible for continuous course updating.
• As for using LMS in their own teaching, some discussions
appear around topics:
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The difference between teachers using a LMS and
those using traditional methods.
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The copyright issues (access) on materials placed in
MOODLE.
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Teacher workload
• Suggestions: recommendations to university board in this
regard (under consideration).
Conclusions & suggestions
• The course deals with actual matters, very useful for
the enhancement of the quality of Higher Education.
• Almost all participants would recommend this course
to colleagues.
• Decision: to include it for continuous teacher
development.
• The open learning climate stimulated collaboration
and the participants learned from each others.
• Peer and trainers feedback was helpful.
Conclusions & strengths
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Quality of learners’ contributions.
Use of learners’ experience in the field.
Collaborative learning.
Open learning environment.
Constructivist approach was used implicitly.
Tasks/assignments related to the real teaching
activities.
• LMS course materials can be updated easily any
time.
Conclusions & suggestions & weaknesses
• Low learners’ online collaboration.
• Not all participants are able to understand English
resources (translation is needed).
• Difficulties to find time period suitable for all
participants for F2F sessions (small group sessions
organized).
• The majority of participants were not ready to use a LMS.
• The participants are more acquainted with traditional
model of teaching, waiting from the trainer usual
lectures and explanations.
• The participants are not familiar with constructivist
approach in practice.
Conclusions & suggestions & action plan
• To implement templates for short version of the
course descriptions on the university web site.
• To work with teachers that redesigned their courses
in accordance with the alignment approach to
improve the courses quality.
• To continue to deliver the course to new participants
in combination with courses on LMS.
• To focus on using and promoting online collaboration
tools.
• To offer consultancy services for using MOODLE
environment
• To devote more time to the course administration in
LMS.
Conclusions & suggestions & problems
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Learning how to learn (for Master degree students)
Defining learning outcomes, relation with competences
Criteria for used resources
Academic prerequisites for the course (effective search,
advanced structuring and formatting of learning content,
requirements for professional presentations, etc.)
• Using LMS: desired, but …
– Teachers’ copyrights on course materials
– Motivation, workload, suggestions to university board
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F2F? Discussion in forums (not common)
Lack of time vs. needs and willings
Time required: who is evaluating really the workload?
Resources: not available or English version
How to Become an Excellent Tertiary-Level
Teacher
7 golden rules for university lectures
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Find out how your students learn;
Set appropriate learning targets;
Use appropriate teaching/learning methods;
Use appropriate assessment methods;
Monitor and evaluate your teaching
Always try to improve your performance;
Keep yourself up-to-date.