Video-Supported Education Alliance (ViSuAL) is an Alliance of 6 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and 6 Educational Technology Companies (ETCs) co-creating an evidence-based pedagogical model for Video-Supported Collaborative Learning.

Project partners are from Finland, Estonia, Switzerland, the Netherlands, England and Portugal.

Find out more about the project by visiting our website www.visualproject.eu and the blog www.visual.uevora.pt.

You can keep an eye on ViSuAL activities also on social media.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

PROJECT NEWSLETTER

March 2019Issue 2

In this newsletter we introduce one ViSuAL project partner - University of Évora (Portugal). We also give an overview of most experiments from the first cycle. Firstly, here is an overview of upcoming events.

Meeting in LAHTI, FinlandViSuAL project meetings will take place on 5 - 7 June 2019 at LUT Technical University in Lahti. We will reflect on the first cycle of experiments and make plans for the second cycle.

Meeting in TARTU, EstoniaIn autumn, we will have ViSuAL project meetings just before the start of EAPRIL conference in Tartu on 25 - 26 November 2019. Welcome to Tartu - the city of good thoughts!

EAPRIL 2019 conferenceEAPRIL 2019 conference will take place in Tartu, Estonia on 27 - 29 November 2019. Please visit www.eapril.org for more information.

Special thanks to everyone who contributed to the newsletter!

University of Évora in PortugalThe University of Évora is a university of the Portuguese public higher education system and therefore has the task of production of knowledge through scientific and artistic research, experimentation and technological and humanistic development.

The socialization of knowledge, providing the traditional student population and the working population, the academic qualification through bachelor's, master's and doctorate, ad hoc training courses and informal training throughout life.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Introducing project partner - University of Évora

The transmission of knowledge to the community with a view to innovation and business competitiveness as well as the modernization of public services and social and cultural development of the community as a whole.

The University of Évora is organized in 4 Schools: Arts, Sciences and Technology, Social Sciences and Nursing and offers 41 undergraduate and 120 postgraduate degrees. Research and Development (R&D) covers several scientific areas through a network of 14 Research Units, all of them submitted to international evaluation, under the coordination of the Institute for Research and Advanced Studies. Furthermore, the University of Évora established three Chairs in areas of excellence: Biodiversity, Renewable Energies and Heritage, which are sponsored by private capital holders.

Over the last years, the University has fostered a close link with the community. Such interaction has been possible through the creation of working networks and dissemination of knowledge such as the participation in the Science and Technology Park as well as through the establishment of protocols and contracts for the supply of services in partnerships with Companies, Universities, Associations and Institutes.

The main R&D areas are: Agronomy and Biodiversity; Geophysics, Environment and Landscaping; Materials and Surface Science; Economics and Business Studies; Computer Sciences and Software Interoperability; Social and Political Sciences, History, History of Art, Science and Cultures; Applied Mathematics; Education; Linguistics and Literature; Elderly Healthcare. The 150 running R&D projects are developed through national and international partnerships, FP7 and H2020 funding, FCT as well as by private sponsorship.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Pedagogical Models

Video Usage and Pedagogical Models for Professional DevelopmentIn the ViSuAL project, a review of the literature focused on the theme of video-supported collaborative learning was carried out. Video technologies can be used in very different ways and support different pedagogical perspectives, including that of collaborative learning. In this literature review, involving 100 peer-reviewed papers, four ways of using video technologies to support collaborative learning were found.

All the modalities of video usage were reported to be used in research and allowed some kind of collaborative learning actions, in the way video technology was used. We specify the content and the meaning of each of these types or modalities of using video to support collaborative learning: i) “Video Recording” (using video for capturing and recording educational events); ii) “Creating videos” (using video technologies and tools to capture, create, edit, publish and share video for educational/training purposes); iii) “Video content display and interactive/hypervideo” (using video for content delivery, from different sources and formats, and in some of that formats, it includes the using interactive tools or hypervideo navigations tools and video annotations tools); and iv) “Video as a communication tool” (using video technology to communicate with others in asynchronous and synchronous interactions).

Thirteen pedagogical models for facilitation of professional development on video-supported collaborative learning were found and reported: 1) teacher’s video clubs; 2) video traces; 3) video cases; 4) video clips; 5) embedded in professional development; 6) Video Stimulated Recall (VSR); 7) action-research; 8) Video for data collection; 9) video creation; 10) content video displaying; 11) interactive and hypervideo; 12) video as a communication tool; and 13) video-problem solving. This newsletter contains a more detailed presentation of the first four models.

1. Model for supporting collaborative learning through teacher’s video clubsIn this model, groups of teachers observe, discuss and reflect about each others’ classroom practice regularly (Cockburn, 2010). Video clubs have been created to empower teachers through the promotion of teacher´s reflections, observation and feedback (of their own and others video recording teaching practices), mentoring and coaching, sharing and collaborating within communities of practices and learning. Video clubs has been also adopted as a strategy for developing pre-service teacher's knowledge of science (Johnson, 2015).

2. Model for supporting collaborative learning through the use of video tracesVideo traces are carefully selected sample video from trainee’s classroom practice to view, discuss and analyse collaboratively with their peers, veteran teachers and university teachers (Bier, M. L., 2012). In this model, teacher trainees made videos as examples of their classroom practice and student work. Video traces were viewed and collaboratively analysed, and feedback was given by cooperating teachers, field supervisors and university teachers.

3. Model for supporting collaborative learning through the use of teaching video cases Video cases are video recordings showing authentic and complex realities of classrooms in ill-structured domains of teacher education and initial teacher education (Goeze, 2014). Video cases are used to promote teachers’ discussions of video cases – the study of published materials and of experienced teachers in their professional practices – in order to enhance professional practices quality. It involves groups of learners working together and situated learning in a meaningful authentic context in which learners can explore the content by engaging in thinking and problem solving.

4. Model for supporting collaborative learning through teachers’ video clipsIn this model, short video clips are used inside the Dialogic Video Cycle. Video recordings from reflections of teacher’s own teaching practices serve as anchors for collaborative discussions, providing positive and valuable individual conditions for teacher changes of classroom practices (Gröschner, 2015). Inspired in the PSC approach by Borko (2008) - Problem-Solving Cycle, the approach of Dialogic Video Cycle - consists of ongoing cycles of three interconnected PD workshops. The same number of workshops are monitored by a facilitator who moderates them and organizes the videotaping of the teachers’ lessons and the selection of video clips (Gröschner, 2015).

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Experiments

Experiment n.º 5 - JAMK University of Applied Sciences (Business) and EdVistoThe experiment takes place at Operating Environment Analysis course in Master’s Degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management at JAMK University of Applied Sciences as a group assignment. In the experiment, we used online EdVisto program as a tool to present the future of operating environment analysis in their field of expertise. Students formed groups of about 3-6 persons and worked together on a broader vision (Pecha Kucha video) of the future vision of the given sector in 2030 based on more detailed reports.Eight videos were created by student groups. To ensure collaborative learning, each group also commented on one other group's presentation.

First experiment was held during 11/2018-1/2019. Master’s students made collaborative videos in the end of the course and investigated the future trends and possible scenarios in their own field. A total of 35 students completed the assignment. Feedback on the video assignment and EdVisto program was given at the end of the course.

Students also reflected on the video assignment and its impact on learning in their self-reflection reports. In addition, the link to the feedback questionnaire is shared in the learning environment. Teachers will finalize their video assignments during 4/2019 and summarize the student feedback during the spring 2019.

The aim of the project is to develop management and leadership practices in order to enhance the commitment of employees of YZ-generation in Tourism and Hospitality business organizations. Participants are managers in small and medium-sized companies with various educational backgrounds. About 20 managers from five companies participate in the experiment.

The purpose in the experiment is to use video for recording management situations with Y and Z generations. Additionally, videos are utilized for collaborative learning aiming to improve leadership skills of managers and to develop common management practices in companies. Flowboard/Flowbox video sharing space is used as a video technology in the experiment.

At first, managers make videos about their own managerial work and reflect their leadership, interaction and behavior with employees. These videos are shared in Flowboard. Secondly, managers reflect their managerial work and generational differences together with peers and their coach (a teacher) in small group meetings with the help of videos. Topics arising from the YZ-Management Survey in the beginning of the YZ-Generation Management Development Project, are emphasized in the discussions.

Above steps of making videos, sharing them and having collective reflective discussions based on the videos, will be repeated at least two times in the experiment, to enhance the development of leadership both individual and organizational level.

Experiment n.º 6 - JAMK University of Applied Sciences (Business) and FlowboxThis experiment takes places at YZ-Generation Management Development Project.

University of Évora experiments with Bloco Grafico, iVideo.education, EdVistoUniversity of Évora reflects their project activities in the ViSuAL project blog. Please visit www.visual.uevora.pt to find out more about their experiments they conduct by using Bloco Grafico, iVideo.education and EdVisto technologies.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Experiments

Experiment n.º 8 - Lappeenranta University of Technology and FlowboxThe pilot test took place at the LUT-University with adult students from master’s programme of industrial engineering and management at the end of last year. The experimentation was a part of a Digitalization and sustainable organizational development course. The aim for the pilot was to encourage (adult) students to utilize videos in their learning.

During the course, students were instructed to record a short session while group working (mandatory). Additionally, students were able to do rehearsal and record their final presentations for the seminar day in December 2018, for the last day of the course (optional).

A light version of Flowboard from Flowbox was part of this pilot i.e. Flowboard was not integrated into the Moodle pages of this course. Flowboard was used via group-based folders online, which are secured by passwords. Teacher in charge in the course is Professor Helinä Melkas and responsible teacher-researcher in this pilot is Dr. Mirva Hyypiä.

According to the feedback from students, Flowboard was very simple and easy to use for uploading and sharing the videos. However, students question why to use this additional platform in studying as the platform did not allow them to edit the videos or share other documents.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Experiments

Experiment n.º 12 - Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (SFIVET) and iVideo.educationSFIVET experiment takes place within a 3-year basic training program for Vocational Education and Training (VET) in-service teachers in Switzerland.

The experiment adopts a situation-based approach, thus enabling a smooth connection between authentic professional practices experienced by teachers at school and the training course. At the same time, it fosters the development of professional competences and a seamless integration of theoretical, explicit knowledge with implicit practical knowledge.

The experimental activities are integrated in a training module preparing the teachers for their final practical exam and will consist of a reiterated formative assessment of the teaching practices. The participants are 37 VET in-training teachers. They are divided in two groups based on the similarity of subjects they teach. For each group, participants work in pairs. They are split into two conditions based on their preferences: half of the sample will provide feedback and conduct a self-observation on video-recorded lessons supported by the iVideo.education video annotation tool.

The remaining participants deliver feedback and conduct the self-observation task by writing a report through direct observation of in class-examination of peers’ and one’s own lessons. Specifically, in the video annotation condition, each teacher in the dyad video records a part of her/his own lesson (15-minute video) in which the defined activities are carried out; the video of each teacher is uploaded onto the iVideo software, where teachers reciprocally write feedback on the video.

Upon completion of this task, the course supervisors enter their feedback as well. In the direct observation condition, participants follow the same procedure, with the exception of the use of the video annotation software for feedback sharing; they in fact visit and observe an in-class colleague’s lesson. Feedback on the examined lesson are then delivered through a written feedback report on the selected foci of their observation.

The reciprocal peer observations and feedback are carried out for a total of two other-practice analysis. In the last part of the experiment each teacher video-records a part of one’s own lesson to self-analyze one’s authentic practice. The design of the experimentation is structured to implement the capturing, transferring and sharing of authentic situations experienced by teachers in their classes in order to facilitate both reflection-on-action and reflection-for-action, in an instructional scenario where the collaborative analysis of practices is meant to lead to a self-analysis that will engender teaching change.

Hence, reflection is fostered by the activities of delivering and receiving feedback through peer-to-peer, expert-to-novice, and group analysis collaboration, as a means to consolidate effective teaching practices, to improve unsuccessful ones, and to develop a critical perspective on one's own professional behavior.

In this study, the role of technology through the employment of the iVideo.education tool, serves to increase the number of occasions participants have to analyze one's practice and to investigate the use of video annotation to generate contextualized, situation-based, concrete, written analysis of practices.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Experiments

Experiment n.º 13 - Aeres University of Applied Sciences Wageningen and IRIS ConnectThe experiment takes place at the Higher Education Institute Aeres Wageningen (HEI AHW) with teacher students who reflect on their development during their study. Students are teaching with collaborative learning and reflect on their teaching at the university. The reflections are about collaborative learning. It implies that students reflect on their lessons and build knowledge with these reflections.

The experiment takes place at (pre) vocational education during teacher education. The students are teaching at the secondary schools for vocational training and film parts of their lessons. At the university the students will reflect and react on their teaching via IRIS Connect and knowledge building approach. With the dialogue about collaborative learning the understanding of collaborative learning will increase.

Experiment n.º 14-a - Aeres University of Applied Sciences Wageningen and EdVistoThe experiment takes place at the Higher Education Institute Aeres Wageningen (HEI AHW) with teacher students who reflect on their development during their study. Students film moments and reflections and share this in EdVisto. Knowledge building will improve their reflections based on the reflection experience with the movies in EdVisto.

How these videos can improve own development in competence?How do the peers and the discussion tribute to the deeper understanding? What is the student first idea (concept) of reflection and value? Does that idea change over time by discussion and input from peers? How does reflection contribute to the professional development of teachers?

Experiment n.º 14-b - Aeres University of Applied Sciences Wageningen and EdVistoIn this experiment the students start conversations with their mentoring pupils in pre-vocational education. They record these conversations and discuss their technical coaching skills in peer groups. They can watch the films remotely and in lessons they discuss the films and the feedback given by the teacher and peer.

They analyze the phases in the conversation and other aspects. On the basis of given criteria aspects they are discussing and provide each other with feedback. Students formulate their own learning points and next time they show their improvement. At the end they give a presentation of their growth, from the beginning to the end, with a presentation with a film in Edvisto (that can be constructed during the process). With the dialogue about coaching skills we hope the understanding of ‘how to be a good coach’ will increase.

Experiment n.º 15 - University of Tartu and IRIS ConnectThe experiment is conducted with speech therapy and special education teacher training students. It takes place in the courses “Seminar of Speech and Language Assessment” and “Practical Work in Speech Development”. Both courses are intertwined.

During the experiment the IRIS Connect Discovery Kit Go Live is used. In a practicum where students counsel children with speech impediments and their parents, the teacher observes everything from another room. With the Iris Connect Discovery Kit Go Live the teacher can give feedback without physically interrupting the counseling session of the teacher student. The teacher also has the possibility to add time-stamped comments which allows to analyze the students counselling techniques.

The goal is to improve collaborative learning and to increase the impact of the counseling sessions, especially for those who are located outside of Tartu. The hypothesis is that the students will see the live ear coaching as something that supports their development and that observing the student activities through a video has the same effect as watching through a window from a room next door.

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Experiments

Experiment n.º 17 - University of Tartu and IRIS ConnectThe experiment takes place as part of teacher education practice course titled “Continuous Pedagogical Traineeship” at the University of Tartu. This is a compulsory practice course for all student teachers and it aims to link theoretical studies with practical experiences at schools and to develop student teachers’ reflection skills.

Two teacher education curricula groups are involved in this experiment: teachers of several subjects in basic school (master level 1st year students) and teachers of vocational training (bachelor level 1st year students). With this experiment we are developing a learning environment in IRIS Connect platform for student teachers who are already working as teachers and carrying out this practice course based on their own work.

The developed learning environment aims to create opportunities for teachers to reflect collaboratively and thereby support each other’s reflections. Additionally, step-by-step support is created to guide teachers’ reflection and creating links between theoretical knowledge and practical experiences (including video examples, guiding questions, theoretical reading materials etc).

The information and views set out in this newsletter are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Neither the European Union institutions and bodies nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Experiments

Experiment n.º 18 - University of Tartu and FlowboxThe experiment is conducted with bachelor level 2nd year teacher-students on “Observation and Pedagogical Practice” course. These students are studying to become teachers of several subjects in middle schools and this course includes their first school practice.

The main aim of the practice is to analyze learning and teaching activities. During the practice period they participate in the planning of lessons and they also get their first teaching experience. The practicum lasts one week and every day the student reflects on their activities.

Students usually write a diary to reflect upon their practice days. Video diaries are an alternative for written summaries, which support reflection skills of future teachers and help convey their emotions. The course group is divided into two - those who keep written diaries in Moodle and those who make video diaries in Flowbox platform. This enables them to practice the creation of videos, oral reflection and allows to widen the knowledge horizon of future teachers.

Students comment on written or video diary posts from their fellow students. This enables collaborative learning. It allows the students to share with fellow students what they experienced in the school environment. The goal of the experiment is to find out how the video diary format suits the students for reflection and also for learning from each other´s experience.

Creating videos for professional activities gives students the confidence to create and use video-based learning material in their future practice. They also have the chance to get used to hearing their own voice and seeing themselves on video. The latter could also enable the students to create more videos in their future professional work. Flowbox Online Video Platform provides easy ways to upload, share and comment the video content. This enables collaborative learning and group reflections.

Experiment n.º 19 - University of Tartu and EdVistoIn the subject of environmental education one task is to complete a journalistic article based on a real-life problem connected to sustainable development. Some students are completing their tasks in Google Docs. Others complete their task using the EdVisto technology. They create a short video together based on the problem and its solution.

The goal of the experiment is to figure out if the video co-creation environment is suitable for learners for knowledge building, problem solving and collaboration. During the environmental education course it is determined how the video form of presenting the information could be appropriate to enhance the cooperation between students. The experiment is carried out with 1st-3rd year bachelor level students who will become teachers of social and humanitarian subjects in basic school.

Students learn a different form of collaboration via creating videos together and using contemporary mediums at the same time. EdVisto enables the co-work with teachers in the same school as well as in other schools in future.

EdVisto platform enables to use the collaborative video editing possibilities to initiate a collaborative content creation. The storytelling is created together by two groups of students. The advantage of EdVisto is that the process can be carried out in distant learning settings. The experience with EdVisto program is also beneficial for the future career of the students.