Case Studies

University of Bristol Case Studies: 

University of Bristol Case Studies Michael Cameron eLearning Advisor Learning Technology Support Services

Aims : 

Aims To give an idea of University of Bristol projects Identify issues Illustrate themes

Case Study 1- ReproMED: 

Case Study 1- ReproMED

The Course: 

The Course MSc Human Reproduction and Development (full-time or part-time) Students in Sudan, China, Philippines, Saudi Arabia and Canada as well as UK (20 in total) Majority of students are professionals 9 weeks face-to-face teaching Remainder at a distance

Content and Delivery: 

Content and Delivery Lab and clinic based sessions face-to-face Learning materials and lectures online Discussion boards including journal club example Quizzes Video

Lessons Learnt: 

Lessons Learnt Successful international delivery of course for professionals Practical sessions and tutorials face-to-face Lectures online Discussion boards

Case Study 2: 

Case Study 2 Biotechnology Primer for Philosophers

The Course: 

The Course Philosophical issues in Biotechnology Undergraduate module Philosophy BA 50 students Aim of Primer: Help understanding of biotechnology prior to the course Produced four interactive online tutorials

Production: 

Production Lecturer not an IT or eLearning expert, or an expert in Biotechnology Lecturer attended LTSS workshops Employed a Masters graduate in Biotechnology to write materials Employed LTSS to help create materials Example

Lessons Learnt: 

Lessons Learnt Teamwork and skills Teacher Subject specialist eLearning specialist Intermediate technology Evaluation – Improvement

Case Study 3: 

Case Study 3 Education Technology and Society – Teaching teachers to e-moderate

The Course and Activity: 

The Course and Activity Course: Masters in Education using technology 20 students (teachers, technicians and e-learning specialists) Activity: e-moderating

Activity: 

Activity Groups asked to set up and moderate online activity: Cultural Participate in other groups’ activities Feedback on other groups’ activities

Examples of Feedback: 

Examples of Feedback Student A: I couldn’t find the goal of the activity. Everybody put in his own opinion then we talked about that message but I couldn’t find the relation to the original question. Student B: She was surprised that I didn’t do her activity. Also her reply made me de-motivated.

Lessons Learnt: 

Lessons Learnt Different teaching and learning styles Importance of question or ‘spark’ Controlling discussion without ‘de-motivating’

Case Study 4: 

Case Study 4 Personal Digital Assistants and Virtual Learning Environments

The Project: 

The Project Trial with Economics first years Can tools and features of a VLE can be delivered to a PDA wirelessly? Documents (Word, PowerPoint) E-mails, announcements, discussion, staff info, quizzes, questionnaires Palm m105 + mobile phone

Method of Delivery: 

Method of Delivery Teachers created documents and posted to VLE Admin staff re-purposed documents and uploaded to a website PDA compatible discussion board Quizzes + surveys coded in HTML Announcements by email or text

Lessons Learnt: 

Lessons Learnt Features of a VLE can be used with a PDA PDAs can make online learning mobile and accessible Students need support (configuration, using email) Required documents and features to be re-purposed (time consuming) Readability – colour screen better Users can only access certain websites Advances in technology will help

Case Study 5: 

Case Study 5 Automated Assessed Project Electrical Control Systems

The Course : 

The Course Undergraduate module – electrical engineers 70 students Aim: To present the basic concepts needed to understand the operation of continuous-time, discrete-time, sample data and digital control systems Face-to-face teaching but with strong online component. Interactive Flash tutorials, MatLAB tutorials delivered through WebCT

The Coursework: 

The Coursework Recognised need to apply theory, test students prior to final exam MatLAB (industry standard tool) Project takes place throughout module Stages coincide with weekly lectures Script produces unique parameters for each student Marking automated

Slide23: 

Instructions Interaction Result of interaction

Lessons learnt: 

Lessons learnt Assessed coursework allows students to apply theory – improved final exams Almost instant feedback valuable example Automation – work up front, savings later