Hidden Potential or Hollow Promise?
Staff members having a discussion during a community of interest
New education technologies challenge existing models of teaching, learning and outreach practice in Higher Education. Will such technologies accelerate progress to wider access and greater success? Will they have no effect? Or even worse, a negative impact on students' access and success?
Please join Dr Rachel Buchanan (Education), Ms Liz Goode (English Language and Foundation Studies Centre) and Mr Matt Lumb (Equity and Diversity) as they provide brief summaries of their papers presented last month to the 23rd European Access Network Annual Conference at the University of Edinburgh. This will be followed by discussion of issues in the area of equity, technology and higher education.
When: 10-11am Wednesday 6 August, 2014
Where: HC11, Hunter Building
RSVP: to Liam.Phelan@newcastle.edu.au
Jointly presented by the Centre of Excellence for Equity in Higher Education and the Community of Interest in Online Teaching, Learning and Research.
Papers to be presented
Rachel Buchanan - It's more than computer hubs: Equity, learning, and digital technologies in Higher Education.
Co-authored with Dr Erica Southgate, this paper examines the disjuncture, or the 'equity gap', between policies based on the assumption that students come to Higher Education ready to use digital technologies for learning, and the lived experiences of students and educators in a regional university in Australia which has a history of teaching a number of students from non-traditional backgrounds.
Liz Goode - Can students from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds thrive in fully online courses? Lessons learnt in an Australian tertiary preparation program.
This paper contributes an Australian perspective to international discourse on widening the participation of low socioeconomic or disadvantaged groups in higher education. It details the strategies and outcomes associated with moving Australia's oldest foundation/tertiary preparation program online, and describes the instructional design principles, technologies, and student support mechanisms employed over a three year period.
Matt Lumb - Courageous Consultation and the 'Digital Divide'.
This paper explores the experiences of an outreach team navigating the complexities of deploying digital tools in partnership with school communities servicing a regional context where transition to Higher Education has historically been low compared to national levels.
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.