evaluating innovative blended delivery in a first-year law unit

Evaluating Innovative Blended Delivery in a First-Year Law Unit

Dr Amanda Scardamaglia

Dr Ekaterina Pechenkina

Swinburne

SCIENCE | TECHNOLOGY | INNOVATION | BUSINESS | DESIGN


- BL elements can include: online components and social networking

activities, “the combination of media and tools employed in an e-

learning environment’ and/or ‘the combination of pedagogical

approaches, irrespective of the learning technology used” (Oliver

& Trigwell 2005)

- BL is not adding extra elements it is moving some elements into

online environment in a “planned, pedagogically valuable manner”

(Picciano 2009)

- BL courses “combine or mix modes of web-based technology – e.g.,

virtual classrooms, self-paced instruction, collaborative learning,

streaming video, audio and text to accomplish an educational goal”

(Driscoll 2002)

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What is Blended Learning?

Swinburne



- Increased engagement with the material and the learning process

- Enriched educational and social experiences

- Overcoming language and communication barriers, such as shyness

- Personalisation of learning

- Engaging with material at own pace

- Increased peer interaction

(Garrison & Kanuka 2004; McCarthy 2010)

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Benefits of Blended Learning

Swinburne



- New Swinburne LLB (2015)

- LAW10010 – Introduction to Australian Law & Statutory Interpretation

- Skills based introductory unit

- 64 students (first semester, 2015)

- 4 contact hours (1 blended/online, 2 hour lecture/seminar, 1 hour

tutorial)

- Blended learning based curriculum developed - carpe diem workshop

- Focus groups to evaluate approach

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Blended Learning in Law

Swinburne



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Blended Delivery Approach

Swinburne




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Swinburne



- Focus group

- Expectations and experiences of the unit and BL delivery

- Support: staying on top on workload, accessing/receiving support

- Resources: preferences in accessing/consuming content

- Peer collaboration: communication, online discussions

- 7 student participants

- Demographic survey (gender, age, domestic/international status, first

language, modes of enrolment)

- More focus groups are planned with future cohorts

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Evaluation: Research Design

Swinburne



- Expectations: “I felt like with law it would be very dry. You would be given a

lot of content and that was it you'd just have to read pages and pages, you'd

have to read cases.”

- BL allowed for deeper learning: “You’re not just reading pages you can watch

videos, even short snippets and you can just quickly recite everything in your

head, it comes back to you. And I feel like it's a much more effective way of

learning.”

- Tailored review videos were appreciated: “With the videos I feel I learn a lot

more just from those short videos rather than reading a whole thing because

it just sticks better for me anyway.”

- “I also quite enjoyed the online videos as support.”

- “I really, really like the videos. I think that's saving me right now, it's saving

me!”

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Findings

Swinburne



- Support: Blackboard discussions helped prepare for assignments;

videos allowed to revisit the information ahead/after lectures

- Students appreciated the format of face-to-face lectures where they

could ask questions in real-time

- Resources: Online component replacing one of the lectures allowed

for personalisation of learning (learning at own time); clarification of

dense/difficult content. Desired resources: more detailed

information/exemplars of structuring assignments/essays,

referencing, legal databases usage

- Collaboration: Facebook groups in addition to face-to-face/study

groups; discussion boards – for a quick reply seen by everyone,

Blackboard announcements were appreciated

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Findings

Swinburne



- Focus groups planned for second semester (small mid-year intake)

- Analyse and publish results

- Evaluate broader roll-out of LLB

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Next?


Dr Amanda Scardamaglia

Dr Ekaterina Pechenkina

evaluating innovative blended delivery in a first-year law unit

Education