learning - Academic Conferences Limited

Tools for Evaluating Students’ Work in an Interactive
(Open) Virtual Space: Case Study of an eLearning Course
in an International Network of Universities
Jana Dlouhá, Martin Zahradník, Jiří Dlouhý and Andrew Barton
Charles University Environment Center, Charles University, Prague, Czech
Republic
jana.dlouha@czp.cuni.cz
Abstract: This article presents a brief analysis of changes in educational practices associated with the “third role”
of higher education institutions (HEIs) that are occurring not only at an institutional level, but also within the
learning process taking place at lower levels (individual, course, program) and could be effectively combined with
the introduction of eLearning methodologies into teaching that stress the social aspects of learning. Teaching in
the open space provides the opportunity to use active forms of teaching / learning and creates conditions for
social learning. Conceptual and practical shifts would also involve methods of assessment to justify their benefits
and stress certain qualities in higher education (HE). Based on these theoretical considerations, practical
experience with the eLearning course “Multiple Perspectives on Globalization and Sustainable Development”
operated as part of the international Virtual Campus for Sustainable Development (VCSE) eLearning program is
analyzed. The method of teaching was geared toward independent and collaborative student work in a wiki
environment and the development of key competences necessary to understand and be active in the complex
field of sustainability. The authors show how to practically apply the pedagogical principle that educational
objectives, methods, learning environments and assessment procedures must be aligned. For assessment, a
combination of evaluation tools was introduced, such as rubrics evaluated by teachers and questionnaires
completed by the course participants which provided feedback on course outcomes in comparison with its
educational goals. The method of assessment focused on “students’ approaches to learning” is described, and
the possibilities for promoting and evaluating social learning processes that would contribute to the development
of capabilities to communicate across disciplinary and academic boundaries within higher education are
discussed.
Keywords: higher education, eLearning, competences, social learning, Wiki, assessment
1. Introduction – change of practices in higher education
With regard to their potential engagement in society and active participation in its transition toward
sustainability, universities have to develop a third role based on interaction with other societal players,
and mutual interdependence with society (“co-evolution” with its systems) (Ferrer-Balas et al., 2009).
In this article we will argue that the envisaged change might be applied at an individual level and thus
brought into the heart of education - through transformation of the knowledge generation process that
will emphasize its social functions, the development of participation and to involve a “system’s
thinking, joint learning, open communication…” (Lukman et al., 2009). In practice, an expanded set of
educational outcomes is required: besides knowledge (that should reside in an individual’s head),
competences that are developed and are subsequently demonstrated in meaningful practice are
important. An operational definition of competences is based on a combination of skills, knowledge
and attitudes that are appropriate to particular situations (Dlouhá, 2009a, 2009b); competences
relevant to sustainable development (the theme of the course described further on) involve:
“competency for using, shaping, handling and sharing different sets of information and knowledge”,
“competency for dealing with uncertainties and thinking proactively”, and “process-oriented and
structural knowledge” (Burandt and Barth, 2010).
This perspective is associated with constructivist theories, focusing on the learning process as a
distinct field, situational understanding of it (the process is affected by a particular situation), and
research that is no longer focused on student characteristics such as intelligence, but rather on their
individual preferences, perceptions of the learning environment and motivations. This focus brought
about not only considerable methodological gains but also possibilities to influence the learning
process and resulting student achievements through teacher interventions (Entwistle, 2000).
1.1 Learning approaches
Learning processes started to be researched in Britain and Sweden in the 1970s and the studies were
focused on the learning environment factors - these factors are perceived differently by students and
result in a combination of student motives and strategies which was defined as student approaches to
166