Education Commons^™

Csi4 : A Curriculum For Ensuring More Employable Ict Graduates, Deirdre Lillis

Conference papers

ICT skills shortages worldwide can be met by global software innovators that can work in any sector. HubLinked, a partnership of 11 industry and HE partners in the EU and Korea, is developing an integrated CSI4 curriculum for industry-oriented, internationalised, innovation-focused and interdisciplinary Computer Science degrees. CSI4 features Global Labs, where teams of students work across timezones to prototype software, an IaH experience which mimics working in a global ICT company.

An Evaluation Case Study Investigating The Use Of Haptic Ultrasound Training Devices To Help Clinical Measurement Science Students Conceptualise Diagnostic Ultrasound, Jacinta Browne

Theses

The aim of this project was to investigate the use of a haptic ultrasound training device as a training aid to improve students’ learning, competency and confidence, in the conceptually and technically challenging area of diagnostic ultrasound imaging. The research question was investigated through the use of an evaluative case study using a mixed methods approach, with each method converging to ensure triangulation. The quantitative evaluations of the Multiple Choice Questions, psychometric manipulation test and direct observation of ultrasound scanning manipulation, demonstrated improvements of 12%, 29% and 94%, respectively between pre- and post-training performance. The qualitative evaluation of students’ confidence …

Global Software Innovators Strengthening The Software Innovation Capacity Of Europe And Korea, Deirdre Lillis, Paul Doyle, Michael Collins, Brian Keegan, Luca Longo, William O'Mahony, Peter Manifold

Conference papers

Global entrepreneurial talent management is a key challenge for the software sector internationally where competition for high-end skills is intense. SMEs are at a significant disadvantage when competing with major multinationals to access these skills. The Information and Communications Technology sector accounts for 5% of all employment in the EU and there are 900,000 vacancies in this sector in 2017 [1], however over 50% of senior ICT managers believe graduates lack the necessary combination of technical, business and interpersonal skills [2]. In addition, only 4 in 1000 women work in the ICT sector [3].

To address these challenges, HubLinked, an …

Delivering Design Fundamentals Using Relevant Learning Theories In The Delivery Of An Interior Design Project At Third Level, Tracey Dalton

Articles

This is a reflection on teaching practice, focussing on design process in a BA Honours in Design – Interior and Furniture, in Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT). An intrinsic case study approach (Stake 1995) was taken for this research, which focussed on the use of the learning theories in the delivery of an undergraduate interior design project brief. A third year commercial office design project has been used to assess teaching and learning styles. This article will show that, in terms of delivery, in a typical third level interior design project in DIT, the process incorporates all of the learning …

The Lecturer As Learner: Exploring That Digital Divide One More Time, Mary O'Rawe

Conference papers

Although there is widespread acceptance of the importance, and indeed superiority, of student-centred learning in the contemporary success equation (McCabe & O’Connor, 2014), charting the route to such success remains problematic. Many assumptions around the nature of digital learning, and inter-generational attitudes to such learning are still made.

Specific to the context of technology-enhanced teaching, learning and assessment in a higher education environment, a range of generic and particular debates around how to be student-centric arise. Technology-enhanced learning (TEL) has been examined extensively from both the student’s viewpoint, and the lecturer’s perspective (Waycott et al., 2010). But how can these …

Using Hybrid Development Platforms For Easy Design Of Mobile Apps To Improve The Orientation Experience Of First Year Higher Education Students At Dit., Nevan Bermingham, Mary O'Rawe, Trevor Boland

Conference papers

Smartphone usage by students has increased rapidly over the last number of years, and there is evidence to indicate that students are using their smartphones more in higher educational environments.

However, creating mobile applications tailored to the needs of any particular cohort of students can be an expensive and time-consuming endeavour for any organisation. In addition, it normally involves substantial technological expertise.

At the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT), we created two bespoke mobile applications tailored to improve the orientation experience for two different groups of students. “DIT GetSmart!” was designed and built to address the information needs of …

School Of Culinary Arts & Food Technology - Spring Newsletter 2017, James Peter Murphy

Other resources

The School of Culinary Arts & Food Technology - Spring Newsletter captured the many events, research, awards, significant contributions and special activities which the students and staff members of the school have successfully completed leading up to and including the Spring period of 2017.

How Can Higher Education Institutions (Heis) Support The Development Of Entrepreneurial Mindsets In Local Communities?, Emma O'Brien, Thomas M. Cooney

Conference papers

Promoting an entrepreneurial culture through the development of entrepreneurial mindsets has become an important mission on the education and enterprise policy agenda of many governments and supranational organisations. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have responded to this call by developing entrepreneurship / enterprise education pedagogies that now place a greater focus on engendering entrepreneurial competencies within individuals rather than on the creation of new ventures. Such competences are relevant for all aspects of an individual’s life and may assist them in navigating the ever changing, chaotic, global world in which they live. However, some commentators have argued that this development is …

A Path Dependence Approach To Understanding Educational Policy Harmonisation: The Qualifications Framework In The European Higher Education Area, Sharon Feeney, John Hogan

Articles

This paper examines the development of a system of easily readable and comparable qualifications within a single Qualifications Framework in the European Higher Education Area (QF-EHEA) as part of the Bologna process. Employing a path dependence approach, combined with new understandings of critical junctures and incremental policy change, as our conceptual lens, we find that multiple self-reinforcing events between the 1998 Sorbonne Declaration and the 2005 Bergen Communiqué, in the form of Declarations and Communiqués, guided implementation of the Bologna policy process, along with elements of incremental layering. We also see evidence that policy formation and implementation are self-reinforcing in …

Assessment And Feedback Resource Pack, Jen Harvey, Roisin Donnelly

Other resources

The purpose of this resource pack is to provide specialized and localized information on assessment and feedback in higher education for academic staff in DIT. It is designed for staff new to teaching (experienced lecturers may find it useful too) and is intended to complement the largely-generic information delivered in workshops. In relation to feedback, the aim of the pack is to position it as a practice that has a positive and sustained influence on learning, and as a fundamental part of curriculum design, not simply an episodic mechanism delivered by teachers to their students.

Resource Pack On Active Learning, Roisin Donnelly, Marian Fitzmaurice

Other resources

The massification of higher education is now a global phenomenon Huge changes in the teaching and learning milieu within colleges. The forces of massification have brought multiple challenges with regard to pedagogy. What kind of pedagogy to employ? The role of the lecturer is to empower learning and it is challenging and complex. There is a need to employ a pedagogy which requires students to do things, to access information, to solve problems, to reflect on what they are doing and make connections to real world problems.

Educational research has revealed a number of important lessons for educators:

Importance of …

Dit Programme Re-Design Initiatives In Case Studies Of Programme Of/For/As Learning Assessment Approaches., Roisin Donnelly, Jen Harvey, K.C. O'Rourke, Claire Mcavinia, Claire M. Mcdonnell, Orla Hanratty, Frances Boylan, Pauline Rooney

Other resources

The Programme Re-Design Initiative process differs from other team based methods in that it adopts an holistic approach to programme design. Initiatives aim to develop the practice of curriculum design and development in expanded, multi-disciplinary teams. This process is based on the Oxford Brookes University CDI Model and links to the Deakin University Live the Future: Course Intensives.

Orientation Is Key For First-Year Students, Mary O'Rawe

Other resources

The focus on college drop-out rates, particularly in first year, and debates around fees and funding, remind us to consider why students find it so difficult to make the transition from secondary school to higher education.

So how can incoming students prepare themselves to make the best academic transition? This article present a series of useful points for students and parents in preparing for success in a college learning environment.

Community-Based Learning: A Primer, Zeinab Bedri, Ruairí De Fréin, Geraldine Dowling

Practitioner Research Projects

Employers are increasingly demanding graduates with industry-ready communication, decision-making, problem-solving, leadership, emotional intelligence and social ethics skills. Community-based learning (CBL) has been identified as a pedagogical approach which has tremendous potential to produce graduates with these attributes; its prominent role in the future of Ireland's third level landscape is outlined in the Irish National Strategy for Higher Education (Hunt, 2011). However, for many early-career lecturers, distilling the insights from the teaching and learning literature, and then producing a well-designed CBL module, can be an intimidating task. What is missing is a primer which presents the core ideas of CBL in …

Personalised Learning Framework For Enhancing Mathematics Ability, John Butler, Orla Cahill, Basel Magableh, Siobhan O'Regan

Practitioner Research Projects

Mathematics is the cornerstone of many disciplines, including computer science, accounting and the sciences. However, over the past two decades in higher education institutes, it has become increasingly apparent that there is a decline in the basic numeracy skills of first year students entering third level programs (Tariq, 2002). This has been observed in numerous Irish institutes whereby unfortunately it can also be a huge impediment in student progression into second year. Research has shown that students are under-prepared for the challenges posed by third level mathematics (Hourigan & O’Donoghue, 2007). In addition, as lecturers we are not as informed …

Strategies For Enhancing The Mature Student Experience In Higher Education, John O'Carroll, Cathy Ennis, Keith Loscher, Deirdre Ryan, Niall Dixon

Practitioner Research Projects

A principle of the Irish Education system is its endorsement of equity of access to higher education for all Irish citizens. This principle has been enacted through successive government policies including the National Plan for Equity of Access to Higher Education 2015-2019 (HEA, 2015). The aim of this policy is to “ensure that the student body entering, participating in and completing higher education at all levels reflects the diversity and social mix of Ireland’s population” (p.8). Data from this plan shows that participation in higher education by the adult population has increased and that there is a potential for increasing …

Blended Learning - What Practitioners Can Learn From Moocs, Aine Whelan, Aimee Byrne, Keith Colton, Patrick Crean, Conor Mcgarrigle

Practitioner Research Projects

The rapid increase in the use of information technologies in third level education is changing the way courses are provided. Online multimedia have helped reduce the difficulties teachers face with a diversity of student profiles and a large number of students in a classroom. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) present an extreme with regard to student groups in relation to size and diversity and, therefore, many techniques and methods of overcoming the difficulties that this can present have been developed. Much of these methods can apply to online courses generally and to blended teaching environments. This study identifies four key …

Embedding A Blended Learning Approach From First Year, Suzanne Doyle, Michael Moore, Lesley Murphy, Gavin Sewell

Practitioner Research Projects

As DIT strives to enhance the transition of students into third level education, a number of priority areas were identified as part of the ongoing STEER (Student Transition, Expectations, Engagement, Retention) initiative. Ultimately the onus is on DIT to enable students to become self-directed learners. Blended learning is positioned as a solution to aid in this transition. It has been described as "the combination of traditional face-to-face teaching methods with authentic online learning activities" (Davies & Fill, 2007, p. 817). However, it is not without risk to assume that first year students have a natural affinity with blended approaches, as …

Leveraging Peer Learning For Integration Of International Students In The Classroom, Brian Barry, Waleed Abo-Hamad, Diana Carvalho E Ferreira, Niamh Gilmartin

Practitioner Research Projects

The international education sector in Ireland is currently worth approximately €1.58bn per annum, and it is projected to grow to €2.1bn per annum by 2020 (Department of Education and Skills, 2016). The academic challenges faced by international students are linked to language skills, academic background, and cultural aspects (Sadykova, 2014). Peer learning is mutually beneficial for provider and recipient, with benefits including higher academic achievement and greater productivity; increased communication skills and a greater sense of belonging; and the development of support systems (Colvin & Ashman, 2010). Domestic peers help international students to compensate for the lack of culture-specific knowledge …

Internationalsation In The Classroom, Alberto Caimo, Deirdre Duffy, Patrick Mcevoy, Brian Murphy, Grainne Scanlon

Practitioner Research Projects

Multicultural societies require multicultural universities and internationalisation is a powerful influence within higher education. Conceptual understandings of internationalisation and practical activities have evolved significantly to prepare students for global workplaces, social cohesion and personal development (Higher Education Strategy Group, 2011). Internationalisation benefits the development of interculturally competent graduates who can participate in diverse, global labour markets, yet, international students require support while adjusting to new learning environments. A student-centred approach to learning is superseding traditional pedagogy in order to support the most diverse range of learning preferences that are characteristic of multicultural groups (Vita, 2001). Educators are encouraged to expand …

Proposing A Professional Development Model Of Academic Writing And Publishing Support, Roisin Donnelly

Other resources

The module ‘Academic Writing and Publishing’ which resulted in this model being developed was designed to nurture both innovation and critical thinking about writing practice for all academic staff who participated. This exploratory model for critical thinking, reading and academic writing practice is proposed encompassing a series of scaffolded in-class and online activities - Figure 1 shows the different dimensions of the blended module. Ultimately, this model aims to offer inspiration, creativity, confidence, continual feedback, support, and connections about academic writing and publishing. However, such bottom-up practices need direction, so it is important for the future how we think about …

An Investigation Into The Development And Progressive Adaptation Of Graduate Attributes In Tourism Programmes, Louise Bellew, Odette Gabaudan

Articles

As higher education institutes are embracing the notion of graduate attributes, it has become highly desirable to embed these attributes within programmes. This study proposes to investigate students’ views of recently identified graduate attributes in the Dublin Institute of Technology (Ireland), and how they perceive their development and application in their tourism programme. The study supports the idea of the importance of placement in the progressive adaptation of learning and in translating the conception of attributes. While students strongly believe that graduate attributes are developed through the placement experience, it is equally important to embed and strengthen the visibility of …

A Survey Of The Prior Programming Experience Of Undergraduate Computing And Engineering Students In Ireland, Glenn Strong, Catherine Higgins, Nina Bresnihan, Richard Millwood

Articles

It has become apparent that increasing numbers of students arriving into undergraduate computing and engineering degree programmes in Irish 3^rd-level institutions have prior experience of computer programming. As the extent of this prior exposure as well as its nature, origins, and usefulness is not known beyond anecdotal evidence, an annual survey of prior programming experience of freshman undergraduates who study programming as part of their degree has been designed and administered. This paper reports on the first two years of this survey in 2015 and 2016. It found that around one third had some prior experience of programming …

Shining A Light On The National Professional Development Framework For All Who Teach In Irish Higher Education: Why It Matters, How It Works., Roisin Donnelly, Theresa Maguire

Articles

In higher education, we have become increasingly aware of the narrative of being part of a knowledge-based economy, and know there are strong, compelling reasons for continuous professional development (PD) to support our role as educators. For anyone who teaches and supports learning in Irish higher education, PD is fundamental for remaining current in their role, it provides the drive to progress their career, and to deal with change in the sector. Prior to 2016, there has not been a mechanism or route in place nationally to give structure, focus and support to individual academic staff to avail of relevant …

Arts And Humanities Research, Redefining Public Benefit, And Research Prioritization In Ireland, Andrew Gibson, Ellen Hazelkorn

Articles

This article looks at the effects of a national policy of research prioritization in the years following Ireland’s economic crisis. A national research prioritization exercise initiated by policymakers redefined the purpose of higher education research, and designed policies in line with this approach. Placing research for enterprise to the fore, it emphasized the economic value that subjects could return on state investments. This article examines the post-crisis policy of prioritization, its relationship with and effects on arts and humanities research, and how the notion of the benefit of research can be broadened while still addressing economic needs. It draws on …