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Case study: Swansea Metropolitan University

Page history last edited by Tony Toole 11 years ago
Project Information    
Project title  The Development of Online Distance Learning courses in Logistics and Transport using the JISC WBL Maturity Toolkit 
Start date  May 2012  End date  April 2013 
Project URL  http://swanseametwbl.pbworks.com/ 
Design Studio URL  http://jiscdesignstudio.pbworks.com/w/page/64841933/Swansea Met Dewi Project Case Study
Lead institution Swansea Metropolitan University 
Project Lead Contact Name Dr Nick Potter 
Contact e-mail address nick.potter@smu.ac.u
Programme Name Embedding Benefits Category  
Programme Manager Ruth Drysdale    

 

1 Summary

Provide an executive summary of your project (max 200 words).


Swansea Metropolitan delivers logistics and transport courses, validated by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) in the UK, to the British armed forces stationed abroad, particularly in Germany. A major issue for the delivery of the CILT courses is the need for periodic work based training delivery in the bases across Europe. To date this has involved tutors travelling to provide face-to-face on site support; clearly an expensive option.

 

The University is now considering the design of an online distance learning version of the courses that would be able to provide that tutor support remotely. It was hence proposed that the WBL Maturity Toolkit be used to assist in the planning of that online distance learning version of the programme. This would include preparation for validation, quality assurance, delivery and work-based assessment. The Dewi project was seen as an opportunity to use the JISC WBL Maturity Toolkit to assist in that process, and also to judge the value of the toolkit for similar developments in the future.

 

The toolkit was found to be beneficial in a number of ways, but particularly as a checklist against which work based learning courses could be mapped and their completeness judged. To some extent it could be seen to be a two way process as new programmes bring different contexts, priorities and methods to WBL design whilst also informing and refining the toolkit itself. The toolkit will be most useful if seen as a design tool owned, managed and continuously improved by the whole WBL community of practice.  


2  What resource(s) did you package/collate/disseminate for use by other institutions?

This may include:

  • details of the needs of the target stakeholder group(s) and how your project addressed the needs of that group(s).
  • details of any changes/updates made to the resources before they were disseminated and any lessons that had been learnt between this embedding benefits activity and the end of the original project (i.e. prior to the commencement of this dissemination activity)

The Swansea Metropolitan project used the WBL Maturity Toolkit to plan for the development of its online distance learning delivery of the CILT courses. It focussed on four specific areas of the toolkit for this purpose:

 

1. Institutional Readiness. The criteria considered being: 1-1 WBL strategy and plans, 1-8 WBL procedures and processes for programme validation, 1-9 QA for WBL and 1-12 Business, commercial and financial approaches

 

2. Faculty Readiness. The criteria considered being: 2-1 WBL strategy and implementation plan and 2-4 Training and support for external staff and employers

 

3. Programme Design for WBL. The criteria considered being: 3-3 Development and planning for validation, 3-4 Alignment with professional standards, 3-8 IT Support and 3-11 Learning materials and resources

 

6. Quality Enhancement of the Learner Experience. The criteria considered being: 6-3 Programme Design, Review and Quality Enhancement and 6-4 Programme Delivery and Support

 

In each area of focus and for each criterion the main statement, self assessment guidelines, evidence to look for and (where included) further information and examples were examined. In each case a summary was made of the area of focus in the context of the proposed Swansea Metropolitan WBL development. The summary was then followed by an assessment of the WBL Toolkit added value for the design process and concluded with proposed potential enhancements for the toolkit identified by completing the evaluation exercise.  


3  How did you go about embedding your resources / outputs / outcomes into the wider community?

Give details here of:

  • the story of what you did and how you achieved it
  • how you engaged your stakeholders
  • the project methodology – for example technical implementation, how you went about your evaluation activities etc.
  • any dissemination activities that you undertook

The project used the WBL Maturity Toolkit to assess the preparedness of the institution, faculty and programme for delivery by online distance learning. It also assessed the WBL Maturity Toolkit itself in terms of the effectiveness it had in this role. 

 

The following excerpt from the evaluation of Institutional Readiness gives a flavour of the evaluative approach and an example of the outcomes. It can be seen that each of the self-assessment elements was responded to by a statement of the 'as is' readiness for WBL, followed by an assessment of the value of the WBL toolkit and some suggestions for improvement. In this particular example, the stakeholders included both institutional senior managers and the programme leader/designer:

 

1-1 WBL strategy and plans

The term 'work based learning' does not appear anywhere in the Swansea Metropolitan strategic plan. That does not mean, however, that it does not support WBL or that WBL is not an important part of its portfolio. There are close relationships between all vocational programme areas and the industry sectors they support. Involvement of employers and professional bodies in programme planning and design is common and work placement and sandwich components are part of a number of industry specific courses. As detailed in 1-12 below, a significant part of the work based learning provision is commercially based rather than part of normal degree delivery.

WBL Toolkit added value: The toolkit provides a useful checklist against which WBL strategy and plans can be mapped and guided. This may be very useful in the development of a new strategic plan for the merged institution. An explicit articulation of WBL policy is likely to guide developments in a more direct way. The reason it is not there already may be because the integration of academic learning with the development of workplace skills and experience has always been part of the Swansea Met institutional vocational culture.

WBL Toolkit proposed enhancements: The WBL Toolkit gives the impression that WBL is viewed as something separate to other learning formats. In practice, of course, WBL is integrated with the other learning formats that combine in the overall programme. It might be questioned whether a 'specific WBL strategic plan' is desirable rather than just promoting WBL in the institutional strategy as an key component of applied, work focussed training.

 

1-8 WBL processes and procedures for programme validation

It would be reasonable to say that the existing procedures and processes for programme approval and validation at Swansea Met already accommodate the particular needs of courses with a WBL component. The involvement of employers and the professions is certainly encouraged by what has always been a vocationally orientated institution.

WBL Toolkit added value: The WBL Toolkit would provide a useful focus for future validation planning. Although the culture of the institution accommodates WBL as an important component of courses that benefit from it, the articulation of that approach is likely to ensure that the opportunities for, and benefits of, WBL are not missed in new course design and approval.

WBL Toolkit proposed enhancements: The guidelines here seem to promote 'fast tracking', 'shell frameworks' and other features as being essential, rather than just options if appropriate. It may be helpful if they were presented as such and that the 'further info and examples' addition to this particular criterion (not a feature of most other criteria) included as part of an appendix of useful resources.

 

1-9 QA for WBL

The QA processes for WBL clearly need to include an assessment of the quality of the learning process in the workplace, and the way it integrates with the underpinning knowledge delivered by the institution. In the case of the CILT Logistics programme, it involves no on-campus attendance at all. Hence the QA assessment must consider both the WBL and the distance learning provision as an integrated delivery process.

WBL Toolkit added value: All of the guideline statements are valid and helpful for the planning process (but see the comment below).

WBL Toolkit proposed enhancements: As noted in other comments, the QA processes and processes supporting WBL planning, development and implementation are covered more than once in the WBL Toolkit. The distinction between the contexts of each QA criterion needs to be made clear (or a separate area of the toolkit be created dealing with all aspects of QA). Also, the main statement for the criterion is expressed as a question rather than as a statement and this may need to be revised.

 

1-12 Business, commercial and financial approaches

The CILT Programme at Swansea Metropolitan is managed as a commercially funded programme through the Commercial Services Department at the University. Staff from the Faculty of Applied Design and Engineering are contracted to deliver the courses. A full business case and costing is attached to the programme.

WBL Toolkit added value: There are no self assessment guidelines or evidence suggestions given in the current version of the WBL Toolkit. An assessment of added value for this criterion is therefore not possible at present. Some possible toolkit guidelines and evidence are presented below.

WBL Toolkit proposed enhancements: Self assessment guidelines could include:

  • A viable business model is in place for the WBL programme based on full economic costing
  • The resourcing model includes workplace provision and mentoring
  • Approval and validation includes employer commitment to WBL support requirements
  • Provision for APEL based on evidence of workplace competence mapped to learning objectives

Evidence to look for could include:

  • Employer contractual agreement to fund the delivery
  • Documented evidence of WBL target delivery
  • Audit/accounts confirmation of meeting financial targets/viability 

 

This example covers one of the four areas of the WBL toolkit used in the exercise. All of the other outcomes of the work carried out by Swansea Metropolitan as part of the Dewi project can be found on the project website at: http://swanseametwbl.pbworks.com. This was the main dissemination vehicle for the Swansea Met contribution to the project and all outcomes were shared with partners through the programme Camel meetings. The outcomes were also disseminated by the inclusion of this case study on the WBL Maturity Toolkit website and through the jisc Design Studio. 


4  What impact has your embedding benefits project had and who are the beneficiaries? Include evidence of impact wherever possible (e.g. survey results, evaluation, cost benefit analysis etc.)

Give details here of, for example:

  • increased awareness of your resources/outputs from your previous  e-learning programme project
  • greater take-up across “non-native” institutions (non-native institutions are institutions not involved as lead or partners in the original project or any subsequent JISC funded benefits realisation activities).
  • how your resources are being used in other institutions / within project partners
  • details of any self-sustaining community of interest that has been formed etc.
  • refer to any supporting evidence documents such as evaluation reports, where appropriate.

Overall, the WBL Maturity Toolkit was found to be a useful and valuable resource for institutions developing their work based learning capacity and experience. At the end of the day it is basically a lengthy checklist, based on established practice, against which institutions can judge their preparedness.

 

As indicated in the excerpt of the evaluation above, however, the project carried out by Swansea Metropolitan identified the fact that there were two aspects of the toolkit that needed significant attention before the toolkit itself could be regarded as a ‘mature’ resource. The first was completeness and the other was consistency.

It is clear that there are a number of areas of the toolkit where the ‘self assessment guidelines’ and ‘evidence to look for’ sections are either incomplete or totally empty. This is important for institutions looking for guidance in specific areas of WBL design and delivery.

 

 Related to the same issue is consistency. There are some focus areas where the guidelines and evidence advice contains more than a dozen recommendations for action. In others there are just one or two. It is not clear from the toolkit guidelines whether this is indicative of greater importance and complexity in some areas compared with others or whether some focus areas have received greater attention in the toolkit development and are hence more complete and detailed.

 

Either way, for the WBL Maturity Toolkit to be accepted and used as an authoritative source of information, advice and practical guidance, the completeness and consistency issues need to be addressed. It is anticipated that this case study, the more detailed resources on the project wbsite at http://swanseametwbl.pbworks.com, and the outcomes of the other projects in this programme, will combine to assist other institutions in the community of practice benefit from the use and development of the toolkit. 

A further anticipated development that will improve the usefulness of the WBL Maturity Toolkit is the current plan to combine it with the planning approach of the jisc Viewpoints project, and the outcomes of that work will be of great interest.


5  What outputs has your project produced?

Give details of any additional outputs and resources  that your project has produced that can be used by others, including a link to your code repository where this is applicable. How have they been used in your project and what benefits have been achieved? Ensure you include a link here to your Design Studio (DS) page from where all of these should be accessible, even if your DS page simply includes a link to your outputs.


All of the outcomes of the work carried out by Swansea Metropolitan as part of the Dewi project are available on the project website at: http://swanseametwbl.pbworks.com.

The outcomes for the different WBL Maturity Toolkit focus areas are reported on separate pages on the website:

1. Institutional Readiness

2. Faculty/School/Department Readiness

3. Programme Design for WBL

6. Quality of the Learner Experience

 

The outcomes are also available on the WBL Maturity Toolkit website at: http://wbltoolkit.pbworks.com/w/page/55733438/Initiative A Swansea Metropolitan University and on the jisc Design Studio at: http://jiscdesignstudio.pbworks.com/w/page/61057579/Embedding Benefits Programme


6  How will the embedding benefits activity be developed further/sustained?

Give details here of ways in which your resources

  • will be rolled out on a larger scale;
  • has changed practice in ways that will sustained in future developments;
  • has now become embedded within your department and/or institution;
  • has impacted on developments in other institutions
  • and what still needs to be done …

As with any resource relating to innovation and development, the WBL Maturity Toolkit will quickly lose its usefulness if it does not:

  • Maintain a dynamic presence that is clearly being maintained and continuously improved by an active user community;
  • Represent a key authoritative resource, the value of which is repeatedly endorsed by leaders in work based learning, particularly employers and the professions;
  • For sustainability and embedding the WBL Maturity Toolkit needs a business model made viable and maintained by the community of practice because of its clear added value.

For this reason it needs to be seen as a live resource that itself develops as it is being used. The project at Swansea Metropolitan as part of the DEWI project demonstrated the value of the toolkit in the online WBL course development and also showed how the process contributed to the refinement of the toolkit itself. The development of the toolkit in the context of the Viewpoints project is seen as a very positive initiative and its use will certainly be a component of future WBL planning at the university.


7  Summary and Reflection

Suggested topics to consider:

  • lessons learned
  • whether you believe the project met/exceeded or failed to live up to expectations;
  • whether you believe the approach could be of value to other institutions/in other contexts;
  • building on this experience, whether (and, if so, how) you will alter your practice further in the future;
  • What are your top tips for others adopting a similar approach?
  • If you were to run this project again what would you do differently?
  • key challenges that were overcome 

The WBL Maturity Toolkit was seen to be most useful as a checklist against which work based learning courses can be mapped and their completeness judged. To some extent it can be seen to be a two way process as new programmes bring different contexts, priorities and methods to WBL design and can inform and refine the toolkit itself. The toolkit should be seen as a design tool owned, managed and continuously improved by the whole WBL community of practice. 

 

The CILT Logistics and Transport programme being used as the Swansea Met case study in the use of the JISC WBL Toolkit had two very specific characteristics that provided valuable information about WBL design. The first was that the programme is designed and validated by the industry lead body rather than the institution that delivers it. The second was that the online distance learning delivery method is completely new to the programme and the institution. This pointed to the need for the WBL Maturity Toolkit to be a dynamic resource that actively supports and promotes innovation in WBL for the institution involved, particularly through the exploitation of emerging technologies.

 

Given the innovative nature of the delivery method for the institution, the toolkit had the potential to be central to the 'checks and balances' processes that inform the course development and validation systems that lead to approval and delivery. There is likely to be uncertainty and some scepticism about online distance learning if it is new to an institution and the inclusion of a systematic evaluation process will bring reassurance that all quality issues are being addressed. 

 

This is particularly important when it comes to the validation and quality assurance of new delivery methods. The validation process for any new programme at the university is very rigorous, and the inclusion of a design tool that has been developed and used by a range of other institutions for the same purpose will add validity to the proposal.

 

As a consequence of the work, a trial delivery of the course is now under way and an initial assessment of effectiveness has been very positive, both in terms of cost effectiveness and the learner experience.


Additional Information for QAA Case Study

 

 

Discipline and occupational field 

 
Faculty of Applied Design and Engineering, School of Logistics and Manufacturing Engineering 

Name of module/programme/course 

 
Advanced Diploma in Logistics and Transport 

SCQF level (Scotland only) 

 
 

Model of WBL 

 

Can you describe how WBL is integrated into your curriculum? How does this impact on curricula structure and development? It would be useful to estimate the proportion of the curriculum WBL contributes to (100 words)

This course is entirely work based. It is delivered to armed forces personnel stationed abroad and is a professional qualification validated by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. Currently, delivery is by correspondance supplemented by face-to-face practical work and assessment by peripatetic institutional tutors. This project aimed to develop an online distance learning WBL delivery system assessed by e-portfolio evidence.

All engineering courses at the institution are work related, but few are work based. Many have work placement components for engineering students, but these are not regarded as equivalent to WBL as an employee in the workplace.

Aspects of WBL covered in case study

(see Notes at the bottom of this page)

 

Please indicate which aspects of WBL you will cover as part of your case study and why you have decided to cover them. These are listed in bold in the Notes at the bottom of this page. You may find that your practice maps against more than one, but you need not cover all of the aspects.  You may find that your provision maps onto several aspects, and we would expect you to cover more than one.  The structure of Work Based Learning Maturity Toolkit has been used to inform the type of aspects we wish to cover. The Notes below give the full list of the aspects along with some prompts against each one.  These have been cross-referenced with the appropriate section in the WBL Maturity Toolkit and are there to hopefully stimulate thinking rather than being prescriptive.    Note if you do cover particular aspects then they should be made explicit in the main case study text where the aspect is discussed.   

 

The Swansea Metropolitan project focussed on four specific areas of the WBL Maturity Toolkit:

 

1. Institutional Readiness. The criteria considered being: 1-1 WBL strategy and plans, 1-8 WBL procedures and processes for programme validation, 1-9 QA for WBL and 1-12 Business, commercial and financial approaches

2. Faculty Readiness. The criteria considered being: 2-1 WBL strategy and implementation plan and 2-4 Training and support for external staff and employers

3. Programme Design for WBL. The criteria considered being: 3-3 Development and planning for validation, 3-4 Alignment with professional standards, 3-8 IT Support and 3-11 Learning materials and resources

6. Quality Enhancement of the Learner Experience. The criteria considered being: 6-3 Programme Design, Review and Quality Enhancement and 6-4 Programme Delivery and Support

 

In each area of focus and for each criterion the main statement, self assessment guidelines, evidence to look for and (where included) further information and examples were examined. In each case a summary was made of the area of focus in the context of the proposed Swansea Metropolitan WBL development. The summary was then followed by an assessment of the WBL Toolkit added value for the design process and concluded with proposed potential enhancements for the toolkit identified by completing the evaluation exercise.

Practice

 

Please describe the practice you are presenting. It would be useful to focus on the ‘how to’ messages that comes from your practice.  

As mentioned above please make explicit reference to the aspects of WBL you are describing.  Include any details that would be useful to colleagues; in particular we are very interested in details about how the practice was developed and implemented. Some questions that might be useful are:

 

  • What were the drivers for the development of the practice?
  • What were the aims and objectives?
  • What did we actually do when delivering these aspects of the provision?
  • What obstacles got in the way and how were these overcome? What was learnt? What helped and how? 
  • Has this practice been evaluated and by whom?  What would we do differently next time?
  • How do you see this practice being developed in the future – what will happen next?
  

The broad aim of the project at Swansea Metropolitan was to use the JISC WBL Maturity Toolkit in the design of an online distance learning version of the CILT Logistics and Transport courses for delivery to British armed forces overseas.

The objectives were to:

  • Plan and develop the online distance learning delivery of Logistics and Transport courses in collaboration with CILT(UK) and with geographically dispersed clients, particularly the armed forces;
  • Use the WBL Maturity Toolkit to ensure institutional and faculty preparedness for new and innovative methods of delivery to work based learners;
  • Assist in the formal quality assurance and validation of online distance learning as a new delivery mode for the courses;
  • Evaluate the WBL Maturity Toolkit as a design tool and to use the project to assist in developing and improving the toolkit effectiveness for the user community.

 

As far as the Swansea Metropolitan contribution to the Dewi project was concerned, there were no particular barriers encountered that prevented a very useful assessment of the WBL Maturity Toolkit. However, it was found that there weresome significant areas for improvement in the toolkit itself and it is hoped that the outcomes of the project will assist in the development of the resource.

 

The project team concluded that the WBL Maturity Toolkit was a dynamic resource that benefited from refinement using information from the WBL developments it assisted. It was a valuable 'check list' of WBL features against which any planned development could be assessed. In return, the toolkit could be informed about changes in WBL pedagogy, delivery method and assessment driven by changes in work practice, technology and workforce skills needs.

 

References

 

Please use the Harvard referencing system.  

 

All documents related to the project can be accessed at:

http://swanseametwbl.pbworks.com 

 

 

Notes

 

Aspects of Work Based Learning

  • Quality enhancement and quality assurance – including how employers and employee/students are informed of, and involved with quality enhancement mechanisms, including course feedback (6-3), employer and professional body input into programme approval, validation and programme review (6-3)
  • Staff development – acceptance of WBL by wide academic community as being a valid mode for higher education learning (1-7), development opportunities for staff engaged in WBL (1-7)
  • Working with employers – development of strategic partnerships with employers (2-2 and 5-3), supporting staff to work with employers (2-3), how programme was aligned with employer/employee needs (3-1), how learning outcomes were developed/linked to employer goals and employer input into curriculum (3-9), managing the relationship with employers (4-2), development of learning contracts (4-3), tripartite agreements (2-2 and 5-1)
  • Training and support for employers and workplace tutors/mentors – induction, training courses, involvement in quality enhancement/assurance processes (2-4)
  • Supporting students in the workplace- including access to learning materials and resources (3-10) particularly given employee commitments (4-4), the role of workplace tutors (4-2), the role of academic tutors (4-2), role of institutional support staff (4-4) development of learning contracts (4-3), supporting students with disabilities (4-4), arrangements for supporting students through transitions (4-4 and 6-6), support for study skill development (6-6), tripartite agreements (2-2 and 5-1), negotiating with  learners and employers learner developmental needs  (6-1), support outside traditional term-times (6-4)
  • Development of flexible programme design – could include incorporation of RPL and considering alternative means of accessing the programme (3-5 and 6-3), accreditation of employer provision, or adapting existing modules to better meet needs of a WBL programme/students, reducing the time taken to obtain a qualification, creating learning outcomes and programme structures appropriate for employer and employee needs (6-3)
  • Transition and induction – including issues around managing these for students who may/will be off-campus (4-1), pre-entrance guidance (6-1), induction (6-2)
  • Delivery – How does the programme integrate learning from academia and work?  If this is through reflective learning or PDP how is that integrated with the curriculum? (4-2), could also include integration of RPL (4-2), innovative uses of technology (7)
  • Assessment – means and models of assessment (4-3), use of formative feedback, use of assessment methods that reflect/use workplace outputs/activities and quality assurance implications of these (6-4 and 6-5), use of technology (6-5), how achievement of learning outcomes is evidenced (6-5).

 

 

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